The same old city heard “O Absalom” from David and “O Jerusalem” from his greater Son. Tragically, not all prodigals come home. What a contrast between the delight of the father’s house in Luke 15 and the lament of the father’s heart in 2 Samuel 18! Here’s how the story unfolds. Two runners bring news […]
Taking the rebel’s place, God’s Son went “about a stone’s throw” (Lk 22:41) to pray, “Not My will…” It was time for battle. So “David numbered the people who were with him, and set captains of thousands and captains of hundreds over them” (2 Sam 18:1). David chose the difficult terrain east of the Jordan, […]
How precious it must be to the Lord Jesus when His people stand with Him in the time of His exile. Based on an earlier arrangement, the sons of the priests, “Jonathan and Ahimaaz” (2 Sam 17:17), were sent on a secret mission to warn David of Absalom’s plan. Initially they were located at the […]
Serving our King behind enemy lines, we need to be “wise as serpents and harmless as doves” (Mt 10:16). “Meanwhile” (2 Sam 16:15), back at the palace in Jerusalem, Absalom is getting ready for his council of war. “When Hushai the Archite, David’s friend, came to Absalom,…Hushai said to Absalom, ‘Long live the king!’” (v […]
The story of David and his Great Son overlap so seamlessly, often we can barely tell the difference! We read “the conspiracy grew strong, for the people with Absalom continually increased in number” (2 Sam 15:12). Especially painful was Ahithophel’s defection, David’s chief counselor. And why? A little research shows he was Bathsheba’s grandfather! Poison […]
There’s an old Russian proverb: “It’s better to be slapped with the truth than kissed with a lie.” Kisses carry messages; they are the secret code of the soul. We know of Orpah’s goodbye kiss (Ruth 1:14) and kisses between family and friends (Ex 18:7; 1 Sam 20:41). There are romantic kisses (Song 1:2) and […]
Was David too harsh or too soft in bringing Absalom back? Either way, it didn’t work out well. For three years, Absalom had hidden in Geshur after his murder of Amnon. “And King David longed to go to Absalom” (2 Sam 13:39). Joab, the master of palace intrigue, decided to break the deadlock. Six miles […]
It’s always better to be the one wronged than the one doing wrong; God will side with you! I suppose we could skip this story today on one condition: No need for its lesson if we’ve never desired to get back at someone. “It isn’t fair,” we say, and think the best way to fix […]
Lust is like hugging a live grenade to your breast. When it explodes, it wreaks havoc everywhere. Remember why these stories were selected to be in the Bible. They aren’t there to promote gratuitous violence or excite prurient interest. Positively, “whatever things were written before were written for our learning” (Rom 15:4). Negatively, “these things […]