Scripture: 2 Samuel 15:1-37
Sermon Series: 2 Samuel: When God is Your King! – Sermon 15
How well do you know your Disney movies? How well do you know the Disney villains (picture)? Let’s see if you’re a Disney Villain expert. If you’re the first one to get it right, go to the Coffee Café after the service and they’ll have a Mickey Mouse Ice Cream Bar (picture) for you?
I’ll give the movie title, raise your hand if you know the villain. *One Hundred and One Dalmatians (picture). Cruella de Vil (picture). *The Lion King (picture). Scar (picture). *Sleeping Beauty (picture). Maleficent (picture). *Toy Story (picture). Sid (picture). *Frozen (picture). Prince Hans (picture).
So, who’s the worst villain? It’s Prince Hans (picture). He broke a fundamental rule of being a Disney villain. It’s a longstanding tradition for Disney villains to initially seem harmlessly aloof and arrogant, but then show their true colors later in the story. This revelation isn’t a surprise thought to the grown-ups in the audience. They can instantly guess from the first appearance of Aladdin’s Jafar (picture)or The Little Mermaid’s Ursula (picture), that their obvious self-interest would eventually end in full-on evil. But Prince Hans seems like a nice guy. There’s no set up, literally nothing to suggest that Hans is a bad guy, much less a murderer.
Remember when Anna is injured, only a kiss from her true love can save her. Does Hans save her? No. Does he remain the good guy and just admit he isn’t in love with her? Nope. He reveals he hates both Anna and Elsa and will take this opportunity to kill both to take over the kingdom. He’s only acting like a nice guy but he’s hiding that he’s a very bad man.
Absalom is a very bad man but could have been a prototype for Prince Hans. Both play a role to capture the kingdom. Both are Backstabbers. You can almost hear the O’Jays (picture) in the background. “They smilin’ in your face. All the time, they want to take your place. The back stabbers.”
Please keep your Bible open to 2 Samuel 15. Here we see Absalom setting himself up to take his father, King David’s place.
Have you been backstabbed? It’s one of the most painful relational breakdowns. It hurts more if it’s family. Adultery is probably the worst form of backstabbing. Being backstabbed by an adult child would be up there. Today we want to speak to those who’ve suffered the pain of being betrayed. It hurts as we’ll see as it rips open the heart of David.
We’re continuing to work through the troubles of David that he reaped after his adultery with Bathsheba. Nathan the prophet told David that he’d reap a foul harvest in his own family because of his sin. David’s family has become a cesspool with one son raping a sister. Then, he’s murdered by his half-brother, Absalom, who then fled the country. At the end of chapter 14 Absalom has been brought back to Israel. David forgave and restored him, but Absalom has not forgiven David and plots a coup.
Today we’re seeing the further development of Absalom’s evil plot. David may have blown it, but he’s still God’s anointed king. The large amount of material in 2 Samuel devoted to Absalom shows how serious this threat was. David nearly lost his throne. 2 Samuel 15-19 tells how all of this became the greatest threat to his kingdom that David ever experienced.
In Absalom we see worldly ambition pitted against God’s will and plan. Though Absalom’s rise is similar to the rise to power we often see, his is evil. It’s not true greatness. Roger Ellsworth (picture), Absalom was “a truly despicable human being. He thought of no one but himself. He was proud and arrogant. He was deceptive and dishonorable. He was a cold-blooded killer.” As good looking as Absalom is on the outside, his heart is ugly on the inside.
As Absalom seeks to steal the kingdom from David, we’ll see three characters in this chapter: A Deceiver – Absalom; A Deserter – a man by the name of Ahithophel and then three Devoted men – Ittai, Zadok and Abiathar who are devoted to the Lord and to David. If you’re taking notes…
1. Deceivers, vss. 1-11
One of the great queens of Egypt, Hatshepsut (picture), who probably was the one who pulled Moses from the Nile and the bulrushes, reigned as queen regent for her son. Her husband died when her son was an infant. But when her son came of age, she refused to relinquish the rule. She’d done such a great job as queen that no one could throw her off the throne. We now know from the hieroglyphics that she instituted vast building projects. Her son Thutmose III (picture) finally helped her along to the hereafter.
In kingdoms it wasn’t unusual to displace your parent if they got in your way. It happened a lot in the ancient world. Thutmose plastered over all the hieroglyphics and inscribed his own. If time hadn’t worn off the plaster, we’d never have known that Hatshepsut had ever been on the throne. Now we know that much of the building credited to Thutmose III was actually hers.
Absalom makes eyes for the throne. He’s heir apparent, but David could live to be quite old. He’s David’s third son. David had at least 10 wives, 19 sons, and several daughters. Absalom isn’t getting younger. He’d like to speed up David’s aging process on a permanent basis.
II Samuel 15:6,“So Absalom stole the hearts of the men of Israel.” The word for stole in the original conveys taking what belongs to another without consent, secretly. The same word is used in the prohibition in the 8th commandment, “You shall not steal” (Exodus 20:15).
Our word heart leads us to mistakenly think of emotions but “heart” in the Old Testament Hebrew is the seat of one’s intellect as well as emotions. Rather than win the affections of the people, Absalom stole their minds and feelings. He deceives them, using several strategies to accomplish that.
By posing. Absalom surrounds himself with the trappings of royalty. If he looked like a king, people would start thinking of him as a king. Under the Mosaic Law Israel’s kings weren’t to multiply horses and chariots. As far as we know this is the first time they’re seen on the streets of Jerusalem.
Jerusalem’s topography was unsuitable for chariots. You couldn’t race around those steep hills. His chariot was probably a new exotic one, the equivalent of an expensive Italian sports car in his day. He wanted people to stand in awe at his pimped-out ride. His chariot couldn’t move through the streets with any speed. That aided his purpose. It gave people more time to look with adoring eyes at the grandeur of this handsome man.
He employs fifty men to run ahead of him. It’d be like a motorcade for a President. Back then dignitaries had others clear the way before the dignitary came down the street. Maybe they cried out, “Clear the way for Prince Absalom” which drew further attention to him. If you want people to think you’re important, first you have to look important.
By promising. Like politicians today, he cultivated discontent with David’s kingdom and presented himself as the answer. “And Absalom used to rise early and stand beside the way of the gate…” (2 Samuel 15:2a). Early in the morning, he’d go to the city gates. In the ancient world, the city gates were the place where disputes were brought for judgement. It was their version of small claims court. Absalom was the original Judge Judy.
The king was the chief judge of the land. If you had a case, you brought it to the king. Both Nathan with the stolen lamb and the woman of Tekoa with the story of protecting her son had done this. It appears David was deciding all the cases himself and the judicial system was backed up. But some of the Psalms, 35-40, indicate that David struggled with a prolonged illness during this period of time which would have limited his handling of these cases.
The first thing Absalom told people was that their claims were good and right. Anyone with a dispute wants to hear their side is correct and the other wrong. When someone powerful like Absalom believes your side of the story, you like them and feel you have an ally and friend.
It doesn’t appear that Absalom bothered to even hear the other side of the argument before telling people they were in the right. He never told anyone they were wrong. He manipulates them, ingratiating himself to them. He then told them that the king didn’t really have time for them. So, even though they had a legitimate case, they wouldn’t find justice with King David. Absalom was working to cause division and problems, not solve them.
Isn’t that the way politics functions? If there’s a weakness in government leadership, rather than trying to help the leader fix it, someone wanting their place undermines the one in the office and exploits that weakness to get rid of them and take their place.
Absalom is like a sports fan who complains about a player on his favorite team but can’t play the sport himself. He worked hard to create an atmosphere of discontent. He poisoned national goodwill toward David and promoted himself as the handsome fluffy-haired chariot-driving answer to all their problems. But Absalom had no interest in the people. He just wanted the crowd’s support and was willing to say or do whatever it took to get it. People were just tools to promote his favorite person – himself.
Before we throw stones at Absalom, how many of us are guilty of that? Do we talk behind the boss’s back to other employees? If I were in charge things would be done differently. How many children gripe about their parents, or a teacher? Husband, do you trash talk your wife to others? Wives, do you whine about your husband to your friends or to your children?
It happens at church too. People sow seeds of discontent and cast doubt on leadership or decisions the pastor or leaders might make. That’s not how I would do it if I were in charge. There’s often a bit of Absalom in all of us.
By appearing humble. Absalom knew how to work a crowd, to look like a regular guy. Have you ever noticed at some public event, like a fund raiser meal, politicians will don aprons and serve the crowd? They want to look like they’re regular folk, like they’re one of us. It’s often an act.
“And whenever a man came near to pay homage to him, he would put out his hand and take hold of him and kiss him” (2 Samuel 15:5). When people came up to him to bow before him, Absalom would bow low before them and say, “No, the honor is mine to be with you.” Then, he’d take their hand and kiss it. You can imagine people were overwhelmed by this. He was a total schmoozer. It was all a game to win their hearts.
There is a subtle play on words in the original Hebrew that doesn’t come through in English. When it says, “he took hold of him” it’s the same wording as what Amnon did to Tamar when it says he took hold of her to violate her. Absalom took hold of an entire nation to violate them. Amnon violated one person for his agenda. Absalom violated an entire nation for his.
Absalom’s flattery made others think that he was a humble, loving, and caring leader when in reality he’s an egotistical narcissist. The problem with politics Absalom-style is it works.
By superficial spirituality. Fay Lawrence (picture) writes: “The problem is, we are sometimes not aware of backstabbers until it’s too late.”
“And at the end of four years Absalom said to the king, “Please let me go and pay my vow, which I have vowed to the Lord, in Hebron. For your servant vowed a vow while I lived at Geshur in Aram, saying, ‘If the Lord will indeed bring me back to Jerusalem, then I will offer worship to the Lord.’” The king said to him, “Go in peace.” So he arose and went to Hebron. But Absalom sent secret messengers throughout all the tribes of Israel, saying, “As soon as you hear the sound of the trumpet, then say, ‘Absalom is king at Hebron!’” (2 Samuel 15:7-10).
He’d conspired for four years, sowing seeds of disloyalty and discord. Now he goes to his father, the king to tell him he’d made a vow to God. It probably wasn’t true. It certainly wasn’t out of love for God. His vow cut a deal with God…“God, you give me this and I’ll do something for You.”
But when David heard about this vow, I’m sure he was excited. Absalom was a godless man who only cared for himself. What was this sudden interest in God? When your godless son suddenly wants to go to church, you’ll do anything to make it happen. That’s David. He’s thrilled to hear that Absalom had a sudden interest in God and desires to offer a sacrifice in Hebron.
Why Hebron? Hebron had a history. It was the royal city before Jerusalem. It was Abraham’s base and where David was first anointed king. Absalom knows exactly what he’s doing. In Hebron, 20 miles away from Jerusalem, he can establish a base to take the throne without getting caught.
There’s no vow. It’s blasphemy. Absalom is taking the Lord’s name in vain. It’s the only time he ever mentions God in his whole life, and he does it deviously. He violates the 3rd commandment by taking God’s name in vain.
David tells him, “Go in peace.” These are the last recorded words of David to his son, “Shalom. Go.” How ironic, that he’d be invited to go in peace when actually Absalom was going to make war. The last words of Absalom to his father were a heinous lie.
Under the guise of spirituality, he’s strategic in what he’s doing. Absalom had sent secret messengers throughout all the tribes of Israel. He’d planted sleeper cells in every city and village, waiting for the word that Absalom was proclaimed king. Then they’d rise up in their city, support Absalom’s kingship and fan the flames of the coup in their town.
Absalom took along two hundred men from Jerusalem as his invited guests. They went in innocence, knowing nothing. These would have been leaders who worked for David. It served a variety of purposes. In Hebron, when Absalom declared himself king, these men would face the choice of joining his rebellion or facing certain execution. Add to that, they wouldn’t be in Jerusalem to assist David in the crisis that followed. And since they were with Absalom, David would be forced to assume they were part of the coup. That would give David the impression that the attempt to overthrow him was bigger and more deeply embedded into his leadership than it was.
Absalom has no qualms about putting his hand out against the Lord’s anointed, something David had refused to do with Saul. His act of rebellion isn’t just against his father, it’s against God.
2. Deserters, vs. 12
“And while Absalom was offering the sacrifices, he sent for Ahithophel the Gilonite, David’s counselor, from his city Giloh. And the conspiracy grew strong, and the people with Absalom kept increasing” (2 Samuel 15:12). Ahithophel is the wisest and craftiest of them all. His counsel was highly esteemed. He’s the Condoleeza Rice (picture) or Rahm Emanuel (picture) of his day, one of David’s closest friends. David shared everything with him and always sought his advice. Ahithophel was filled with wisdom. You can’t get much closer than David and Ahithophel, but he stabbed David in the back and joined Absalom.
David later wrote about Ahithophel’s’ betrayal with these words. “Even my close friend in whom I trusted, who ate my bread, has lifted his heel against me” (Psalm 41:9). What caused this close friend to do such hurtful things? Ahithophel’s granddaughter was Bathsheba. When David took her and impregnated her, he violated Ahithophel’s precious granddaughter!
Then, Ahithophel’s son was Eliam, one of David’s mighty men. Eliam and Uriah served together as part of David’s elite military force. Ahithophel’s son, Eliam, gave his daughter in marriage to Uriah, who was one of his close friends. David murdered Uriah, the much-loved son-in-law who’d married into Ahithophel’s family. David’s adultery violated Ahithophel’s granddaughter and ended up with the murder of her husband.
Athiphophel may have been David’s close friend and confidant, but David’s abuse of power for him was unforgiveable. He wants revenge.
Wise are the words of Confucius (picture), “Before you embark on a journey of revenge, dig two graves.” Athiphophel may have come up with the whole conspiracy. If he’d lived in our day, Athiphophel would be part of the Deep State. Once people heard Athiphophel was on Absalom’s side, more and more rushed to join the rebellion.
A messenger finally came to David, “The hearts of the men of Israel have gone after Absalom” (2 Samuel 15:13). When Absalom won the affection of the people, it was clear to David he’d lost the heart of the nation. It’s tragic to see how quickly they abandoned David for Absalom.
Popularity is fickle. They forgot David who rose up from a shepherd to lead the nation to become a world power. They forgot the Philistines and Goliath.
Their love quickly turned to a good-looking schmoozer who loved to hand-kiss and sweet-talk. But Absalom had never won a battle, decided a court case, or led anything in his life, yet their fickle hearts turned to him.
The David we know since his sin with Bathsheba was a weak, indecisive leader. In this crisis, he shakes the rust off. He knew he had to make some quick decisions. First, he needed to get out of Jerusalem. He had no idea who was part of the conspiracy in the city. Second, he didn’t want to be stuck in Jerusalem when Absalom returned to kill him. If people weren’t loyal to him, they’d give him up. If the city resisted Absalom, much blood would be shed. While Jerusalem was his home, he needed to leave and run for his life.
3. Devoted supporters, vs. 13-37
Randy Newman (picture) wrote the song, “You Got a Friend in Me” the theme song for Toy Story (picture). A real friend is someone who loves and sticks with you through your toughest troubles. Toy Story was popular because everyone wants friends who stick with you no matter what, “to infinity and beyond.”
Even in his darkest hour, David has devoted supporters, true friends. A British newspaper ran a contest asking for the definition of friend. The winning entry was: “A friend is the first person who comes in when the whole world goes out.” David has devoted friends at this dark hour.
The coup raises questions, who’ll remain loyal to the king? The first ones mentioned are foreigners not Israelites. They’re David’s royal bodyguard. Some had been with him since his days in Ziklag, 30 plus years earlier.
Ittai, a mercenary, vs. 19-20. It’s the first time that he’s mentioned in Scripture. He’s never mentioned until the chips are down. He’s a Philistine who’d followed David back to Israel when he became king and loved David. When David’s back is against the wall, Ittai has his back.
Yesterday is probably an idiom, “for not long ago.” It’s not Ittai’s fight. Why should he share in David’s nightmare? Ittai’s response is one of the most beautiful declarations of faith and loyalty in the Old Testament. “But Ittai answered the king, “As the Lord lives, and as my lord the king lives, wherever my lord the king shall be, whether for death or for life, there also will your servant be” (2 Samuel 15:21). He uses the covenant name for God – Yahweh. It seems Ittai is a proselyte, a convert. He refuses to abandon David and affirms twice in one verse that David is Israel’s rightful king. What irony! Here’s a man who owes David nothing but is willing to risk his life for him, while David’s own flesh and blood is out to murder him.
Zadok and Abiathar, vs. 24-26. David’s next friends are priests. A major part of David’s support came from the lovers of God community.
Zadok and Abiathar brought with them the Ark of the Covenant. It was a symbol of God’s presence. A century earlier the Israelites had used it as a means to gain a military victory. They’d treated it like a good luck charm. David rejects such rabbit-foot theology. Instead of having God’s furniture, he only wants God’s favor. The ark belongs in Jerusalem. Besides, the priests can be David’s ears and eyes, so a priestly system of spying is set in place.
Did you know that the words friends, friendly and friendship appear over a hundred times in the Bible? God says a lot about friends. That’s because friends are essential. But friendships must be cultivated. They don’t just happen.
If you feel friendless, you have work to do. Like these men, some friends have more significant roles in our lives than others. We each need an inner circle we can count on, who we help grow closer to the Lord and help us grow closer to Him. Do you have those kinds of friends? What kind of friend are you? If you were another person, would you like to be a friend of yours?
Conclusion
Our chapter ends but stay tuned. There’s more coming. We need to ask why did the Holy Spirit give us this chapter? To do so we must step back and look at the big picture. The sad events of 2 Samuel 15 are the fulfillment of God’s word to David. After Nathan confronted him about his adultery with Bathsheba, God said, “Out of your own household I am going to bring calamity on you” (2 Samuel 12:11). God will always forgive but we must learn that sin always carries a high price tag.
I want to end our last few minutes with this. All of us are going to face dark hours. We’re going to be betrayed. We’re going to be hurt. What should we do? What can learn here?
You can weep. “But David went up the ascent of the Mount of Olives, weeping as he went, barefoot and with his head covered. And all the people who were with him covered their heads, and they went up, weeping as they went” (2 Samuel 15:30). Can you picture that? The mighty king, bare footed, head covered and weeping aloud as he ascends the Mount of Olives. Everybody traveling with him is also dissolved in tears. It’s a pathetic sight but realistic. Out of compassion for their king, his people weep with him.
Sometimes in our darkest hour all we can do is weep. Times of darkness come to every Christian. When they come, don’t think that something strange is happening to you. It may be a betrayal. It may be burying your nearest and dearest. There are times to weep.
You can trust. “Then the king said to Zadok, “Carry the ark of God back into the city. If I find favor in the eyes of the Lord, He will bring me back and let me see both it and His dwelling place” (2 Samuel 15:30). David didn’t know what the future held. He thought he’d return to Jerusalem. It’s why he left 10 concubines to care for the palace, but he didn’t know that for sure. We don’t always know what’s happening or why, but we can trust the Father.
As you read David’s psalms, you see his trust in God and his conviction that no matter how disordered or disturbed everything was, the Lord was still on His throne…and David was going to trust God.
You can pray. “And it was told David, “Ahithophel is among the conspirators with Absalom.” And David said, “O Lord, please turn the counsel of Ahithophel into foolishness” (2 Samuel 15:31). To lose the support of Ahithophel was bad enough, but to learn he’d gone over to the other side was terrifying. Instead of panicking David prayed. He left it with God. God wants us to give Him our problems so He can give us His peace. “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:6-7).
You can worship. “While David was coming to the summit, where God was worshiped, behold, Hushai the Archite came to meet him with his coat torn and dirt on his head” (2 Samuel 15:32). Matthew Henry (picture) comments, “Weeping must never hinder worshipping.” The best worship is offered in the darkest places. David comes to the top of the Mount of Olives where there’s a view of the City of Jerusalem. It’s where God had been worshipped. Even in deep darkness, under terrible duress, David worships.
It’s here David wrote Psalm 3. “O Lord, how many are my foes! Many are rising against me; many are saying of my soul, “There is no salvation for him in God.” But you, O Lord, are a shield about me, my glory, and the lifter of my head” (Psalm 3:1-3).
The narrator uses David’s flight to highlight his faith. David was always his best in a crisis. Yes, there’s a question of loyalty among his subjects, but the big question is: Will David remain loyal to God? We all know folk who walk away from their faith when life falls apart. David doesn’t abandon God. Instead, he worships. It’s not some fatalistic resignation but a bold and courageous declaration of David’s humble submission to God’s will. He’s in the most devastating circumstance of his life. He knows he’s responsible. But he’s not resentful. He entrusts himself to God’s sovereign will. May we worship and grow deep with God even in times of darkness.
Jesus walked this path for us. The path that David walked; Jesus would later walk – the Via Delarosa. So, the darkest day in the history of the world began. It was probably the early hours of the morning and Jesus went out with His disciples from Jerusalem, crossed the brook Kidron and climbed to the Garden of Gethsemane on the Mount of Olives. In 24 hours, Jesus would be crucified. The greater Son of David walked in David’s footsteps and was rejected by His own. David walked this path because of his own sin. Jesus walked this path because of our sin.
The experience of David on this dark day anticipates the experience of Jesus that’s to come, not only geographically, which it does, and socially, which it does in terms of friendship, but in different ways with the most vital distinction, being this: David’s sufferings were tied to his sin, the sufferings of Christ are tied to our sin. David suffered as a consequence of the sin that he’d committed. Jesus Christ suffered on account of the sins that we’ve committed.
The dark day of the ascent of David brings us to the dark day which we now look back to in order that we might thank God for His forgiveness. Now we look forward to a new day when all that Jesus has accomplished on that day, on that cruel cross, will be brought to a magnificent, continued reality.
Unlike David’s suffering, Jesus’ suffering brought our eternal salvation. Jesus too was rejected as king and betrayed by a friend. Just as David was rejected, only to return to defeat his enemies, Jesus, the Son of David, will return to establish His kingdom.
Are you a part of His kingdom? You can be. It begins like David with confessing you’re a sinner and committing yourself to Jesus Christ as your only hope. He’s the Savior who died on the cross for your sin and my sin.
He’s David’s Savior. Is He yours? Come to His cross today! He’ll forgive every sin to make you a member of His Kingdom!