The Consequences of David’s Sins Hit Home—Lectionary Reflection for Pentecost 12B (2 Samuel 18)

2 Samuel 18:5-9, 15, 31-33 New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition

⁵ The king ordered Joab and Abishai and Ittai, saying, “Deal gently for my sake with the young man Absalom.” And all the people heard when the king gave orders to all the commanders concerning Absalom.

⁶ So the army went out into the field against Israel, and the battle was fought in the forest of Ephraim. ⁷ The men of Israel were defeated there by the servants of David, and the slaughter there was great on that day, twenty thousand men. ⁸ The battle spread over the face of all the country, and the forest claimed more victims that day than the sword.

⁹ Absalom happened to meet the servants of David. Absalom was riding on his mule, and the mule went under the thick branches of a great oak. His head caught fast in the oak, and he was left hanging between heaven and earth, while the mule that was under him went on.

¹⁵ And ten young men, Joab’s armor-bearers, surrounded Absalom and struck him and killed him.

³¹ Then the Cushite came, and the Cushite said, “Good tidings for my lord the king! For the Lord has vindicated you this day, delivering you from the power of all who rose up against you.” ³² The king said to the Cushite, “Is it well with the young man Absalom?” The Cushite answered, “May the enemies of my lord the king and all who rise up to do you harm be like that young man.”

³³ The king was deeply moved and went up to the chamber over the gate and wept, and as he went he said, “O my son Absalom, my son, my son Absalom! Would I had died instead of you, O Absalom, my son, my son!”

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                One of the fears that many parents have is that their children will die before they do. We would much rather die before them, even if the reason for the death is due to their own actions. That is the story we hear in 2 Samuel 18. David’s son Absalom rebels, and dies, while David grieves. The story told here is part of a larger tragedy that struck the household of David as a consequence of his actions in taking Bathsheba and having her husband murdered. Things largely went downhill for David from that moment, though he did die in his own bed at a ripe old age. However, tragedy struck all around him. None more grievous for David, than the death of Absalom.

                Absalom was the third son of David born at Hebron. His mother was Maacah, daughter of King Talmai of Geshur, a region near the Sea of Galilee (2 Sam. 3:3). He next appears in the story in 2 Samuel 13 when his older half-brother Amnon rapes his sister Tamar, leading him to take revenge when his father refused to do anything since Amnon was his oldest son (and heir) by killing Amnon at a party he threw for his brothers. After the killing of Amnon, Absalom fled to his father-in-law, while David grieved. Absalom stayed with his father-in-law for three years before returning to Jerusalem at the request of his father, though he was not allowed in David’s house. Finally, after two years, Absalom prevailed on Joab, David’s general, to intervene so he could approach his father, who finally forgave him for killing Amnon (2 Samuel 14). I should note here that while David was concerned about Amnon’s death, he seemed less concerned about the rape of Tamar, which led to Absalom’s response.

                Although it appeared that David and Absalom were reconciled, we see in 2 Samuel 15 that Absalom had decided to set himself up as a rival to David, setting himself up as king in Hebron. It appears that Absalom not only felt that David wasn’t a good father but was unfit to rule. Besides, many of David’s advisors came to his aid, and many of the people came to him because, like his father, Absalom was a beloved figure—handsome, strong, and a true leader.

Finally, he forced David to flee Jerusalem, with the intervening chapters between the flight of David and our reading, focused on Absalom’s rebellion and David’s response. Chapter 18 of 2 Samuel tells the story of David’s response to Absalom’s rebellion, starting with gathering his troops and assigning them to three of his generals, including Joab, Joab’s brother Abishai, and Ittai the Gittite. While David, according to the narrator, wanted to go out with his army, his generals deterred him from joining them.

Before David sent the army out against Absalom’s troops, he told his generals to “deal gently for my sake with the young man Absalom” (2 Sam. 18:5). So, the army went out and did battle with Absalom’s army, defeating it, slaughtering the enemy. Absalom fled the scene but met disaster when the mule he was riding went under a tree and his head got caught in the branches of an oak tree, leaving him hanging in the air as the mule continued on its way. The way the narrator tells the story it almost seems as if the mule had a mind of its own or maybe was in league with David’s people. In any case, Absalom found himself in a vulnerable position.

The proposed reading jumps down to verse 15, where ten young men surrounded the rebel son and killed him. While that is true, if we go back we discover that Joab had been informed of Absalom’s situation. Instead of dealing gently with him, as David requested, Joab went to where Absalom was hanging from the tree and thrust three spears into Absalom’s heart. So, it would seem to me that Joab was the one who really killed Absalom, even if his men finished the job. Joab had no intention of bringing Absalom back alive (2 Sam. 18:10-14).

From there we jump down again to verses 31-33, where a Cushite, likely a mercenary from Africa who had joined David’s army, goes to David and reports what he believed was good news. The good news is that David’s son and erstwhile enemy was dead. Yes, David had been vindicated.  This Cushite was sent to David by Joab. Why Joab sent the Cushite and not Ahimaaz, son of Zadok, who wanted to carry the news, is not revealed. Perhaps Joab figured that David might react angrily, so the Cushite was a sacrificial victim. Whatever the case, when the Cushite arrives in verse 31, he delivers the news. When David asked whether Absalom was okay, the Cushite answered: “May the enemies of my lord the king, and all who rise up to do you harm, be like that young man” (2 Sam. 18:32). In other words, things didn’t go well for Absalom. David understood that Absalom was dead even though he had given instructions that his son was not to be harmed.  

When David heard the news it didn’t bring him joy. He didn’t feel vindicated. While the NRSVUE suggests that David was deeply moved, I’m not sure this captures David’s emotional response. Eugene Peterson’s paraphrastic translation better captures the sentiment: “The king was stunned. Heartbroken, he went up to the room over the gate and wept.” Then, David cried out in words filled with anguish:  “O my son Absalom, my son, my son Absalom! Would I had died instead of you, O Absalom, my son, my son!”  (2 Sam. 18:33).

The words that David spoke to God and to anyone who could hear, but in his heart to his son, are words that a parent might resonate with at the death of a child. Why the child and not me? I’ve heard parents who’ve lost children confess they wished they had died rather than the child because a parent isn’t supposed to outlive a child. It’s just not right, even if the child had rebelled or disobeyed. So, understandably David grieved. He had grieved the death of his newborn and his son Amnon. He grieved because once again tragedy had followed him. As we reflect on David’s loss, we shouldn’t forget that other parents of those who died in battle on both sides also felt a sense of loss, not just David. As we reflect on the sense of loss present in this story, we can bring it forward to the present. We can remember all the sons and daughters who have died in the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Even if you support, as I do, the Ukrainian response, let us not forget that Russian mothers and fathers, siblings, spouses, and children also grieve. When we think of all the people killed in the Israeli war in Gaza, as well as the original people who died in the Hamas attack on October 7, 2023, we can take to heart the grief felt on both sides of the conflict.

While Psalm 130 doesn’t mention Absalom, it is a lament that could easily be on the lips of David or anyone who suffers loss: “Out of the depths I cry to you, O LORD. LORD hear my voice! Let your ears be attentive to the voice of my supplications” (Ps. 130:1-2). While the Psalmist starts with a lament, it ends with a word of hope rooted in the steadfast love of God who redeems Israel from all its iniquities (Ps. 130:7-8). Yes, even David can be redeemed. If David can be redeemed, cannot the same be said for us? That doesn’t excuse David or anyone who makes war engages in violence or oppression. But it does offer hope. Of course, in the moment, as David seeks to make sense of his loss, there is little hope available to him.  But, God’s steadfast love still redeems us.

       Image Attribution: Giaquinto, Corrado, 1703-1766. Death of Absalom, from Art in the Christian Tradition, a project of the Vanderbilt Divinity Library, Nashville, TN. https://diglib.library.vanderbilt.edu/act-imagelink.pl?RC=57272 [retrieved August 1, 2024]. Original source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Muerte_de_absalon_en_el_CESEDEN.jpg.