“I don’t know,” a grim smile swept across the king’s face. “Three thousand years… who remembers?”
“That’s what’s written here,” he showed him.
“Yes… I see… but from what is written in your book, one cannot clearly determine if that was my set habit, or perhaps it was a singular, unique occurrence. I will tell you: because of the heavy heat and, really, as a one-time event, I got up and went out to breathe some fresh mountain air. Now look at yourselves! Your king goes out to breathe some fresh air before he returns to administer the business of an entire kingdom, and everyone attacks him as if he were easy prey, documenting him, seeking to catch him in some embarrassing moment and then spreads it throughout the world. I hope that in this modern world of yours you behave differently.”
“I believe that from that perspective, you are in for some disappointment, but today’s culture of shaming is beyond the scope of this investigation. What is important right now is to understand that while you were strolling on the roof of the palace, you saw a woman bathing on her roof and she, and I quote: ‘was very fair to look upon.’”
“Yes, I will never forget that moment… even thousands of years won’t erase that image from my mind.” The king cupped his chin with his hand and seemed to be in agony. “It is interesting how one specific moment can be the most beautiful moment in your life yet, at the same time, the moment that you wish to expunge from your history.”
“Marvelous… let’s put our feelings aside and try to stick to the facts. What happened there?”
“As you said, I saw a woman bathing…”
“Yet, to the best of my understanding, you didn’t actually shut your eyes at the sight of her.”
“If I recall, looking at the woman did involve some effort. You see, it was early evening and the visibility wasn’t all that great.”
“And then you sought to find out more about the woman your eyes had chanced upon, and you were clearly told: ‘That is Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam, wife of Uriah the Hittite.’ In other words, at that very moment, it became clear to you that this woman is married, and her husband is one of your elite soldiers—no other than Uriah the Hittite.”
Yiftach turned from the king to the judges. “However, the defendant in this trial is not disturbed by this fact and plants evil thoughts in the king’s mind. He is now given to a violent and bitter struggle between nipping his intense love in the bud or giving in to it, and all this—because of her!” he pointed belligerently to Love.
“Young fellow, come, come… here too your enthusiastic description isn’t very accurate.” The king’s equanimity was not showing any signs of cracking. “The answer I was given only led me to understand that Bathsheba was not a married woman.”
“How could you understand that from the clear answer you were given?”
“You see, my young man, all of my warriors—including Uriah the Hittite—traditionally divorced their wives before going into battle so that they are not left as ‘chained’ women in case their husbands’ death on the battlefield cannot be ascertained. And, besides, there are two sides to this very sad story. What about Bathsheba? Perhaps it was she who set a trap for me? That is a reasonable and likely scenario in view of the fact that all women desired me. Seriously, ladies and gentlemen, have you asked yourselves what role did Bathsheba play in these events?”
“Totally passive, your Highness, she did absolutely nothing intentionally.” Yiftach had come prepared for this investigation, not leaving Heart a chance to embarrass him again. “The answer you received, at the very least, should have raised some doubtin your mind regarding the fact that Bathsheba was a married woman, but even after you distinctly heard the words—‘the wife of Uriah the Hittite’—nothing stopped you, and you sent your envoys to bring her to your bed. Bathsheba, your Highness, did not set a trap for you, as you pointed out yourself that it was difficult to see her clearly because of the evening light. Isn’t it logical that a woman—who seeks to tempt a man and seduce him—would choose to do so at a time when he can see her clearly? Moreover, do you really believe that Bathsheba thought that a great and radiant king as yourself—who could win the company of any woman he desired—would fall into the net of a married woman? Obviously, the very opposite is true. The biblical accounting clearly reflects Bathsheba’s passive role in this case, in face of the activism that characterized you.”
The king tried to say something, but Yiftach continued in a calm, velvety tone. “Remember, your Highness, it is not you who is standing trial here, it is not you who acted as described in the Book of Samuel II, Chapter Eleven. It was intoxicating, blinding and bewitching Love that caused all this to happen, while you were totally under her addictive influence and acted out of unconquerable urges. Therefore, it is she who is standing trial, and it is she who must supply explanations.” Yiftach looked at Love angrily. Love had a contented smile on her face as she waved to him from her seat.
The skillful attorney continued speaking, voicing even harsher words than before. “As we have seen, due to the desire burning inside you, the fact that Bathsheba was a married woman did not deter you, and you sent your emissaries to bring her to you and you had your way with her. After some time, Bathsheba informed you that she was with child as a result of this act. Now… now you were in a terrible bind and you were forced to cover up your crimes of adultery.” David looked rebukingly at the young attorney, feeling that the stateliness that had initiallyenveloped him was being breached from one moment to the next, but Yiftach did not stop nor slow down. “Naturally, you were horrified by the news of Bathsheba’s pregnancy. As of that moment, not only were you in danger, but Bathsheba herself was now in a cage with hungry lions. As a married woman who committed adultery and became pregnant from another man, the consequences were clear—by law, she would be put to death. The end of this affair, of course, is well known. Everyone knows what you did to Uriah the Hittite in order to extricate yourself from the complications of the predicament.”
“Once again, you choose to ignore the facts that don’t suit you,” said the king, “because before that, I tried to resolve the problem in peaceful ways.”
“That is true, your Majesty, however the biblical tenet teaches that ‘He who confesses and renounces his sins finds mercy…” You, my Lord, did not renounce a thing and, instead, you tried to cover up the crime. If you are really interested, I have no problem in discussing your despicable attempt to escape from the dark hole you dug for yourself.”
“Several attempts,” the king corrected him, “please be precise, young man, there were several attempts.”
“You are correct. Why does it suddenly seem to me that after thousands of years, still you remember this affair in great detail? Anyway, your first attempt to cover up the crime began with your orders to bring Uriah the Hittite to you, from the battleground. When he reached your doorstep, you had but one objective in mind—to cause him to have sexual relations with Bathsheba so that—as you figured—her pregnancy would be credited to the couple’s lovemaking.” The king shifted uncomfortably behind the witness stand. “Therefore, you said to Uriah: ‘Go to your house and wash your feet.’ With those words you were hinting to the brave warrior that he has permission to go home and do whatever he pleases, and whatever his naturalurges dictate. However, Uriah does none of this. He doesn’t exchange a word with his wife and doesn’t even approach her, except to inform her that he has returned from the battlefront. But the stench of this story reaches Uriah—that same cruel story, the handiwork of the defendant in this trial—and he lies down at the entrance of your home and refuses to return to his home that night.”
The king withdrew into himself and remained silent. “Now,” Yiftach continued, “let’s talk of your second attempt, whose aim was also to cause Uriah the Hittite to sleep with his wife.” Yiftach spoke with determination and no one dared to interrupt him. The judges also sat glued to their seats, listening attentively to the dialogue that transpired between King David and the knowledgeable and self-assured young attorney who was closely familiar with all the details. Melody observed him as he questioned King David in front of the Supreme Court judges, and felt what everyone present now knew—Yiftach was a stunning virtuoso. She thought to herself that the best deal the District Attorney’s Office had ever made was to send Yiftach abroad for his advanced studies, thus assuring that he would work in their service for many years to come.
“In your second attempt,” Yiftach went on, “you reproached Uriah when you said to him: ‘Have you not just come from a journey? Why then do you not go down to your house?’ But, my Lord, Uriah is not just an exemplary warrior, he is also a man of values, and he responds with these words: ‘The ark and Israel and Judea dwell in booths and my lord Yoav, and the servants of my lord are encamped in the open fields, shall I then go into my home to eat and to drink and to lie with my wife? As thou livest and as thy soul lives, I shall not do this thing.’ Simply put—Uriah takes an oath not to go home, as a gesture of identifying with and sharing the fate of his fellow warriors. And, indeed, he did not return home. Not then, and not during the nights that followed.”
The king felt that Yiftach’s detailed description of the unfolding events were emptying him of the last shreds of his patience. “Finally, your third attempt—if I may say so, my Lord—is more desperate and miserable that your first two attempts. You invited the devoted warrior to a royal feast, and he—who returned from battle exhausted and starved—ate and drank and apparently also got drunk. However, even when intoxicated, he remained loyal to his values like a rock and did not return home. All your attempts to cover up your crimes failed and, therefore, you decided to ‘shift gears.’”
“To shift what?” the king didn’t understand the mechanical phrase relating to automobiles.
“I meant that, at this point in time, you decided to move on to the next phase, the critical level in your plans—that evil plot that your feverish mind created because of the toxicity of love that flowed in the chambers of your heart.”
“He left me no choice,” the king blurted out, “He of all people—such a veteran high-ranking soldier, accustomed to absolute discipline and following orders strictly—he suddenly became so strong-minded and refused to follow the king’s orders!”
“Yes but, as we said, he also clarified where this stubbornness stemmed from when he explained his unwillingness to return home as an act of identifying with his fellow soldiers.”
“You’ve heard too many legends and tales of bravery, young man. As I already explained to you at the start—this battle was not one of the harder battles nor was it the most important one, so I’m not at all clear as to from where he suddenly drew such patriotism.”
“Perhaps Uriah knew of the dark secret?”
