In the last chapter, we caught a glimpse of the old David. Here, in this passage, he is fading in and out. He is easily duped by Ziba, but he also shows great restraint and humility in the face of Shimei’s taunting. But, for all his stumbles, he remains a clear type of the Lord Jesus.

The Text

“And when David was a little past the top of the hill, behold, Ziba the servant of Mephibosheth met him . . .” (2 Sam. 16:1-23).

Summary of the Text

As David passes the top of the mountain, Ziba arrives with many provisions (v. 1). David asks, and the provisions are explained (v. 2). The absence of Mephibosheth is noticed by David, and Ziba slanders his “master’s son” (v. 3). David impetuously gives all Mephibosheth’s holdings to Ziba (v. 4). David goes a little further, and encounters someone else from the house of Saul, a man named Shimei, a man cursing as he came (v. 5). Across some kind of a ravine, he threw rocks at David and his entourage (v. 6). He calls David a man of blood, and a son of worthlessness, a son of Belial (v. 7). He accuses David of bloodguilt concerning the house of Saul (v. 8), which was false. Abishai suggests that if someone were to cut off Shimei’s head, it would stop talking so much (v. 9). David rebukes Abishai, and says that the Lord is behind it (v. 10). Look, David says, my own son is trying to kill me. Why can’t this Benjamite curse (v. 11)? Perhaps the Lord will turn this cursing around (v. 12). As they continued, Shimei walked alongside them, cursing, throwing stones, and throwing dirt (v. 13). Eventually, they came to a stopping point, presumably the Jordan (v. 14).

Back in Jerusalem, Absalom arrives with Ahithophel (v. 15). Hushai comes to him, saying God save the king, but not saying which king (v. 16). He is called David’s friend, which was a court title, but also a just description. Absalom asks him why he is not with David (v. 17). Hushai replies that he will serve the one that is chosen by the Lord, and by the people (v. 18). Notice the ambiguities. Shouldn’t he serve the king’s son (v. 19)? Absalom asks Ahithophel what he should do next (v. 20). Ahithophel tells him to burn all his boats by publicly going into his father’s ten concubines (v. 21). This will prevent anyone from hedging their bets because of any possibility of rapprochement. So they pitched a tent on the top of the palace, and Absalom took his father’s concubines in the sight of all Israel (v. 22). And the counsel of Ahithophel was regarded as if it were from an oracle of God (v. 23).

Your Master’s Son

The story that Ziba tells is not plausible on the face of it. Absalom would be as likely to hunt down and kill any remaining heirs of Saul’s house as to put one on the throne. But David, stung and betrayed, accepts this story immediately. At the same time, he still thinks of Mephibosheth as the son of Jonathan—your “master’s son.”

The Palace Roof

The palace roof where the concubines were violated was the same roof from which David first lusted after Bathsheba. Everything is coming back around. And David is humiliated by Shimei near the top of the mountain, and by his own son on the top of his palace.

A Word Picture for Bitterness

Shimei is filled with irrational hatreds. He calls David a man of blood, which he was, but he accuses him of this with regard to the house of Saul, which he manifestly had not been. When Nathan rebukes David for his sin, he does so because it had given occasion to the enemies of God to blaspheme (2 Sam. 12:14), and this is an instance of it. Shimei had clearly hated David prior to the incident with Bathsheba. Sins and failures in the godly are often what breach the dam of resentment—but the resentment accumulated in the first place because of godliness.

The Secret Things

As we begin to work through this passage, we see that David is still far too passive, far too trusting. Even though he is forgiven for his sin, he is forgiven in a palace. It is not until he is walking toward the wilderness, barefoot, as a seventy-year- old man, that we see the stirrings of the kind of shrewd faith that used to accompany him when he had to haunt the wilderness caves earlier in his life. Psalm 3 was written upon this occasion, and look to the great conclusion of verse 8. Salvation belongs to the Lord.

The Text

“And it came to pass after this, that Absalom prepared him chariots and horses, and fifty men to run before him . . .” (2 Sam. 15:1-37).

Summary of the Text

So Absalom began acting like a Gentile king, in an ostentatious way (v. 1). He would get up early to come and play the demagogue in the gate (vv. 2-6). When he was forty years old, Absalom asked the king for permission to go and sacrifice in Hebron in order to fulfill a vow (vv. 7-9). The conspiracy was well-organized, strong, and shrewdly conducted—involving men who knew nothing of it as a cover (vv. 10-12). Ahithophel, Bathsheba’s grandfather, was among the conspirators. Before the arranged signal for revolt was given, a messenger came and warned David (v. 13). David acts swiftly (finally), and does so in a way that would spare the city (v. 14). All of his people, with the exception of ten concubines, depart with the king (vv. 15-17). His Gentile troops march past him, and David tries to dissuade some recently arrived Gittites (Philistines) from coming with him, but to no avail (vv. 18-22). Little ones are mentioned, which makes this a refugee column, not an army (v. 22). Everyone crossed the Kidron, heading for the wilderness (v. 23). Zadok and Abiathar bring the Ark with them, but David sends them back into Jerusalem for some priestly espionage (vv. 24-29). David went up the Mount Olivet, barefoot and with his head covered (v. 30). On the way David received word that Ahithophel had gone over to the other side, and he prayed in his old manner (v. 31). At the top of the mountain there was a shrine, a high place, and David prayed there. His answer to prayer, a man named Hushai, arrived at that very moment (v. 32). David gives him the mission of going over to Absalom’s side (vv. 33-36), in order to subvert Ahithophel’s counsel. So Hushai arrived in Jerusalem from the east, just as Absalom was arriving from the south (v. 37).

Flight to the East

When David abandons Jerusalem, they go out to the “last house” (v. 17). The brook Kidron separated Jerusalem from Mount Olivet, which had a long ascent heading eastward, and which on the far side sloped down toward the Jordan. Their plan was to get away, across the Jordan, into the wilderness.

David is taking the standard route of exile. Adam and Eve were banished to the east of the Garden, and centuries later Israel was taken into exile to the east. But as he goes out from the presence of the Lord, he leaves the Ark of the Covenant behind deliberately, as an act of faith. He is not superstitious (vv. 25-26). If he is ever able to return to Jerusalem, it will be the Lord’s gift. This exile has some hope in it.

Demagogic Designs

The revolt of Absalom was a demagogic one. We ought to pay closer attention to this reality than we do, for we are ruled by demagogues. He was active in this activity (“rose up early”), and exploited the delays caused by the justice system. When some guy from Ephraim called the federal courthouse, he had been told “for English, press three” one too many times, and so he came down to Jerusalem in a frustrated frame of mind. Absalom met him there, kissed him, treated him as a brother (v. 5) . . . right before getting back into his stretch limo. Men knew how to use photo ops long before there were any cameras. At the beginning of this section, David continues in his passivity. Absalom is misbehaving in serious ways. The kings of Israel were not permitted that kind of thing (Dt. 17:16), and the terrain of Jerusalem was not conducive to them anyway. And yet Absalom rode around in one, with a retinue of fifty runners. Such high-handed ostentatious display would be pretty hard to miss.

True Loyalty

Throughout the passage we have the juxtaposition of those who ought to have been loyal and weren’t (e.g. Absalom) and those who had every reason not to feel obligated (e.g. Ittai), even in the eyes of David himself, but who did the right thing regardless. David saw him, and gave him every opportunity to return to Jerusalem, and to do so with a blessing (v. 20). But Ittai responds in much the same way that Ruth did when Naomi presented her with a way of opting out. This man, from the same city that Goliath was from, swore by the Lord—wherever the king was going to be, that it where Ittai was going to be. The issue was fidelity, not success.

Faith and Action

Passivity is not faith, and faith is not grasping and scheming. Notice in this passage that when David’s faith starts showing signs of life again, his trusting and his action blend perfectly. The two kinds of “not faith” here are David’s inaction in the face of Absalom’s insolent campaigning, on the one hand, and Absalom’s conspiring to seize power by the strength of his own hand. This is the case even though Absalom is not worshiping idols. He goes to Hebron to pay his vows (v. 8), and the treachery grew strong in the midst of sacrifices (v. 12). These were sacrifices to Yahweh.

Trust in God, and do whatever He says. Sometimes He says to wait. Sometimes He says to act. Sometimes He will have you send cloak and dagger spies into Jerusalem.

God continues to unroll the consequences of David’s sin, while at the same time fulfilling His gracious promises to David. Solomon is not mentioned in this section, but he is clearly waiting in the wings.

The Text

“Now Joab the son of Zeruiah perceived that the king’s heart was toward Absalom. And Joab sent to Tekoah, and fetched thence a wise woman, and said unto her, I pray thee, feign thyself to be a mourner . . .” (2 Sam. 14:1-33).

Summary of the Text

So Joab saw the conflicted nature of David’s attitude toward Absalom (v. 1). He brought a wise woman from Tekoa and told her to present herself as a woman in mourning (v. 2), and to present herself to the king that way with a story that Joab gave her (v. 3). And so she came before the king, prostrated herself, and cried out for help (v. 4). David asks what is wrong, and she says she is a widow (v. 5). She had two sons who got in a fight in the field, and one killed the other (v. 6). The whole clan wants to kill the remaining son (which would be just), but this would destroy her one remaining heir (v. 7). David told her he would take care of it (v. 8). She wants more, and says that if he is worried about bloodguilt, she and her house will bear it (v. 9). David promises a little more (v. 10). She asks for more assurance, and he swears that not a hair of her son’s head would fall to earth (v. 11). But remember how Absalom died.

She then springs the trap. Can I say one more thing (v. 12). Given permission, she then asks why Absalom remains in exile (v. 13). She says we all must die, but God has mercy on the exile (v. 14). She then asks pardon, and notes that the people have made her fearful (v. 15). She then returns to the refuge of her fictional story (v. 16). She goes on to praise how discerning the king is, as an angel of God (v. 17). David then asks her if he might ask something, and she obviously agrees (v. 18). He asks if Joab was behind it, and her answer is affirmative, while at the same binding the king to his word (v. 19). You, oh king, know everything (v. 20). David then tells Joab to bring Absalom back (v. 21). Joab prostrates himself, and thanked the king profusely (v. 22). So Joab brought Absalom back (v. 23). At the same time, the king refused to give an audience to Absalom (v. 24). We are then introduced to Absalom as an attractive political figure (v. 25). He would cut his hair once a year, apparently as an annual Nazarite, and his hair weighed five and a half pounds (v. 26). And Absalom had three (unnamed) sons, and a daughter named Tamar, beautiful like her aunt (v. 27). So Absalom lived in Jerusalem for two years without seeing the king (v. 28). Absalom then sends for Joab twice, but he refuses to come (v. 29). So Absalom has his servants set Joab’s field on fire (v. 30). When Joab comes to ask why (v. 31), Absalom replies by saying that he might as well have stayed in Geshur—he wasn’t seeing the king there either (v. 32). And so Joab went to the king, and the king agreed to a formal reconciliation. Absalom prostrated himself, and the king kissed him (v. 33).

Two Tamars

We will see in this chapter that Absalom was full of himself, but he was not totally that way. He had been considerate of his sister, and apparently named his (very beautiful) daughter after her. It is striking that Absalom is said to have three (unnamed) sons, and his daughter is named. She was like her namesake—beautiful. And like her aunt, she quietly disappears from this story of treachery and intrigue. Absalom’s sons had apparently died by just a few chapters later (2 Sam. 18:18). So the two Tamars quietly disappear from the story, which we may take as a very great mercy. As Thomas Watson once put it, it is better to be wronged than to do wrong, and Tamar retires from the scriptural account—despite the dishonor done to her—in honor.

The naming of daughters in Scripture often has to do with inheritance. Think of the daughters of Zelophehad (Num. 26:33; Num. 27:7). Also the daughters of Job were also beautiful, like the Tamars, and they were given an inheritance (Job 42:15). Absalom did not pass his inheritance on to his sons, and so Tamar was likely blessed in this way. And husbands, remember to dwell with your wives with understanding because they are joint heirs, together with you (1 Pet. 3:7).

Echoes of Scripture

There are three important sets of allusions in this section, just as we saw allusions to Genesis in the previous chapter.

First, the wise woman (which in scriptural usage was likely a kind of prophetess or sibyl) came to David the same way Nathan had (with a fictional story), but in the service of a political agenda. Her story parallels the account of Cain and Abel, and in that story God Himself gave protection to Cain. But this story invokes more than the wise woman wanted—if the story fits, then Absalom was not the seed. Absalom was Cain. The promised seed was Seth, the coming Solomon.

The second reference is also to Genesis—the wise woman says that the king has the discerning ability to rule, knowing the distinction between good and evil (v. 17). This was the knowledge that our first parents seized out of time, and as a result their heightened abilities at discernment were cockeyed. We may learn from the ironic statement of this woman—praising David’s discernment when he is manifestly being played.

And third, we have an allusion to the book of Judges. Absalom is another Samson—who was a charismatic leader, had long hair, and set Philistines’ fields on fire. But because of Absalom’s developing treachery, we should see him as an anti-Samson, an anti-Nazarite.

God Looks on the Heart

Saul had been described as choice and handsome (1 Sam. 9:2), but that turned out badly. He was a full head taller than everyone else. Attention is drawn to Absalom’s head as well, and to his beautiful family, and the fact that he had no external blemish (vv. 25-26). And David had been described as being very attractive in appearance (1 Sam. 16:12-13). But even with him, Samuel was taught that God looks on the heart. Unlike David, a root of bitterness had clearly taken up deep residence in Absalom’s heart. We can understand how someone might have been driven into bitterness—but bitterness still destroys the bitter one. As it has been well said, being bitter is like eating a box of rat poison and then waiting for the rat to die.

Joab is not a close intimate with Absalom. Remember that he is the man who eventually kills Absalom, and much against David’s wishes. He is not an Absalom loyalist. He is playing a realpolitik game, and it appears that his principle motivation is political stability without Solomon, apart from Solomon. Anybody but Solomon. After Absalom’s death, Joab joins forces with the Adonijah faction—for Adonijah has the supreme qualification of not being Solomon.

A Field on Fire

Absalom has already set Joab’s field on fire. Brought back to Jerusalem, he proceeds to do the same with his father’s “field.” He has set his course. David was around 66 when Absalom came back, 68 when they supposedly reconciled, and 70 when war broke out. Where was Solomon? As God’s choice for the throne, he was somewhere, waiting.

We are tempted to despair when everything goes wrong. The brothers are fighting—there is no solution. Cain kills Abel, and everything is lost. But God has Seth. Absalom kills Amnon, and then tries to kill his father. Everything is lost. But God has Solomon. Christ is in the wings.