Downfall Of Macbeth Essay
The Downfall of Men In the play Macbeth, you witness the corruption of sin within the life of one man. At the beginning of this play, Macbeth is a well-respected leader of Scotland; unfortunately though, the sin nature within him, leads to lust and greed, and as a result, his downfall. Although Macbeth is a tragic story of sin affecting one's life greatly, he is not the only man to have fallen into the hands of temptation. King David, man with a somewhat similar story, ruled Israel with much respect, but in the end, sin overcame his being, inevitably leading to his downfall. Because of this, you could say that King David is very much like Macbeth. Macbeth, a courageous, well-respected leader, begins his story with a victory on the battlefield,
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winning him favor with the king. After this remarkable service to Scotland, Macbeth slips into a deep infatuation with power. In Act I, Scene I, three prophesying witches proclaim, “All hail, Macbeth! hail to thee, thane of Glamis! All hail, Macbeth, hail to thee, thane of Cawdor! All hail, Macbeth, thou shalt be king hereafter!” These statements claim that Macbeth will rule not only the land of Glamis and Cawdor, but eventually all of Scotland, thus beginning Macbeth’s obsession with become king. Because of this obsession, he chooses to fall into murderous tendencies, forcing fate, and killing anyone in his way of the crown. Despite his gentle nature, with enough encouragement from his wife, Lady Macbeth, he is persuaded into murdering King Duncan while he is visiting their home. Although he immediately regrets this despicable action, he is already stained with blood, thus to cover up his crime, he must fall deeper into his sin. He then frames the two guards outside of Duncan’s room, lying, and ultimately conviction others of his deserved punishment. Macbeth eventually murders three others, to “secure” his place on the throne, but in the end it was useless, for he had stolen what was not rightfully his, because of the simple sins of greed and lust. David, King of Israel in 1000 B.C., had a similar story to that of Macbeth.
He was once a well-loved, well-respected, and courageous king, yet he too fell into the sins of greed and lust. David’s story starts off with Israel needing a new king, and so “the Lord...sought out a man after his own heart [David] and appointed him ruler of his people” (1 Samuel 13:14). Ultimately, a Godly man, brought to power through God, became corrupted by sin nature, eventually resulting in him losing everything. The first stumbling block David encounters is when he saw a beautiful woman named Bathsheba, and became overcome with lust toward her. Despite him learning that she was married to his soldier Uriah, he decided to take her to bed, soon after, she became pregnant (2 Samuel 11). David knew that he had taken what was unrightfully his, yet because of his greed and lust, he was willing to do anything to keep her. Eventually he had Uriah killed and took Bathsheba as his wife. Both David and Macbeth, were thought to be men of great character, yet, both men became corrupted with sin. Psalm 51 states that, “Surely I was sinful at birth,” and this seems to be proven true time and time again. We must never forget that even the greatest leaders and kings, and still just men, and are susceptible to be overcome by their sin
nature.
winning him favor with the king. After this remarkable service to Scotland, Macbeth slips into a deep infatuation with power. In Act I, Scene I, three prophesying witches proclaim, “All hail, Macbeth! hail to thee, thane of Glamis! All hail, Macbeth, hail to thee, thane of Cawdor! All hail, Macbeth, thou shalt be king hereafter!” These statements claim that Macbeth will rule not only the land of Glamis and Cawdor, but eventually all of Scotland, thus beginning Macbeth’s obsession with become king. Because of this obsession, he chooses to fall into murderous tendencies, forcing fate, and killing anyone in his way of the crown. Despite his gentle nature, with enough encouragement from his wife, Lady Macbeth, he is persuaded into murdering King Duncan while he is visiting their home. Although he immediately regrets this despicable action, he is already stained with blood, thus to cover up his crime, he must fall deeper into his sin. He then frames the two guards outside of Duncan’s room, lying, and ultimately conviction others of his deserved punishment. Macbeth eventually murders three others, to “secure” his place on the throne, but in the end it was useless, for he had stolen what was not rightfully his, because of the simple sins of greed and lust. David, King of Israel in 1000 B.C., had a similar story to that of Macbeth.
He was once a well-loved, well-respected, and courageous king, yet he too fell into the sins of greed and lust. David’s story starts off with Israel needing a new king, and so “the Lord...sought out a man after his own heart [David] and appointed him ruler of his people” (1 Samuel 13:14). Ultimately, a Godly man, brought to power through God, became corrupted by sin nature, eventually resulting in him losing everything. The first stumbling block David encounters is when he saw a beautiful woman named Bathsheba, and became overcome with lust toward her. Despite him learning that she was married to his soldier Uriah, he decided to take her to bed, soon after, she became pregnant (2 Samuel 11). David knew that he had taken what was unrightfully his, yet because of his greed and lust, he was willing to do anything to keep her. Eventually he had Uriah killed and took Bathsheba as his wife. Both David and Macbeth, were thought to be men of great character, yet, both men became corrupted with sin. Psalm 51 states that, “Surely I was sinful at birth,” and this seems to be proven true time and time again. We must never forget that even the greatest leaders and kings, and still just men, and are susceptible to be overcome by their sin
nature.