V.2 David lusted after Bathsheba (1John 2:16).  Instead of dismissing a potential involvement, he acted upon his lust (James 1:14,15). 

After the sin was committed, and the due consequence of his act was known, David attempted to cover it up.  First, he tried to persuade Uriah to go home.  The thought was that if Uriah had sex with Bathsheba, he would take ownership for the pregnancy.  This would get David off the hook. 

This ploy did not work because Uriah refused to go home.  He was an honorable man who would not accept privileges that his companions could not. And so, David using his power as king, arranged to have Uriah killed.  He was successful, but his sin was not covered up.  Yahweh was aware of it (Mark 4:22). 

David's spiritual lapse is a lesson for us.  Let us realize that nothing is hidden from Yahweh who will demand an accounting. 

11:1-5 We should consider the time involved in these events. A realization that some time passed and that there were a number of times when David could have changed his mind about his plans indicate that David’s sin was premeditated and then executed remorselessly. However he was forgiven when he repented – 2Sam 12:13. This should provide us with great comfort, especially when Paul – Rom 4:7-8 – uses David’s Psalm of thanksgiving to speak to us of the magnitude of God’s forgiveness.

11:11  Notice that Uriah, when speaking of the army, describes them as ‘Israel and Judah’. The kingdom was, in reality, divided during David’s reign. The dividing lines already can be seen.

11:1    There was nothing inherently wrong with David staying at home. His problem was what he did with the time that he had at his disposal. Likewise there are rarely commands which require us to do anything for God. However if we choose not to do something – such as go to Bible class or Sunday meetings - including the lecture – we have to ask ourselves whether we use our time wisely if we choose to ‘stay at home’.

David had committed adultery and murder.  These acts would, by themselves, prevent him from entering the kingdom of God (Gal 5:19-21). 

However, David was truly repentant of his behavior, and willingly accepted the punishment that Yahweh meted out.  He changed his behavior and continued to follow God.  Thus, David will be in the kingdom of God.  The same forgiveness is available to any sinner who becomes truly repentant and changes his/her life to obey Yahweh.

11:25 David might have on an impulse taken Bathsheba but the matter of Uriah was totally different. It was carefully calculated.

There seems to be a triple unfolding into the completion of sin.  Psa 1:1 explains that there is:

11:2-4 We have noted that David’s behaviour was like that of Eve in seeing, desiring and taking Bathsheba. Also he mimics the behaviour of the sons of God – Gen 6:2 who ‘saw’ ‘fair’ and ‘took’ and Achan who – Josh 7:21 –‘saw’ ‘coveted’ and ‘took’ the spoil.

2Sam 11:3 - "Uriah" (223) means "flame of Jah, Jehovah (Yahweh) is my light (flame)" was a Hittite who apparently converted to the God of Israel and expressed reverence for the ark (2Sam 11:11); "Bathsheba" (1339) means "daughter of an oath" and though we don't know for certain the specific oath, we have several famous prior oaths in the Bible (Gen 24:6-8;Josh 2:12-21;Num 5:11-22;Josh 9:3-21;Judg 21:6-14) of interest; another name for Bathsheba was "Bathshua" (1340) means "daughter of wealth" (1Chron 3:5).

2Sam 11:6-15 - Uriah had a memorial feast, was figuratively "entombed" by David for three days, was not corrupted and his people fell back from and deserted him (John 18:5-6;Matt 26:56,69-75).

FOUR STEP SERVANT
 
If we want to be a servant of the LORD, the advice God gave to Jeremiah would be good advice for us to take.  There are four parts in God's advice to Jeremiah.

1. "If you repent, I will restore you that you may serve me." (Jer 15:19)  The first step in our preparation for serving the LORD is to get our hearts right.  We need to repent of our sins, change our way of life and begin living for God.  Even if we are already living for him, as Jeremiah was, it is worth examining ourselves to see if there is any wickedness in us, and repenting to purify our hearts.

2. "If you utter worthy, not worthless, words, you will be my spokesman." (v.19)  It is easy to get caught up in gossip, course joking or just talking about the weather.  Instead let's fill our minds with things that are beneficial so that what comes from our mouths will be worthy of the ears of the LORD.

3. "Let this people turn to you, but do not turn to them." (v.19)  Our aim is to bring people to God.  We cannot do that if we water down his standards and principles so that they become like the people we are trying to convert.

4. If we do these things, God's promise is that he will be with us, save us, give us strength and redeem us. (v.20-21)

So let us become servants for the LORD with pure hearts, bringing a worthy message with strong, unchanging principles and without fear of what people may do when they hear it.

V.1 Yahweh listened to Moses and Samuel, but would not accept Jeremiah's pleading for the people.  That was because Yahweh was set on destroying Judah and Jerusalem.  The reason for Yahweh's anger goes back to Manasseh.

V.4 Manasseh was the longest ruling king of Judah.  During his tenure he did the most abominable things in the eyes of Yahweh.  Yahweh had already promised that retribution for his actions would come upon Judah and Jerusalem (2Kin 21:11,12).  Now was the time for that punishment.

15:9  ‘She that hath borne seven’ quotes the words of Hannah – 1Sam 2:5 . Whereas Hannah rejoice because she was to have a son who would become a faithful prophet and priest there was no faithful priesthood now and there did not even look as if there would be. We might say there was no Hannah praying for salvation through the seed of the woman.

Vs.15-17 Jeremiah had absorbed Yahweh's words; had witnessed and prophesied in the Name of Yahweh; and had borne reproach for Him. 

Vs.18-21 However, he felt somewhat abandoned by Yahweh.  Yahweh assures Jeremiah that if he stays the course he, unlike his countrymen, would be delivered and would not suffer the violence of Babylon.  Indeed, later a direct order from Nebuchadnezzar would confirm this (Jer 39:11).  

15:16  The finding of God’s word probably refers to the time that a copy of the law was found in the days of Josiah – 2Chron 34:14

15:9 The quotation of the word of Hannah – 1Sam 2:5 – is of a woman who looked for the fulfilment of the promise of the seed of the woman. By this time in Judah’s history it would seem that there were no women looking for the Messiah to be born of them. So far from understanding the purpose of God were they that this did not figure in their minds.

V.3 Joel prophesied against Judah in 835 BC.  Jeremiah prophesied against Judah from 627 BC until 585 BC, several generations after Joel.  Joel talked of things that would happen generations after him (Joel 1:3).  He said that a fourfold disaster would occur to Judah (Joel 1:4).  Could Jeremiah's fourfold prophesy, here, be referring to the fourfold fate of Judah that Joel described?

15:17 Jeremiah rejoiced when the copy of the law of Moses was found. However that was not the reaction of everyone. From what he says here it would appear that some even mocked when the words were found and read!

V.8 Attacks at noonday, the hottest part of the day, were usually suspended because of the heat. And so, any attacks at that time would be unexpected. But, that would be the nature of the Babylonian attack – unexpected.

V.9 The number seven is a complete number. Here, the mother (widow) who had produced full progeny was in mourning until death because she had lost every one of her children.

V.12 Steel (KJV), as we know it, had not been invented at this time. The indication is that iron had been hardened by copper.  That is the intent of the word steel.  

15:16  Doubtless Josiah rejoiced when the law was read and he loved to hear the words.

What would have happened if Jesus chose to pass up the opportunity of being the saviour of the world? Esther had a very similar choice to make, and I think the council of Mordecai would have been the same to Jesus had he been with him; "For if you remain completely silent at this time, relief and deliverance will arise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father's house will perish" (Esther 4v14). Esther had been placed in her exalted position by God in order for her to effect the salvation of the Jews, nevertheless she had to choose whether she wished to go along with it or not. Choosing to go along with it involved personal suffering for her, because their was the distinct possibility that she would be killed for her efforts (Esther 4v11). The point is, that had she chosen not to be the saviour, God would have provided another.

We need to bear this in mind when we think of the struggle of Jesus in Gethsemane. It was a very real and beguiling option for him to give up his struggle, to forego all the pain and suffering, and to allow God to provide another way to save His people. God would have provided another way, but He didn't want it another way. God's will was that it would be Jesus dying shamefully on a tree, and we all sometimes struggle to comprehend why salvation had to come this particular way.

Naaman had a similar choice to make. Why should the prophet want him to bathe in a dirty stream? Why particularly seven times? Why did Adam have to abstain from the tree in the middle of the garden? Why did Cain and Abel have to sacrifice a lamb, rather than vegetables? Why did Saul have to kill all the Amalekites completely, not sparing any thing or any one? But God had simply said He wanted it that way. He admonished Saul "Has the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD?" (1Sam 15v22)

We all have that choice to make too, and I'm sure we wish we wouldn't have to make it. There are specific times in our lives where we have to consciously decide to take the road of difficulty because we know it is God's will, or to choose the easy path against His will. There is a whole list of examples in Hebrews 11 of those who had the same choice to make. The one that sums the whole thing up for me is Moses, who "CHOSE rather to suffer affliction with the people of God,…esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt; for he looked to the reward." Heb 11v25-26. All these had to choose whether to stand and fight, and so do we.

Vs.14,15 What a great pity that Judas gave up the kingdom for thirty pieces of silver.  Ironically, he did not even live to enjoy his ill-gotten gains.  We can also be in danger of giving up the kingdom if we pursue wealth (Matt 6:24; 19:24).  Let us make the kingdom our treasure (Matt 6:19-21).

26:32 Whilst Jesus says that he will go to Galilee after his resurrection w should appreciate that happened at least a week after the resurrection – John 20:26.

26:38   Jesus’ because of his compassion for mankind and an awareness of his human nature and not wishing to go through with the death on the cross was ‘sorrowful unto death’. Jonah, on the other hand, who lacked compassion was sorrowful unto death because of God’s compassion towards the men of Nineveh. Jon 4:9.

26:4-5 This insight into the mind of the Jewish leaders sets the scene for Judas’ actions in :15.

Vs.6-13 Jesus visited Simon the leper's house in Bethany.  By piecing together the other gospel accounts, we can get a more complete picture.  We know that Simon was a Pharisee (Luke 7:36-40).  We know that it was Mary who anointed Jesus' feet with the ointment (John 12:3), while her sister Martha served at supper (v.2).

Martha's serving would indicate that she was at home.  Therefore, Simon the leper (cured by Jesus?), entertained Jesus for dinner at home with his children Mary, Martha, and Lazarus.  But we are told of one other person present at that meal - Judas (John 12:4). Judas' father was named Simon.  Would it be a stretch to conclude that Judas was also the son of Simon the leper, brother of Mary, Martha, and Lazarus?

V.57 Thirty pieces of silver had been given to Judas, the betrayer, to deliver Jesus to them. Jesus was then arrested by the chief priests.  Perhaps the psalmist is reflecting the Lord's feeling of entrapment, at this time, when he says: Many bulls surround me; strong bulls of Bashan encircle me (Psa 22:12). 

But why was this image used?  It is a picture is of a helpless man in danger of being gored to death.  I wonder if a connection to the Law can be made here.  Take a look at Exo 21:32.  The elements here are: the bull; the servant; the slavemaster; the owner. 

Could the bull represent the Law; the servant represent Jesus (see Isa 41:1; Matt 12:18); the owner represent the Jewish authorities; the slavemaster (Heb. adon = controller) represent Judas? 

 Notice that the bull's goring the servant resulted in the death of the bull (the Law was fulfilled by Christ).  Jesus had warned the Jewish authorities of their errors, but instead of repenting they killed Him.  Therefore, they would die never to be accepted into the kingdom (Luke 13:28).  Jesus' warning and their subsequent deaths seem to fit Exo 21:28,29. 

26:16  The meal in Bethany was actually two days before the passover. However it was only ‘from that time’ that the Jewish leaders had a plan to trap Jesus, after their verbal onslaught of the previous day had failed. So we see they had not long to get their plan together and it was reliant upon Judas’ delivering on his side of the bargain. So all in all it seemed a very precarious agreement. However Jesus was delivered by ‘the determinate counsel ... of God’ – Acts 2:23

Have you ever promised Jesus something you couldn't deliver? Do you regularly declare complete loyalty to him? Peter did (v33) as did James and John (20:22). And it was these three that Jesus requested to watch with him (v37-38). They fell asleep instead. Does Jesus' lesson apply to use too? "The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak" (v41). When we have episodes like this in our lives we are reminded that we are not equal to Jesus. He saves us, and not the other way round. This humility is a mindset necessary for salvation. We all have to learn it one way or another, and for some of us it's a hard lesson (v75).