Imagine a friend came to you, her husband was at war, and she admitted to having an affair with a prominent public figure. Then she says, “I am pregnant.” What would you say to her?
There is general consensus that Bathsheba, with the assistance of King David, did absolutely everything wrong. She, a married Gentile woman, had an affair with the King of Israel while her husband Uriah was at war. When she became pregnant with David’s child, David arranged to make it look like her husband’s, and eventually David put her husband on the front lines so that he would be killed in combat.
It is a horrific story, and a scandal that we could imagine developing over months in the evening news – the prominent players involved, the affair, the cover up, the murder. No doubt it would lead to a resignation or an impeachment, even in our secular society.
In fact, this story is so scandalous and licentious, that Matthew does not actually include Bathsheba’s name in Jesus’ genealogy. He refers to her as the mother of Solomon, who had been Uriah’s wife. Perhaps the wording demonstrates an awkwardness we all feel in certain situations. A woman becomes pregnant out of wedlock, and while we want to celebrate the life inside of her, we also struggle with not condoning the behavior that led to the pregnancy.
Some might argue that had Bathsheba never had that affair with King David, she would not have had Solomon – one of the wisest men in history, and she would have never been included in Jesus’ genealogy. Does that mean what she did was good, or that the ends justified the means? Absolutely not.
What’s good is God. Somehow, someway (and He always seems to do this), He makes good out of what seem to be impossibly good circumstances. This is the power of Jesus’ redemption. We look at the woman caught in adultery and give her two options – death by justice or freedom by disregarding the law. Jesus has a third option – redemption through mercy.
Dr. Tim Keller writes, “The Biblical view of things is resurrection – not a future that is just a consolation for the life we never had but a restoration of the life you always wanted. This means that every horrible thing that ever happened will not only be undone and repaired but will in some way make the eventual glory and joy even greater.”
Is there a better example of this than David and Bathsheba’s relationship? The eventual glory and joy of the coming of the Messiah through their line outweighs and greatly overshadows their sin and guilt. This is the redemption and the resurrection that Jesus offers to each and every one of us. So many times we don’t feel worthy or capable of serving the Lord. We’ve got stuff – sin, addictions, history, stuff we’ve buried, stuff we wish would stay buried. Jesus doesn’t promise to hide our sin, he promises a life free from it – a life free from its entanglements and free from our paranoia to keep the skeletons hidden in the closet. That is freedom. That is the Messianic promise of redemption. This is what Jesus means when He says, “I make all things new.”
Jesus is the resurrection and the life. When we put our hope in Him, our life rises from ashes. May the Lord help us to trust Him, to follow Him, to love Him, to embrace the life to which He invites us, and to realize that abundant and real life is only found in Him. He has come to heal the brokenhearted and set the captives free, to exchange our ashes for crowns of beauty. May we desire to be oaks of righteousness – a planting of the Lord for the display of His splendor.