2 Sam. 14-15: “David Allows Absalom To Return To
By
1. INTRO:
1.1.
In our last study, we looked at chapter 13
of the book.
1.1.1.
In that study, we saw that the natural consequences
of David’s sin began to occur when his sons began to imitate the things that
dad had done.
1.1.1.1.
David’s son Ammon raped David’s daughter Tamar, who
was a half-sister to Ammon.
1.1.1.2.
Next, David’s son, Absalom, who was a full brother
to Tamar and a half brother to Ammon, kept silent and feigned having forgiven
Ammon for what he had done to Tamar, however all the while plotting to murder
Ammon. Then, finally after two years
Absalom murdered his brother Ammon for what he had done to Tamar.
1.1.1.3. Next, Absalom, had to flee
to a foreign territory (
1.2.
In our study today, we are going to look at chapters
14 and 15 of the book.
1.2.1.
In our previous study, we saw David doing lots of
reaping of the consequences of his sin, both in his character and in the
circumstances he found himself in, and we discussed reaping and sowing and how
to live for the Lord in the midst of reaping the past failures you have sown.
1.2.1.1. We saw that the apostle Paul wrote for us the following about reaping and sowing in Galatians 6:7-9, “7 Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap. 8 For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. 9 Let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we will reap if we do not grow weary.” Note that there are reapings to the flesh and reapings to the Spirit, as well as an encouragement to continue doing good.
1.2.1.2. We saw that it is important
for us as Christians to realize that, “Every single action that we take
is a seed that we sow. In time each of
those seeds will grow up and reap a certain consequence in our life, either
good or bad.”
1.2.2. In our lives as Christians,
it is the case that we go through all different types of times. There are “mountain top experiences”
where we are used greatly by God in other’s lives and blessed beyond
description not being able to contain our joy.
There are “desert experiences” where we still are walking by
faith but it is just a very dry time for us spiritually. We realize that God is there but we just
don’t seem to really be being edified or filled up in the way that we would
like to be, and in those times we pray for God’s refreshing. There are the “valleys” that we go
through where it is a very dark experience and we become depressed in heart or
sometimes feel the attack and pressure of the enemy as he comes against us or
our family and friends out of nowhere.
There are really all kinds of different times and experiences for us as
Christians, “joys as well as sorrows, and victories as well as defeats.” However, we must realize as God’s people that
in all of the times that the Lord leads us into that He leads us to those
places out of His love. The Lord loves
us, but He loves us so much that He won’t leave us in our present state but is
committed to transforming us into the image of His Son, and He has promised
that He is using all things that we go through to work together for our good
(Rom. 8:28).
1.2.2.1. There are some promises of
the scriptures that we as Christians are hesitant to claim, and yet they too
are from the Lord for our lives, such as :
1.2.2.1.1.
Psalm 34:19, “19 Many are the afflictions of the
righteous, But the Lord delivers
him out of them all.”
1.2.2.1.2.
Acts 14:22, “22…Through many tribulations we must enter
the
1.2.2.2. Learning to walk by faith
means accepting all of these things from the loving hand of God, and then
coming to count it all joy whenever we encounter various trials ( just as we
are told to do in the book of James ).
1.2.2.3. It is so important then for
us as Christians to follow David’s example here in these chapters we are going
to look at today and see the Lord’s loving hand in each and every circumstance
that we go through, and learn to give thanks to Him in the midst of every one
of them. 1 Peter 4:12 has taught us that
we should always be expecting that we shall go through trials in our life, “12…do
not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you, which comes upon you for your
testing, as though some strange thing were happening to you.”
1.2.2.4. In our lives, we seem to
always be reaping some sort of consequences for our actions, either good or
bad. Every day we experience reapings,
you see.
1.2.3. In this study, we are going
to see David in his darkest hours.
David’s son Absalom is going to instigate an insurrection to oust David
from power so that he (Absalom ) can now reign over
1.2.4. We will see though that
David does not try to resist what is happening since he sees that it is all
from the Lord’s hand of discipline.
Thus, David accepts every aspect of his chastening trials as coming from
the loving hand of God.
1.2.4.1. In Hebrews 12:8-11, we read
about how that the Lord disciplines each of us as His children just as a loving
parent also disciplines his child, “8 But if you are without
chastening, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate and
not sons. 9 Furthermore, we have had human fathers who corrected us,
and we paid them respect. Shall we not much more readily be in
subjection to the Father of spirits and live? 10 For they indeed for
a few days chastened us as seemed best to them, but He for our
profit, that we may be partakers of His holiness. 11 Now no
chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful; nevertheless,
afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been
trained by it.”
1.2.5. Though David is accepting
the trying events that occur in his life as coming from the hand of God, and he
is repentant, what is happening to him is not just occurring because of his
reaping the consequences of his sin of adultery with Bathsheba, and the
subsequent murder of her husband Uriah.
David encounters these trials partially because he makes yet another
sinful choice and allows his son Absalom to return to
1.2.6. Remember from our last
study, that this man Absalom, though he was very handsome and charismatic ( he
will steal the hearts of all Israel ), there really is nothing that we can see
that is redeeming about his character. We
noted that Arthur Pink called Absalom, “one of the most despicable, vile and
God-abandoned characters whose record is chronicled in the Scritpures.”.
2. VS 14:1-20 - “1 Now Joab the son of
Zeruiah perceived that the king’s heart was inclined toward Absalom. 2
So Joab sent to Tekoa and brought a wise woman from there and said to
her, “Please pretend to be a mourner, and put on mourning garments now, and do
not anoint yourself with oil, but be like a woman who has been mourning for the
dead many days; 3 then go to the king and speak to him in this
manner.” So Joab put the words in her mouth. 4 Now when the woman of
Tekoa spoke to the king, she fell on her face to the ground and prostrated
herself and said, “Help, O king.” 5 The king said to her, “What is your
trouble?” And she answered, “Truly I am a widow, for my husband is dead. 6
“Your maidservant had two sons, but the two of them struggled together in
the field, and there was no one to separate them, so one struck the other and
killed him. 7 “Now behold, the whole family has risen against your
maidservant, and they say, ‘Hand over the one who struck his brother, that we
may put him to death for the life of his brother whom he killed, and destroy
the heir also.’ Thus they will extinguish my coal which is left, so as to leave
my husband neither name nor remnant on the face of the earth.” 8 Then
the king said to the woman, “Go to your house, and I will give orders
concerning you.” 9 The woman of Tekoa said to the king, “O my lord,
the king, the iniquity is on me and my father’s house, but the king and his
throne are guiltless.” 10 So the king said, “Whoever speaks to you,
bring him to me, and he will not touch you anymore.” 11 Then she
said, “Please let the king remember the Lord
your God, so that the avenger of blood will not continue to
destroy, otherwise they will destroy my son.” And he said, “As the Lord lives, not one hair of your son
shall fall to the ground.” 12 Then the woman said, “Please let your
maidservant speak a word to my lord the king.” And he said, “Speak.” 13 The
woman said, “Why then have you planned such a thing against the people of God?
For in speaking this word the king is as one who is guilty, in that the
king does not bring back his banished one. 14 “For we will surely
die and are like water spilled on the ground which cannot be gathered up again.
Yet God does not take away life, but plans ways so that the banished one will
not be cast out from him. 15 “Now the reason I have come to speak
this word to my lord the king is that the people have made me afraid; so your
maidservant said, ‘Let me now speak to the king, perhaps the king will perform
the request of his maidservant. 16 ‘For the king will hear and
deliver his maidservant from the hand of the man who would destroy both me and
my son from the inheritance of God.’ 17 “Then your maidservant said,
‘Please let the word of my lord the king be comforting, for as the angel of
God, so is my lord the king to discern good and evil. And may the Lord your God be with you.’ ” 18 Then
the king answered and said to the woman, “Please do not hide anything from me
that I am about to ask you.” And the woman said, “Let my lord the king please
speak.” 19 So the king said, “Is the hand of Joab with you in all
this?” And the woman replied, “As your soul lives, my lord the king, no one can
turn to the right or to the left from anything that my lord the king has
spoken. Indeed, it was your servant Joab who commanded me, and it was he who
put all these words in the mouth of your maidservant; 20 in order to
change the appearance of things your servant Joab has done this thing. But my
lord is wise, like the wisdom of the angel of God, to know all that is in the
earth.””
- Joab used a woman from Tekoa to go to
King David and cause the king to allow his son Absalom to be able to return to
2.1.
In these verses, we see Joab, King David’s general and defense
minister, being manipulative. He
determines to try to get King David and his son Absalom to be reconciled, and
Absalom to be allowed to come back from his place of refuge to
2.2.
We have to wonder what Joab’s motivations were for wanting David and
Absalom to reconcile and Absalom to move back to
2.2.1. Joab saw that David
continually mourned and grieved for his son Absalom. He knew that David still had a father’s love
for Absalom, even though Absalom had done such a horrible thing in murdering
his brother Ammon.
2.2.2. I believe that Joab also
knew that David’s favorite son was Absalom and that David had originally
planned for Absalom to be his successor as king over
2.2.3. Joab also knew that of all
of David’s sons that Absalom would be the one having the most propensity to
rally
2.2.3.1. Solomon, whom the Lord had
chosen to be the next king, and shown this by giving him the special name of
Jedidah, indicating his favor with the Lord, was only 10 years old at this
time.
2.2.4. Joab was thinking
politically about his own future after David finished reigning and wanted to
position himself in the best possible place in the next kingship.
2.3.
Joab talks this widow of Tekoa (
supposedly a “wise woman” ), probably offering a financial reward, into being a
tool to direct the heart of the king to receive back his son from exile. This widow tells David of her plight. One of her sons had murdered the other
son. Now, if this son who murdered his
brother were to be put to death there would be no one to carry on the family
name and inheritance. Surely, she
believes that the king upon hearing her story will relent and release this son
from a capital sentence for murder.
After pressing the king, the woman finally gets King David to promise
that not one hair on her sons head shall fall.
Then, the woman boldly asks the king if she may ask him something
personally. David agrees, and then the
woman asks David why it is that he has not allowed his son to return to
2.3.1. This widow of Tekoa was
simply mimicking the words given to her by Joab and didn’t really understand
the great truth that she is proclaiming here.
There is a great truth here concerning the Lord. God does not cast away a son or daughter of
His who turns away and goes to live in sin.
There are a few parables in the gospels that Jesus taught that
demonstrate this. For instance, the Good
Shepherd leaves the 99 and goes and looks for the one lost sheep. Or, the parable of the Prodigal Son shows the
father yearning and constantly waiting upon the porch for the return of his wayward
son so that he might rejoice and make festive at his return. When we as Christians fall into sin, our
heavenly Father’s heart mourns and grieves for us and He does everything that
He can to rescue us from the fires of Hell that await all apostates. It is a difficult thing for a son of God to
forsake the Lord for He meets the Lord lovingly wooing him back upon every path
he trods.
2.4.
David finally asks the woman if Joab had put her up to petitioning him
about the return of his son, and upon hearing that Joab had done this thing,
David wastes no time in recalling his son from exile to come back to
3. VS 14:21-24 - “21 Then the king said
to Joab, “Behold now, I will surely do this thing; go therefore, bring back the
young man Absalom.” 22 Joab fell on his face to the ground,
prostrated himself and blessed the king; then Joab said, “Today your servant
knows that I have found favor in your sight, O my lord, the king, in that the
king has performed the request of his servant.” 23 So Joab arose and
went to Geshur and brought Absalom to
3.1.
David tells Joab to go and to bring Absalom back to Israel, and Joab
falls on the ground and prostrates himself and blesses the King David because
he has found favor with the king.
3.2.
We see here though that since David knew that Absalom really deserved
justice for having committed murder that David tells Joab that Absalom may
return to
3.3.
We have talked in our study of so many ways in which David appears as a
type of Christ in the books of Samuel, however in these verses we find a
glaring difference between Jesus and David.
3.3.1. The Lord never glosses over
any man’s or woman’s sin in order to forgive them. There is no forgiveness from the Lord apart
from full justice being executed because of those sins. A price had to be paid for our sins, and by
the grace and mercy of God He sent His only begotten Son to pay that price
which we could never pay. Thus, we can
come to have fellowship with the Lord through placing our faith in that
sacrifice made on our behalf.
3.3.2. Then, when the Lord forgives
us as His people He also restores fellowship.
In fact, He removes our sin completely from our lives and “justifies” us
( makes it just as if we had never sinned ).
3.3.3. The Lord forgives us in
order to restore fellowship with us, and a blessed fellowship it is that we
then began to enjoy.
4. VS 14:25-27 - “25 Now in all Israel
was no one as handsome as Absalom, so highly praised; from the sole of his foot
to the crown of his head there was no defect in him. 26 When he cut
the hair of his head (and it was at the end of every year that he cut it, for
it was heavy on him so he cut it), he weighed the hair of his head at 200
shekels by the king’s weight. 27 To Absalom there were born three
sons, and one daughter whose name was Tamar; she was a woman of beautiful
appearance.”
- Absalom was an unusually handsome man
with a huge full head of hair ( he grew 3 ½ lbs of hair every year )
4.1.
David made the same mistake with Absalom that Samuel ( and really all
4.2.
We don’t know Absalom’s wife’s name but he had three sons and a
daughter.
5. VS 14:28-33 - “28 Now Absalom lived
two full years in
5.1.
After 2 years of living in Jerusalem and yet not being able to see his
father, Absalom twice sent word to Joab that he wanted to see his father but
Joab didn’t answer him. Finally, Absalom
had his servants set Joab’s field on fire in order to get Joab’s
attention.
5.2.
When Joab finally came to Absalom, Absalom told him that if he could
not see and be reconciled with his father that there was really no purpose in
him returning from exile in Geshur. Then,
Absalom asks to see the king’s face and that if there is iniquity in his heart
then let the king put him to death.
5.2.1. Note that in saying this
that Absalom’s heart is revealed, for this reveals that he really did not
believe that he had done anything wrong in murdering his brother Ammon.
5.3.
When Joab comes and tells King David of Absalom’s words and request to
see his father, David sends for Absalom to come to him.
5.4.
Note here that Absalom comes and prostrates himself before King David,
however there was truly no repentance or contrition in Absalom’s heart. King David kisses Absalom, and we are not
told of anything further occurring between David and Absalom.
6. VS 15:1-6 - “1 Now it came about
after this that Absalom provided for himself a chariot and horses and fifty men
as runners before him. 2 Absalom used to rise early and stand beside
the way to the gate; and when any man had a suit to come to the king for
judgment, Absalom would call to him and say, “From what city are you?” And he
would say, “Your servant is from one of the tribes of
6.1.
Upon leaving King David, Absalom immediately began a campaign to take
over the kingdom from his father. He
determined first that he would win the hearts of the people away from King
David.
6.2.
Absalom was a treacherous, unscrupulous and selfishly ambitious
man. Rather than show gratitude towards
his father for having spared him from death for having murdered Ammon, he
instead plots and carries out a rebellion to take over the throne from his
father.
6.3.
What a charismatic and savvy politician this Absalom was, for observe
the ways in which he went about to turn the hearts of the people of
6.3.1. He went and obtained a
chariot and horses and 50 men to be runners before him wherever he went.
6.3.1.1. Kings in Israel were not to
have chariots nor horses, for their trust was to be in the Lord not in
these. Absalom wanted to use this
chariot and these 50 runners to display his greatness and splendor before the
people, that which befitted a king.
6.3.1.2. In contrast, the Lord Jesus
showed His humility and submission to God’s Law by riding a donkey into
6.3.2. Absalom arose early every
day and stood at the city gate into
6.3.3. Like the successful albeit
slimy politicians of our day, Absalom also told everyone that if he were made
king that he would plead their case and represent them, promising everyone
whatever they wanted.
6.3.4. If anyone prostrated himself
before Absalom when he appeared before him, Absalom would take ahold of him and
kiss him.
6.4.
The hearts of all
7. VS 15:7-12 - “7 Now it came about
at the end of forty years that Absalom said to the king, “Please let me go and
pay my vow which I have vowed to the Lord,
in Hebron. 8 “For your servant vowed a vow while I was living at
Geshur in
7.1.
Everything was in perfect place for Absalom’s revolt. He had won over the hearts of the children of
7.2.
It is agreed by most commentators that there must be a textual error
here in the manuscript and that this time period is most likely 4 years instead
of 40. David’s entire reign was only 40
years, plus Absalom did not come into manhood until well into David’s reign.
7.3.
Absalom lies to David here telling him that when he was way up north in
exile in Syria that he had made a vow that had to be fulfilled down in the
south in Hebron. As part of the
consequences of David’s sin with Bathsheba, David is not discerning of
Absalom’s true motives and intentions and thus he allows Absalom to go down to
Hebron.
7.4.
All through the tribes of
7.5.
We see that 200 men went with Absalom from
7.6.
Ahithophel who had been David’s counselor ( and prime minister ) had
been in cohorts with Absalom and was ready at Absalom’s word to come and join
him in his rebellion against David.
7.6.1. We shouldn’t be too
surprised at Ahithophel turning against King David for we can deduce from 2
Sam. 11:3 and 23:24 that he was the grandfather of Bathsheba, and thus he
surely resented what David had done to his granddaughter and her family.
8. VS 15:13-17 - “13 Then a messenger
came to David, saying, “The hearts of the men of
8.1.
Notice here that when David hears of the insurrection raised against
him for the throne by Absalom that David does absolutely nothing about it. He doesn’t rally his army together to defend
8.1.1. David realized that the Lord
had told him that he was going to have trouble in his family for the rest of
his life and he was now accepting these events as coming from the hand of the
Lord.
8.1.2. David appears to have had a
prolonged sickness during this period of time when Absalom had declared himself
king, and thus David did not react as he could and should have.
8.1.2.1. Psalms 41 and 55, and
perhaps also 39, were penned by David during this period of time when he was
sick and Absalom was trying to wrest the kingdom from him :
8.1.2.1.1.
Psalm 41:1-4, “1 How blessed is he who considers the
helpless; The Lord will deliver him
in a day of trouble. 2 The Lord
will protect him and keep him alive, And he shall be called blessed upon the
earth; And do not give him over to the desire of his enemies. 3 The Lord will sustain him upon his sickbed;
In his illness, You restore him to health. 4 As for me, I said, “O Lord, be gracious to me; Heal my soul,
for I have sinned against You.””
8.1.2.1.2.
Psalm 55:1-8, “1 Give ear to my prayer, O God; And do not
hide Yourself from my supplication. 2 Give heed to me and answer me;
I am restless in my complaint and am surely distracted, 3 Because of
the voice of the enemy, Because of the pressure of the wicked; For they bring
down trouble upon me And in anger they bear a grudge against me. 4 My
heart is in anguish within me, And the terrors of death have fallen upon me. 5
Fear and trembling come upon me, And horror has overwhelmed me. 6 I
said, “Oh, that I had wings like a dove! I would fly away and be at rest. 7
“Behold, I would wander far away, I would lodge in the wilderness.Selah. 8
“I would hasten to my place of refuge From the stormy wind and tempest.””
8.1.3. David did not want
9. VS 15:18-22 - “18 Now all his
servants passed on beside him, all the Cherethites, all the Pelethites and all
the Gittites, six hundred men who had come with him from Gath, passed on before
the king. 19 Then the king said to Ittai the Gittite, “Why will you
also go with us? Return and remain with the king, for you are a foreigner and
also an exile; return to your own place. 20 “You came only
yesterday, and shall I today make you wander with us, while I go where I
will? Return and take back your brothers; mercy and truth be with you.” 21
But Ittai answered the king and said, “As the Lord lives, and as my lord the king lives, surely wherever
my lord the king may be, whether for death or for life, there also your servant
will be.” 22 Therefore David said to Ittai, “Go and pass over.” So
Ittai the Gittite passed over with all his men and all the little ones who were
with him.”
- 600 Philistines who had left the
country of the Philistines with David now flee
9.1.
Just like Jesus His anti-type, David was a rejected king, rejected by
the Israelites. And just as it is the
church who has gathered together with their leader Jesus, the rejected king, so
these Philistines are now the only ones by David’s side as he flees
9.2.
It is moving to consider this group of 600 Philistines, for they are going
to follow David even though their future is completely uncertain seeing as
David is now the rejected king. Yet,
these men are willing to sacrifice all in their lives just to have the
fellowship with their king, the one they know to be the true king of
9.2.1. In the same way, we who come
to follow Christ and receive salvation from Him, must come to Him by throwing
in our lot with Him come what may.
Though constant tribulation or battle be the outcome, we who will be blessed to be His followers
are those who must lay down our all and follow Him regardless of the price.
9.2.2. David even tries to persuade
these Philistines that since they are foreigners in the first place that
perhaps they should return to safety in the country of their birth, however
they are a group who knows that they are actually aliens now to the country of
their birth for their citizenship is not that of their birth or their people
but that of their king and of his kingdom.
9.2.2.1. Are we as God’s people today
aliens and strangers on this earth, and is not our true citizenship not upon
earth but in heaven with all of those who shall be God’s people for eternity.
10.
VS 15:23 - “23 While
all the country was weeping with a loud voice, all the people passed over. The
king also passed over the brook Kidron, and all the people passed over toward
the way of the wilderness.” - All across the country people
were weeping with David as he left
10.1.
The Kidron Brook has an interesting significance in the scripture
:
10.1.1.
The Hebrew word translated “Kidron” means “dark” or “black.”
10.1.2.
Arthur Pink has written the following about the Kidron brook, “…it
was a dark rivulet which ran thourgh the gloomy
10.1.3.
This was the same brook that Jesus crossed to go into the
10.1.4.
See also 2 Chron. 15:16, 30:14 and 2 Kings 23:4,6.
11.
VS 15:24-26 - “24
Now behold, Zadok also came, and all the Levites with him carrying
the ark of the covenant of God. And they set down the ark of God, and Abiathar
came up until all the people had finished passing from the city. 25 The
king said to Zadok, “Return the ark of God to the city. If I find favor in the
sight of the Lord, then He will
bring me back again and show me both it and His habitation. 26 “But
if He should say thus, ‘I have no delight in you,’ behold, here I am, let Him
do to me as seems good to Him.”” - Zadok, the
high priest, and all of the Levites came with him carrying the
11.1.
We see here David’s contrite and repentant heart accepting the discipline
that the Lord has for him. He tells
Zadok to take the Ark of the Covenant back to
11.2.
David’s words remind me of what Job said in Job 13:15 while in the
midst of his horrible and prolonged trial, “15 Though He slay me,
yet will I trust Him.”
12.
VS 15:27-29 - “27
The king said also to Zadok the priest, “Are you not a seer?
Return to the city in peace and your two sons with you, your son Ahimaaz and
Jonathan the son of Abiathar. 28 “See, I am going to wait at the
fords of the wilderness until word comes from you to inform me.” 29 Therefore
Zadok and Abiathar returned the ark of God to
13.
VS 15:30-31 - “30
And David went up the ascent of the
13.1.
We cannot but have compassion upon David here as we see him ascending
the
13.2.
David is weeping because he knows that it is his own sin that has
brought all of these events about.
13.3.
David has his head covered because of his humility and contrition
before the Lord.
13.4.
When told that his favorite counselor, Ahithophel, has joined Absalom
in his insurrection, David prays tha the Lord will make Ahithophel’s counsel
foolishness. We will see later in the book
that the Lord answers this prayer of David’s and saves David as a result.
13.4.1.
In Psalm 41:9 and 55:12-14, David wrote about Ahithophel’s betrayal of
him, “9 Even my close friend in whom I trusted, Who ate my bread,
Has lifted up his heel against me…12 For it is not an enemy
who reproaches me, Then I could bear it; Nor is it one who hates me who
has exalted himself against me, Then I could hide myself from him. 13 But
it is you, a man my equal, My companion and my familiar friend; 14 We
who had sweet fellowship together Walked in the house of God in the throng.”
13.4.2.
Jesus had his Judas and David had his Ahithophel.
13.5.
Psalm 3 is a Psalm that the margins of our Bibles say was written by
David during this time when he was fleeing from Absalom, “1 O Lord, how my adversaries have increased!
Many are rising up against me. 2 Many are saying of my soul, “There
is no deliverance for him in God.”
Selah. 3 But You, O Lord,
are a shield about me, My glory, and the One who lifts my head. 4 I
was crying to the Lord with my voice,
And He answered me from His holy mountain.
Selah. 5 I lay down and slept; I awoke, for the Lord sustains me. 6 I will
not be afraid of ten thousands of people Who have set themselves against me
round about. 7 Arise, O Lord;
save me, O my God! For You have smitten all my enemies on the cheek; You have
shattered the teeth of the wicked. 8 Salvation belongs to the Lord; Your blessing be upon Your
people! Selah.”
13.5.1.
Hushai may have been an old man and this would be a burden to David if he
accompanied David as he fled.
14.
VS 15:32-37 - “32
It happened as David was coming to the summit, where God was worshiped,
that behold, Hushai the Archite met him with his coat torn and dust on his
head. 33 David said to him, “If you pass over with me, then you will
be a burden to me. 34 “But if you return to the city, and say to
Absalom, ‘I will be your servant, O king; as I have been your father’s servant
in time past, so I will now be your servant,’ then you can thwart the counsel
of Ahithophel for me. 35 “Are not Zadok and Abiathar the priests
with you there? So it shall be that whatever you hear from the king’s house,
you shall report to Zadok and Abiathar the priests. 36 “Behold their
two sons are with them there, Ahimaaz, Zadok’s son and Jonathan, Abiathar’s
son; and by them you shall send me everything that you hear.” 37 So
Hushai, David’s friend, came into the city, and Absalom came into
15.
CONCLUSIONS:
15.1.
As we consider David, and this horrible crucible of trials that he was
experiencing at this time, all the consequences of his past sins, our hearts go
out to him. His son Absalom, the one he
loved the most and even allowed to return to
15.1.1.
How David viewed his difficulties :
15.1.1.1. David never blamed the Lord
for the evil the befell him, he took full responsibility for his
difficulties.
15.1.1.2. David never quit trusting in
the Lord and His love and goodness.
David knew that each one of these trials came from the loving hand of
the Lord.
15.1.2.
How David submitted to the Lord in the midst of his difficulties :
15.1.2.1. He accepted them as coming
from the Lord and didn’t try to manipulate his situation to get out from under
his trials, but rather allowed them to mold his character.
15.1.2.2. He prayed fervently for the
Lord to come to his defense and to help him out of his difficulties.