David Repents - The Book of 2 Samuel

In this Bible Story, we see the restoration of David after a heinous sin with Bathsheba. Nathan shows David the error of his ways, which begins the process of bringing David back to God. Then a new son is born, who God would use to do great things. This story is inspired by 2 Samuel 12 & Psalm 51. Go to BibleinaYear.com and learn the Bible in a Year.

Today's Bible verse is 2 Samuel 12:7 from the King James Version.

Episode 103: The sin of David did not go unnoticed. God saw every act and every motive, making it known to Nathan the prophet. Nathan, grieved by the sin of his friend, went to confront the king about this and shared with him a parable. When the king realized he was the villain in the parable, he broke down in tears and repentance, acknowledging his sin against God. Though God would not let this sin go unpunished, God promised that He would restore him.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Let us pray, and Nathan said to David, thou art
the man, thus saith the Lord God of Israel. I
appointed thee king over Israel, and I delivered THEE out
of the hand of Saul Second Samuel twelve seven. Lord,
when I make mistakes in life, I thank you that

(00:22):
you will place people in my life, like Nathan, that
aren't afraid to tell me the truth even when it hurts.
I thank you that through my mistake, you constantly give
me opportunities to repent and turn from my bad decisions.
When these moments happen, Give me the heart of David

(00:43):
that quickly acknowledges my mistakes and desires only to honor
and reconnect with you, Lord, even if it may cost
me some things at first. Because you are a merciful God,
I can praise you. Because your abundant mercy will cover
my sins and establish your presence once again over my life.

(01:06):
Like David's new son Solomon, I declare that I too
will be able to give birth to the dreams and
promises spoken over me. Thank you, God, that there is
no sin or mistake that can separate me from your love.
I come to you with a repentant an open heart

(01:27):
in Jesus' name. Amen, thanks for making prayer a priority
in your life. To hear the Bible come to life.
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Speaker 2 (01:55):
David repents. In our last story, David remains home from
battle to rest while his men fight on the front
lines of the Ammonites. David lounges in the sun, basking
in his triumph. David eventually grows complacent and sleeps with
the wife of one of his mighty men, Yuria. She

(02:16):
becomes pregnant, and David sends Yuria to the front lines
to be killed to cover up his sins. Now we
see David caught in a cloud of ignorance to just
how evil his sin was. God sends Nathan to reveal
to him his error, and David's heart melts in front
of a holy God. Inspired by the Book of Second Samuel, Hello.

Speaker 3 (02:41):
I'm pastor Jack Graham with today's episode of the Bible
in a Year podcast. In yesterday's reading, we heard how
David became complacent, choosing to stay at home rather than
fight the battles that the Lord had given him. As
a result, he faced the temptation of a beautiful woman, Bathsheba,
and he gave in to the timptation, and when his
lover became pregnant, he tried to deceive her husband in

(03:04):
order to cover it up. Ultimately, David had Uriah killed
to keep his sins hidden. But God sees it all
and he was grieved, deeply grieved by the king's sin.
Today we'll hear what God says to David through the
prophet Nathan, to open the king's eyes to his rebellion
and sin. When David realized the evil that he had done,

(03:25):
it breaks him and he will soon discover that God
will exact a high price for David's unfaithfulness. But we'll
also see what a heart of true repentance looks like
as David turns back to God. So less hear now
the reading for today.

Speaker 2 (03:41):
A subtle cloud of darkness covered the land of Israel.
Although the sun still shined brightly, there was still an
ominous feeling permeating throughout the city of Jerusalem. Nathan, the prophet,
felt the unease, especially when he spoke with King David.
There was a flightiness to his demeanor Thatathan could not ignore.

(04:01):
The quick marriage between David and Bathsheba alarmed him, and
he inquired of God what was happening. God confirmed Nathan's suspicions.
David had murdered Eurea to cover up his affair with Bathsheba.
The new child was born out of sin, and Yuria's
blood cried out from the grave to God. David did

(04:23):
his best to numb the pain of his sins. He
did not want to think about Uria or how he
and Bathsheba met, so David convinced himself to forget. He
buried his shame deep down. David was looking out the
same window as before when he saw Bathsheba. Lost in thought,
David could not hear Nathan opening the door behind him.

(04:45):
Nathan stood behind him for a while, allowing David to
be alone with his thoughts. David turned around to see
Nathan and smiled. The two embraced and sat down. David
could see the concern on Nathan's face and asked, what
is wrong. Nathan paused and looked at David. He sighed
and stood up. Nathan began to weave a story before David,

(05:09):
saying there were two men in a city. One had
many riches, He had great flocks, vineyards, and property. His
flock had over a thousand sheep, and his riches only
increased as he sold and bought them. The other man
was poor. All he had to his name was a
little lamb. However, he loved that lamb dearly. The poor

(05:31):
man would feed the lamb from his own arms and
nurse it to become strong. The lamb was like a
daughter to him. One day, the rich man had a guest. However,
he was unwilling to take a sheep from his own
flock to feed his guest. Instead, he stole the poor
man's lamb to feed his guest, and the poor man

(05:51):
was left with nothing. David's eyes widened, a look of
shock and outrage was on his face. Nathan wondered if
David understood the story. Yet David stood to his feet
and clenched his fists. That man deserves to die. To
take that man's only lamb when he has thousands is
selfish and wicked. He ought to you are that man,

(06:15):
Nathan yelled, pointing his finger at the king. God has
anointed you to be king over Israel. He delivered you
out of the hand of Saul. He has blessed you
with riches beyond your wildest dreams. Not only do you
have a wife, but you have three, and yet you
strike down Uriar for his David's soul began to crumble

(06:36):
as Nathan spoke for God. Yet he said nothing. Nathan
continued and said, thus says the Lord, the sword shall
not leave your household. There will be strife in your
household and war among your children. David wept on the
floor before Nathan. Sobbing filled the room as David wailed

(06:57):
before God on his knees. David put his hands over
his face and whispered, I have sinned against you, my God.
Nathan looked down at David, grieved over what he was
about to say. David, the child that has just been
born will pass away, but God will restore you. He

(07:19):
will not leave you. David continued to lie on the ground, sobbing.
Nathan left the room and allowed David to weep before
his God. After this, as had happened with many children
in those days, the infant became sick. David sat before
God in silence. He fasted, he prayed. He sought God

(07:42):
intently for seven days on behalf of his new born son. However,
the sickness claimed him, and the child passed.

Speaker 1 (07:50):
After a week.

Speaker 2 (07:52):
David was alone in a dark room where he often
prayed to God. Tears had dried on his face and
his body was trembling for lack of food and water.
David could hear murmurs from some of his servants behind him.
Still looking forward, David asked, is my son dead. The
servants were silent for a moment and said, yes, he

(08:15):
is dead. David stood up, washed himself and changed his clothes.
He worshiped God into the night, singing a song of
brokenness and praise. His voice echoed through the chambers as
David sang, have mercy on me, O, my God, because
of your faithful love, because of your abundant mercy, cover

(08:39):
my sins, wash me, cleanse me from all that keeps
me from you. David played his harp, as he once
did in the hills of Bethlehem. Slowly his heart began
to grow warm from God's presence. David and Bathsheba mourned
their son together and found comfort in one another's arms.

(09:00):
For the first time. Instead of merely having sex, they
made love, and the two as husband and wife. Bora's son,
the son's name was Solomon. He would hold a special
place in God's heart. God would continue with Solomon as
he once did with David, and it would be through
him that the House of God would be established.

Speaker 3 (09:25):
As today's scripture passage begins, the prophet Nathan is paying
the king a visit, only this time he isn't bringing
good news of God's favor upon David. God has seen
what David has done, killing Urriah to cover up his
unfaithfulness and the child with Bathsheba, and it greatly displeased him,
so he sends Nathan with a message to the king.

(09:48):
Nathan tells David a story is the story of two men,
one rich and one poor. The rich man had many flocks,
but the poor man was blessed with just one sheep,
for whom he cared deeply. Yet when the rich man
needed food for a special guest, he took the poor
man's one sheep rather than take one from his own flock.
David was so blind to his own sin in this

(10:10):
moment that he wasn't connecting the dots. He was sure
Nathan was telling him about someone else in his kingdom,
and he didn't restrain himself from demonstrating the outrage at
such callous, greedy behavior by the rich man. The penalty
for such actions, David said, must be death. That's when
Nathan broke the news to David. The man in the

(10:31):
story was David himself. God had given him more than
he could ever have imagined. He had rescued him from
Saul and established a powerful kingdom. And yet David had
turned from God's word. He had taken Uriah's wife and
had an honorable man killed to hide his sin. Because
of his sin, David would suffer great consequences. Rebellion and

(10:53):
strife would fill his home, and his own children would
turn against him and to each other. And unlike David's sins,
which had been committed in secret, David's disgrace would be
on display for all to see. David's sin was exposed.
And David should have known this because he believed in
a God who knows everything. But don't miss the magnitude

(11:15):
of what happened next. When Saul's sinned, he made excuses
and blamed others. David ultimately owned up to his sin,
and we see the repented heart, a man after God's
own heart who is now repenting. It is the same
repented heart that God wants in us. Listen to David's
words and God's reply. In Second Samuel twelve thirteen, David

(11:37):
said to Nathan, I have sinned against the Lord. And
Nathan said to David, the Lord also has put away
your sin. You shall not die. God would spare David
from the judgment he deserved, but that did not mean
that his sin would have no consequences. God would restore David,
but the child born of his sin would be taken
from him. Not long after, the child became ill, and

(12:01):
David pleaded with God for the baby. He fasted and prayed,
asking God not to let the child die. But after
seven days, the baby passed away. David knew something had
changed and asked if the baby was dead. When the
suspicion was confirmed, David did something we might find unusual.
His servants certainly did. He got up, washed himself, and

(12:22):
changed clothes. Then he praised and worshiped God. Even in
his brokenness. With his heart ripped apart by grief, David
turned his praise to God, who is the giver and
the taker of life. Like a lost son, David now
has returned to his father. Soon, David and Bathsheba would
have another child, one they named Solomon, and this child

(12:45):
would grow into a man of great wisdom whose life
God would bless and guide and used to establish the
House of the Lord. Let's pray together, Dear God, we
know that sin has consequences, terrible consequences. So Lord protect
us and keep us from sinning. But when we sin,
may we come to you with confession and true faith

(13:07):
and repentance. We ask that you would forgive us and
change our hearts and change our lives. We thank you
for the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ, which makes
it possible for us to be forgiven. That though our
sins are as scarlet, they can be white as snow.
Through Jesus, our Lord God, give us a heart that
seeks after you, and a heart that is devoted fully

(13:31):
to you. In Jesus' name. Amen. Thank you for listening
to today's Bible in a Year podcast. I hope you
are enjoying it as much as I am. This is
Pastor Jack Graham from Dallas, Texas. You can download the
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(13:51):
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