Old Testament # 24
“Create in me a Clean Heart”
2 Samuel 11–12; Psalm 51
Challenge from last week: How can you be a better friend with the Savior than you are of the world
Introduction
There are at least two things that stand out in this lesson: (1) when should you recognize you are on a destructive course and make the conscious decision to carry on or stop? and (2) what do you do when you realize you have done something wrong and that feeling of dread starts in your head and floods through your body? These two decision-making times happened to David as they happen to all of us. And I think that one of the reasons we have skipped the early, glorious years of David’s reign is that, as in 4th Nephi, there is little to be learned from when things are going well (not that his early reign wasn’t highly eventful, and certainly those chapters belong in our study). Grave times are ahead of David. You might think that uniting all the tribes of Israel after the rift caused by Saul’s hatred, and then being victorious over their enemies would be enough for one man, but those victories come to naught when David puts his belief in his own power foremost and forgets Him from Whom all blessings flow. We saw how Saul felt his own rationalization was superior to God’s commands which led to the kingdom being taken away from him (1 Samuel 15:20–28). Now we see that David, who received so much more from the Lord, has so much more taken away. “For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required” (Luke 12:48).
1. David commits adultery with Bathsheba and arranges the death of Uriah, Bathsheba’s husband. 2 Samuel 11.
I used to interpret for the French and German missionaries at the MTC—often on Sunday evenings for the Gospel Study time, when visitors would come and talk to them. One such often liked to quote this chapter to see by a show of hands if the missionaries could determine at which stage David started to go wrong. Try it for yourself, take each phrase in verse 2 and see which decision was the wrong one. One verse—a lifetime of service to the Lord destroyed. Here is what President Oaks has to say about David’s decision:
When we withdraw from the Spirit of the Lord, we become an enemy to righteousness, we have a lively sense of our guilt, and we “shrink from the presence of the Lord” (see Mosiah 2:36–38). “Mercy hath no claim on that man,” [King Benjamin] concluded; “therefore his final doom is to endure a never-ending torment” (Mosiah 2:39). Consider the tragic example of King David. Though a spiritual giant in Israel, he allowed himself to look upon something he should not have viewed (see 2 Sam. 11). Tempted by what he saw, he violated two of the Ten Commandments, beginning with “Thou shalt not commit adultery” (Ex. 20:14). In this way a prophet-king fell from his exaltation (see D&C 132:39).
I wonder how inoculated we have become against pornography and other sexual sin? How used are we to seeing evidences of such around us, especially in the media? In a few short years it has become acceptable to see it glorified in the most seemingly harmless TV shows and movies. Alternative lifestyles are not only accepted but promoted, and those who would speak out against them are vilified. A few weeks back we read how the children of Israel were infected by the misdeeds of Eli’s and Samuel’s sons, to the extent that they accepted and even joined in with their immorality. Our first responsibility in this is to ourselves. Here is a list of “how tos” from the manual:
Things to avoid
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How to avoid them
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Unclean or immoral thoughts
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Fill your mind with uplifting thoughts.
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Television shows, movies, magazines, books, and music that are pornographic or suggestive in any way
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Choose media that will inspire you to do good.
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Unwholesome dating activities
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Follow the dating standards taught by latter-day prophets and outlined in For the Strength of Youth.
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Flirting after marriage
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Love your spouse with all your heart. Continue to “court” (develop your relationship with) your spouse.
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Places or activities that will not enable you to have the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost
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Ensure that the places you go and the activities you participate in will enable you to have the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost.
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David, of course, didn’t do any of these things, instead he compounded his sin—not initially by taking Bathsheba away from Uriah; apparently he only took further action once he found out she was pregnant (2 Samuel 11:5–6). Saul had made David a captain in his army and sent him to battle, obviously hoping he would be killed. After trying to get Uriah to sleep with his wife and therefore assume the child was Uriah’s, David employed the same strategy as Saul, except this time telling Joab to put Uriah where he would be certain to be killed. Murder by proxy.
Here is a very sobering quote from Elder Richard G Scott:
Do not take comfort in the fact that your transgressions are not known by others. That is like an ostrich with his head buried in the sand. He sees only darkness and feels comfortably hidden. In reality he is ridiculously conspicuous. Likewise our every act is seen by our Father in Heaven and His Beloved Son. They know everything about us. … If you have seriously transgressed, you will not find any lasting satisfaction or comfort in what you have done. Excusing transgression with a cover-up may appear to fix the problem, but it does not. The tempter is intent on making public your most embarrassing acts at the most harmful time. Lies weave a pattern that is ever more confining and becomes a trap that Satan will spring to your detriment (Ensign,May 1995, 77).
Samuel the prophet has died (1 Samuel 25) and his successor as the prophet is Nathan. Sometime after David took Bathsheba as his wife and their child is born, Nathan comes to David and tells him the parable of the lamb. When asked to comment, David goes into righteous indignation mode and solidly condemns the perpetrator, not realizing it is himself. Our ability to justify our own actions can sometimes be a curse. As a result Nathan tells him that the Lord will take away his posterity, his wives, and especially the son that Bathsheba bore. Here’s the difference—when Saul was told much the same thing, he carried on doing what he had been doing. David spends the rest of his life repenting which is where we get the book of Psalms from.
Elder Joseph Fielding Smith, commenting on David’s sin, said: “David committed a dreadful crime, and all his life afterwards sought for forgiveness. Some of the Psalms portray the anguish of his soul; yet David is still paying for his sin. He did not receive the resurrection at the time of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Peter declared that his body was still in the tomb, and the Prophet Joseph Smith has said, ‘David sought repentance at the hand of God carefully with tears, for the murder of Uriah; but he could only get it through hell: he got a promise that his soul should not be left in hell.’ Again we ask: Who wishes to spend a term in hell with the devil before being cleansed from sin?” (Answers to Gospel Questions, 1:74.)
Ultimately, David did not endure to the end.
3. A repentant David seeks forgiveness.Psalm 51.
Psalm 51 has a progression that we all might follow as we prepare to take the sacrament each week.
· Acknowledge God and His mercy
· Acknowledge our sins
· Have a broken heart and a contrite spirit
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A long time ago Elder Packer talked about memorizing a favorite hymn and using that to drive away unwanted thoughts. At the time I was trying to learn to play “Jesus came to John the Baptist” from the Children’s Songbook. It was, and is, for me particularly difficult to play, but I loved the words and the tune. Still to this day, almost without conscious thought, it comes into my mind when something that shouldn’t be there intrudes.
This has been a difficult blogpost given the gravity of the material. I am sure it will be just as difficult to teach next Sunday, but I hope that those of you who have taken the time to read this and to read the assigned scriptures will find renewed strength to resist the temptations of the world for yourself and those you love.
Additional Material
https://www.lds.org/media-library/video/2011-03-069-blessings-of-repentance?lang=eng
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