I feel like a thief, Uriah nervously thought to himself as he raced through the palace halls, trying to hurry without looking hurried. I can’t believe I’m doing this.
He had carefully questioned the palace employees to learn that King David would be in council with the ambassador from Egypt until just before the noon meal. That meant he had less than an hour to find the scroll. If all went well—if he didn’t run into any unexpected visitors, if the scroll actually was where he assumed it would be—then Uriah wouldn’t even need that hour. But if he did run into unexpected trouble… He chose to consider that possibility if the need arose.
Uriah was headed to the king’s bed chambers. It was the most likely spot, he assumed, for the scroll to be hidden. If the scroll did contain some secret, even dangerous, information then the king could never keep it where his advisers would find it. The only place in the entire palace that was safe for the king’s secrets was his bed chamber. Everywhere else, there was a constant flow of visitors, truth-seekers, and advisers pouring over every bit of correspondence sent to or from the king. This scroll, if it contained anything of value to the current mystery, would surely not be placed where any wandering eye could find it. It would be kept in a secret, safe, private place.
At last, Uriah found himself before the door to the king’s chambers. His heart was beating fast, but he took a deep breath and forced his breathing to slow down. If the room was not empty, he needed to appear natural, not like a thief caught in the act. When he had sufficiently calmed down, Uriah took one final breath, unlatched the door, and pushed it forward.
He let out his breath and stepped inside. The room was empty.
With a sigh of relief, Uriah closed the door behind him and relaxed. He began to survey the contents of the room. He had an hour to find the scroll, and he did not want to be wasting his time rummaging around haphazardly. A large bed stood in the center of the room with expensive Egyptian curtains hanging from the ceiling. Along the walls hung fancy carpets and tapestries, pictures depicting the great moments of David’s life, from the slaying of Goliath to the mercy he showed to King Saul to the recent victories over the Ammonites. It was like reading some sort of egotistical history, all centered on the exploits of the king. Uriah scanned the rest of the room: shelves covered in jewelry, a rich man’s collection of all the bizarre gifts from ambassadors, kings, and generals; a few scrolls and loose sheets of vellum stacked haphazardly within the piles of trinkets; curtains hanging from the ceiling in great arcs. And, there in the corner covered by hanging sheets of bright linen, was the doorway Uriah had hoped he’d find. With any luck, it would lead him to the king’s personal study. The soldier crossed the room and put his hand to the curtains. He stopped himself just before pushing them open, remembering to check for sounds within before he crossed through. He could hear nothing, so he pushed the curtains open and peered inside.
David’s empty study appeared in front of him. Uriah stepped into the dimly-lit room, keeping the curtains spread apart so as to allow light to enter from his bed chamber. The study was small, but comfortable. Cushions lined the perimeter, and a couch, with cushions stuffed like the Phoenicians made them, sat in the far corner. Sheets of vellum lay about the floor, some sheets appearing quite old, dry and dust-covered, while others looked more recent.
Uriah began to search through the piles, being careful to replace anything he moved so as not to alert the king to his presence, but he could find nothing useful. There was certainly a lot of interesting material among the scrolls and sheets of vellum, but most appeared to be unfinished poems or songs, the musings of a man chasing after God. His eyes caught such phrases as “just as the deer longs for water, my very being desires you” and “one single day in your courts is better than a thousand days in the finest palace” and “let every living thing praise God!” Nothing resembled the scroll Uriah had handed the king only a day ago. Searching the stacks, Uriah came to a pile that looked quite recent. The writing on the top sheet caught his attention:
You’re the one I’ve violated,
And you’ve seen it all,
Seen the full extent of my evil.
You have all the facts before you;
Whatever you decide about me is fair.
I’ve been out of step with you for a long time,
In the wrong since before I was born.
What you’re after is truth from the inside out.
Enter me, then;
Conceive a new, true life.
Uriah stopped. What was this? Were these the words of a man desperate for Yahweh? Or were they words from a man who had horribly fallen from God? Uriah knew David to be a very sensitive man, a man who would feel guilty for the slightest error in judgment. But somehow, this poem seemed to be guilt from something far worse than, say, forgetting to wake up in time for the morning prayers. This seemed something akin to murder or adultery or sacrificing to Baal.
Perhaps this explains his weeping this morning, Uriah thought, trying to piece the puzzle together. There was obviously something going on in David’s heart, but it was difficult, if not impossible, to say just what was going on, or even how bad it was. Still, in light of the king’s recent behavior, Uriah found himself wondering over the meaning of this discovery.
Uriah went back to searching. He was certain the scroll would be here, somewhere in the midst of all David’s personal writings. Where else would the king’s privacy be assured? That last thought made Uriah smile at the irony.
Uriah was just beginning to worry about David’s return when he spotted the scroll he had come for, halfway rolled up. His heart beat faster as he unrolled it and read. Too excited to read everything, his eyes picked out a few phrases: “siege continuing with slow but steady progress,” “raids into neighboring villages,” “advise measures to bring the siege to a close,” and “troops are well-supplied and morale is good.” His heart jumped when he spotted his own name. This was what he had been looking for. Uriah read carefully:
Though I am not certain why you were so insistent that I send this message with Uriah (one of my most able commanders and certainly a greater asset to me in the field than away in Jerusalem, as I am sure you know fully well), I have done as you requested. He will give you many details of the war. I am sure you will remember how sharp his mind is. He will know as well as I just what our men need to bring a quick victory. As to giving Uriah a few days’ rest, may God bless your efforts. I think you will find this a very difficult task as Uriah has not changed since the early days. He is an honorable, hard-working man and will not readily rest while his men work. He has, however, been very hard-working and deserves the rest more than any other of my commanders. I sincerely hope you are able to convince him to take some enjoyment out of his time away from battle.
The prince stopped reading. None of this gave him any clues. Instead, he had more questions now than before. The letter showed that the king had requested Uriah’s presence, but it certainly appeared to be an innocent request, a desire to reward Uriah for his service. But something wasn’t adding up for the soldier. There were just too many strange things going on with King David right now. And, somehow, Uriah was involved in it all.
Running out of time, Uriah took one last look around the study to make sure everything appeared untouched. Hurrying, he was just about to leave when the sound of the door opening made him freeze. His heart skipped a beat, and, quicker than he’d ever moved before, Uriah jumped back into the corner of the study. His heart raced as he thought through what sort of explanation he would give the king.
I just thought I’d use your personal study here, King David, and read some of your most private poems and letters. I didn’t think you’d mind. You don’t, do you? Uriah smiled and decided there really was no way to make things look good. Uriah’s attention was brought back to the room; whoever had entered was not the king, and he had started speaking.
“Micah, fetch me this. Micah, fetch me that. Micah, have you seen this? Micah, have you seen that?” the voice began. “Why can’t I work in the stables or in the armory? Surely, I’d have some peace there.”
“Peace?” another voice spoke up. “Yeah, you’d have lots of peace shoveling manure and taking orders from arrogant soldiers. Lots of peace, I’m sure.” There was a pause. “Look, let’s find that necklace and get back. It’s nearly time for the noon meal.”
“I just don’t understand why he can’t keep things more organized here if he wants me to constantly find him this piece of jewelry or that robe or… whatever thing that whomever gave him so many odd years ago.”
“Look, quit your complaining, and help me look for the necklace. If I tell King David you’ve been lazy, your wish to be in the stables will come true. And you’ll be lucky if you get to shovel manure.”
“Woah! Look at this!”
“Micah, get off that bed! And put that perfume back. It probably costs more than you do.”
“I wonder…” Uriah could hear the sound of a cork being removed from a clay jar. “There. Wow! This is some expensive stuff. Here, smell it.”
“No, Micah,” said the other voice. “I’m not going to smell it. I’m going to find that necklace and bring it to the king, and I’m going to inform him that you are a snoop.”
“All right, all right,” Uriah heard the voice named Micah return the cork to the bottle of perfume. “I’ll help look. Hey, do you think that perfume is what he uses to woo his female visitors to his bed?”
“Now, now, you know that’s just a rumor.”
“Yes, but who can deny that she was led into David’s room when the sun was halfway to setting? And when did she leave? Not until dark. That’s plenty of time for… Hey, would you look at this? I do believe I’ve found the necklace. Who’s the lazy one who will end up in the stables now? My dear Achar, it appears that I’m not so lazy after all.”
“All right, all right. Let’s get it to the king so he can impress this Egyptian ambassador What’s-His-Name.”
There was a sound of footsteps and then silence as the two voices left the room. Uriah sighed a great sigh of relief, letting out his breath for the first time since the two had come into the room.
Tags: 2 Samuel, David, honor, Old Testament, sacrifice, Uriah
