I was recently reading in 2 Samuel 23 following along with a sermon I was listening to. The chapter is all about King David's "mighty men", his 30 elite warriors that followed and served him. The account starts off with some very outrageously unbelievable stories about a few of David's top warriors. Josheb-Basshebeth, the commander of "the three" (who were the three greatest warriors among David's mighty men) was said to have once used his spear to kill 800 enemy warriors in a single battle. Honestly, this seems like something I'd see in a video game or a very intense action movie. But in real life...800 enemy warriors? Wow!
Another of "the three", this man named Eleazar, once stood with David against a force of Philistines after the entire Israelite army had already retreated. Together, they slew the enemy until they were too tired to lift their swords....their allies returned only to help them gather the plunder because there were no warriors left to kill.
The last of "the three"...a man named Shammah who once held his position in a field while the Israelites fled the battlefield. Alone, Shammah resisted and caused the Philistines to fall back after many of them had died.
There is yet another time when "the three" went down into Bethlehem to fetch water for David. Only problem was Bethlehem was inhabited by a large number of Philistine warriors at the time. So three men fought the whole force, beating them back long enough for water to be drawn from a well by the gate. Yes, three men pushed back a small army so that their leader could have a drink of water. Its crazy!
These are just some of the stories of the mightiest of David's closest warriors. Others are listed for doing enormously brave things. Men who killed hundreds of the enemy in a battle, men who willingly chased wild lions into pits and killed them, men who put their lives on the line for David and did so with incredible courage, boldness, and resolve.
Towards the end of the chapter, each of David's mighty men is named and given honor. And in the very last verse, a man's name stands alone. As I read it, I can tell you that it screamed at me. And I had to scramble through my sources and Bible commentaries to see if I was really reading it right.
The last man listed as one of David's mighty men is Uriah the Hittite.
You see, we all know Uriah from 2 Samuel 11, where David sees a beautiful woman, sleeps with her, finds out her husband is Uriah, a soldier in the army, and then David eventually has Uriah killed so that he might take Uriah's wife as his own.
And as horrible as that is, it puts it in an even worse light when you realize that Uriah wasn't just "some soldier". No, Uriah was a close friend. A great warrior who had guarded David's back for years, possibly even before David was king and was running from King Saul. Uriah was like a brother to David. Not some common soldier that David did not know.
I doubt that David knew who Bathsheba was when he slept with her. And after finding out that she was Uriah's wife, I imagine that he was greatly distressed. This better explains why he calls Uriah from battle to visit him and he pleads with his friend to go home and be with his wife. Uriah is important to David and despite his lust and lack of self-control, David doesn't want to destroy his ties of friendship and trust with Uriah. He knows that if Uriah goes home to his wife and sleeps with her, then when Bathsheba becomes pregnant, Uriah could safely assume he was the father.
The problem was that Uriah was a man of honor and would not return home to enjoy the comfort of being with his wife when his brothers and fellow warriors were away at war. David was trying to cover up his own failures and preserve his friendship with Uriah. But Uriah's honor and his loyalty would be the death of him...
David, realizing that he could not persuade Uriah to go home, knew that when Bathsheba became pregnant, he would be found out. Rather than face his mistakes, he horribly betrayed his dear friend, sending him back to the battlefield and ordering him into the most dangerous part of the battle while commanding that Uriah's allies and fellow warriors retreat and leave Uriah to be killed while fighting alone.
I knew that David was a man of many mistakes. And I knew that adultery, lust, murder, and pride were among his sins. But can I be honest? It really struck my heart hard to realize that David did not just take the wife of a random soldier who he didn't know...he stole away the most prized thing that his dear friend had and then took his friend's life because his integrity would expose David's sin.
And as horrible as it was, what David did...he is not the focus of my thoughts in this post. Uriah is. You gotta wonder; why would the king randomly send for Uriah to leave his post and pay him a visit? And upon visiting his king and trusted friend of many years, do you not think that Uriah was suspicious of David's behavior?
Even more disturbing is the thought that maybe Uriah realized what was going on...it is possible that he knew David was deceiving him. After all, they had known each other many years. And despite these possible reservations, Scripture never records Uriah complaining or hesitating to serve his king and his country.
When Uriah returns to the army and hands his general (Joab, who happens to be David's nephew and was probably also a friend of Uriah) his new orders, written by King David himself, you have to wonder if Uriah knew his fate would be to die. You have to wonder what Uriah thought as, in the midst of heated battle, he saw his companions and fellow warriors fall back, leaving him to fight alone.
I can't imagine what Uriah's final thoughts were...I'm sure he felt abandoned, but did he realize the depth of David's betrayal against him? And if he did, how did he find it in himself to serve his king faithfully despite what David had done?
I wonder to myself what kind of character a man has to have that would possess him to cling to such loyalty. I am sure it was a brave and adventurous thing to do, following and protecting David in the earlier years of his life. Running from the wrath of Saul, David already having been blessed as Israel's next king. And in the wars and battles that followed David's rise to the throne, I can see Uriah taking pride in defending David from the many threats that arose. But when the threat was David himself, Uriah remained steadfast and devoted. And I do not believe a great warrior like that was blind to how David was playing him and was ignorant about the fate David had decreed for him.
Yet Uriah was loyal anyway. He died anyway, surrendering his life in honor of the very king who ordered his death. I cannot imagine being stabbed in the back by any of my close friends the way that David betrayed Uriah. I cannot fathom Uriah's pain...and I certainly cannot understand Uriah's willingness to do the right thing anyway. I mean, David messed up...Uriah would have been justified in going home, taking his wife, and leaving the country. Or he could have fled from the battlefield when he learned where David had assigned him. But no...I think that Uriah had decided that he would be righteous despite the sins of David.
I know that sometimes, in my own life, I feel justified in my disobedience to God because someone else wronged me. I feel like I am owed something. In the same way, David's sin effected Uriah greatly in a very unfair way. And in our eyes, Uriah had a right to vengeance. He had a right to defy David's orders and forsake their friendship because David had broken the trust between them. David's mistake had the potential to ruin Uriah's life. But even after David did wrong to Uriah, we do not see Uriah doing wrong in return. Instead, he kept his innocence and his integrity, though it cost him his life and meant abandoning his wife to live under David's roof the rest of her days. Uriah's decision to keep his honor and remain loyal cost him everything. Everything.
What would you risk for the sake of loyalty? Do you hold that kind of devotion to Christ, the King of kings? Think on it. And when you feel like your loyalties are being stretched and trusting God is no longer an easy thing to do...remember Uriah the Hittite and take strength and courage from his example.
