David had committed a horrible succession of sins. When Nathan, the prophet, confronted him about them, David finally confessed and sought the Lord’s forgiveness. God did forgive him, but the serious consequences remained. Israel’s enemies would now be making fun of God. David’s actions had been so alien to the Lord’s teachings that he was causing God to be ridiculed. “After all,” they would say, “if this man of God, who is supposed to be a good man, is your king and he acts like this—committing adultery, murdering a woman’s husband, and then marrying the woman—hey! Y’all are no different from us!”