David Makes a Terrible Mistake

King David had always loved God and tried to obey Him. But one day, David made some very bad choices. It happened when David's army went to fight a war, but David stayed home at the palace. One evening, he was walking on his roof and saw a beautiful woman named Bathsheba. David found out she was married to Uriah, one of his best soldiers who was away fighting. Even though David knew it was wrong, he sent for Bathsheba and sinned with her. Soon Bathsheba sent David a message: she was going to have a baby. David got scared. He didn't want anyone to know what he had done. So he tried to trick Uriah by calling him home from the war, thinking Uriah would spend time with his wife. But Uriah was such a good and honest soldier that he wouldn't go home while his friends were still fighting. David's heart got even darker. He sent Uriah back to battle with a secret letter that told the army commander to put Uriah in the most dangerous place and then leave him there alone. Uriah was killed. David married Bathsheba, thinking his secret was safe. But God knew everything. God sent a prophet named Nathan to tell David a story about a rich man who stole a poor man's only lamb. David got angry and said, 'That man should be punished!' Nathan looked right at David and said, 'You are that man! You took Uriah's wife and had him killed.' David's heart broke. He cried out, 'I have sinned against the LORD!' He was truly sorry. God forgave David, but there were still sad consequences. The baby died, and David's family had many troubles after that. David learned that sin always hurts people, but God's forgiveness is real when we truly repent.