Samuel 11 – Direct

David felt the trap closing. He kept Uriah in Jerusalem another day, invited him to eat and drink at the palace, and plied him with wine until his eyes grew heavy. That night, David prayed the wine would loosen Uriah’s conscience.

But the Lord saw.

David listened, his face a mask. To the messenger, he said coldly, “Tell Joab not to let this trouble him. The sword devours one as well as another. Strengthen the attack against the city and overthrow it.” samuel 11

Uriah, the faithful Hittite, took his own death warrant in his hands and rode toward Rabbah.

He wrote a letter. In it were these words: “Set Uriah in the front line, where the fighting is fiercest. Then draw back from him, so that he may be struck down and die.” David felt the trap closing

When David heard this, his chest tightened. He called Uriah in. “You’ve come from a journey. Why didn’t you go down to your house?”

But Uriah did not go home. He slept at the palace gate, wrapped in his cloak, with the king’s servants. But the Lord saw

A messenger rode back to Jerusalem with the news of the battle. “The enemy came out against us,” he reported. “Some of the king’s servants are dead. Your servant Uriah the Hittite is also dead.”