Thou Art the Man

The Story

It was the season when kings went out to war, but King David stayed home. One evening, from his palace roof, he saw a woman bathing. Her name was Bathsheba, and she was the wife of Uriah, one of David’s most loyal soldiers.

David sent for her, and he slept with her. When she sent word that she was pregnant, David tried to cover it up. When that failed, he arranged for Uriah to be placed at the front lines of the battle and left to die. Then David married Bathsheba, and it seemed the secret was safe.

But God sent the prophet Nathan to David with a story. A rich man with huge flocks had a guest to feed. Instead of using one of his own sheep, he took a poor man’s only lamb, a little lamb the poor man’s family loved like a daughter, and served it for dinner.

David was furious. “As the LORD liveth, the man that hath done this thing shall surely die!”

Nathan looked at him and said four words: “Thou art the man.”

David didn’t make excuses. He didn’t blame anyone. He said, “I have sinned against the LORD.” And Nathan answered, “The LORD also hath put away thy sin.”

Afterward, David wrote Psalm 51, one of the most honest prayers in the Bible: “Create in me a clean heart, O God.”

Reflection