The Grands Letter (2 Sam/GLJ)
Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D. on March 27, 2022 6:30 am (CST)Dear Grands,
2 Samuel 2:1-2a, “Then it came about afterwards that David inquired of the LORD, saying, ‘Shall I go up to one of the cities of Judah?’ And the LORD said to him, ‘Go up.’
So David said, ‘Where shall I go up?’ And He said, ‘To Hebron.’
2 So David went up there…”
2 Samuel 11:1-2, “Then it happened in the spring, at the time when kings go out to battle, that David sent Joab and his servants with him and all Israel, and they destroyed the sons of Ammon and besieged Rabbah. But David stayed at Jerusalem.
2 Now when evening came David arose from his bed and walked around on the roof of the king’s house, and from the roof he saw a woman bathing; and the woman was very beautiful in appearance.”
The book of Second Samuel is comprised of two distinct messages. They are both first to David, and then to us. The first message is that we are always in need of patience and dependence upon God for the fulfillment of His promises. As with David, we are taught that it is best to “wait upon the LORD.”
The second message assures us that sin always has its consequences. David ought to have been leading his men in battle. Instead, he stayed behind in Jerusalem; and it was there that he saw Bathsheba and yielded to the temptation to violate her. All the while, her husband, Uriah, was with the army fighting with David’s men. David’s attempt to cover his sin with Uriah’s wife ultimately and intentionally caused Uriah’s death.
There is “little of brightness in David’s life after his sin.” To be sure, he repented; yet, sin has its own consequences even when repentance is sincere. “Be sure your sin will find you out.” Much later, in the Psalms, David wrote, “Delight yourself in the LORD; and He will give you the desires of your heart” (Ps. 37:4). Oh, that we would learn to delight in the LORD instead of suffering His judgments.
Heartily in Christ Jesus,
(Dado III)
Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.
Springdale, Arkansas 72764
United States of America
“We never know that Christ is all we need until He becomes all that we have.” – Corrie ten Boom
