Sexual Harassment?

Somewhere on this blog, there’s probably already a post about Bathsheba. Remember her? She’s the one whom King David took a liking to and ordered to come to his palace. She, being one of his subjects, did as she was told. According to the scriptures, the king had seen her bathing on the rooftop one night and felt a powerful attraction. Conveniently, her husband was away at war, and for some reason, David had opted not to accompany his men on this venture. Home in Jerusalem, perhaps he was having a bout of insomnia. Who knows?

What we do know is that Bathsheba did as she was bidden. He was the boss, right? As the story goes, they later paid a big price for their indiscretion since Uriah was sent to the battle front to be killed. Then too, David and Bathsheba’s first child died. What I pick up from the scriptures about David’s feelings about the whole situation is that he was filled with remorse and sorrow for what he had done. Not only had he committed adultery with another woman’s wife, but he had also had her husband killed.

There’s also the fact that Bathsheba had little or no choice in the matter. She could have declined his invitation, but at what price? I think she probably considered her alternatives and did as she was told. Maybe she thought pleasing David would help Uriah in his military career.

This afternoon it occurred to me that Bathsheba was caught in a situation not unlike that of women everywhere who experience sexual harassment from those in power. Although we have laws protecting women from unwanted advances and hostile environments, it no doubt continues in many workplaces. Men may rationalize and feel that they’re entitled to certain privileges. They may even protest to those who advise against such behavior and say that there’s “really nothing to it.” “It’s innocent,” they might insist.

As my sweet mama used to say, “If you play with fire, you’re gonna get burned.” Yes, I’m on my soapbox this evening. It is NEVER right to take advantage of a woman over whom you have power. Being a “boss” doesn’t mean you have to right to boss someone around. It means you need to “man up” and be a leader, a person who can influence another for good, not someone who’s going to lead both parties down a twisted path. This is especially true if the man in question is married. In fact, if either party is married, walk away from the fire.

Enough said.