2 Samuel 19:1-4 “It was told Joab, ‘Behold the king is weeping for Absalom…The king is grieved for his son…and the king covered his face and cried out with a loud voice, ‘O my son Absalom, O Absalom, my son, my son!”
Observation: A full seven chapters of 2 Samuel have been given to the story of Absalom’s rebellion against his father David, beginning in Chapter 13 where Absalom revenged his sister Tamar’s rape by her half-brother by killing him. The king went into mourning for both of his sons: one now dead and the avenging other had fled and was not to be seen in the land for years. (v. 13:39)
As time passed, circumstances exposed the rebellion growing in Absalom’s heart, to the point that he ultimately overthrew David’s reign and claimed the throne of the nation for himself. Through this sad ordeal as David’s heart was devastated by profound loss, two themes emerge. First, David’s consistent response to his changed circumstances was unfailingly humble. For example, in his flight from Jerusalem an Absalom follower continually cursed David, yet David’s response was not to attack, but to admit the possibility that the attacker’s condemnation was of the Lord.
David’s other response was to not waver in his love for his rebellious son. David directed Joab, his army’s commander, to “deal gently for my sake with the young man Absalom”. (v. 18:5) Ultimately, though, when Joab learned that Absalom was hopelessly trapped (v. 18:9) he “took three spears and stabbed him through the heart.” (vs. 13-14) Upon hearing of his army’s success, David’s love for his rebellious son caused him to ask, “Is it well with the young man Absalom?” (vs. 18:20, 32)
Application: It’s no wonder that the king mourned over Absalom’s death. Doesn’t the Lord Jesus leave the flock in safety to pursue one lost sheep? In Absalom I see a lamb now lost forever…lost not just to David, but to his heavenly father for all eternity.
Think of the weeping God himself must experience as he watches his beloved creation repeatedly fall short. “All we, like sheep have gone astray, everyone to his own way.” (Isa. 33:6) All have gone astray, some as believers in Jesus who nonetheless continue in patterns of sin and rebellion, and countless others who will one day awaken in the resurrection to the eternal judgment of the damned. And the father weeps for his sons and daughters like David wept for his lost son. I know I am unspeakably precious to God, lovingly created in his image, redeemed by the blood of the lamb Jesus, and yet I fail to walk consistently in the victory his death and resurrection purchased for me. Yet the Christ in me continually urges me on, encouraging me to David-like humility. I have made a once-for-all choice to identify with Christ. Now, day by day I must continue to make good choices. I cannot bear the thought of Abba’s weeping over me.
Prayer: Lord Jesus, forgive me for ever being a reason for my heavenly father to weep as David wept. Your proffered salvation is so precious, a way of escaping ultimate fires, and for that I rejoice. Cause me to never take your sacrifice, your victory so lightly as to continue in iniquity. Conform me, Lord, to the image of Christ. In Jesus’s name, Amen.