Every person has probably done something that, given the opportunity, they would do differently. But taking action, that lays the cost of the consequences on someone else, is the more disastrous when done by a person who carries considerable responsibility.
The subsequent cover up can be more problematic than the original misdemeanour. The more a person does to cover their actions, the more committed they become to their deceit.
The episode we are considering this morning is disturbing because it reports on one of Israel’s favourite sons. The account pulls no punches as it describes the tumbling series of wrongs deliberately (ultimately in a calculated way) committed by King David.
Yet, David was said to be a man after God’s own heart (see 1 Kings 11:4)?!