Advent 13: Grace from Disgrace – The Wife of Uriah
2 Samuel 7:12-13
“When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.”
2 Samuel 7:12-13
“and Jesse the father of David the king.
And David was the father of Solomon by the wife of Uriah,”
Matthew 1:6
The Un-Named Grandma
When you read the genealogy of Jesus in Matthew, you’ll notice five women who show up in the line of Jesus, but only four of them are mentioned by name. One is simply called “the wife of Uriah.” Isn’t that interesting?
Why wouldn’t Matthew mention this woman by name?
I think it’s because this isn’t a particularly bright spot in Israel’s history. This episode in King David’s life is not something they were proud of. It gets even more interesting when you realize that Matthew was writing to a mostly Jewish audience who would have known all about who this lady was. I think the reason Matthew didn’t mention her name is probably the same reason you don’t know many ladies named Bathsheba. They didn’t want to keep remembering what happened.
Wrong Place, Wrong Time
There are two things everybody remembers about King David. The first is that he killed Goliath, and the second is his relationship with Bathsheba. We hear all about this in 2 Samuel 11. At the beginning of the chapter, there is some not-so-subtle foreshadowing that should tip us off that something bad is going to happen. It says,
In the spring of the year, the time when kings go out to battle … but David remained at Jerusalem.
2 SAMUEL 11:1
There you have it. David is the king who had “slain ten thousand.” He should be out there with his men, leading them in battle, but instead, he’s lounging around the palace in the middle of the afternoon. It’s pretty embarrassing.
A Man of Honor
The rest of the story is even worse.
David sees a beautiful woman and asks about her.
Even though he knows she is married to one of his most valiant soldiers, it doesn’t stop him from pursuing her.
Soon afterward, he finds out she’s pregnant and tries to get her husband, Uriah, to come home to be with her so everyone will think Uriah got her pregnant. This plan might have worked, except Uriah was way more honorable than David. He would not come home and enjoy the comfort of his normal life while the army was out in battle. How ironic is that? The king didn’t care they were at war, but the soldier did.
After all of this, when David can’t think of anything else to do, he sends Uriah to the front line of battle and orders everyone around him to retreat. Who knows how many people David sent to their death just to cover up his sin?
A Paradigm for Repentance
No wonder the Jews wouldn’t want to mention this story. It records the failures of one of their most beloved kings. But in God’s crazy irony, not only do we see David’s sin, but we get to see his repentance. God sends a prophet to show David his sin, and he repents. And he repents hard. It is out of the depth of his repentance he writes one of the most often read and quoted psalms in all of Scripture, Psalm 51. This little psalm is so rich because we see David’s genuine brokenness before God, and it gives us words to pray when we have sinned before God.
Reflection
Isn’t this always the way God works? He is constantly working all things out to bring about his will, even in the middle of terrible situations. It’s crazy because, before all of this, God promised David a son who would rule on a throne forever. And do you know who God used to bring that about? You guessed it, Uriah’s wife. Bathsheba gave birth to Solomon, who ruled on the throne of Israel and Judah. His kingdom ended, but generations later, another king was born, not in a palace but in a stable. And his kingdom will last forever.
Let’s talk about it:
- Have you ever sinned against God and tried to cover it up? Think about whether there is something in your life you need to confess before God, and then confess and repent. Take some time to read through Psalm 51 and feel the weight of sin and forgiveness that is there.
- Next, you need to remember that there is always full restoration with God available to us. Look at David and Bathsheba. Even though they sinned against God, he still used them in his plan of salvation for us.
- Is there anything that the grace of God cannot cover?
Free Advent Bible Study
Let’s stand back and marvel at God’s grace and sovereignty, and focus on God this Christmas. May we join with the angels singing, “Glory to God in the highest” (Luke 2:14).
Join this 25-day Advent journey as we worship Christ and celebrate his coming.
Zach Mabry is the worship pastor and one of the main teachers at Snowbird. He also directs our year-round Snowbird Institute program. He has a Master of Divinity from The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and serves as an adjunct professor for Liberty University. Zach is a teaching pastor at Red Oak Church, a local church in the Andrews area.