2 Samuel 12 Continuation…
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The death of the child. (15-23)
V. 15…Lord Struck the Child… It is not the punishment for the child, but a chastisement for David. It is believed that David penned Psalm 51 during these 7 days. During the process, he had the assurance that his sin was pardoned and he greatly lamented his sin.
V. 16…pleaded with God… David was still hoping that God might change His mind.
V. 17…Elders of his house… They are probably the old, most trusted and influential of his personal aids.
V. 20…Washed and anointed himself… This means David took away all the signs of grief. …House of the LORD…, the tent that he has established on Mt. Zion.
V. 23…I shall go to him… This reflects the faith of David regarding personal reunion. This is a great promise for all who have lost young children to death. Also, we see how David patiently submitted to the will of God in the death of that child.
Birth of Solomon. (24-25)
V. 24…So she bore a son… God made up the loss to David’s advantage, in the birth of four other sons. 1 Chronicles 3:5 puts Solomon as the fourth son by David and Bathsheba. So 24b may skip over a number of years to talk about the most significant child who was ever favored by God. The message here is that when we cheerfully leave all loss to God, God will compensate the loss in His own way by His grace.
V. 25. God loved Solomon that even after naming HIM, He ordered him to be called Jedidiah, Beloved of the Lord.
Rabbah is captured. (26-31): Parallel passage 1 Chronicles 19:17-19. This passage is going back to continue the war history in 11:25. Joab, knew that ‘taking the city’ should be done by the king to get the credit, sent messenger to ask David to come and take over Rabba.
Psalms 51
This Psalm is a song of repentance composed by David as he was convicted of his sins by Prophet Nathan. Even though this is a penitential prayer of David, this has instructions regarding our knowledge about some spiritual matters.
Appealing for the mercies of God (1 & 2):
Vs. 1 & 2: …Have mercy upon me…
The psalm opens with an appeal to God for forgiveness. The terms mercy and steadfast love, as well as transgressions, iniquity, and sin, all evoke God’s proclamation of his own name (Ex. 34:6–7), with its focus on his grace and kindness. The plea for mercy here is a humble one, based entirely on God’s mercy, frankly recognizing that the worshiper does not deserve it. The terms wash (cf. Ex. 19:10) and cleanse (cf. Num. 19:19) come from the ceremonial system, where they refer to rites that allow a person to come safely into God’s presence. Here the psalm focuses on the inner condition that the ceremony points to. – ESV Study Bible.
Taking responsibility for our sin (3-5):
Vs. 3&4 …acknowledge…my sin is always before me… have I sinned… done this evil… All these words and phrases point out how David appropriately taking personal responsibility for his actions. There were no excuses for his action. Bu doing that, David makes God as the righteous Judge. …Against you… In Your sight… infer us that any sin is primarily against God and within His knowledge. But at the same time, the hurts others get out of our actions should not be ignored.
V. 5…in sin my mother conceived me… This does not mean that act of conception is sin. But this talks about the NATURE OF SIN that is in man by birth. So, man has the propensity to sin.