Past Commentary by a Common Terry
A guilty king
July 26, 2026
Perhaps David is so significant and beloved in the Bible narrative, in part, because he was so completely human in his story. At times, he was absolutely outstanding, shining like the star he could be. But then, the star would dim and he’d lose his way, sinning in staggering failure and harming those around him through his choices.
To really appreciate the psalms of David (he wrote nearly half of the 150 psalms recorded in the book of Psalms), we must consider his life. He had reasons for celebration, praise, and worship. But he also had reasons for depression, anguish, despair, and spiritual emptiness.
Just like us, he was oppressed by forces and dangers he did not cause or invite. Yet, they still came on him, often with a severe vengeance. Just like us, he also brought some misery and struggle on himself because of sinful choices and actions. The guilt he carried at times was inevitably larger than he could bear. These could lead him to melancholic moods or angry outbursts. Just like us.
Three times in particular, the Davidic narrative of II Samuel described a sinful action of David that caused great pain to himself and others:
The Ark of the Covenant was away from Jerusalem for more than 70 years. It was time, in II Samuel 6, for it to return to the city where it belonged. David and his men, some 30,000 of them, went to Baale-Judah to retrieve the Ark. At first glance, it all sounds fine. They placed the Ark on a new cart pulled by oxen. Two men, Uzzah and Ahio, were tasked with guiding the cart. They were the sons of Abinidab, in whose house the Ark rested for twenty years.
David was celebrating mightily as the Ark was brought to Jerusalem. Yet, all was not well. The Ark was not being transported according to the commands of God. It was not being treated with the respect it should be given. The cart was unsteady. The path was bumpy. The Ark began to fall. Uzzah, either in reflexive instinct, or in full awareness of the risk he took, reached out and steadied it. No one was to touch the Ark like that. Uzzah was struck dead. The account says David was first angry with God, then afraid of God. (II Samuel 6:8-9) It was three months later when David brought the Ark to the city as it should be done—carried with poles by the Levites with sacrifices along the way.
I will not belabor the Bathsheba account in II Samuel 11-12. We know the story. David not only committed the terrible sins of adultery and murder by proxy, but he used his kingly power and authority to advance his own agenda and purpose throughout the story. The authority and power God had given him became a means of sin.
He took Bathsheba for himself. A king in the Ancient Near East had the power to do that. He tried, more than once, to manipulate the situation to make it appear that the child she carried belonged to her husband, Uriah. He eventually used his royal command to authorize an action by his military commander, Joab, that would lead to Uriah’s death. Stunningly sinful!
The third great sin of David in the scripture is the unlawful census he took to measure his power in the kingdom. In combining the texts of II Samuel 24:1 and I Chronicles 21:1, we learn that it was specifically Satan who provoked David to take a census of his power. As a result, some 70,000 people in the land died by pestilence!
In the first event, one man died (Uzzah). In the second, more died: Uriah, the husband of Bathsheba, died, the child died, and years later, in fulfillment of God’s judgment against David, his son Absalom died, along with several thousand in the battle between a father and his son. In the third, tens-of-thousands died.
In all three instances, David listened to a voice that put him on the wrong path. In all three, he lost the ability to hear God clearly. There were terrible, bloody consequences. That is a lot to come to terms with, recognizing such calamity by one’s own hand and choices.
David had plenty to feel guilty about. So, what did he do? We’ll get to that next week.
To really appreciate the psalms of David (he wrote nearly half of the 150 psalms recorded in the book of Psalms), we must consider his life. He had reasons for celebration, praise, and worship. But he also had reasons for depression, anguish, despair, and spiritual emptiness.
Just like us, he was oppressed by forces and dangers he did not cause or invite. Yet, they still came on him, often with a severe vengeance. Just like us, he also brought some misery and struggle on himself because of sinful choices and actions. The guilt he carried at times was inevitably larger than he could bear. These could lead him to melancholic moods or angry outbursts. Just like us.
Three times in particular, the Davidic narrative of II Samuel described a sinful action of David that caused great pain to himself and others:
- The careless transport of the Ark of the Covenant
- The affair with Bathsheba and the horrific actions taken to cover it up
- The unlawful, pride-driven census of power
The Ark of the Covenant was away from Jerusalem for more than 70 years. It was time, in II Samuel 6, for it to return to the city where it belonged. David and his men, some 30,000 of them, went to Baale-Judah to retrieve the Ark. At first glance, it all sounds fine. They placed the Ark on a new cart pulled by oxen. Two men, Uzzah and Ahio, were tasked with guiding the cart. They were the sons of Abinidab, in whose house the Ark rested for twenty years.
David was celebrating mightily as the Ark was brought to Jerusalem. Yet, all was not well. The Ark was not being transported according to the commands of God. It was not being treated with the respect it should be given. The cart was unsteady. The path was bumpy. The Ark began to fall. Uzzah, either in reflexive instinct, or in full awareness of the risk he took, reached out and steadied it. No one was to touch the Ark like that. Uzzah was struck dead. The account says David was first angry with God, then afraid of God. (II Samuel 6:8-9) It was three months later when David brought the Ark to the city as it should be done—carried with poles by the Levites with sacrifices along the way.
I will not belabor the Bathsheba account in II Samuel 11-12. We know the story. David not only committed the terrible sins of adultery and murder by proxy, but he used his kingly power and authority to advance his own agenda and purpose throughout the story. The authority and power God had given him became a means of sin.
He took Bathsheba for himself. A king in the Ancient Near East had the power to do that. He tried, more than once, to manipulate the situation to make it appear that the child she carried belonged to her husband, Uriah. He eventually used his royal command to authorize an action by his military commander, Joab, that would lead to Uriah’s death. Stunningly sinful!
The third great sin of David in the scripture is the unlawful census he took to measure his power in the kingdom. In combining the texts of II Samuel 24:1 and I Chronicles 21:1, we learn that it was specifically Satan who provoked David to take a census of his power. As a result, some 70,000 people in the land died by pestilence!
In the first event, one man died (Uzzah). In the second, more died: Uriah, the husband of Bathsheba, died, the child died, and years later, in fulfillment of God’s judgment against David, his son Absalom died, along with several thousand in the battle between a father and his son. In the third, tens-of-thousands died.
In all three instances, David listened to a voice that put him on the wrong path. In all three, he lost the ability to hear God clearly. There were terrible, bloody consequences. That is a lot to come to terms with, recognizing such calamity by one’s own hand and choices.
David had plenty to feel guilty about. So, what did he do? We’ll get to that next week.