“He shall restore fourfold,” had been David’s unwitting sentence upon himself after hearing the prophet Nathan’s parable. Four of his sons must fall, and the loss of each would be a result of the father’s sin.1TC 501.2

David permitted the shameful crime of Amnon, his firstborn, to go unpunished. The law pronounced death upon the adulterer, and the unnatural crime of Amnon made him doubly guilty. But David, self-condemned for his own sin, failed to bring the offender to justice. For two years Absalom, the natural protector of the sister so terribly wronged, hid his plan of revenge. Then one day, during a feast of the king’s sons, the drunken, incestuous Amnon was killed by his brother’s command.1TC 501.3

The king’s sons returned in panic to Jerusalem and told their father that Amnon had been killed. And they “lifted up their voice and wept. Also the king and all his servants wept very bitterly.” But Absalom fled. David had neglected his duty to punish Amnon, and the Lord allowed events to take their natural course. When parents or rulers neglect the duty of punishing evil, a train of circumstances will follow that will punish sin with sin.1TC 502.1

Absalom’s alienation from his father began here. David, feeling that Absalom’s crime demanded punishment, refused to let him return. Shut out by his exile from the affairs of the kingdom, Absalom occupied his time with dangerous scheming.1TC 502.2

At the close of two years Joab determined to reconcile the father and son. He got a woman of Tekoah, known for her wisdom, to help him. The woman presented herself to David as a widow whose two sons had been her only comfort and support. In a quarrel one had killed the other, and now the relatives demanded that the surviving son be given over to the avenger of blood. And so, said the mother, “they would extinguish my ember that is left, and leave to my husband neither name nor remnant on the earth.” The king’s feelings were touched and he assured the woman that he would protect her son.1TC 502.3

Then, asking for the king’s permission to say more, she pointed out that he was at fault in not bringing his banished son home again. “For,” she said, “we will surely die and become like water spilled on the ground which cannot be gathered up again. Yet God does not take away a life; but He devises means, so that His banished ones are not expelled from Him.” This tender and touching portrayal of the love of God toward the sinner is striking proof that the Israelites were familiar with the great truths of redemption. The king could not resist this appeal. He gave the command, “Go therefore, bring back the young man Absalom.”1TC 502.4

The Sad Results of David’s Sin

Absalom was permitted to return to Jerusalem, but not to appear at court or to meet his father. As tenderly as he loved this beautiful and gifted son, David felt it necessary to show abhorrence for the crime he had committed. Absalom lived two years in his own house, banished from the court. His sister’s presence kept alive the memory of the irreversible wrong she had suffered. In the public’s eyes, the prince was a hero rather than an offender, and he put himself in a position to gain the hearts of the people.1TC 503.1

His personal appearance was enough to win the admiration of all. “In all Israel there was no one who was praised as much as Absalom for his good looks. From the sole of his foot to the crown of his head there was no blemish in him.” David’s decision permitting him to return to Jerusalem while refusing to admit him to his presence encouraged the people’s sympathies for him.1TC 503.2

Before his sin David had been courageous and decided. Now he was weak and hesitating, and this worked in favor of his son’s plans.1TC 503.3

Through Joab’s influence, Absalom was again admitted to his father’s presence. He continued his scheming, diligently courting popular favor and artfully turning every cause of dissatisfaction to his own advantage. Day by day this man of noble appearance could be seen at the city gate, where a disgruntled crowd waited to present their wrongs for remedy. Absalom listened, expressing sympathy with their sufferings and regret at the inefficiency of the government. “‘Oh, that I were made judge in the land, and everyone who has any suit or cause would come to me; then I would give him justice.’ And so it was, whenever anyone came near to bow down to him, that he would put out his hand and take him and kiss him.”1TC 503.4

Rebellion Grows Underground

Discontent with the government was spreading fast, stirred up and encouraged by the prince. Absalom was generally regarded as heir to the kingdom, and many wanted him to sit on the throne. “So Absalom stole the hearts of the men of Israel.” Yet the king suspected nothing. David thought the princely role that Absalom had assumed was intended to give honor to his court.1TC 503.5

Absalom secretly sent chosen men throughout the tribes to lay plans for revolt, and now he used religious devotion as a covering to conceal his traitorous plans. Absalom said to the king, “Please, let me go to Hebron and pay the vow which I made to the Lord. For your servant took a vow while I dwelt at Geshur in Syria, saying, ‘If the Lord indeed brings me back to Jerusalem, then I will serve the Lord.’”1TC 504.1

The fond father, comforted with this appearance of piety in his son, sent him away with his blessing. Absalom planned his crowning act of hypocrisy not only to blind the king but to secure the confidence of the people. In this way he would lead them on to rebellion against the king whom God had chosen.1TC 504.2

Absalom set out for Hebron, and with him “two hundred men invited from Jerusalem, and they went along innocently and did not know anything.” These men went, never thinking that their love for the son was leading them into rebellion against the father. At Hebron, Absalom called for Ahithophel, a man famous for wisdom. Ahithophel’s support made Absalom’s cause appear certain to succeed, attracting many influential men to his ranks. As the trumpet of revolt sounded, the prince’s spies throughout the country spread the news that Absalom was king, and many of the people gathered to him.1TC 504.3

David Finally Acts

Meanwhile the alarm was carried to Jerusalem. David suddenly saw that rebellion was breaking out close beside his throne. His own son had been plotting to seize his crown and certainly take his life. In his great danger David shook off the depression that had long engulfed him and prepared to meet this terrible emergency. Absalom was only twenty miles away—the rebels would soon be at the gates of Jerusalem.1TC 504.4

David shuddered at the thought of exposing his capital to bloodshed and devastation. Should he permit Jerusalem to be deluged with blood? He made his decision. He would leave Jerusalem, and then test his people, giving them opportunity to rally to his support. It was his duty to God and to his people to maintain the authority that Heaven had given him.1TC 504.5

In humility and sorrow, David went out of the gate of Jerusalem. The people followed in a long, sad procession, like a funeral train. David’s bodyguard of Cherethites, Pelethites, and Gittites, under the command of Ittai, accompanied the king. But with characteristic unselfishness, David could not consent to involve these strangers in his calamity. Then the king said to Ittai, “Why are you also going with us? ... You are a foreigner and also an exile. ... In fact, you came only yesterday. Should I make you wander up and down with us today, since I go I know not where? Return, and take your brethren back. Mercy and truth be with you.”1TC 505.1

Ittai answered, “As the Lord lives, and as my lord the king lives, surely in whatever place my lord the king shall be, whether in death or life, even there also your servant will be.” These men had been converted from paganism, and they now nobly proved their loyalty to God and their king. David accepted their devotion to his apparently losing cause, and they all passed over the Kidron brook, toward the wilderness.1TC 505.2

Some Are Loyal to David in the Crisis

Again the procession stopped. “There was Zadok also, and all the Levites with him, bearing the ark of the covenant of God.” To the people with David, the presence of that sacred symbol was a pledge of deliverance and victory. Its absence from Jerusalem would bring terror to Absalom’s followers.1TC 505.3

At the sight of the ark, for a brief moment joy and hope thrilled the heart of David, but soon other thoughts came. The glory of God and the good of his people were to be the most important in his mind, for he was the appointed ruler of God’s heritage. God had said of Jerusalem, “This is my resting place” (Psalm 132:14), and neither priest nor king had a right to remove the symbol of His presence from the city. And David’s great sin was always in his memory. It was not his place to remove from the nation’s capital the sacred statutes that represented the will of their divine Sovereign, the constitution of the realm and the foundation of its prosperity.1TC 505.4

He commanded 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 show me both it and His dwelling place. But if He says thus: “I have no delight in you,” here I am, let Him do to me as seems good to Him.’”1TC 506.1

When All Looks Dark, David Prays

As the priests turned back toward Jerusalem, a deep shadow fell over the people with David. Their king a fugitive, themselves outcasts, forsaken even by the ark of God—the future was dark! “So David went up by the Ascent of the Mount of Olives, and wept as he went up; and he had his head covered and went barefoot. And all the people who were with him covered their heads and went up, weeping as they went up. Then someone told David, saying, ‘Ahithophel is among the conspirators with Absalom.’” Again David was forced to recognize the results of his own sin. The defection of Ahithophel, the most talented of political leaders, was prompted by revenge for the wrong to his granddaughter, Bathsheba.1TC 506.2

“And David said, ‘O Lord, I pray, turn the counsel of Ahithophel into foolishness!’” Upon reaching the top of the mountain, the king bowed in prayer, casting the burden of his soul on God and humbly pleading for divine mercy.1TC 506.3

His prayer seemed to be answered at once. Hushai the Archite, a wise and able counselor and a faithful friend to David, now came to cast in his fortunes with the dethroned and fugitive king. As if by a divine enlightenment, David saw that this man was the one needed to serve the interests of the king in the capital’s councils. At David’s request, Hushai returned to Jerusalem to offer his services to Absalom and defeat the crafty counsel of Ahithophel.1TC 506.4

With this gleam of light in the darkness, the king and his followers continued down the eastern slope of Olivet, through a rocky and desolate wasteland toward the Jordan River. “Now when King David came to Bahurim, there was a man from the family of the house of Saul, whose name was Shimei the son of Gera. ... And he threw stones at David and at all the servants of King David. ... And Shimei said thus when he cursed: ‘Come out! Come out! You bloodthirsty man, you rogue! The Lord has brought upon you all the blood of the house of Saul, in whose place you have reigned; and the Lord has delivered the kingdom into the hand of Absalom your son. So now you are caught in your own evil, because you are a bloodthirsty man!’” When David was prosperous, Shimei had not shown that he was disloyal. He had honored David on his throne, but now he cursed him in his humiliation. Inspired by Satan, he gave vent to his wrath on the man whom God had punished.1TC 506.5

David had not been guilty of wrong toward Saul or on any of his family. He had spent much of his life amid scenes of violence; but of all who have gone through such an ordeal, few indeed have been so little affected by its hardening, demoralizing influence as was David.1TC 507.1

David’s nephew, Abishai, could not listen patiently to Shimei’s insulting words. He exclaimed, “Why should this dead dog curse my lord the king? Please, let me go over and take off his head.” But the king did not agree. “My son ... seeks my life. How much more now may this Benjamite? Let him alone, and let him curse; for the Lord has ordered him. It may be that the Lord will look on my affliction, and that the Lord will repay me with good for his cursing this day.”1TC 507.2

David Knows This Trouble Is the Consequence of His Sin

While King David’s faithful subjects were amazed at his sudden reverse of fortune, it was no mystery to him. He had often had forebodings of an hour like this. He had marveled that God had tolerated his sins for so long. And now in his hurried and sorrowful escape, he thought of his loved capital, the place that had been the scene of his sin. As he remembered the patience of God, he felt that the Lord would still deal with him in mercy.1TC 507.3

David had confessed his sin and had tried to do his duty as a faithful servant of God. He had worked to build up his kingdom. He had gathered supplies of material for building the house of God. And now must the results of years of consecrated toil pass into the hands of his reckless, traitorous son?1TC 508.1

He saw his own sin had caused the trouble. And the Lord did not forsake David. Under cruel wrong and insult he was humble, unselfish, generous, and submissive. Never was the ruler of Israel more truly great in the sight of heaven than at this hour of his deepest humiliation.1TC 508.2

In the experience through which He caused David to pass, the Lord shows that He cannot tolerate or excuse sin. David’s history enables us to see the working out of His purpose of mercy, even through the darkest judgments. He caused David to be punished, but He did not destroy him. The furnace is to purify, not to consume.1TC 508.3

God Does Not Give Absalom Wisdom

Soon after David left Jerusalem, Absalom and his army took possession of that stronghold of Israel. Hushai was among the first to greet the newly-crowned monarch, and the prince was pleased that his father’s old friend and counselor had joined him. Absalom was confident of success. Eager to secure the confidence of the nation, he welcomed Hushai to his court.1TC 508.4

Absalom was surrounded by a large force, but it was composed mostly of men untrained for war. Ahithophel knew very well that a large part of the nation was still true to David and that he was surrounded by tried warriors commanded by able and experienced generals. Ahithophel knew that after the first burst of enthusiasm in favor of the new king, a reaction would come. If the rebellion should fail, Absalom and his father might reconcile. Then Ahithophel, as his chief counselor, would be held most guilty, and the heaviest punishment would fall upon him.1TC 508.5

To prevent Absalom from giving up his rebellion, Ahithophel devised a plan that would make reconciliation impossible. With hellish cunning, this unprincipled statesman urged Absalom to add the crime of incest to that of rebellion. In the sight of all Israel he was to take to himself his father’s concubines, by this act declaring that he had succeeded to his father’s throne. And Absalom carried out the vile suggestion. This fulfilled the word of God to David by the prophet, “Behold, I will raise up adversity against you from your own house; and I will take your wives before your eyes and give them to your neighbor. ... For you did it secretly, but I will do this thing before all Israel, before the sun.” (2 Samuel 12:11, 12). God did not prompt these acts, but He did not exercise His power to prevent them.1TC 508.6

Ahithophel was totally without divine enlightenment, or he could not have used the crime of incest to make treason a success. People who have corrupt hearts plot wickedness as if there were no overruling Providence to disrupt their schemes.1TC 509.1

Having succeeded in securing his own safety, Ahithophel urged, “Now let me choose twelve thousand men, and I will arise and pursue David tonight. I will come upon him while he is weary and weak, and make him afraid. And all the people who are with him will flee, and I will strike only the king. Then I will bring back all the people to you.” If this plan had been followed, David would certainly have been killed. But “the Lord had purposed to defeat the good advice of Ahithophel, to the intent that the Lord might bring disaster on Absalom.”1TC 509.2

Hushai had not been called to the council. But after the meeting was over, Absalom, who had a high regard for the judgment of his father’s counselor, submitted Ahithophel’s plan to him.1TC 509.3

Hushai saw that if the plan were followed, David would be lost. So he said, “The advice that Ahithophel has given is not good at this time,” said Hushai, “for you know your father and his men, that they are mighty men, and they are enraged in their minds, like a bear robbed of her cubs in the field; and your father is a man of war, and will not camp with the people. Surely by now he is hidden in some pit, or in some other place.” If Absalom’s forces were to pursue David, they would not capture the king; and if they suffered a defeat, it would discourage them and greatly harm Absalom’s cause. “For,” he said, “all Israel knows that your father is a mighty man, and those who are with him are valiant men.”1TC 509.4

Hushai Suggests Alternate Plan

Hushai suggested a plan that appealed to a vain and selfish nature: “‘I advise that all Israel be fully gathered to you, from Dan to Beersheba, like the sand that is by the sea for multitude, and that you go to battle in person. So we will come upon him in some place where he may be found, and we will fall on him as the dew falls on the ground. And of him and all the men that are with him there shall not be left so much as one. Moreover, if he has withdrawn into a city, then all Israel shall bring ropes to that city; and we will pull it into the river, until there is not one small stone found there.’”1TC 510.1

“So Absalom and all the men of Israel said, ‘The advice of Hushai the Archite is better than the advice of Ahithophel.’” But one person clearly foresaw the result of this fatal mistake of Absalom’s. Ahithophel knew that the cause of the rebels was lost. And he knew that whatever might be the fate of the prince, there was no hope for the counselors who had masterminded his greatest crimes. Ahithophel had encouraged Absalom in rebellion; he had counseled him to the most abominable wickedness; to the dishonor of his father; he had suggested a plan to kill David; he had cut off the last possibility of being reconciled himself with the king; and now Absalom was looking to someone else instead of him. Jealous, angry, and desperate, Ahithophel “went home to his house, ... and hanged himself, and died.” This was the result of the wisdom of one who did not make God his counselor.1TC 510.2

Hushai lost no time in warning David to escape beyond the Jordan river without delay: “Do not spend this night in the plains of the wilderness, but speedily cross over, lest the king and all the people that are with him be swallowed up.”1TC 510.3

David, worn out with toil and grief after that first day of fleeing, received the message that he must cross the Jordan that night, for his son was seeking his life. What were the feelings of the father and king in this dangerous, terrible time? In the hour of his darkest trial, David’s heart was fixed upon God, and he sang:1TC 510.4

Lord, how they have increased who trouble me!
Many are they who rise up against me.
Many are they who say of me,
“There is no help for him in God.”
But You, O Lord, are a shield for me,
My glory and the One who lifts up my head.
I cried to the Lord with my voice,
And He heard me from His holy hill.
I lay down and slept;
I awoke, for the Lord sustained me.
I will not be afraid of ten thousands of people
Who have set themselves against me all around.1TC 510.5

Psalm 3:1-6

In the darkness of night, David and all his company crossed the deep, swift-flowing river. “By morning light not one of them was left who had not gone over the Jordan.”1TC 511.1

David and his forces fell back to Mahanaim, which had been the royal seat of Ishbosheth. It was a strongly fortified city set in mountains that served as a safe retreat in case of war. The country had abundant supplies and the people were friendly to David.1TC 511.2

Absalom, the rash and impetuous prince, soon set out in pursuit of his father. His army was large, but it was undisciplined and poorly prepared to cope with the battle-hardened soldiers of his father.1TC 511.3

David divided his forces into three battalions under the command of Joab, Abishai, and Ittai.1TC 511.4

The Battle that Defeated the Rebellion

From the walls of Mahanaim, the long lines of Absalom’s army were in full view. The rebel was accompanied by a vast host; David’s force seemed only a handful in comparison. As the army filed out from the city gates, David encouraged his faithful soldiers, urging them to go out trusting that the God of Israel would give them victory. But as Joab, leading the column, passed his king, the conqueror of a hundred battlefields stooped his proud head to hear the monarch’s last message, “Deal gently for my sake with the young man Absalom.” And Abishai and Ittai received the same instruction. But the king’s plea, seeming to say that Absalom was dearer to him than the subjects faithful to his throne, only increased the anger of the soldiers toward the unnatural son.1TC 511.5

The place of battle was a woods near the Jordan river. Among the thickets and marshes of the forest, the great numbers of undisciplined troops of Absalom’s army became confused and unmanageable. And “the people of Israel were overthrown there before the servants of David, and a great slaughter of twenty thousand took place there that day.”1TC 512.1

Absalom, seeing that the battle was lost, had turned to flee, and his head became caught between the branches of a widespreading tree. His mule, going out from under him, left him hopelessly suspended, a prey for his enemies. He was found by a soldier, who spared him because he was afraid of displeasing the king, but reported to Joab what he had seen.1TC 512.2

Joab was not held back by any hesitation. He had befriended Absalom, having twice reconciled him with David, and the trust had been shamelessly betrayed. If Joab had not obtained advantages for Absalom, this rebellion could never have occurred. “And he took three spears in his hand and thrust them through Absalom’s heart. ... And they took Absalom and cast him into a large pit in the woods, and laid a very large heap of stones over him.”1TC 512.3

God’s Judgment on the Rebellion

So the instigators of rebellion in Israel perished. Ahithophel had died by his own hand. The princely Absalom, whose beauty had been the pride of Israel, had been killed in his youth, his dead body thrown into a pit and covered with a heap of stones, to represent everlasting disgrace.1TC 512.4

With the leader of the rebellion dead, Joab at once sent two messengers to carry the news to the king.1TC 512.5

The first messenger came with the news “All is well.” To the king’s eager question, “Is the young man Absalom safe?” the messenger gave an evasive answer.1TC 512.6

The second messenger arrived and announced, “There is good news, my lord the king! For the Lord has avenged you this day of all those who rose against you.” From the father’s lips came the question, “Is the young man Absalom safe?” Unable to conceal the bad news, the herald answered, “May the enemies of my lord the king, and all who rise against you to do you harm, be like that young man.” David questioned no further, but with bowed head “went up to the chamber over the gate, and wept. And as he went, he said: ‘O my son Absalom—my son, my son Absalom—if only I had died in your place! O Absalom my son, my son!’”1TC 512.7

The victorious army approached the city, their shouts of triumph echoing on the hills. But as they entered the city gate the shout died away and their banners drooped in their hands, for the king was not waiting to welcome them. From the chamber above the gate his wailing cry was heard, “O my son Absalom—my son, my son Absalom—if only I had died in your place! O Absalom my son, my son!”1TC 513.1

Joab was filled with anger. God had given them reason for triumph and gladness. The greatest rebellion ever known in Israel had been crushed. Yet this great victory was turned to mourning for Absalom whose crime had cost the blood of thousands of brave men. The rude, blunt captain pushed his way into the presence of the king and boldly said, “Today you have disgraced all your servants who today have saved your life, the lives of your sons and daughters, ... in that you love your enemies and hate your friends. For you have declared today that you regard neither princes nor servants; for today I perceive that if Absalom had lived and all of us had died today, then it would have pleased you well. Now therefore, arise, go out, and speak comfort to your servants. For I swear by the Lord, if you do not go out, not one will stay with you this night. And that will be worse for you than all the evil that has befallen you from your youth until now.”1TC 513.2

Though the reproof was harsh and cruel, David did not resent it. Seeing that his general was right, he went down to the gate, and with words of commendation greeted his brave soldiers as they marched past him.1TC 513.3

David’s Sin of Adultery and His Repentance

A Man After God’s Own Heart