David was within his cultural rights. He broke no laws. Well, he did break one: “Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor’s wife” (Ex 20:17 kjv). David had transgressed God’s laws, not his country’s. Thus, when he says, “against you, you only, have I sinned,” David is admitting that he is accountable not only to the expectations for a king but that he is also accountable to God.
