David and Bathsheba Part 4

2 Samuel 11:27 (NLT)
When the period of mourning was over, David sent for her and brought her to the
palace, and she became one of his wives. Then she gave birth to a son. But the
LORD was displeased with what David had done.
1. The Lord graciously sends Nathan to David with a story.
2 Samuel 12:1-6 (NLT)
So the LORD sent Nathan the prophet to tell David this story: “There were two
men in a certain town. One was rich, and one was poor. 2 The rich man owned a
great many sheep and cattle. 3 The poor man owned nothing but one little lamb
he had bought. He raised that little lamb, and it grew up with his children. It ate
from the man’s own plate and drank from his cup. He cuddled it in his arms like a
baby daughter. 4 One day a guest arrived at the home of the rich man. But
instead of killing an animal from his own flock or herd, he took the poor man’s
lamb and killed it and prepared it for his guest.”
5 David was furious. “As surely as the LORD lives,” he vowed, “any man who
would do such a thing deserves to die! 6 He must repay four lambs to the poor
man for the one he stole and for having no pity.”
2. David learns the Lord is far more gracious, forgiving and merciful than he is.
2 Samuel 12:7-13 NLT
Then Nathan said to David, “You are that man! The LORD, the God of Israel,
says: I anointed you king of Israel and saved you from the power of Saul. 8 I
gave you your master’s house and his wives and the kingdoms of Israel and
Judah. And if that had not been enough, I would have given you much, much
more. 9 Why, then, have you despised the word of the LORD and done this
horrible deed? For you have murdered Uriah the Hittite with the sword of the
Ammonites and stolen his wife. 10 From this time on, your family will live by the
sword because you have despised me by taking Uriah’s wife to be your own.
11 “This is what the LORD says: Because of what you have done, I will cause
your own household to rebel against you. I will give your wives to another man
before your very eyes, and he will go to bed with them in public view. 12 You did
it secretly, but I will make this happen to you openly in the sight of all Israel.”
13 Then David confessed to Nathan, “I have sinned against the LORD.”
Nathan replied, “Yes, but the LORD has forgiven you, and you won’t die for this
sin.

Proverbs 28:13 (NLT)
People who conceal their sins will not prosper,
but if they confess and turn from them, they will receive mercy.
2 Samuel 12:14-19 NLT
Nevertheless, because you have shown utter contempt for the word of the LORD
by doing this, your child will die.”
15 After Nathan returned to his home, the LORD sent a deadly illness to the child
of David and Uriah’s wife. 16 David begged God to spare the child. He went
without food and lay all night on the bare ground. 17 The elders of his household
pleaded with him to get up and eat with them, but he refused.
18 Then on the seventh day the child died. David’s advisers were afraid to tell
him. “He wouldn’t listen to reason while the child was ill,” they said. “What drastic
thing will he do when we tell him the child is dead?”
19 When David saw them whispering, he realized what had happened. “Is the
child dead?” he asked.
“Yes,” they replied, “he is dead.”
3. In your darkest hour, don’t run from The Lord, run to Him.
2 Samuel 12:20-23 NLT
Then David got up from the ground, washed himself, put on lotions, and changed
his clothes. He went to the Tabernacle and worshiped the LORD. After that, he
returned to the palace and was served food and ate.
21 His advisers were amazed. “We don’t understand you,” they told him. “While
the child was still living, you wept and refused to eat. But now that the child is
dead, you have stopped your mourning and are eating again.”
22 David replied, “I fasted and wept while the child was alive, for I said, ‘Perhaps
the LORD will be gracious to me and let the child live.’ 23 But why should I fast
when he is dead? Can I bring him back again? I will go to him one day, but he
cannot return to me.”
4. David’s heartfelt plea for The Lord’s mercy and compassion.
Psalms 51:1-17 (NLT)
For the choir director: A psalm of David, regarding the time Nathan the prophet
came to him after David had committed adultery with Bathsheba.
1 Have mercy on me, O God, because of your unfailing love.
Because of your great compassion, blot out the stain of my sins.
2 Wash me clean from my guilt. Purify me from my sin.
3 For I recognize my rebellion; it haunts me day and night.
4 Against you, and you alone, have I sinned;
I have done what is evil in your sight.

You will be proved right in what you say,
and your judgment against me is just.
5 For I was born a sinner— yes, from the moment my mother conceived me.
6 But you desire honesty from the womb, teaching me wisdom even there.
7 Purify me from my sins, and I will be clean;
wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.
8 Oh, give me back my joy again; you have broken me— now let me rejoice.
9 Don’t keep looking at my sins. Remove the stain of my guilt.
10 Create in me a clean heart, O God. Renew a loyal spirit within me.
11 Do not banish me from your presence,
and don’t take your Holy Spirit from me.
12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and make me willing to obey you.
13 Then I will teach your ways to rebels, and they will return to you.
14 Forgive me for shedding blood, O God who saves;
then I will joyfully sing of your forgiveness.
15 Unseal my lips, O Lord, that my mouth may praise you.
16 You do not desire a sacrifice, or I would offer one.
You do not want a burnt offering.
17 The sacrifice you desire is a broken spirit.
You will not reject a broken and repentant heart, O God.
2 Samuel 12:24-25 (NLT)
Then David comforted Bathsheba, his wife, and slept with her. She became
pregnant and gave birth to a son, and David named him Solomon. The LORD
loved the child 25 and sent word through Nathan the prophet that they should
name him Jedidiah (which means “beloved of the LORD”), as the LORD had
commanded.

Further Study Questions - David and Bathsheba Part 4

1. In the NT, God’s profound wrath is poured out on His Son Jesus on the cross
for us. In the OT, God’s wrath is seen in the Noah flood, the ground
swallowing up people in the desert, and Sodom and Gomorrah to name a
few. In light of those, how is The Lord being extremely gracious to David in 2
Samuel 12:1?
2. In 2 Samuel 12:2-13, who is the rich man and who is the poor man?
3. What is David’s quick judgment on the “rich lamb killer?” What does David
learn in verses 7-12?
4. Read 2 Samuel 12:13 and Proverbs 28:13. Contrast David’s judgment for the
“rich lamb killer” with God’s judgment on David. Aren’t you glad that The
Lord is far more gracious and forgiving than we are?
5. Read 2 Samuel 12:14-23. What did David hope and pray for in verse 16 and
22? After the child’s death, what does David do?
6. Unfortunately in this fallen world, one of the worst events is the death of a
child. What good news of God’s special grace do we find in verse 23?
7. Read the introduction of Psalms 51, and then read verses 1-17. In your
group list everything David asks The Lord for. What stands out to you?
8. Since we know that David, like everyone, is a sinner, how does this passage
remind us that David truly is “a man after God’s own heart?
9. How can we apply Psalm 51 to our own lives?
10. In 2 Samuel 12:24-25, what amazing grace do we find?