King David and Bathsheba in Today’s News

I find this portrayal of Nathan as much older than King David a bit amusing as Nathan is still an active prophetic voice at the end of David's life, affirming God's selection of Solomon as the successor to David's throne. (1 Kings 1) 

The Hebrew Scripture for tomorrow (July 29, 2018) from the Revised Common Lectionary is King David’s adultery with Bathsheba and the indirect murder of her husband Uriah (2 Samuel 11:1-15). The text says very little about Bathsheba’s role, avoiding any hint of victim blaming that has been the defense (or at least rationalization) for power-men sexual predators and rapists in our time. I wondered what David may have interpreted as consent, or if consent was even considered relevant, when the king wanted sex. I wondered how aware Bathsheba was of David’s scheming to trick Uriah into thinking the child was his and then arranging his death when that didn’t work. According to 2 Samuel 12:24, after the death of that child, when David had taken Bathsheba as a wife, they conceived another child as a comfort for Bathsheba. That child was Solomon, who though he should never have been born, became the king to succeed David at the glorious pinnacle of Israel’s history. Interpreting this story as a great lesson in the gravity of sin and the wonder of God’s grace is all too easy, even if appropriate.

Whether or not this is ironically relevant, I couldn’t help connecting it with how Donald Trump’s sexual reputation is again in this week’s news. What has been getting attention this week are not the assertions of sexual predatory behavior from the Miss USA pageant and other settings, but women who have acknowledged having affairs with him. Using the word “accusations” hardly seems to fit coming from those who affirm that they were fully willing partners in these relationships. As an oriental monarch, King David had a presumptive power that Bathsheba may or may not have felt she could refuse. Donald Trump has lived the role of a power-man long before he became President. Were these women somehow drawn to that power or to the wealth associated with it? Just as I wondered about Bathsheba’s role in the affair with King David, my reflections as this week’s Scripture reading bumped up against this week’s news, I have wondered about the roles of these women in their relationships with Donald Trump. What would have attracted them to this man older than they were?

I recognize that all sorts of political implications and machinations are tangled in these stories. Undoubtedly the women are being played in a political game, though they seem to be politically oblivious themselves. Although I strongly believe Donald Trump’s sexual history is critically relevant to trusting him as President, and although I suspect there is considerable (but probably not total) truth in these women’s stories, I neither respect nor sympathize with them. I do not consider them heroes of integrity. They themselves have acknowledged behavior that taints and compromises their sexual and relational honor. I have no personal knowledge of either Donald Trump or these women, so am in no position to judge their hearts. I am thankfully content to leave that in God’s hands. Having said that, the public nature of these things seemed to crash right into my Scripture meditation this week.

Whether you see it in terms of Galatians 6:7-8 or karma, the principle holds true. “Do not be deceived; God is not mocked, for you reap whatever you sow. If you sow to your own flesh, you will reap corruption from the flesh.” As often as not, those who have sown together expose each other as they reap corruption together. Who has the spiritual insight and courage to be the Prophet Nathan?

I do want to, again, be absolutely clear that I am specifically avoiding victim blaming. I have nothing but sympathy and respect for women who have spoken up about the abuses and even rapes of power-men sexual predators. These women deserve affirmation and support both for their courage to speak out and for the long journeys of recovery and healing that continue for man

y years. I do believe the #MeToo movement is helping change the culture so predatory sexual behavior is no longer tolerated in our society, so victims are believed and supported.