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THE EWE LAMB
And the Lord
sent Nathan to David. He came to him and said to him, “There
were two men in a certain city, one rich and the other poor. The
rich man had very many flocks and herds, but the poor man had
nothing but one little ewe lamb, which he had bought. He
brought it up, and it grew up with him and with his children; it
used to eat of the meager fare and drink from his cup and lie in
his bosom, and it was like a daughter to him. Now there came a
traveler to the rich man, and he was loath to take one of his
own flock or herd to prepare for the wayfarer who had come to
him, but he took the poor man’s lamb and prepared that for the
guest who had come to him.”
When I first read this parable, I thought
of my experiences growing up on the farm. I enjoyed making pets
out of the animals. I named a favorite chicken Corky. When Corky
died of an illness, I made a headstone and buried the chicken.
Like the poor man with the ewe lamb in the parable, I was
devastated. To me, Corky was family.
Nathan’s parable is not really about pet
animals, however. It is about sin. The prophet Nathan was sent
by the Lord to give this parable to King David to illustrate
David’s sinful actions. David had arranged for Uriah’s death so
David could have Uriah’s wife, Bathsheba, for himself.
When Nathan told David this parable, David
was outraged by the rich man’s conduct. He told Nathan surely
the rich man deserved to die. David did not recognize that the
rich man in the parable was a reference to himself. Only when
Nathan confronted David about his sinful behavior did David
realize the parable was speaking about him.
The good news is that David later repented
to the Lord. Though David was held accountable for his sins, the
Lord accepted his repentance and continued to look with favor
upon David.
The Lenten season is a time for
self-examination and repentance for our many shortcomings. May
we seek our Lord’s forgiveness, for he is a just, merciful and
loving God.
Thank you, Lord, for always loving us.
May we always come to you in prayer. Amen
Larry D. Ehrlich
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