We all know the story…well all that grew-up in church…of 2 Samuel 11…the infamous story of David, Bathsheba, and Uriah the Hittite. This is a story of many lessons.

• Don’t be where you aren’t supposed to be (the roof at bath time)
• Look away (don’t gaze on a naked woman)
• Idle hands… (David should have been out at war)
• Don’t try and cover things up (you only make them worse)
• Other people get hurt even if we are only thinking we are hurting one person (many husbands died when Joab pulled back support)
• etc.

But one of the most important lessons precedes the story of David and Bathsheba and it is encapsulated in these verses,

And the Syrians fled before Israel, and David killed of the Syrians the men of 700 chariots, and 40,000 horsemen, and wounded Shobach the commander of their army, so that he died there. 19 And when all the kings who were servants of Hadadezer saw that they had been defeated by Israel, they made peace with Israel and became subject to them. So the Syrians were afraid to save the Ammonites anymore.” -2 Samuel 10:18, 19

Just in case you missed the lesson of those verses in connection to the story of David and Bathsheba here it is from what I wrote in the margins of my Bible:

After great victory is when we are most susceptible to have our greatest fall.

I know the English and flow of that sentence is poor…it was a margin writing.

I don’t say this simply from David’s sorrowful tale. I unfortunately have had some of my biggest blunders after or in the midst of some of my greatest “triumphs.”

So here is the lesson then. I’ve learned to be more on guard in those times and I hope you will too. More on our knees, more in the Word, more in accountability to the Christian community Jesus has put around us!

Next Reading: Psalms 54-56