2 Samuel 11:7: When Uriah came to him, David asked how Joab was doing and how the people were doing and how the war was going. 8 Then David said to Uriah, “Go down to your house and wash your feet.” And Uriah went out of the king’s house, and there followed him a present from the king. 9 But Uriah slept at the door of the king’s house with all the servants of his lord, and did not go down to his house. 10 When they told David, “Uriah did not go down to his house,” David said to Uriah, “Have you not come from a journey? Why did you not go down to your house?” 11 Uriah said to David, “The ark and Israel and Judah dwell in booths, and my lord Joab and the servants of my lord are camping in the open field. Shall I then go to my house, to eat and to drink and to lie with my wife? As you live, and as your soul lives, I will not do this thing.” 12 Then David said to Uriah, “Remain here today also, and tomorrow I will send you back.”
So Uriah remained in Jerusalem that day and the next. 13 And David invited him, and he ate in his presence and drank, so that he made him drunk. And in the evening he went out to lie on his couch with the servants of his lord, but he did not go down to his house. 14 In the morning David wrote a letter to Joab and sent it by the hand of Uriah. 15 In the letter he wrote, “Set Uriah in the forefront of the hardest fighting, and then draw back from him, that he may be struck down, and die.”
One of the most overlooked factors in the episode of David and Bethsheba is the integrity of Uriah. After David impregnated his wife, the king tried to cover his sin by sending for Uriah and having him sleep with Bethsheba (II Samuel 11:7-8). But Uriah’s integrity wouldn’t allow him to retire in his home. Instead of enjoying his bed, he slept outside the royal palace with the king’s guards (II Samuel 11:9). He even refused to sleep in his bed after the king had gotten him drunk! (II Samuel 11:12-13) Unfortunately, David had so much faith in Uriah’s integrity that he trusted him to deliver his own death note to his commander (II Samuel 11:14-15) . The paradox of this passage is that King David—the man who was supposed to set the standard for integrity for all of Israel—had allowed the desires of his flesh to desecrate his character to that of being a deceiver, a liar, and even a murderer.
The dictionary defines integrity as, "adherence to moral and ethical principles; soundness of moral character; honesty.” Many times we forget that as Christians, we’re commanded to be people of integrity. Let Uriah’s life be a reminder of the integrity that Christians are supposed to display. At the same time, meditate on this season of David’s life; for it proves the importance of protecting our integrity because of the possibility for it to dissipate.
Let’s Pray:
“Father, help us to be walk in integrity today and always, in Jesus’ Name, amen.”
Daily Prayer:
“Oh, that You would bless me indeed,
and enlarge my territory,
that Your hand would be with me,
and that You would keep me from evil,
that I may not cause pain!”
The Prayer of Jabez, I Chronicles 4:10
Daily Confession:
Father, I thank You for making me the head and not the tail
Above only and not beneath
The lender and not the borrower
The conqueror and not the conquered
I thank You for giving me all things that pertain unto life and godliness
And for delivering my life from death and destruction
So that I shall live and not die to declare your works
I thank You that no sickness shall live in my body today
For by Your Stripes I’m healed
I confess that I will not be stressed, oppressed, or depressed
Because You’re keeping me in perfect peace as my mind is stayed on Thee
I confess that there shall be no lack in my life today
For my God shall supply all my needs according to His Riches in Glory by Christ Jesus
Thank You that all things are working together for my good
And that You always cause me to triumph
This is the day that you have made
I will rejoice and be glad in it
In Jesus, Name, amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment