Midrash is a powerful tool that helps scripture come to life in a beautiful way. Midrash allows us to speak and create a larger story by using our divinely designed creativity to be captivated by the stories within scripture in the presence of God.The following is a Midrash that explore a story found in scripture from the perspective of Bathsheba. Bathsheba's story is found in scripture in 2 Samuel 11-12 & 1 Kings 1&2. Please enjoy the Midrash below exploring this story from her perspective which only fills the gaps of scripture.
It was a hot spring night and I longed to see my husband return from battle. He was off fighting a war and had besieged Rabbah. This is a time most kingdoms go off to fight battles, and it is hard to be away from my husband. He is such a loving husband and committed warrior. Always finding time to look after his fellow warriors after the battle has ended and the normality of life is hard for them to align with after the things they have seen and done.
I decided, since King David should be at battle, that I would shower on the roof of our home. Enjoying the moonlight as I bathe, longing for the touch of my husband. The way he holds me tight enough to know I am loved but free enough to spread my wings. We would often shower in the moonlight together and hold one another. In these moments, the worries of the world would disappear, and time seemed to stand still. I longed for this moment more than anything in the world. Being here away from him and uncertain if he would even return from battle, seemed to hurt my soul. How I longed for Kings to stop their constant fighting with one another so I could be close to my husband.
I knew I had to wait till late at night so no man would see me, and my body could remain a gift to my husband. Too often if a woman is not careful a man will claim what does not belong to him, and our voices will be silenced. Taking all the steps needed I was unaware of how this once precious’s moment to bathe in the moonlight on a hot spring night would become a time of pain, regret, and misery. This once beautiful moment turned into a dark moment because King David was home, and he saw me in my nakedness. The story you read will say how he was taken by my beauty and then sent his guards for me.
I still remember the guards coming and not even knocking on my door…… Walking in and catching me while I attempted to cover my body…. The fear that swept through me in this moment……. With coldness in their eyes they said, “The King wishes to see you now.” You may think I had a choice, but I can assure you there was no choice. They grabbed me before I could reply and took me to the King.
On the walk to the King’s chamber, I knew what was to come…... another story of a man taking what does not belong to him and the silencing of a woman’s voice. When I entered, he grabbed me as if I were his possession and held me too tightly where my wings were unable to spread. Then it went dark……. What happen to me I would not wish on my darkest enemy….. All that I remember is the longing for my husband’s touch…… one that allowed my wings to spread…...instead of the darkness that trapped me in this moment.
After this dark night I was discarded and once the King realised, I was pregnant he attempted to covers his tracks by getting my husband sent home. When he arrived at the door of our home though…. he looked at me with tears in his eyes…. He told me, “Beautiful, I cannot hold you until my fellow warriors are home from battle. I will sleep with the servants at the palace until they are home. Then I will hold you again my love.”
Before I could scream of the pain I experienced, he was gone and once the King got word that Uriah the Hittite was refusing to sleep in his own bed…. He sent him back to battle…... To die so his tracks were covered, and he could claim me as his wife...…. attempting to hide the violence he committed towards my family.
When I heard of my lover’s death, I mourned heavily letting the darkness take me deeper than the night I was raped. Once there was the appropriate time, I was sent for again to become King David’s wife. I knew I would never be held again by a man tight enough to feel loved but free enough to spread my wings. The child I bore with him did not survive and I believe it knew the pain and darkness I experienced that night to its core. I have lost my love, and now I am married to a man that raped me…… my voice is now silenced… I will be isolated in his palace with his other wives.
You know the rest of my story and that I am the mother of King Solomon, for David desired more kids with me……... I believe the pain from the moonlight shower followed him too…... How I long to be held again, by my true husband, tight enough to know I am loved but free enough to spread my wings.
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