Giving Birth to Trouble

DAVID is an illustration of the fact that success in a career does not necessarily translate into success in personal and family life. While the “house of David {his position and stature as king-designate} grew stronger and stronger” (1 Samuel 3:1), his family life was headed for serious trouble.

Evidence for that can be found in the list of David’s six sons born at Hebron (2 Samuel 3:2–5). Each was born to a different wife, which indicates that David was strengthening his political ties through marriage, a common practice for ancient kings. But we see that in David’s case it was a foolish practice. Not only did David’s polygamy violate the Law (Deuteronomy 17:17), it also led to enormous problems as he tried to blend his various families together. For example, David’s son Amnon violated his half-sister Tamar, then was killed by her avenging brother, Absalom. That led to a bitter estrangement between Absalom and his father that resulted in the treason and, ultimately, the death of Absalom—all to David’s great regret (2 Samuel 13–18).

David’s polygamy also set a poor example for his successor, Solomon, who expanded his kingdom while marrying 700 wives and 300 concubines. Just as the Law had predicted, these women turned his heart away from the Lord to idols (1 Kings 11:3). The Lord judged him for that sin by allowing the kingdom to be divided after his death (2 Samuel 11:9–13). David demonstrates the biblical principle that the sins of the parents can extend “to the third and fourth generations” (Exodus 20:5).