“They brought the donkey and the colt and put on them their cloaks, and he sat on them. Most of the crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. 9 And the crowds that went before him and that followed him were shouting, ‘Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest (Mat 21:7-9)!’”

Moving into and through Palm Sunday I’ve been thinking about Uriah the Hittite.  In the midst of a war with the Ammonites (2Sa 11:1) he was called home by his commander and chief, King David, to give a report about the progress of that war.  While Uriah was home giving his report he chose not to go to his house and visit his wife.  Even when his commander and chief told him, “Go down to your house and wash your feet (2Sa 11:8)” he still refused and chose instead to sleep at the gates of King David’s house as if he were still living in the field with his troops.

There is an maxim in our military that a leader should never ask his soldiers to do something he is not willing to do.  It’s a foundation of the solidarity that we are in this together no matter how bad this is.  Being called home, even if you are ordered to do so by a higher authority, undermines this solidarity and Uriah was working hard to minimize that undermining.  He knew that at this very moment his soldiers and their leaders were living in the field in the face of imminent violence (2Sa 11:11) and his heart knew that to be among them was to be with them even when he was called home.

Uriah was a member of a small contingent in the Hebrew military known as haššelošîm or “the 30 (Merrill 1985, 481).”  We would know them as David’s Mighty Men or David’s Heroes (2Sa 23:8-39).  These men “distinguished themselves by mighty exploits of service to God and Israel (Merrill 1985, 479).”  I suspect that Uriah’s values of solidarity and loyalty were a part of the very fabric of these men’s identities and lives.

One instance demonstrates these exploits well.  When the Philistines had camped against him in Bethlehem David lamented, “Oh, that someone would give me water to drink from the well of Bethlehem that is by the gate (2Sa 23:15)!”  Oddly I can relate.  I’ve always enjoyed a country drive.  Especially in the country around my home.  One day while driving across an Army base in Iraq I lamented that I could not drive freely off base and explore the countryside.  It wasn’t just a lament over freedom lost.  It was a lament over a home deprived.

David’s home was held by his enemies, and he longed for the ability to drink from a well that he had drunk from in the past.  David’s mighty men heard the lament and responded.  “…the three mighty men broke through the camp of the Philistines and drew water out of the well of Bethlehem that was by the gate and carried and brought it to David (2Sa 23:16).”  These men’s courage was fierce, but it could be argued that their loyalty was even more fierce.  These three leaders of the haššelošîm were demonstrating their values and as such instilling those values in their organization as a whole.  David’s mighty men were fiercely loyal to David.

What does this have to do with Palm Sunday and Easter you ask?  We will get to that but first let’s look a little closer at Uriah’s king.  Uriah wasn’t called to his king because the king needed a report on the war.  No, the king had had an indiscretion with Uriah’s wife, Bathsheba who was pregnant (2Sa 11:4-5), and the king was hoping that Uriah would spend some time with Bathsheba in the hopes that he would be able to deny the indiscretion later.  When that didn’t work David conspired with Joab, his leading general, to intentionally place Uriah in harm’s way with no support so that Uriah would be killed.  While Uriah’s loyalty to David and to the troops that David had placed in Uriah’s care were evident David’s loyalty to Uriah was not.

In researching David’s heroes there is some commentary on the fact that Joab is not mentioned among those heroes.  To me it is clear that his absence from the lists of mighty men might have more to do with a lack of character than a lack of military exploits.  Anyway, David is spiraling out of control in an attempt to retain control.  David wanted what David wanted at the expense of one of his own mighty men.

For those of us who spend time in the Bible we know that David is a central figure.  Paul, speaking to the men of Israel at Antioch centuries later, writes that God had, “raised up David to be their king, of whom [God] testified and said, ‘I have found in David the son of Jesse a man after my heart, who will do all my will (Act 13:22).’”  He was, remained, and is a central figure despite his failure with Uriah and Bathsheba.  Don’t get me wrong, God judged David for these sins, and it cost him dearly but that is part of what is encouraging.

I don’t know about you, but I have messed up and I have messed up often.  If we were to remain in fellowship it is just a matter of time before I will let you down.  We are fallen and fallible and yet I can’t say that I have failed on the epic scale of David who remained a man after God’s heart.  It’s not a free pass but it is a promise that God’s plans will not be stopped by my failings.

But God’s plans and promises were not for David alone.  Paul reminded his listeners of that promise, “Of this man’s offspring God has brought to Israel a Savior, Jesus, as he promised (Act 13:23).”  I don’t know how to rectify David’s heart with David’s sin, but God did.  The punishment, the just and great judgment, that was deserved for David’s indiscretion were poured out on Jesus.  And it had to be poured out.  To disregard David’s sins was to disregard God’s love for Uriah; a man that in this story and at this time was every bit more righteous than David.

He loves you and me enough to both deal with the sins that have been committed against us and spare us from the sins that we have committed on others.  Wow!  What a salvation this is!!!

What does all of this have to do with Palm Sunday and Easter?  Everything!!!  Hosanna is both an exclamation of adoration and request for salvation.  In essence, they were shouting this is our king who will save us!  The expectation was that He would save them from the Romans.  The expectation was that He would assume the throne and drive them out!  But He didn’t.  Instead, He passed the throne and He went to the cross and became the sacrifice that both communicates how much He loves Uriah and how much He hate’s David’s sin.  Don’t miss this!!!  That sacrifice communicates both how much He loves you and how much He hates your sin.

Thank you again for reading.  Don’t forget to subscribe to my email list.  If you do not have a place to worship this Easter and you are in the Richland WA area please consider Central United Church at 1124 Stevens Drive Richland, WA.  It is a very traditional service, you will love our choir, that starts at 10:00.  After the service you can join us for fellowship over coffee and donuts and don’t forget to come find me.  I would love to get to know you.

Merrill, Eugene H. 2 Samuel. Vol. 1, in The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures, edited by J. F. Walvoord, & R. B. Zuck. Wheaton: Victor Books, 1985.

“And Samuel said to Saul, “You have done foolishly. You have not kept the command of the LORD your God, with which he commanded you. For then the LORD would have established your kingdom over Israel forever. But now your kingdom shall not continue. The LORD has sought out a man after his own heart, and the LORD has commanded him to be prince over his people, because you have not kept what the LORD commanded you (1Sa 13:13-14).”

I drive forty minutes to work each morning and then back to home when I am done.  I’ve just recently been using that time to listen to my daily scripture reading through my bible app and the ability to connect through Bluetooth to my car’s audio system.  Until recently I had been reading a daily scripture and then spending some time in prayer.  With recent changes, however, I have had to adjust my plans.  I thought I could take advantage of the drive and then go immediately to prayer upon my arrival at the office.  What I hadn’t counted on was the number of distractions that would arrive at my office door the moment I entered.  As a result, my prayer time has been neglected.  Listening this morning to the plight of Saul caused my heart to skip a beat.  The anointed of God had, “done foolishly.”

Jonathan, Saul’s son, had attacked a Philistine garrison at Geba (1Sa 13:3).  Naturally, the Philistines were not pleased and mustered a force to put the Israelites back in line (1Sa 13:5).  The Israelites fled in fear and Saul, knowing that he needed to consult the Lord, waited seven days for Samuel, Israel’s prophet at the time, to arrive (1Sa 13:8).  When Samuel failed to arrive after seven days Saul took matters into his own hands and offered the required sacrifices (13:9).  This is what lead to Samuel’s rebuke of Saul.  But what had Saul done?

Many commentors remark that Saul had assumed Samuel’s role in offering the sacrifice (Long 2020, 146-147).  But V. Long points out that there are cases in which other kings offer sacrifice without condemnation (14:33–35; 2 Sam. 6:13, 17; 1 Kgs 8:62–63) suggesting that Saul went awry somewhere else (Long 2020, 146-147).  Long suggests that the command Saul had violate lies in his anointing, “Now when these signs meet you, do what your hand finds to do, for God is with you. Then go down before me to Gilgal. And behold, I am coming down to you to offer burnt offerings and to sacrifice peace offerings. Seven days you shall wait, until I come to you and show you what you shall do (1Sa 10:7-8).”  The command wasn’t to wait seven days, “but that he should wait until Yahweh’s prophet arrived and provided further instructions (Long 2020, 146-147).”

This is why my heart skipped a beat.  Not that I am called to wait on a prophet of God to provide instruction but that I am called to wait upon the Lord.  The Psalmist writes, “Wait for the LORD; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the LORD (Psa 27:14)!”  And in Proverbs we find, “blessed is the one who listens to me, watching daily at my gates, waiting beside my doors (Pro 8:34).”  Now, don’t get me wrong.  We must be about the Lord’s work with a diligence that comes from knowing our master can return at any time but is it right for a pastor, or anyone else, to be so busy even about the Lord’s work that he is unable to find time to wait?  Ask Saul.  Was Saul not about the Lord’s work at this time in his calling?  I think this is the foolishness for which he was condemned.

The other day I was corresponding with a coworker from my previous job.  He asked me how my new job was going, and I told him that there are things about being a pastor that are surprising.  Among them is that I found it easier to find devotional time before I became a pastor.  I think it is a trick of the Devil to convince us that our jobs are so important that there is no time for the Lord.  But I don’t think that this is a lie that the Devil sells only to pastors.

How is your devotional time?  Are you waiting on the Lord?  Has life overwhelmed you to the point that you no longer have time to spend with your Father?  He loves you so much that He has made for you robes of righteousness so that He can, “present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy (Jud 24).”  You were the joy set before Him as He went to the cross (Heb 1:2).  He sent His son to reconcile you to Him that you might be able to enter His presence.  In all of history there is nothing more significant than this.  And yet, we can convince ourselves that our jobs and our responsibilities are more important than His presence.  What foolishness indeed!

Long, V. Philips. 2020. 1 and 2 Samuel: An Introduction and Commentary. Vol. 8, in Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries, edited by David G. Firth. Downers Grove: IVP Academic: An Imprint of InterVarsity Press.