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After this. The Hebrew is a more precise phrase than that on which we have commented on 2Sa_10:1 and 2Sa_13:1, and implies that Absalom began his devices soon after obtaining his liberty. Chariots and horses; Hebrew, a chariot and horses; that is, a chariot for state occasions, in which Absalom rode, while fifty footmen ran at his side. Probably his grandfather Talmai practised similar magnificence at Geshur. In India it is still common for men of rank to be attended by runners on foot, who will keep up with horses or elephants for an incredible distance.
2Sa_15:2
The way of the gate. The gate would be that of the royal palace, where the king gave audience and administered justice. At the gate of the city the elders were the judges, and, though the higher authority of the king may have weakened the action of this citizen court, yet passages such as Isa_50:1-11 :23 and Jer_5:28 imply, not only its continued existence, but also that it retained much importance. Probably all causes between citizens were tried by it, just as causes in the country were tried by the mishpachah (see note on 2Sa_14:7); but with an appeal in weighty matters to the king. It is a mistake to suppose that David altogether neglected his judicial functions. On the contrary, the woman of Tekoah obtained an audience, as a matter of course; and Absalom would not have risen up thus early unless David had also taken his seat in the early morning on the royal divan to administer justice. It was the suitors on their way to the king whom Absalom accosted, and made believe that he would be more assiduous in his duties than his father, and that he would have decided every suit in favour of the person to whom he was talking, whereas really one side alone can gain the cause. Still, we may well believe that, guilty himself of adultery and murder, and with his two eider sons stained with such terrible crimes, David's administration of justice had become half hearted. And thus his sin again found him out, and brought stern punishment. For Absalom used this weakness against his father, and, intercepting the suitors on their way, would ask their city and tribe, and listen to their complaint, and assure them of the goodness of their cause, and lament that, as the king could not hear all causes easily himself, he did not appoint others to aid him in his duties. It was delay and procrastination of which Absalom complained; and as many of the litigants had probably come day after day, and not succeeded in getting a hearing, they were already in ill humour and prepared to find fault. Now, as David possessed great powers of organization, we may well believe that he would have taken measures for the adequate administration of law had it not been for the moral malady which enfeebled his will. In the appointment of Jehoshaphat and Seraiah (2Sa_8:16, 2Sa_8:17) he had made a beginning, but soon his hands grew feeble, and he did no more.
2Sa_15:6
Absalom stole the hearts. By professing anxiety to devote himself to the hearing and deciding of the people's causes, by flattering each one with the assurance that his case was so good that it needed only a hearing to be decided in his favour, and by his affability, made the more charming and irresistible by his personal beauty, he won the love of the people almost without their knowing how devoted they had become to him.
2Sa_15:7
After forty years. As Absalom was born in Hebron after David was made king (2Sa_3:3), and as David's whole reign lasted only forty years and six months, the reading "forty" is evidently incorrect. Suggestions, such, for instance, as that the forty years are to be reckoned from the desire of the Israelites to have a king, or from the anointing of David by Samuel, are merely methods of evading a difficulty. The Syriac, however, and the Vulgate—except the Codex Amiatinus, which reads "forty," supported by Josephus and some manuscripts have "four years," which would give ample, yet not too long, time for the growth of Absalom's popularity, and of dissatisfaction at David's tardy administration of justice. In Hebron. Absalom chose this town, beth as being his birthplace, and also because it was on the road to Geshur (1Sa_27:8), whither flight might be necessary should the enterprise fail. He hoped also to win to his cause some of the powerful tribe of Judah, though it generally was the mainstay of David's throne. Local sacrifices were still customary (see note on 1Sa_16:2), and the visit of the king's son for such a purpose would be celebrated by a general holiday and much feasting at Hebron. As Ewald remarks, David's confidence and want of suspicion were the results of a noble-minded generosity. And besides, there was no state police ever on the watch, and ready to put an unfavourable construction on all that was done; and probably David was even pleased at his son's popularity, and took his professions as proof that he would be a just and wise ruler on succeeding to his father's place. Perhaps, too, he was glad at this indication of religious feeling on Absalom's part; for a father is sure to look on the better side of his son's acts. tie had been tardy enough in fulfilling his vow, but it seemed to David that conscience had at last prevailed, and that right was to be done.
2Sa_15:10
Absalom sent spies. The word means "those who go hither and thither," and, as the object of such journeying would usually be. to gather information, the right translation often is "spies." Here there was no such purpose, nor were they to report to Absalom, but to disperse themselves everywhere, and, when the signal was given at Hebron, they were to endeavour to gather the people to Absalom's standard. Some simple minded commentators wonder how one trumpet could be heard throughout the land. It was heard only at Hebron, but the news of the proclamation would rapidly spread; and, though the rumour might be vague and confused, yet these emissaries, fully acquainted beforehand with its meaning, would turn it to Absalom's advantage, and urge the people to confirm the choice, made, as they would affirm, by the whole tribe of Judah. In such attempts everything depends upon gathering a powerful following at first; and usually a good deal of vigour and even force is necessary to make men take part in a revolt. But as the numbers swell, adherents readily flock in to what seems to be the winning side.
2Sa_15:11
Two hundred men. These, doubtless, were courtiers and men of rank, who were so accustomed to Absalom's love of display, that, when called, that is, invited, they would go without suspicion. To Absalom their attendance was most important, not only because, being compromised, many would join him, and even all of them for a time be forced to yield obedience, but because they would make the people of Hebron suppose that Absalom had a powerful body of supporters at Jerusalem. It is quite possible that at Hebron, and generally in Judah, there was great discontent because David had left their tribe to choose a capital elsewhere, and because he did not show them any decided preference over the other tribes, whose good will he would rightly seek to conciliate. The existence of much jealousy between Judah and the ten tribes is plain from 2Sa_19:41-43.
2Sa_15:12
Ahithophel the Gilonite. The desertion of David by Ahithophel is in every way remarkable, even if he were Bathsheba's grandfather (see note on 2Sa_11:3). For he was far too subtle a man to have joined the conspiracy unless he bad felt reasonably sure that it would be successful. Successful it would have been had his advice been followed; but so correctly did he estimate the result if David were allowed time to gather his friends, that, when his counsel was rejected, he withdrew immediately to Giloh, and committed suicide. Still if the revolt had been successful, it would have involved, if not the death of Bathsheba, yet certainly that of her sons, and the exclusion of Ahithophel's great-grandchildren from the throne. In Psa_41:1-13; written at this time, we learn what were David's feelings when he heard the news of this conspiracy, and Ahithophel is the familiar friend, in whom he had trusted, and who had eaten at his table, but now raised up his heel to kick at him. In Joh_13:18 the words are quoted of Judas Iscariot, of whom Ahithophel was a type in his treachery and in his death by his own hand. The translation, "sent for Ahithophel," cannot be maintained. The Hebrew is "sent Ahithophel," but for what purpose or on what embassy is not mentioned. As thus something must have dropped out of the Hebrew text, it possibly may be the preposition "for," as this gives a good sense. For Giloh, Ahithophel's town, was situated a few miles to the south of Hebron (Jos_15:51), and Ahithophel had probably been working there secretly for Absalom for some time. As David's counsellor, his proper place of residence would have been Jerusalem, but the conspiracy had been kept so secret that he had been able to get away without suspicion. He is now summoned to Absalom's side, and his presence there brings in so many adherents that a rapid march on Jerusalem might have put David into their power. The Revised Version is right in translating, while he offered the sacrifices; namely, those which he had vowed, and which were the reason given for his visit to Hebron.
2Sa_15:14
Arise, and let us flee. The rebellion of Absalom, and David's humiliating flight, bring out all the better parts of the king's character, and set him once again before us as a man after God's own heart. For this period is richly illustrated by the psalms which were written under the pressure of this great affliction, and which are marked by firm confidence in God, and an assured sense of the Divine nearness and protection. Psa_41:1-13. shows how poignant was his anguish at Ahithophel's treachery, but it inspired no fear: "As for me, thou up. holdest me in mine integrity, and settest me before thy face forever" (Psa_41:12). It was a firm faith which prompted such words. In Psa_63:1-11; written "in the wilderness of Judah," before David had reached the Jordan, he gives utterance to his grief at the loss of his religious privileges at Jerusalem; but Jehovah is still his strong Tower, and his dwelling will be in God's tabernacle forever. Psa_3:1-8; Psa_4:1-8. are his morning and evening hymns written "when he fled from Absalom his son." Psa_55:1-23 is one more sad even than Psa_41:1-13. He describes in it his panic stricken feelings when the news reached him, his longing to escape from the turmoil of life, and flee into the wilderness and be at rest; and his grief at his desertion by men in whose company he had worshipped in the house of God. Upon this follows an outburst of vehement indignation, made the more bitter by the sense of the treachery whereby he had been duped into connivance with Absalom's plans (verse 21); but amidst it all his confidence was unshaken that if he cast his burden upon God, "he would sustain him, and never suffer the righteous to be moved." Finally, in Psa_27:1-14, we have the contrast between Jehovah's abiding goodness and the inconstancy of men; while Psa_61:1-8; Psa_62:1-12. were probably written at Mahanaim, when David s anguish of mind was being assuaged, and a calm confidence was taking its place. Everywhere in all of them David speaks as one who had now given all his heart to God. As regards his terror and flight (Psa_55:5-8), it may seem strange that David should have withdrawn so hurriedly from a city so strong as Jerusalem. But we must not suppose that he had a standing army, and his few Cherethites and Pelethites could have made no head against the nation. Probably, too, the fortifications of the city were incomplete (Psa_51:18); and even if in good order, yet, cooped up in Jerusalem, David would have left the whole country in Absalom's power, and finally, after a long blockade, he must have been driven by famine to surrender. Away from Jerusalem he was the centre whither all who disliked Absalom's attempt would gather, and every day as it passed would make men reflect more and more upon what David had done for them, and the more steady and thoughtful of them would finally decide in his favour. There would be, moreover, the secret conviction that David, with such men round him as Joab and Abishai, if free to take his own course, would be more than a match for Absalom and his larger numbers. This was what Ahithophel foresaw, and was so convinced that, if David were not crushed at once, he would gain the day, that he did not even wait to see, but destroyed himself. Abarbanel thinks that the wish of the people had never been for more than the association of Absalom with David on the throne, according to what he had himself suggested (Psa_62:4); and that there was a great revulsion of feeling when they saw that they must choose absolutely between father and son, and that whoever lost the crown must lose his life as well. Some commentators consider that Psa_31:1-24. also belongs to this period, though others ascribe it to Jeremiah. Parts of it are singularly applicable to the circumstances of David's flight, as where the psalmist speaks of Jehovah as being his Fortress in contrast with Jerusalem, and adds, "Thou hast not shut me up into the hands of the enemy, but hast set my feet in a large space," as though "the net which the conspirators had privily laid for him" had been the design to coop him up within the walls of the city, There are touching words, too, of distress at the slander and reproach breaking forth on every side, and at the completeness of his fall, so that whereas but a few days before he had been a king, now "he was clean forgotten, as a dead man out of mind; and east aside as though he were now of no more account than the shards of a broken vessel." But, with the calm strength of faith he adds, "My times are in thy hand;" "Thou shalt hide all who trust in thee in the secret of thy presence;" "Oh, then, love Jehovah, and be of good courage! for he shall strengthen the heart of all whose hope is fixed on him."
2Sa_15:15
The king's servants. These were the officers of David's court and household, numerous enough to hamper his movements, but not enough to protect him. All David's wives, moreover, went, and his children, and some of his concubines (2Sa_19:5), ten, however, being left in charge of the palace.
2Sa_15:17
And tarried in a place that was far off; Revised Version, in Beth-merhak. "The Far House"—so we may translate this proper name—was probably not a dwelling, but a pavilion overlooking the Kidron valley; and here David halted his household until all were assembled, and arrangements made for their journey. Here, too, the bodyguard would gather, and they would cross the Kidron only when everything was ready for their orderly progress. Confusion at such a time would breed a panic and invite an attack.
2Sa_15:18
All the Gittites, air hundred men which came after him from Gath. The Septuagint reads "Gibborim," and without doubt these are the persons meant; but while they were styled Gibborim, the "mighties," for honour's sake, because of their prowess, they probably were popularly called David's Gittites, because they were the six hundred men who had formed his little army when he sought refuge with Achish, King of Gath (l Samuel 27:2; 30:9). They were not Philistines, but Israelites of desperate fortune (1Sa_22:2); and it is a proof of David's great ability, and of the moral influence of his character, that he was successful, not only in controlling them and maintaining discipline, but also in forming them into as noble a set of heroes as ever existed, and who were faithful to him in all his fortunes. To their number belonged the thirty-seven champions end-merated in 2Sa_23:1-39; and possibly the title "Gibborim" strictly belonged to them only. As they are still called "the six hundred," it is probable that the corps was maintained at this number by new appointments, and that they had special privileges which made their position very desirable. Certainly David would never forget men who had shared all his fortunes, and been so true and so useful to him; and it is evident, from Hushai's counsel (2Sa_17:8), that Absalom feared their resolute valour, and hesitated to attack without overwhelming numbers. Thenius compares these veterans to Napoleon's Old Guard.
2Sa_15:19
Ittai the Gittite. Ittai was not one of the six hundred, though there was an Ittai among them, a Benjamite. He was a citizen of Gath, who had lately come ("yesterday," see 2Sa_15:20), with all his household of slaves and dependents, his clan, Hebrew, his taf—translated in 2Sa_15:22 his "little ones." He had evidently been a person of importance in his own country, whence he had been driven, perhaps by political troubles, and was now, therefore, an exile and a foreigner (Authorized Version, "stranger") at Jerusalem. As David made him joint commander of his army with Joab and Abishai (2Sa_18:2), he must also have been a general of recognized military skill. As he was thus not personally interested in the government of Israel, and, in fact, had only lately come thither, David recommends him to return … and abide with the king, that is, with the de facto king, Absalom. But so great was the fascination which David exercised upon those around him, that this foreigner boldly threw in his lot with him, and accompanied him in his flight. Return to thy place. This is a very daring transposition, as the Hebrew is, Return and abide with the king; for thou art a foreigner, and also an exile art thou to thy place. The Revised Version gives the same sense as the Authorized, though it shows more respect to the grammar. But the Septuagint, Syriac, and Vulgate, by "his own place" understand Gath, either taking the words as meaning "an exile as to thy own place," or having a different reading. The Hebrew then proceeds, Yesterday was thy coming, and shall 1 today make thee wander to go with us, seeing I go whither I go? that is, I go I know not whither. Return thou, and take back thy brethren—in mercy and truth. This gives a very good sense, but the Septuagint and Vulgate have a different reading: "Take back thy brethren with thee, and the Lord chew thee mercy and truth." The Syriac gives the genera] sense of the Hebrew, rendering, "Take back thy brethren well."
2Sa_15:22
All the little ones; Hebrew, all the taf; in 2Sa_15:20 called "his brethren," that is, all the relatives and dependents who had accompanied him in his exile. Their presence with him proves that he had entirely broken with the Philistines, and left his country for good. He may have taken this step for religious reasons, though his swearing by Jehovah (2Sa_15:21) does not prove it, as Achish did the same (1Sa_29:6); or Ittai, after the capture of Gath by David (2Sa_8:1), may have made himself unpopular by becoming the ally of the conqueror, and so finally have determined to leave the city, and find a home in Israel.
2Sa_15:23
All the country wept. This general lamentation proves that David was not really unpopular in Jerusalem, though it was there that Absalom had dazzled the people by his magnificence, and sought to win favour by his gracious ways. By the country the inhabitants are meant, who watched the king's departure; while the people are David's followers—his retinue and attendants. The brook Kidron. This is a winter torrent, dry during most of the year, but serving at the rainy seasons to carry off the rainfall from the Valley of Jehoshaphat. It lay on the east of Jerusalem, and beyond it was Mount Olivet. The direction of David's flight was toward the wild country on the east of the Jordan, in which Ishbosheth had found a refuge after the defeat of Gilboa. To reach it he must pass by Jericho, and thence through the Arabah (Jer_39:4) to the ford of the Jordan, after crossing which he would be in comparative safety. Ahithophel would have followed that very night, and have attacked before David had placed the river between himself and his pursuers.
2Sa_15:24
And Abiathar went up. This rendering, though confirmed by the versions, is very unintelligible. Whither did Abiathar go up? And moreover it is said that he continued going up until all David's followers had passed out of the city. Another possible rendering is, "And Abiathar offered (sacrifices) until all the people had done passing out of the city." Passages quoted in proof that the verb may be so rendered without the addition of the word "sacrifice" are 1Sa_2:28 and 2Sa_24:22; but in both these places the context makes the sense plain. Such a sacrifice would, of course, sanctify both king and people in their flight; but as none of the versions support this method of translating the text, it seems unsafe to adopt it, and the passage must remain obscure. On the one hand, it is unlikely that there would be time to offer sacrifices at so hasty a flight; but on the other hand, the removal of the ark was a solemn thing, which probably required some such religious ceremonial, and Cahen and other Jewish authorities translate, "Abiathar offered burnt offerings."
2Sa_15:26
Let him do to me as seemeth good unto him. David's answer is full, not only of devout resignation and trust in God, but is remarkable also for the absence of superstition. He feels that God will not judge him by any mere outward sign or privilege, but in truth and equity. If he deserves condemnation, he will not escape it by carrying the ark about with him. If, on the contrary, God accepts him, he will restore him to the enjoyment of his spiritual privileges, and bring him back to worship at the place which he has chosen for his dwelling. We must notice that he addresses these words to Zadok, who had remained with the ark. This was natural if Abiathar was occupied in offering, but hard to understand if he had gone up, that is, in advance of the ark, to acquaint David with their purpose.
2Sa_15:27
Art thou (not) a seer? Both the Authorized Version and the Revised Version evade the difficulty of this passage by inserting the word "not." It is one of the merits of the Revised Version that usually it does not take these liberties. But "Art thou a seer?" is meaningless; and the attempts, moreover, to show that Zadok was a seer fail entirely in proof. The receiving revelations by Urim and Thummim was a priestly, and not a prophetic, function. Without altering the text, the words may be correctly translated, "Seest thou?" This was probably a colloquial phrase, of which the Septuagint gives the sense by rendering it in the imperative, "See;" while the Syriac, regarding it as an expletive, boldly omits it.
2Sa_15:28
In the plain of the wilderness. The Revised Version has "at the fords of the wilderness," that is, it rightly keeps to the written Hebrew text (the K'tib), while the Authorized Version adopts a conjecture of the Massorites (the K'ri). This conjecture is the substitution of arboth for abroth, and they have made the same alteration at 2Sa_17:16. But the substitution is uncalled for and mischievous; for David would not halt indefinitely in the plain, the Arabah (of which Arboth is the plural), but would press on to the fords, where some delay must take place, and where the king's presence would be important in giving instructions for what was by no means an easy operation. At the river, moreover, David could be assailed only in front, where his "mighties" would make a strong defence, while in the Arabah they might be surrounded; and, encumbered as they were with women, their line must be so extended as to be weakened. We find, too, in Jdg_3:28 that the fords of the Jordan formed a good military position. In 2Sa_17:22 it is expressly said that the fording of the river did not take place until Jonathan and Ahimaaz came with their reports; and their words there, in 2Sa_17:21, show that David was on the bank when they arrived, with his preparations so complete, that, in the next few hours, all his company were safely carried over to the other side. Ahimaaz was a famous runner (see 2Sa_18:27), and, if David was ready, the time gained by him upon any body of troops leaving Jerusalem at the same hour, would have enabled the king to get his people across; but if he had still some miles to march, with a number of women and children, Ahimaaz's fleetness would have been rendered useless.
2Sa_15:30
The ascent of mount Olivet; Hebrew, the ascent of the olive trees. The hill never was called Olivet, which is a word formed from the Latin mons oliveti, the mount of the olive grove. David had his head covered. This was a sign of grief among the Persians, Egyptians, and Romans, as well as the Hebrews (for whom see Eze_24:17), it being originally a natural movement to conceal an outburst of tears. So we in great sorrow bury our faces in our hands. In this mark of mourning all joined, but David added the going barefoot as a sign of deeper humiliation. According to the Jewish Midrash, it was upon the Mount of Olives that David composed the third psalm. More probably it was at the fords of the Jordan, after David, wearied with the fatigues of the march, had enjoyed a short refreshing slumber, and while he was waiting for his two young friends, that he comforted himself by this outpouring of his heart to God.
2Sa_15:31
And one told David. The Hebrew literally is, and David told. But we cannot suppose that David had previously known of Ahithophel's defection. The text is evidently corrupt, and the Authorized Version gives the right sense. On hearing of the defection of a man so famous for practical sound judgment, David prays to God to frustrate his counsel, and the opportunity for devising means for this end quickly follows.
2Sa_15:32
Where he worshipped God; more correctly, where God was worshipped, and so the Revised Version. The summit of the Mount of Olives was one of the many bamoth, or high places, situated on the top of hills, where, in the old Canaanitish time, men had worshipped their heathenish deities. They were still regarded as consecrated places, but the worship had now been transferred to Elohim, the true God. They continued to be hallowed spots, with Levitical priests to minister at them, until the stricter times of Josiah (2Ki_23:8), when such worship was forbidden; but even then these priests seem to have retained considerable privileges, though their position was inferior to that held by the priests of the temple. It was at this hallowed spot that David's old friend and privy counselor (2Sa_15:37), Hushai, met him, with his coat rent—not the upper garment, but the kuttoneth, the under tunic, the rending of which was a sign of deeper sorrow. We read of "the border of the Archites" (so the Revised Version, rightly) in Jos_16:2, near Bethel, in the tribe of Manasseh; and Hushai's birthplace was probably there.
2Sa_15:33
A burden unto me. Host likely because Hushai was old and infirm. Others, with less probability, think that it was because of his rank, which would demand special attendance.
2Sa_15:34
Then mayest thou for me defeat the counsel of Ahithophel. David was thus meeting treachery by treachery, and we cannot approve of it, even granting that Ahithophel's conduct was base and selfish, while Hushai was risking his life for his master. Still, he was sent back to tell a falsehood, and his excuse was necessity; for Ahithophel was so sagacious that, if his counsel were not upset, David's cause was lost. It was not Christian morality, but yet it has a sort of nobleness about it in Hushai's devotion to his king. And even now, in war and diplomacy, such acts are not uncommon, and a distinction is unhappily drawn between political and social morality. Even in common life immoral doings are often sanctioned by use. Thus many customs of trade are frauds, considered legitimate because generally practised. Even among ourselves Christian morality is far below the level of our Master's teaching; and the Old Testament must not be taken as approving all that it records. Similar blame does not attach to Zadok and Abiathar. They were known to be David's friends, and had even tried to go with him, bearing with them the ark. They professed no friendship for Absalom, and returned for no covert purpose, looking for protection, not to guile, but to their sacred office. And Absalom would be glad to have them in his power, and would make them continue the customary sacrifices, and, if his rebellion proved successful, would force them to anoint him, and so give his usurpation a religious sanction. But he would tell them none of his plans, nor would they try to insinuate themselves into his confidence. They would have a perfect right to be useful in any way they could to their true master, but would do so at the risk of severe punishment. Hushai's way of defeating Ahithophel was treacherous; but there was no deceit in the young men carrying a message from him, for they were openly David's friends.
2Sa_15:37
Absalom came into Jerusalem. Absalom had evidently pushed rapidly forward from Hebron, in hopes, perhaps, of surprising David in the city. Evidently he entered it on the day of David's flight (2Sa_17:1), and Ahithophers proposal to select twelve thousand men from Absalom's followers shows how very powerful the conspiracy was. Had this advice been followed, the decisive battle would have been fought that evening at the fords of the Jordan, a few miles only from Jerusalem.
1. Absalom sets up a large domestic establishment with a semblance of royalty.
2. Rising early in the morning of each day, he is first to meet the suitors for judgment at the gate of the city, and seizes the occasion for insinuating that there is defect in the king's provision for the administration of justice.
3. He also professes to manifest sympathy with suitors by expressing the wish that he were in a position to do them justice, and gives outward evidence of his concern for them by taking each one by the hand and kissing him.
4. These plans being in progress, he next asks permission of David to go to Hebron, on the plea that he desired to redeem a vow which he had sacredly made to God while in exile; and David granting his request, he sets out for Hebron, with a company of men ignorant of his design.
5. Meanwhile he sends spies throughout Israel, so that on a given signal they might simultaneously make the announcement, "Absalom reigneth in Hebron."
6. He moreover gains to his side Ahithophel, David's counsellor, and so advances his cause among the people. The narrative gives us in brief form the scheme, the principles, the methods, and early form of Absalom's conspiracy. He knew his own mind, and was set on the overthrow of his father's authority, from sheer vanity and lust of power. The outline of his method was clearly defined:
(1) to win over the people by criticizing the king's administration, and gratifying them by a showy establishment, professed zeal for justice, and marked personal attentions;
(2) to secure a good centre for proclaiming his authority, and this by a hypocritical profession of religion which required him to go there;
(3) by scattering agents through the land, and gaining to his side the king's most sagacious adviser. There is not one relieving feature to the dark picture of pride, ingratitude, filial alienation, low cunning, and religious hypocrisy. It is, however, our province to extract good out of evil, and in the early stages of Absalom's rebellion we may see illustrations of the shady side of human nature, which, if noted and applied to conduct, may warn against often-recurring evils, and put us on our guard against the same tendencies in other departments of life.
I. THE PRINCIPLES AND METHODS OF UNJUSTIFIABLE REBELLION. Rebellion against existing authority may perhaps be right under special circumstances. People do not exist for governments, but governments for the people; and it is possible that the rights of the people may be so utterly trodden upon that it is the duty of self preservation to rebel. Even parental authority must be resisted when it comes into direct collision with conscience and with Christ (Mat_10:33-38). But rebellion is wicked when, as in this case, it springs from a blending of conceit, dislike of constituted authority, and lust for power. This may characterize rebellion originating in an individual or in a restless people. Talk of oppression, justice, kindness and consideration for the oppressed, may be but a cloak for a selfish aversion to restraint and a love of self-will. Even where there is justification for resistance to an evil rule, it is wicked to have recourse to flattery, deceit, hypocrisy, and low cunning to accomplish the end in view. In times of turbulence and agitation it is important that men scrutinize the secret motives of their actions. As a rule, injustice in rulers can be best resisted by the calm, sober protest and passive resistance of conscientious men. Faith in God, and in the force of true principles, with patient persistence, will in the end accomplish more than can be secured by violence; and where injustice exists only in the imagination of the restless, and the evils of life spring from their own habits and practices, then rebellion is one of the greatest crimes of which man is capable.
II. INCIDENTAL REVELATIONS OF CHARACTER. The character of a man lies primarily in the main principles and passions that are deep down in his nature, and which in course of years shape his outward conduct. Absalom's real character was in existence long before it came out to the eye of the public in the form of rebellion against his father's authority. Probably David discerned its incipient form, and hence his extreme slowness in recalling him to a position of prominence. The setting up by Absalom of a large princely establishment, with chariots and horses and runners, was really an incidental revelation in palpable form of a character internally maturing. It was a sign to such men as David and Nathan of what they had believed to exist—a vain, proud, ostentatious spirit. So in course of time men generally do something in their domestic arrangements or business developments which, if the world will only read aright, brings into public view tendencies and tastes which hitherto have been kept under restraint. Our visible acts and creations are the successive revelations of our condition. A man's dress, his handwriting, his domestic establishment, his bearing before the public, his mode of transacting business, is a manifestation of the hidden man—the indicator of the elements entering into the permanent character. The outward aspects of a man's life may be studied with a view to a knowledge of the habits and tastes of his mind.
III. EVIL TENDENCIES IN CONGENIAL ENVIRONMENT. The evil tendencies of Absalom were somewhat pronounced when he set up his pretentious establishment, but by his own act those tendencies were placed in the midst of circumstances eminently calculated to strengthen and develop them further. The heart of man can devise things out of its own tastes and propensities which become at once food on which those tastes and propensities grow to further power. A man of pleasure out of his own desires creates occupations and pursuits which become the nourishers of the passion for pleasure. The same holds of dreadful vices and blessed virtues. There is a self-promotive power in the forces that dwell within our moral nature. Intellectual and physical forces are not so recuperative of themselves by means of what they create as are the moral. We are to ponder the path of our feet, forevery step increases the momentum in the road, be it good or bad.
IV. LUST OF POWER MINUS FITNESS FOR ITS EXERCISE. Absalom set his heart on being King of Israel. The vision of a throne and a submissive people had great attractions for him. The princely establishment, With chariots and horsemen, was only the first instalment of a splendour soon to be won. Like all such men, he had unlimited confidence in himself. He could administer justice! He could win the people and hold them in subjection! And yet this vanity, this low cunning, this love of outward show, and mean lying flattery of the people, disqualified him for ruling as a king. Morally speaking, he was a handsome fool, and knew it. not. The lust for power is common, and often very strong in men. As manifested in bad men, it is an abnormal development of a love of mastery over what is not self. The possession of power over man is safe and good only when there coexist with it justice, generosity, considerateness, and honesty.
V. ALIENATION FROM A FATHER'S HEART THE CLIMAX OF EVIL. Absalom was no longer a true son. No man could have entered on such a scheme and have devised such means unless he had lost all true natural affection. To find fault with a father's administration, to expose a father to ridicule, to seek to alienate men from attachment to a father, and, in short, crush a father's hopes and life's work, could only proceed from a heart utterly alienated. And such a father! Weak and erring as David in a notable instance had been, he was the most generous, and magnanimous of men, and had brought peace and plenty and honour to Israel. Absalom's crime was one of the basest ever recorded. And all alienation from a true father's heart is utterly base and deserving the strongest detestation. There is hope for sons when they still cherish love and reverence for parents; none when these are gone. Every feeling, and act, and companionship, and habit which tend towards this awful separation of heart, should be shunned as men shun the road to death. And yet this is the real state of the human heart in relation to God. The gulf is awful; and nothing but a new creation will lead to a reconciliation (Joh_3:5; Rom_8:7).
VI. PSEUDO-PATRIOTISM AN ASSUMED VIRTUE. Patriotism is strong in men whose country has been associated in memory with great deeds. To care for one's land and people, to be more concerned for the maintenance of justice and adjustment of the claims of the poor than for the form and personnel of government,—this is always commendable; and so much is this virtue esteemed that it is assumed by Absalom for his own purposes. We cannot believe in the patriotism of any man who shuts his heart against a good father. Civil virtues cannot make amends for the absence of the domestic and primary virtues. It is easy to prate about justice and the oppressed, and to speak smoothly to the populace; to keep the heart pure, loving, true toward man and God, is not so easy. There is much pseudo-patriotism in political life. Men claim virtues they do not possess, and use the claim for gaining an influence that else would be unattainable.
VII. RELIGION A CLOAK FOR EVIL DESIGNS. Absalom knew his father to be a pious man, and therefore seeks to accomplish his purpose by a profession of piety. The heartless son finds no difficulty in taking the holy name of God in vain, and concocting a tissue of lies. To the populace he can be a critic of the government; to the pious king he can be a devout man, intent on keeping sacred vows. No clearer proof of a Satanic spirit than when men dare to lay hold of the most sacred things and use them for vile and selfish purposes. Righteous, indeed, was the indignation of Christ against such "hypocrites." "Woe" from the lips of love came upon them. Manifold are the forms and degrees in which this evil appears. To worship in order to be respectable, to profess religion for the sake of trade, to utter pious phrases in order to win popular applause, are but the less repulsive forms of the very crime of Absalom. How abominable such persons must appear in the sight of the all-searching God!
VIII. TAKING UNDUE ADVANTAGE OF ANOTHER'S DIFFICULTY. In consequence of the immense work thrown on an absolute monarch, the growing complications of a flourishing state, and the incompetence of subordinates, there would necessarily arise many difficulties in the administration of the affairs of the kingdom. In all lands people have to wait for justice when others are being served. But the evil heart of Absalom showed itself in using whatever incidental delays arose as an occasion of promoting its own wicked schemes. There is too much of this in the world. The rich have often taken advantage of the ignorance and helplessness of the poor to secure ends otherwise unattainable. In political life it is a maxim to seize the hour of weakness for a party triumph. It is the devil's opportunity with feeble souls to render more sure their destruction. Trouble in state, Church, or family affords opportunity for testing the qualities of men. Love or hate, sympathy or antagonism, will thereby be revealed. How different to others the blessed Saviour in presence of human infirmity!
IX. POPULARITY ON AN UNSTABLE AND HOLLOW BASIS. The people's hearts were won to Absalom. It seems a great triumph to win the hearts of multitudes; it is an indication of great power on the part of the conqueror or of fickleness on the part of the conquered. But in this, as in many instances, the conquest was a revelation of shallow thinking on the one side and basest cunning on the other. There is in most men a soil for receiving the seeds of discontent from the hand of a deft sower. People are easily caught by flatteries and personal attentions. A visible parade of splendour dazzles and pleases the crowd, who think modest, quiet bearing a sign of mediocrity. The dash and careless promises of a young and handsome man excite the imagination, and raise up pictures of great possibilities. The mass of men do not think; they feel, and are led by the clever orator who can stir up their feelings. It is not always a credit to "go with the multitude," and fall in with an order of things because it is popular. The vox populi maxim is often false. Of One it was once true, "Of the people there was none with him." He was "despised and rejected of men."
X. AN ILLUSTRATION OF THE MOST DREADFUL OF CONSPIRACIES. It is not necessary to endeavour to trace resemblance in all details between antagonism to the mortal king in Zion and opposition to the immortal King in Zion. But there has been and still is a plot to destroy the authority of him whose right it is to reign. Fashion, wealth, power of speech, wit, and alliances with wise Ahithophels, continue to undermine and eventually overthrow the influence of Christ over the hearts of men. The "gates of hell" take counsel against the Lord and his Anointed. Another seat of supreme influence is being set up as a substitute for that occupied by the Anointed One, and "spies" are abroad seeking to create doubt and distrust in the hearts of the faithful. As we read the account of Absalom's ingratitude, daring, and baseness, and feel for his deeds the utmost detestation, so holy beings who look on the endeavour to destroy the authority of Christ over men cannot but regard the deed as the basest, most daring, and at the same time most fatal to the perpetrators, ever attempted. The wicked may seem to triumph, but their end is destruction.
2Sa_15:13-30
The facts are:
1. David, being informed of the rising in favour of Absalom, calls upon his friends to flee from Jerusalem, in order to avoid its being smitten by a sudden attack.
2. His servants being willing to go with him, he leads out his entire household, with the exception of a few to take care of the house.
3. In his departure he is accompanied by his bodyguard, and the six hundred men which followed him from Garb.
4. Observing Ittai in the company, he suggests that, being a stranger and exile, he should not risk his fortunes with his own; but, on receiving an assurance that it was his deliberate desire so to do, he permits him to pass on.
5. The people of the district weep with a loud noise as he crosses the brook Kidron, and passes on toward the wilderness.
6. The ark of the covenant being brought out into the procession, when the people have passed the brook, David urges on Zadok that the ark be conveyed back to the city, expressing his humble hope that it might please God to allow him to see it once more, and, in any case, he submits to the appointments of Providence.
7. David requests Zadok and others with the ark to return to the city, and to inform him in the wilderness should anything of great importance arise.
8. The king expresses his grief by passing up the Mount of Olives, with covered head and weeping, accompanied by a covered and weeping multitude.
I. A RECOGNITION OF PERSONAL DESERT. The prompt action, the surrender of regal state, the broken spirit, the barefooted departure from the seat of authority, and the tender references to God doing with him as seemed him good (2Sa_15:26), all point to more than a forced submission to mere military necessity. There may have been a deep inexpressible anguish on account of filial ingratitude, and the father's heart could not but weep in silence over an erring lost child; but the remembrance of his own great sin, and the words of the prophet of God, furnished the chief theme of reflection; for the son's ingratitude base as it was, had become the rod to chastise for the errors of the past. A forgiven man does not the less think of the sin as a disgrace and worthy of being branded as evil. Adversities come to us all—happily, few know the sorrow of such filial ingratitude—and the enlightened mind sees in them more than physical sequence. The doctrine that every sorrow that falls is for a specific sin need not be held. Yet all trouble is connected with the fact that sin is in the world, and a consciousness of personal shortcomings makes us feel, when adversity in home, estate, or health falls, that we deserve every pain that enters the heart. There is no assertion of right to be free from the trouble; rather the true heart says, "It is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed" (Lam_3:22).
II. ACQUIESCENCE IN GOD'S RIGHTEOUSNESS. To a human observer it might seem that it was a very unrighteous thing for the Supreme Ruler to allow so wise and good a king to be set aside and humiliated by a man so base and vain as Absalom, and many a man in his anguish might question the equity which allowed such sorrow to fall upon him when he had recovered from his special sins. David's spirit was the reverse of this. Not a word of complaint, not a murmur or a fret in trouble. During his long exile, when death encompassed him about, and he had washed his hands in innocency, and all the blame lay with Saul and Doeg the Edomite, he trusted in the justice of God; and this confidence, won in the days of comparative innocence, failed him not now, when, after his recovery from a fall, the storm burst upon him with more terrible violence. He knew and rested in the precious truth that the Lord reigned in righteousness and brought correction to his servants for their good. Yes; this is the faith of the faithful. Never do they, however terrible the disaster in this life, distrust the righteousness of God. "Though he slay me, yet will I trust him," was true for Job and all of kindred spirit. Men who know not the new life cannot understand this. It is the alphabet of religious experience to all who are really born again and accepted in Christ. None of these things move them.
III. ACCOMMODATION TO NEW CIRCUMSTANCES. David does not yield to fretfulness and irresolution. He vacates his home, provides for his house, goes out to a place of safety, and, by his discreet arrangement with Zadok and Abiathar, keeps up means of connection with the city (verses 27, 28). Utter prostration under calamity does not come where there is the counteractive element of recognition of personal unworthiness and of the righteousness of God. Whether this trouble would pass he knew not, but as a wise man he adapted himself to the storm. As Jacob to his exile (Gen_28:10-22.), as Moses to his deprivation (Deu_3:25-27; cf. Deu_34:1-6), so David makes the best of his position. Providential chastisements are not designed to paralyze action; their benefit is secured when, in a spirit of resignation and trust, we use our powers to bear them and to mitigate their incidence (Heb_12:5-12). Adversity becomes truly educational when we are stirred up to adjust our life to its conditions.
IV. CONSIDERATION FOR OTHERS, THAT THEY BE NOT UNNECESSARILY DRAWN INTO OUR SORROWS. David's removal into the open country was partly from policy and partly from feelings of kindness. He probably had suspicions, seeing that his trusty counsellor had been drawn over to Absalom (verse 12; cf. Psa_41:9; Psa_55:10-14), that Absalom had many friends in the city, and should he in concert with them come suddenly upon him and his friends, multitudes would fall victims to his malice. It was the same generous feeling that prompted him to suggest that Ittai, not being a Hebrew, should not embroil himself in this sad conflict, and so run a risk in case another king should reign. We see the same David as in earlier years, ever mindful of others, and magnanimous to the extreme. The dreadful sin had not destroyed his noble qualities, but had given a sadly tender form to their expression. There ate beautiful instances in Christian life of this kindly consideration for others. Fathers and mothers strive to shield their children from the woes which they may connect with their own want of wisdom or goodness. The great Saviour himself, in his dire trouble, sought to shield his faithful followers (Joh_14:1, Joh_14:27; Joh_17:9-12; Joh_18:8).
V. GRATEFUL ACCEPTANCE OF SYMPATHY AND AID. The voluntary sympathy and aid of the faithful bodyguard, and the six hundred who had shared his fortunes prior and subsequent to his departure from Garb, was as cool water to a thirsty soul; and the free services of Ittai and Zadok were greatly valued. In the adversities which Providence permits to come for purposes of discipline there is the merciful admixture of some provision to meet the pressing need of the hour—some human channel for Divine sympathy and compassion to enter the heart. Submission to the inscrutable will always includes a grateful recognition of this relief. The love and presence of Ruth was as balm to the desolate heart of Naomi as she mourned her forlorn condition, imparted a sweet gentleness to her, and enabled her to submit to the blow that had shattered her early joys. David and she had herein a common experience.
VI. A THOUGHTFUL SELF-SACRIFICING CARE FOR THE INTERESTS OF RELIGION. It was very beautiful conduct on the part of Zadok and Abiathar to bring out the ark of the covenant (verse 24), to form a prominent object in the sad procession out of the city; it revealed a tender consideration for the man who in his prosperity had associated his purest joys and most glorious triumphs with that precious symbol of the Divine presence. The ark could not but remind David of the mercy that endureth forever, and its presence with him would be regarded as a pledge of blessing in his wandering. But he desired the priests to take back the treasure, and he, meekly bowing to the chastisement, would go out and suffer the loss of the outward privileges of the sanctuary. The reason of this no doubt was that, as he had been the means of procuring a permanent resting place for the ark (2Sa_6:17-19), and constituting Jerusalem the centre of religious influence for the nation, he would not now undo that work and serve his own personal advantage at the cost of the people. No; the religious institutions should remain intact, the blessings of public worship and spiritual comfort should abide for Jerusalem, though he a poor exile pine in solitude and peril for the "beauty of the Lord" (Psa_42:1-4; Psa_43:1, Psa_43:2). How beautiful this tender care for the interests of religion appears in true submission to adverse providences is known to all acquainted with Christian biography. Not a deed, not a word, not a thought is allowed that might be prejudicial to the kingdom of God. Storms may come, hopes may be blasted, if only the Name that is above every name be still honoured.
VII. A DELIBERATE COMMITTAL OF PRESENT AND FUTURE INTERESTS INTO THE HANDS OF GOD. "If I shall find favour in the eyes of the Lord, he will bring me again, and show me both it, and his habitation. But if he thus say, I have no delight in thee; behold, here I am, let him do to me as seemeth good unto him" (verses 25, 26). O blessed trust! O sweet resignation! O modest yet unshaken hope! Truly the discipline was already bearing precious fruit. The spiritual barrenness of those hot days of prosperity (ch. 11.) was clean gone. The temporal chastisement was in process, but the wandering child was a wanderer no more. Enviable beyond expression is this surrender of all interests to the wise and gracious hands of the covenant keeping God. Here comes out the essence of the true submission in the season of adversity. "He will," if he "delight" in me! "Let him do as seemeth him good!" No self-will, no boast of claim, no thought of shame; God is over all and can do all; all is in his care, and what he does shall be deemed the best and kindest and most just. Who does not see the purifying power of the grace of God? Holy David once fallen!
APPENDIX. The sorrowing king, passing over the ridge of the Mount of Olives, on bare feet and weeping, bearing on his heart a terrible woe, and full of pity for the people rejecting his authority, and at the same time entirely submissive to the sovereign will that so ordains, reminds us of the other King, greater, wiser, more holy, and bearing on his heart the woes of many sins not his own, pacing the slopes of that same mount, weeping bitter tears, lamenting for the rebellious people, bearing all for others' good, and submitting with unparalleled gentleness and trust to the sovereign will that ordained that so he must suffer.
I. IT IS ROOTED IN INTELLIGENT SYMPATHY. The six hundred had probably been with David and shared in his trials prior to his departure from Gath (1Sa_27:2). They knew him better than any others; they had formed a sympathy for him based on true knowledge, and they stood the test of the evil time. Of Ittai we do not know so much, but the words of the man prove that he appreciated the real character of David in spite of the slanders which such men as Ahithophel may have insinuated. The priestly functions of Zadok and Abiathar account for their interest in so devout a man as David. Their fidelity was not based on personal beauty, vague promises, and outward splendour (verses 1-6), but on intelligence and the feeling which accompanies it in a pure heart. So Ruth was true to Naomi (Rth_1:16, Rth_1:17). Any promise of attachment not resting on this foundation is worth nothing.
II. IT IS NOURISHED BY REFLECTION ON THE PAST. There were probably hours when the voice of temptation would come to allure them from a course So perilous in appearance, to a course promising reputation, wealth, and honour; for these men were of like passions with us all, and had no love for poverty and exile in themselves. But they knew David's history, and when temptation to prefer the winning side came they would nourish their vow by thinking of what he had been, how God had befriended him before, and how he had risen from the fall which once was his shame. It is something to be attached to a man with a good history. When we have pledged ourselves to a just though suffering cause, we may ward off many a temptation by allowing the reflective powers to work on the antecedents of the cause to which we are pledged. Thus the early Christians, by reflecting on Christ, his words and work, and all he had been to them, could endorse the dying words of the aged Polycarp.
III. IT IS RESPONSIVE TO FRANKNESS AND MAGNANIMITY. The frank and magnanimous way in which David offered to release them from all risks only drew out into stronger and more pronounced form the attachment already cherished (verses 19-21). Zadok could not but feel a profounder regard for the king aider hearing his words concerning the ark (verse 25). There is something so noble in this frankness and magnanimity in misfortune that a faithful heart recruits its strength by the very sight and sound of the nobleness. Holy sentiments grow in exchange. There is no sure bond between the wicked. Sin is morally a weakness. Holiness is a strength.
IV. IT IS CAPABLE OF RISKS. Whatever might befall the king in his trouble, these faithful ones were prepared to share in it. True affection is not blind, as some would say; it sees, but it fears not. The faithful mind is intent on being on the side of right and weakness, not on securing anything for self. There are risks in adherence to a righteous cause in the day of adversity. Christ points this out to his followers, and it is the sign of true as distinguished from professional fidelity that it can bear and is determined to bear whatever may come. The real clue to the determination is the conviction that right is supreme in its claims, and that present suffering is only an incident of a well-directed human existence (Mat_10:16-18, Mat_10:38; Mat_20:22; Php_3:7-9).
2Sa_15:31-37
1. David, hearing that Ahithophel was among the conspirators, prays that God would turn his counsel into foolishness.
2. On reaching the top of the Mount of Olives, the aged Hushai expresses his desire to go with David into exile, but David declines his offer on account of his infirmities.
3. On the other hand, David suggests that he can render him good service by returning to the city and living as a servant of Absalom, and he advises him to act in concert with Zadok and Abiathar.
4. Acting on this suggestion, Hushai returns to the city, and, some time after, Absalom also enters. There passed a pang through the heart of David as he beard of the treachery of his trusty counsellor Ahithophel, bitter because he had relied so much on this wise man's honesty and sagacity, and more bitter still as he remembered the cruel conspiracy which he once entered into with Joab against the life of Uriah. Yet the forgiven and renewed king, in the fulness of his anguish, was true to his revived religious instincts in at once raising his heart to God with the prayer that he would bring his own wisdom to bear so as to defeat the wisdom of this man. We see here—
I. THAT THERE IS IN THIS WORLD A CONFLICT BETWEEN HUMAN AND DIVINE WISDOM. David was well acquainted with two great facts:
(1) that the wisdom of God had designed him to be king over Israel to the end of his days (2Sa_7:11-16, 2Sa_7:28, 2Sa_7:29);
(2) that the wisest man in the land was devising means to frustrate this purpose, not perhaps consciously, yet practically. This is an epitome of the history of mankind. God has a purpose to carry out, and employs good men as his instruments,—all is arranged according to his infinite wisdom; but, on the other hand, there are men who bring their powers to bear so as to frustrate thin purpose. They may not know that they are setting their wisdom against the wisdom of God, but the facts are to that effect. Adam and Eve went against wisdom in the exercise of their wisdom. Pharaoh contrived to prevent what wisdom had ordained. The wisdom of scribes and Pharisees was arrayed against him who was the "Wisdom of God." In the antagonism of men to the gospel the apostle saw a case of the "wisdom of the world" striving against the wisdom which was so far above theirs that their wisdom was more properly folly (1Co_1:18-25). Men who live in sin, who try to dispense with Christ, really set their wisdom against the great and blessed order which is founded on eternal wisdom. The attitude of the world t