“David sent messengers to get her, and she came to him, and he went to bed with her (for she had been purified from her uncleanness). Then she returned to her house.”-2 Samuel 11:4
I wanna show you another cool wordplay that’s super obvious in Hebrew…
But completely lost on English speakers.
The phrase “sent a messenger” in Hebrew is SHALACH MALACH.
It directly connects to verse 1, where David “sent” (Shalach) Joab and the army to war.
See the pattern?
David wrongly sent his general to battle (and yep, Bathsheba’s husband went too).
And with the army gone, David wrongly sent his messenger to bring Bathsheba to him – for adultery.
Man, it just keeps getting worse.
Also, notice the following similarity between the words “king” and “messenger” in Hebrew.
מֶלֶךְ (Melech) – King
מַלְאָךְ (Malach) – Messenger
So there could be another wordplay going on with these two words.
But maybe not.
Some scholars will go out on a limb and say that MALACH (messenger) and MELECH (king) are the same words in Hebrew.
They’re wrong.
Although the words מֶלֶךְ (Melech – King) and מַלְאָךְ (Malach – Messenger) sound similar, they are NOT spelled identically.
Malach (מַלְאָךְ) has an extra Aleph (א) in the middle, which makes a big difference in Hebrew.
Ya feel me?
There are cases where Hebrew words sound similar or are connected in meaning, but spelling matters.
Anyway, let’s move on to the takeaway.
It’s kind of what I said earlier.
David was supposed to lead…
But instead, he sent…
First, he sent Joab to fight his battles…
Then, he sent a messenger to bring him temptation…
One bad choice led to another…
And before he knew it…
He was in deep doo-doo.
This is what happens when we avoid our responsibilities…
Sin finds a way to creep in.
The moment we stop fighting the right battles,
We start fighting the wrong ones.
Let this be a warning.
When we send others to do what we’re called to do…
We open the door to trouble.
Are you feeling me here?
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