The Pulpit Commentary — 2 Samuel — Section 276

I. Gurr.TY FEA1'8. After his sud<len fall he -probRbly felt l!Ome meRsure of compunc- tion ; but. repl"888ed the reproR.Ches of conscience, "nd continued, in the view of men, the same as he hRd ever been. It is evident that, when the message (ver. 6) c1une to him, he Will! not truly penitent. 1. It awakened his fellt'8 concerning the possible eo:posure of his ~in. Would not the v.>ife of Uriah, on the return of her husbAnd, be constmined to declare the author of her shame? 2. His fears were intensified by the probable ~ of such exposure. Even if he should be able to 81\Ve Bathsheba, and hitnself escape legal punishment, by virtue of his high position as the Lord's anointed, liow could he avert the private vengeance of Uriah, or maint~in the confidence, affection, and allllgiance of hie army and people? What other Eastern monarchs did with impunity, could not be done by him in Israel without incurring the moral indignRtion of the people, and causing the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme. 3. He was impelled by his feal'I! to use bis utmost efforts wit.h a view to the concealment of his sin. "And David 110nt to Joab, sayiniz, Send me Uriah the Hittite" (ver. 6). His endeavour to hide his transgression "as Adam" (Job xxxi. 33) was itself a tacit ncknowledgment of its disreputable character. And "he that covereth his sins shall not prosper," etc. (Prov, :n:viii. 13). Would that men, after their first wrong step, immediately confessed their error, made reparation, and returned to the way of truth and righteousness I IT. FRUSTRATED DEVICES. 1. In their attempts at concealment men are wont to employ extraordinary ingenuity (1 Sam. xviii 17-30), and to hide their base designs under the cover of kindness (vers. 7-9). 2. Their crafty purposes are often defeated by simplicity and sincerity, beyond their calculation. "'l'he ark," etc. (vers. 9-12). "This answer expressed the feelin!!:S and the consciousness of duty 'which ought to animate one who was fighting for the cause of God, in such plain and unmistakable terms, that it was well adapted to prick the king to the heart. Bat David's soul was BO beclouded by the wish to keep clear of the consequences of his sin in the eyes of the world, that he did not feel the sting, but simply made a still further attempt to attain his purpose with Uria.h" (Keil). 3. Although defeat,ed, their attempts are usually repeated (ver. 13), but only t.o issue in greater disappointment, perplexity, and anxiety. The devices of sin are like a labyrinth, in which the sinner becomes more and more inextricably involved. They are like the meshes of a net, in which he becomes more and more hopelessly entangled. III. INCREASING CRnUNALITY. (V ers. 14, 15.) "He sent back the unsuspicious warrior to Rabbah, to Joa.b, with a letter, which, under the name of 'Uriah's letter,' has become notorious throughout the world. It was writt.en with the same pen with which the sweet psalmist had written his psalms" (Krummacher). 1. The course of sin is downward into ever deeper moral abasement. " It is the nature of sin to multiply itA!elf, and to draw the wretched sinner on to greater and greater enormities." Adultery was followed by (1) deception, (2) ingratitude, (3) injustice, (4) meanness, (5) temptation (ver. 13; Hab. ii 15), (6) treachery, (7) murder. "One sin another doth provoke ; Murder's as near to Inst, as fie.me to smoke." 2. It is so because of its blinding, hardening, and enslaving power (2 Pet. ii. 19 ; Prov. vi. 22), its delusive promises of good, its specious pleas of necessity, its urgent impulsetl to desperate expedients. "Such are the accursed entanglements of sin ; auch the workings and gradations of it in the distracted, bewildered breast that admits it. Millions have been lost in these labyrinths of gu.ilt; but none, sure, in any more intricate and perplexing than this!" (Delany). 3. Although it may be followed by apparent and temporary success, it cannot ultimately prosper. " The ~ord, shall reward," etc. (eh. iii. 39; Prov. xi. 21; Isa. v. 18). "The means which David took to extricate himself from the complications in which his adultery involved him appeared well choHen • but there was one thina he had not taken into consideration-that he could not L~re as in former embarass~ents, confidently expect the assistance of God. It was God's d~sign that David's sin should be fully manifested, for only in this war was perfoct cure possible, and therefore he suffered the means to fail" (Hengstenherg). -D. Ver. 6.- Uriah the Hittite. Like Ahimelech (1 Su.m. :xxvi. 6), he belonged tc 011. XI, 1-27.] THE SECOND BOOK OF SAMUEL. 281