Good Morning Friends,
Absalom, David’s son, plotted and schemed to
take the throne from David and succeed. David and those loyal to him marched
out of Jerusalem and Absalom and his army marched in. Absalom took up residence
in the palace David had built and he was king in Israel. But Absalom was not
content. He was afraid to leave David alone and brought his army out to find
David, attack him, and put an end to the threat.
God was with David and when the battle came to
him, God gave David’s army victory over the much larger army of Absalom. Absalom
himself died in disgrace. “Now Absalom happened to meet David’s men. He was
riding his mule, and as the mule went under the thick branches of a large oak,
Absalom’s head got caught in the tree. He was left hanging in midair, while the
mule he was riding kept on going.” (2 Samuel 18:9) Joab’s men found Absalom hanging
there and killed him.
The news reached David and he responded: “The
king was shaken. He went up to the room over the gateway and wept. He said: ‘O
my son Absalom! My son, my son Absalom! If only I had died instead of you – O
Absalom, my son, my son!’" (2 Samuel 18:33)
Absalom was David’s enemy, his betrayer. He had
taken David’s throne and sought to take David’s life. Absalom was also David’s
son and David’s love for Absalom outweighed his fear and distress over Absalom’s
betrayal. David did not rejoice in the death of an enemy, instead he deeply
mourned the loss of his son.
God delivered Absalom and his army into the
hands of David’s men. Logic said the battle should have gone the other way, but
God intervened to help David. That didn’t mean that David needed to rejoice in
the disaster that befell his enemy.
When we see those who oppose us disciplined and
punished by the Lord, do we rejoice in their suffering or weep because of their
pain? How we respond to the pain of others, and especially to the pain of those
who oppose us, says a lot about our hearts.
His, by Grace, Steve
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