“One evening David got up from his bed and strolled around on the roof of the palace. From the roof he saw a woman bathing—a very beautiful woman. So David sent someone to inquire about her, and he reported, ‘This is Bathsheba, daughter of Eliam and wife of Uriahthe Hittite.’  David sent messengers to get her, and when she came to him, he slept with her. Now she had just been purifying herself from her uncleanness. Afterward, she returned home. The woman conceived and sent word to inform David: ‘I am pregnant.’” —2 Samuel 11:2–5 (NIV)

Have you ever sinned so devastatingly big, you’re almost shell shocked you were capable of such rebellion? Sadly, I have. It was extremely humbling and helps to remind me that small, seemingly insignificant compromises can lead you down a path of destruction faster than you ever thought possible. The sin we see here in these passages didn’t just happen overnight. It started one compromise at a time. 

Compromise #1: Unchecked Desire

Bible scholars and historians estimate that David was likely between 12 and 15 years old when he was anointed king—young, but fully capable of understanding God’s clear command in Deuteronomy 17:17 (NIV), which says a king “must not take many wives, or his heart will be led astray.” Yet by the time we reach this moment with Bathsheba, David already has seven wives. Bathsheba didn’t cause David’s downfall; his downfall began long before with a pattern of unchecked desire and quiet disobedience that had already taken root in his heart. Now, Bathsheba was a very beautiful woman. “David looked at Bathsheba and said “beauty,” but God saw his heart as ugly. The hoped-for pleasures of sin deceive us like the bait hides the hook. We must call it what God calls it: sin. We want to say “affair,” but God says “adultery.” We want to say “love,” but God says “lust.” We want to say “sexy,” but God says “sin.” We want to say “romantic,” but God says “ruin.” We want to say “destiny,” but God says “destruction” (David Guzik).

Compromise #2: Too Comfortable

David’s military success has made him too comfortable. Comfortability can lead to compromise. He was a warrior king—he was known for being in the heat of battle with his men. But the Scripture that precedes today’s passage tells us that as David’s men went off to war, David remained in Jerusalem.”

Compromise #3: Not Taking the Out

1 Corinthians 10:13 tells us, “No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it. “This is Bathsheba, daughter of Eliam and wife of Uriahthe Hittite.” This information was David’s “way out”! He was given an opportunity to pause and reflect; to slow down and consider his actions. Bathsheba’s father was Eliam, one of David’s mighty men. Her grandfather was Ahithophel, one of David’s chief counselors. In taking Bathsheba, David not only sinned against Uriah, but Eliam and Ahithophel—each of these men were loyal, devoted, and very important to David. 

The Cost Of Compromise

Sin will take you farther than you want to go, keep you longer than you want to stay, and cost you more than you want to pay. This climax of unchecked compromise resulted in an unwanted pregnancy, the murder of a trustworthy and loyal friend, a dead infant, a daughter raped by one of his sons, one son murdered by another son, a civil war led by one of his sons, and a son who imitates David’s lack of self-control and publicly humiliates his father by sleeping with his wives. This season in David’s life is a cautionary tale of sin’s slow drift toward devastating and lasting consequences.

Pause: Is there a sin in your life you’ve considered no big deal that you’ve been hiding in your heart? Maybe it’s an unholy thought or attitude, a TV show you know you have no business watching, or your online browsing history. Has time caused you to slowly drift from the Lord?

Practice: If you have an unchecked desire/sin in your life, confess it and repent. Find a trusted and loving friend that’s able to hold you accountable.

Pray: Dear Lord, please forgive me when I get too comfortable, when I think I’m above temptation, or when I look at someone else and think “I would never do that.” Your Word states that “pride comes before the fall” (Proverbs 16:18). My heart is deceitful. I’m a sinner saved by grace and want to be vigilant to seek You in all that I think, say, and do. Please help me Lord. In Jesus name, I pray. Amen.