In the spring, at the time when
kings go off to war . . . David remained in Jerusalem. (1 Samuel 11:1)
Seemingly insignificant decisions
can reap giant consequences.
Israel was going to war with Ammon. David
had an able general in Joab, and entrusted the Ammonite military campaign to
him, leaving David with some free time on his hands. One sleepless night, David
was strolling around the palace rooftop, when he spied his neighbor's wife
bathing. He was intrigued and had her summoned. While David's neighbor (Uriah)
was at the battlefront, David became sexually entangled with Bathsheba (Uriah's
wife). Their relationship resulted in an unwanted pregnancy and a potentially
embarrassing scandal for the king.
Rather than seeing this as an
opportunity to come clean and confess his sins, David went the way of the
cover-up. He brought Uriah home from the front lines, thinking he would sleep
with his wife and every would think the baby was his. No flag no foul, but Uriah
had too much integrity for that. In a final act of desperation, David arranged
with Joab for Uriah to become a casualty of war, a sure-fire solution to his
problem with plausible deniability for all. David was in the clear… and a
murderer.
What would have happened if David
had led his own troops into battle, and that first wayward step not taken?
All
for the want of a nail.
Has a seemingly insignificant
decision ever led to big consequences for you?
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