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Men of the Old Testament: David – 2 Samuel 11  During the run-up to NATO's engagement in Kosovo in 1998, General Wesley Clark proposed a relatively painless way to break the will of Serbian dictator Slobodan Milosevic: threaten him with the use of force, Clark suggested, tell him that NATO will bomb him if he refuses to cooperate, and he will come to the negotiating table and agree to peace in Kosovo…"I knew Milosevic," Clark later remarked. "I'm the only commander in the twentieth century, I think, that really knew his adversary." Of course, Clark was wrong. Milosevic refused to acquiesce, negotiations ended in March, and, after a feeble bombing campaign (which Air Force General Michael Short likened to "tank plinking"), Clark, according to the New Yorker's Peter J. Boyer, "decided that NATO had to intensify the bombing and to prepare for a ground invasion of Kosovo... it consumed Clark's thinking for the rest of the war. (The New Yorker, Nov. 17, 2003) Every day we make dozens of decisions. Some of then are as simple as whether to wear the green shirt or the blue shirt, and others of them are more complex with much more serious results. We spend hours, days, and even years contemplating a change of jobs, where to live, how to save for the future, but often we make “smaller” decisions with little thought for their consequences. What we often fail to realize is that life is a series of decisions that are built upon one another. Previous to II Samuel 11 David has shown himself to be a heroic figure. He has been far from perfect, but up to this point much of what David has done has been a lesson in integrity and faithfulness to God. Unfortunately David’s decisions making, which has been impeccable throughout his life, is about to betray him. It does not all happen at once. One little bad decision leads to another, which leads to some pretty big bad decisions. The story of David, which began with the slaying of the Giant in I Samuel 17, is about to take a drastic turn in the wrong direction. First, he chooses to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Second, he chooses sin over integrity. Third, he chooses to cover up his own sin, with murder if necessary, rather than to confess his sin. By the end of II Samuel 11 David no longer looks so invincible, rather he looks weak and fallible. The rest of his life will be marked by conflict and even weakness where there used to be peace and strength. It is all about the decisions we make. Questions for Discussion/Reflection 1. The Bible does not give us an indication as to why David acted as he did in this passage. What do you think are some possible reasons for his actions? What are the “iffy” decisions in your life that could be the first step to bad decisions? 2. Can you think of a time in your life that you tried to fix a problem and ended up making it worse? What did you learn from that experience that can be applied spiritually? 3. In your opinion how did David fall so far so fast? What can you do to try to prevent a fall in your life? Further Study on David Bible Dictionary Entries on David Bible.org Study of 1st Samuel Bible.org Study of 2nd Samuel Staff Writer: Aaron Sharp |
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