The Chosen Key Word in this Chapter is “Mourn” it comes from the Hebrew Word “abal” which means “to mourn.”
David gives one clear instruction before the final battle, and it’s the one thing that gets ignored. Welcome to Bible Life Basics Chapter Reviews, I am Chris and this is 2 Samuel 18.
David organizes his forces into three companies under Joab, Abishai, and Ittai, and though the people insist David himself stay behind rather than risk his life in battle, he gives one clear, public instruction to his commanders regarding Absalom. “Deal gently for my sake with the young man, even with Absalom.” The battle takes place in the forest of Ephraim, and Absalom’s forces suffer devastating losses, with the forest itself claiming more lives than the actual fighting.
Absalom, riding his mule, gets his thick hair caught in the branches of a great oak tree, leaving him suspended helplessly while his mule continues on without him. A soldier reports this to Joab, who rebukes him for not simply killing Absalom on the spot despite David’s clear instructions, then takes matters into his own hands, thrusting three darts into Absalom’s heart himself while he still hangs alive in the tree, and his armorbearers finish him off completely.
Joab has Absalom’s body thrown into a deep pit and covered with a great heap of stones, while all Israel flees to their own homes. Ahimaaz and a Cushite runner both race to bring news to David, who sits anxiously waiting at the city gate. When David learns of the victory, his only question is whether Absalom is safe, and upon hearing the devastating truth, he collapses in grief, crying repeatedly, “O my son Absalom, my son, my son Absalom! would God I had died for thee, O Absalom, my son, my son!”
David’s overwhelming grief for Absalom, a son who had violently rebelled against him and sought his very throne, reveals the depth of a father’s love that persists even through the most painful betrayal imaginable. His anguished cry captures something universally true about parental love, willing even to trade places with a child who caused such devastating harm.
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