Blessed be my rock; and exalted be the God of my salvation: Even the God that executeth vengeance for me, and subdueth peoples under me. He rescueth me from mine enemies. Psalm 18:46-48 {EP 518.6} Throughout the songs of David, the thought was impressed on his people that Jehovah was their strength and deliverer: {EP 519.1} Some trust in chariots, and some in horses: But we will remember the name of Jehovah our God. Psalm 20:7 {EP 519.2} The kingdom of Israel had now reached in extent the fulfillment of the promise given to Abraham: “Unto thy seed have I given this land, from the river of Egypt unto the great river, the river Euphrates.” Genesis 15:18. Israel had become a mighty nation, respected and feared by surrounding peoples. David commanded, as few sovereigns have been able to command, the affections and allegiance of his people. He had honored God, and God was now honoring him. {EP 519.3} But in the time of his greatest outward triumph, David met his most humiliating defeat. {EP 519.4}
Chapter 71—David’s Sin of Adultery and His Repentance This chapter is based on 2 Samuel 11; 12. The Bible has little to say in praise of men. All the good qualities men possess are the gift of God; their good deeds are performed by the grace of God through Christ. They are but instruments in His hands. All the lessons of Bible history teach that it is a perilous thing to praise men, for if one comes to lose sight of his entire dependence on God, he is sure to fall. The Bible inculcates distrust of human power and encourages trust in divine power. {EP 520.1} The spirit of self-exaltation prepared the way for David’s fall. Flattery, power, and luxury were not without effect upon him. According to the customs prevailing among Eastern rulers, crimes not to be tolerated in subjects were uncondemned in the king. All this tended to lessen David’s sense of the exceeding sinfulness of sin. He began to trust to his own wisdom and might. {EP 520.2} As soon as Satan can separate the soul from God, he will arouse the unholy desires of man’s carnal nature. The work of the enemy is not, at the outset, sudden and startling. It begins in apparently small things—neglect to rely upon God wholly, the disposition to follow the practices of the world. {EP 520.3} David returned to Jerusalem. The Syrians had already submitted, and the complete overthrow of the Ammonites appeared certain. David was surrounded by the fruits of victory and the honors of his able rule. Now the tempter seized the opportunity to occupy his mind. In ease and self-security, David yielded to Satan and brought upon his soul the stain of guilt. He, the Heaven-appointed leader of the nation, chosen by God to execute His 290