2 Samuel 12:1-7

DISCOURSE: 316
NATHAN’S PARABLE

2 Samuel 12:1. And the Lord sent Nathan unto David. And he came unto him, and said unto him, There were two men in one city; the one rich, and the other poor. The rich man had exceeding many flocks and herds: but the poor man had nothing, save one little ewe lamb, which he had bought and nourished up: and it grew up together with him, and with his children; it did eat of his own meat, and drank of his own cup, and lay in his bosom, and was unto him as a daughter. And there came a traveller unto the rich man, and he spared to take of his own flock and of his own herd, to dress for the wayfaring man that was come unto him; but took the poor man’s lamb, and dressed it for the man that was come to him. And David’s anger was greatly kindled against the man; and he said to Nathan, As the Lord liveth, the man that hath done this thing shall surely die: and he shall restore the lamb four-fold, because he did this thing, and because he had no pity. And Nathan said to David, Thou art the man.

GOD, in the disposal of his gifts, does not conduct himself by any such laws as are necessary for the regulation of human actions. He is a Sovereign who may deal with his creatures as he pleases, without “giving account to us of any of his matters.” Accordingly we find that sometimes he has exercised a severity beyond what we, with our limited apprehensions, might have expected: and at other times he has shewn mercy, where we could have expected nothing but the heaviest judgments. We have lately seen him striking Uzzah dead for a well-meant error, and taking the kingdom from Saul for not waiting quite so long for Samuel as he should have done: but in our text we behold him sending a prophet unto David to bring him to repentance, after the commission of such crimes as cannot be contemplated without horror and amazement. But “His ways are not as our ways, nor his thoughts as our thoughts.”
The conduct of David as portrayed in our text, together with the means used by Nathan to humble him for it, lead us to shew,

I. To what an awful extent a man’s conscience may be seared—

We read of persons whose “consciences are seared as with an hot iron [Note: 1 Timothy 4:2.]:” and such was now the state of David—

[One would have supposed that, after the commission of adultery with Bathsheba, he would have been scarcely able to endure his existence through the agonies of his mind: but he was only concerned about concealing it from man: accordingly, on finding that her pregnancy must of necessity lead to a discovery of the crime, he adopted various means to deceive Uriah; and when he did not succeed in them, he sent an order to Joab to expose, and to desert, him in battle, so as to ensure his death by the hands of the enemy. Would one not suppose that such complicated crimes as these should awaken him? Yet behold for nine or ten months he was, as far as appears to us, altogether insensible of his guilt.
At the same time he was quick-sighted enough to the crimes of others, and severe in the extreme against the man, whom Nathan represented as oppressively taking the favourite lamb of a poor neighbour in preference to one out of his own flock: he deemed that man to be worthy of death, because he had shewn no pity; and adjudged him to pay four-fold for the injury he had committed.
Who can reflect on this without utter astonishment? That so holy a man as David, who had been so honoured of the Lord, and had done so much for the honour of his God, should be left to fall in so grievous a manner, and to lie for so long a time impenitent in his sins! Who can look upon it, and not weep for him? Who can look upon it, and not tremble for himself?]
But awful as this state of mind appears, it is, alas! too common in this world—
[Such enormous crimes indeed as those of David are not common: but who has not committed some evils which ought to have humbled him in the dust before God? — — — yet who has not continued months, and even years, without ever abasing himself with humiliation and contrition? Who has not shewn a strange insensibility with respect to the guilt he has contracted? — — — We can easily discern the faults of others, and can censure them with severity; but towards our own we are most blind and most indulgent.
Nor must we be considered here as referring altogether to those who despise religion: it is a common evil: it is found even in the house of God: there are professors of religion who are as blind to their own sins, as if they never had known what sin was; and who, if their misdeeds are unknown to man, continue for years unhumbled in the sight of God. Yes; there are too many, who are both blinded and “hardened by the deceitfulness of sin;” and, if ever God should give them true repentance, they will be as much astonished at their present insensibility, as now they are at that which is recorded in our text.]
Seeing then how callous a man’s conscience may become, let us inquire,

II.

In what way it may be most successfully excited to perform its office—

Much may be learned from the conduct of Nathan on this occasion:

1. We should endeavour to divest men of the self-love that blinds them—

[This was well contrived in the parable that Nathan spake. David did not see the drift of the parable as relating to himself, and therefore felt no personal interest in his decision. Hence his judgment was free, and his determination of the cause unbiassed. Had he been aware that he was about to condemn himself, he would have been far more indulgent towards the offending person.
Now this mode of convicting persons, who would have revolted at any plainer dealing, has been frequently practised with good effect. It was to such an expedient that Joab resorted, in order to prevail on David to recall his son Absalom from banishment [Note: 2 Samuel 14:5; 2 Samuel 14:20.] — — — and by a similar device a prophet constrained Ahab to condemn himself for sparing Benhadad, whom God had delivered into his hands to be destroyed [Note: 1 Kings 20:35.] — — — Our Lord himself also frequently adopted the same method of counteracting the prejudices of the Scribes and Pharisees [Note: Matthew 21:40.] — — — By such means a person is silenced at once, and is “condemned out of his own mouth.” True indeed, in cases where the mind is open to conviction, these precautions are less necessary; but the sentence that is founded on such grounds is always less offensive, because the criminal passes it upon himself.]

2. We should however combine fidelity with address—

[Sooner or later we must come to the point, “Thou art the man.” We are to consider ourselves as messengers of the Most High God, who has said, “He that hath my word, let him speak my word faithfully. What is the chaff to the wheat [Note: Jeremiah 23:28.]?” We must not fear the face of man: our concern for his welfare must swallow up all dread of his displeasure; and the consideration of the account which we must one clay give to God, must impel us, even at the peril of our lives, to bear a faithful testimony in his service. Behold the boldness of Elijah in reproving Ahab [Note: 1 Kings 18:17; 1 Kings 21:19.]; and of John in condemning the incestuous commerce of Herod [Note: Matthew 14:4.]: these are the examples which we must follow, when milder methods have proved ineffectual: but our object must always be, not merely to acquit ourselves to God as faithful monitors, but to win the souls of those whom we admonish. The recollection of our own weakness, and proneness to fall, must ever render us as tender as possible towards our fallen brother: “we must restore him in the spirit of meekness; considering ourselves, lest we also be tempted [Note: Galatians 6:1.].”]

Let us then, in the view of this history, learn,
1.

To tremble for ourselves—

[Did David fall? Who then is safe? Did David sink into such an obdurate state? Who has not reason to dread lest he be given over to a reprobate mind? Clear enough it is from whence repentance must proceed, whether in its first commencement, or in its further progress: if God work it not in us by his Holy Spirit, we shall be altogether as insensible as a rock of adamant. Let none of us then indulge a proud security, or imagine ourselves out of the reach of temptation; “Let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall” — — —]

2. To rejoice in God—

[O what mercy did God display on this occasion; that instead of cutting off the royal miscreant by some signal judgment, he sent a prophet to awaken his drowsy conscience, and bring him to repentance! We lament indeed, that many have taken occasion from David’s fall to make light of sin; and from his recovery, to imagine, that God will never execute his threatened judgments: but we have reason to bless our God that such a monument of mercy has been exhibited in the Scriptures. How many thousands of backsliding Christians have been restored by means of this one example! We are now encouraged to say to all, however heinous their iniquities have been, “Return, ye backsliding children; and God will heal your backslidings, and love you freely.” “Only acknowledge your iniquity,” and then “it shall not be your ruin.” Is there any one amongst us who has become hardened in his sins? O, hear what God says to his people of old [Note: Isaiah 57:17.]; and seek “repentance unto life,” even that “repentance which is not to be repented of.”]