David and Absalom
2 Samuel 18:31-33
And behold, the Cushite came, and the Cushite said, “Good new for my lord the king! For the LORD has delivered you this day from the hand of all who rose up against you.” The king said to the Cushite, “Is it well with the young man Absalom?” And the Cushite answered, “May the enemies of my lord the king and all who rise up against you for evil be like that young man.” And the king was deeply moved and went up 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!”
Absalom, David’s son, was a rebel and traitor to his father the king – the man anointed by God to be king over all Israel. His deeds recorded in Scripture point to the fact that he was a conniving man, violent and ruthless, cunning, hypocritical and mutinous. All these were facts about Absalom. In his rebellion against his father, he held nothing back – he was brazen enough to sleep with his father’s concubines in the sight of all Israel (2 Samuel 16:22)!! He rightly deserved the violent death that came to him from the hands of Joab.
But David’s response to hearing about the death of his mutinous son was something completely unexpected. If you read Psalm 3 and Psalm 63, you see that David himself was praying for the destruction of his enemies during Absalom’s rebellion. David, in his righteousness, cried out to God for the destruction of his enemies: “But those who seek to destroy my life shall go down into the depths of the earth; they shall be given over to the power of the sword; they shall be a portion for jackals.”(Ps. 63:9-10). This is exactly what he prayed for, and this is exactly what happened to Absalom according to God’s sovereign will. Yet, even though David triumphed over his enemies, his heart was writhing in pain for his son Absalom – treacherous though he was.
Was this selfish of David? Was this justified? Was David right in feeling this way so that he completely ignored the great victory in war that God gave him and restored his throne to him? These are difficult questions to answer. David truly was joyful and thankful for his victory that God gave him over his enemies. After all, all his prayers were answered. What we see here is the intensity of a father’s love for his child over against all the rational and factual reasons NOT to love that child. Justice calls for the death of his son, and David himself was well aware of it, hence his prayer in Psalm 3 and 63. Yet, justice does not dampen the father’s love. Despite the perfection of justice, the writhing heart of the father cries out, “O my son Absalom, my son, my son Absalom! Would I had died instead of you, O Absalom, my son, my son!”
There is no rational answer for this love. It just is. I believe that God put this passage in Scripture to give us insight into His own heart. God called David “a man after my own heart”, and here we see in David’s response a finite reflection of God’s own heart for His sons and daughters. We are all just like Absalom – we are rebellious, corrupt, cunning, conniving, impure, ruthless, violent, hypocritical, and mutinous towards our Heavenly Father. Though He has always been good to us since we were born, we returned hatred to Him for His love, we loved sin and evil and rejected His righteousness, we loved violence and rejected His peace, we were evil through and through in the deepest depths of our hearts, rejecting His perfect holiness. We have been mutinous since we were conceived, eager to rush into sin and corruption. We have been brazen in our lewdness and reveled in our immorality. Oh how greatly do we deserve the justice that was served to Absalom!! The land would rejoice when we are destroyed for the wicked would have been wiped out from the face of the earth!! This is true, this is just, this is absolutely required.
But in the midst of this righteous cry for justice, we hear God’s own voice cry out, deeply moved by love and compassion for us, “Would I have died instead of you, my son, my son!” And this is exactly what God did for us. He did, in fact, die in our place. David’s cry displayed the love of an earthly father, but it was indicative of the infinite love of the Heavenly Father. God is perfect in His righteousness and justice. But God is also perfect in His love. The fact remains that we not only deserve to die, but we must die. But because of the Father’s love, He determined that God Himself would die in our place, so that we may not die but live. Justice will be served indeed, but not to us, but to His Perfect Son who took the stand in our place. We hear God’s compassion and love in Jesus’ lament over Jerusalem when He said, “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you would not!” (Matt. 23:27) God sent this Jesus, His Only Son, the Second Person of the Trinity, the Ultimate David, whose heart was deeply moved and wept over his rebellious sons crying, “I will die instead of you, my son, my son! “ And so He did. On that Cross, He shed His precious blood, washing away all our sins, paying the price owed to God’s justice once and for all. And praise be to God who raised Him from the dead, for death had absolutely no hold on the only Sinless Perfect Man, Jesus Christ our LORD!
Glory to God in the highest! Soli Deo Gloria. Amen.
