In addition we will begin our look at Psalm 51 which was written after the prophet Nathan came to David to confront him with his sins of adultery and murder. This psalm is a prayer of repentance to the Lord.
As we closed yesterday's study we found David's attendants reluctantly informing him that the infant had died. They didn't want to tell him for fear he might kill himself, for he had been so distraught during the child's seven-day illness that he wouldn't get up off the ground and wouldn't eat a bite. His reaction to the news of the child's death is not what they expected. "Then David got up from the ground. After he had washed, put on lotions and changed his clothes, he went into the house of the Lord and worshiped. Then he went to his own house, and at his request they served him food, and he ate. His attendants asked him, 'Why are you acting this way? While the child was alive, you fasted and wept, but now that the child is dead, you get up and eat!'" (2 Samuel 12:20-21)
They are puzzled when he gets up and begins going about the business of life again. But there is nothing else to be done. David did all he could do while he thought there was still hope for the child to recover. Now that the child has gone on to be with the Lord, David must carry out all his other responsibilities. He is still the king of Israel, he is still a husband, he is still a father, he is still an employer, and he is still the commander of the army. People are depending on him. His deceased son is in the presence of the Lord and he can do no more for him. It won't help his late son or anyone else if he gives up and quits. "He answered, 'While the child was still alive, I fasted and wept. I thought, 'Who knows? The Lord may be gracious to me and let the child live.' But now that he is dead, why should I go on fasting? Can I bring him back again? I will go to him, but he will not return to me.'" (2 Samuel 12:22-23)
David displays his belief in the eternal life of the soul when he states that he will someday go to be with his son. He believes his son is with the Lord. He believes that when he himself dies, he will go to be with the Lord and will be reunited with his son. This is the hope all of us have who have placed our faith in the Lord! We will go to be with Him when we die and there we will be reunited with our loved ones who have gone on before. This doesn't mean we don't grieve the loss of of our loved ones but it does mean we can have the peace of knowing they have not ceased to exist and that we will see them again. David grieves the loss of his son but he has the peace of knowing he is alive and well with the Lord and that he will see him again. Because he has this peace in his heart, he is able to comfort Bathsheba in her grief. "Then David comforted his wife Bathsheba, and he went to her and made love to her. She gave birth to a son, and they named him Solomon; the Lord loved him, and because the Lord loved him, He sent word through the prophet Nathan to name him Jedediah." (2 Samuel 12:24-25)
David and Bathsheba begin building a relationship as husband and wife. We don't know how much time they might have spent together before the death of their son. It could be that, after Uriah died and David took Bathsheba into his household, they spent little or no time together. Bathsheba would have lived in the women's quarters of the palace and it was the custom in those days that a wife or concubine of a king only saw him if he called for her or if she requested an audience with him and her request was granted. It may be that David didn't even have any contact with Bathsheba until their son was born. But now he comforts her with words of faith in the Lord. He comforts her with his presence and affection and, sometime after she recovers from childbirth (which had to be at least forty days after the birth of a son according to Leviticus 12:1-4), David and Bathsheba begin having marital relations and conceive a son together. This son is Solomon, who will succeed his father as king. The name "Solomon" means "peace", likely given to their son because David and Bathsheba have repented of their sin and their souls are at peace with the Lord once more. But the Lord also gives Solomon another name: "Jedidiah", which means "loved by the Lord". Of course all human beings are loved by the Lord, but the Lord has placed a special calling on the life of Solomon. No one knows it yet, but he is the Lord's next chosen king of Israel, though he is not next in line for the throne according to birth order.
Before we move on with our study of 2 Samuel we will take a look at David's prayer of repentance from Psalm 51. It is long enough that it will take us a couple of days to study but underneath the title of "Psalm 51" the Bible says it was written "when the prophet Nathan came to him after David had committed adultery with Bathsheba". We don't know exactly when David prayed this prayer and composed this psalm but it was after Nathan confronted him with his sins and he confessed them. It could have been immediately after Nathan left his house, or sometime during the days David lay fasting and praying, or it could have been when he went up to the house of the Lord after the child died.
It begins like this: "Have mercy on me, O God, according to Your unfailing love; according to Your great compassion blot out my transgressions. Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin." (Psalm 51:1-2) David appeals to the Lord on the basis of the Lord's love and compassion, not on the basis of his own worthiness. This is the way we must all appeal to the Lord, for we are all sinners. None of us can appeal to Him on the basis of our own righteousness. We are not righteous. We are not worthy. But He loves us anyway! He created us and He cares for us and He wants to help us. So we ask for mercy, not because of who we are, but because of who He is. He is good and kind and loving and merciful. We come to Him in the knowledge of our utter helplessness to be righteous. We come to Him acknowledging that only He can blot out our transgressions and wash away our iniquities and cleanse us from our sins. He will hear a prayer like that!
He hears David's prayer even though David is guilty of the ultimate crime of murder. Let's keep that in mind whenever we are tempted to think our sins are too grievous to be forgiven. David committed the worst crime a person can commit against his fellow man and yet the Lord blotted out this transgression. In the New Testament we are told that the Apostle Paul was guilty of persecuting Christians, which included having them put to death for their faith, and yet when he repented and accepted Christ as his Savior, the Lord blotted out his transgressions. If the Lord isn't going to hold these men's crimes against them on judgment day, why would we think He will hold our sins against us if we've repented for them? This doesn't mean there aren't natural consequences to our sins (David and Paul lived very difficult lives) but when things are made right between us and the Lord, there is a peace in our hearts, which is why David calls his new son "Solomon" to symbolize the restoration of his peace with the Lord. The Lord reminds David that His love never fails, instructing him to also give his new son the name "Jedediah", which means "loved by the Lord" and gives David not only the reassurance that the Lord still loves him and loves his son but also that this son has a special future ahead of him.
In our next session we will study the remainder of Psalm 51.
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