Beginning of the End - Ellen G. White

he heard that the child was dead, he quietly submitted to the decree
of God. The first stroke had fallen of the very punishment that he
himself had declared just.
Reading the history of David's fall, many have asked, "Why did
God see fit to throw open to the world this dark chapter in the life of
one so highly honored by Heaven?" Atheists and unbelievers have
pointed to the character of David and have exclaimed with a sneer,
"This is the man after God's own heart!" As a result, God and His
word have been blasphemed, and many people, while professing to
be religious, have become bold in sin.
But the history of David does not give any approval for sin. It
was when he was walking with God and following His counsel that
David was called a man after God's own heart. When he sinned, this
stopped being true of him until by repenting he returned to the Lord.
"The thing that David had done was evil in the eyes of the Lord"
(KJV). Though David repented of his sin, he reaped the deadly
harvest of the seed he had sown. The judgments upon him testify
how much God hates sin.
David himself was broken in spirit by the consciousness of his
sin and its far-reaching results. He felt humbled in the eyes of his
subjects, and his influence was weakened. Now his subjects,
knowing about his sin, would be led to sin more freely. His authority
in his own household was weakened as his guilt kept him silent
when he should have condemned sin. His evil example exerted its
influence on his sons, and God would not step in to prevent the
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