2 SAMUEL 11

Sometimes, Bible chapters seem scant on the information they provide about God. However, there is a very clear statement about God at the end of 2 Samuel 11. After David’s affair with Bathsheba and the ensuing cover-up (which included the premeditated murder of Uriah), the chapter ends with this declaration: "The thing David had done displeased the Lord." (vs 27)

We might not think of this as a remarkable declaration, but think about it from the viewpoint of David’s culture. First of all, in his day, whatever the king did was "above the law," so to speak. The king was the law, so he could pretty much do whatever he wanted. Second, since the Israelites were God’s chosen people, one could easily have assumed that God would support them in everything they did—no matter what they did.

Perhaps this was what David subconsciously thought as he planned the death of Uriah. After all, Uriah wasn’t a Jew. He was a Hittite, an outside, a foreigner. If he had been an Israelite, maybe David would have thought twice. Maybe he wouldn’t have been so quick to spill innocent Israelite blood. But a foreigner... well, he didn’t really count, did he?

In a word, yes. Yes, he did matter. To God he mattered. God was very angry at David for what he did to Uriah. And that’s how we know that God is not prejudiced like we are. We all have prejudices—and they’re not always about race or skin color either. Somehow, over time, it’s easy for us to craft a picture of God who, conveniently, likes the same things (or people) we like and dislikes the same things (or people) we dislike.

But God holds no such prejudices. He loves everyone. Every person is important to Him. In His eyes, there are no "little" people. And when we act in a way that marginalizes one of our fellow human beings, God is displeased with that!