II
S A M U E L
CHAP. XVIII.
This
chapter puts a period to Absalom's rebellion and life, and so makes way for
David to his throne again, whither the next chapter brings him back in peace
and triumph. We have here, I. David's preparations to engage the rebels, ver.
1-5. II. The total defeat of Absalom's party and their dispersion, ver. 6-8.
III. The death of Absalom, and his burial, ver. 9-18. IV. The bringing of the
tidings to David, who tarried at Mahanaim, ver. 19-32. V. His bitter
lamentation for Absalom, ver. 33.
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Preparations for Battle.
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B. C. 1023.
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1
And David numbered the people that were with him, and set captains of
thousands and captains of hundreds over them. 2 And David sent
forth a third part of the people under the hand of Joab, and a third part
under the hand of Abishai the son of Zeruiah, Joab's brother, and a third part
under the hand of Ittai the Gittite. And the king said unto the people, I will
surely go forth with you myself also. 3 But the people answered,
Thou shalt not go forth: for if we flee away, they will not care for us;
neither if half of us die, will they care for us: but now thou art
worth ten thousand of us: therefore now it is better that thou succour
us out of the city. 4 And the king said unto them, What seemeth
you best I will do. And the king stood by the gate side, and all the people
came out by hundreds and by thousands. 5 And the king commanded
Joab and Abishai and Ittai, saying, Deal gently for my sake with the
young man, even with Absalom. And all the people heard when the king
gave all the captains charge concerning Absalom. 6 So the people
went out into the field against Israel: and the battle was in the wood of
Ephraim; 7 Where the people of Israel were slain before the
servants of David, and there was there a great slaughter that day of twenty
thousand men. 8 For the battle was there scattered over the
face of all the country: and the wood devoured more people that day than the
sword devoured.
Which way David raised an army here, and what reinforcements were sent him, we
are not told; many, it is likely, from all the coasts of Israel, at least from
the neighbouring tribes, came in to his assistance, so that, by degrees, he
was able to make head against Absalom, as Ahithophel foresaw. Now here we
have,
I. His army numbered and marshalled, v. 1, 2. He had, no doubt,
committed his cause to God by prayer, for that was his relief in all his
afflictions; and then he took an account of his forces. Josephus says they
were, in all, but about 4000. These he divided into regiments and companies,
to each of which he appointed proper officers, and then disposed them, as is
usual, into the right wing, the left wing, and the centre, two of which he
committed to his two old experienced generals, Joab and Abishai, and the third
to his new friend Ittai. Good order and good conduct may sometimes be as
serviceable in an army as great numbers. Wisdom teaches us to make the best of
the strength we have, and let it reach to the utmost.
II. Himself over-persuaded not to go in person to the battle. He was Absalom's
false friend that persuaded him to go, and served his pride more than his
prudence; David's true friends would not let him go, remembering what they had
been told of Ahithophel's design to smite the king only. David showed
his affection to them by being willing to venture with them (v. 2), and
they showed theirs to him by opposing it. We must never reckon it an affront
to be gain-said for our good, and by those that therein consult our interest.
1. They would by no means have him to expose himself, for (say they) thou
art worth 10,000 of us. Thus ought princes to be valued by their
subjects, who, for their safety, must be willing to expose themselves. 2. They
would not so far gratify the enemy, who would rejoice more in his fall than in
the defeat of the whole army. 3. He might be more serviceable to them by
tarrying in the city, with a reserve of his forces there, whence he might send
them recruits. That may be a post of real service which yet is not a post of
danger. The king acquiesced in their reasons, and changed his purpose (v.
4): What seemeth to you best I will do. It is no piece of wisdom to be
stiff in our resolutions, but to be willing to hear reason, even from our
inferiors, and to be overruled by their advice when it appears to be for our
own good. Whether the people's prudence had an eye to it or no, God's
providence wisely ordered it, that David should not be in the field of battle;
for then his tenderness would certainly have interposed to save the life of
Absalom, whom God had determined to destroy.
III. The charge he gave concerning Absalom, v. 5. When the army was
drawn out, rank and file, Josephus says, he encouraged them, and prayed for
them, but withal bade them all take heed of doing Absalom any hurt. How does
he render good for evil! Absalom would have David only smitten. David would
have Absalom only spared. What foils are these to each other! Never was
unnatural hatred to a father more strong than in Absalom; nor was ever natural
affection to a child more strong than in David. Each did his utmost, and
showed what man is capable of doing, how bad it is possible for a child to be
to the best of fathers and how good it is possible for a father to be to the
worst of children; as if it were designed to be a resemblance of man's
wickedness towards God and God's mercy towards man, of which it is hard to say
which is more amazing. "Deal gently," says David, "by
all means, with the young man, even with Absalom, for my sake; he is a
young man, rash and heady, and his age must excuse him; he is mine, whom I
love; if you love me, be not severe with him." This charge supposes
David's strong expectation of success. Having a good cause and a good God, he
doubts not but Absalom would lie at their mercy, and therefore bids them deal
gently with him, spare his life and reserve him for his judgment.
Bishop Hall thus descants on this: "What means this ill-placed love? This
unjust mercy? Deal gently with a traitor? Of all traitors, with a son? Of all
sons, with an Absalom? That graceless darling of so good a father? And all
this, for thy sake, whose crown, whose blood, he hunts after? For whose sake
must he be pursued, if forborne for thine? Must the cause of the quarrel be
the motive of mercy? Even in the holiest parents, nature may be guilty of an
injurious tenderness, of a bloody indulgence. But was not this done in type of
that immeasurable mercy of the true King and Redeemer of Israel, who prayed
for his persecutors, for his murderers, Father, forgive them? Deal gently
with them for my sake." When God sends and affliction to correct his
children, it is with this charge, "Deal gently with them for my
sake;" for he knows our frame.
IV. A complete victory gained over Absalom's forces. The battle was fought in
the wood of Ephraim (v. 6), so called from some memorable action of
the Ephraimites there, though it lay in the tribe of Gad. David thought fit to
meet the enemy with his forces at some distance, before they came up to
Mahanaim, lest he should bring that city into trouble which had so kindly
sheltered him. The cause shall be decided by a pitched battle. Josephus
represents the fight as very obstinate, but the rebels were at length totally
routed and 20,000 of them slain, v. 7. Now they smarted justly for
their treason against their lawful prince, their uneasiness under so good a
government, and their base ingratitude to so good a governor; and they found
what it was to take up arms for a usurper, who with his kisses and caresses
had wheedled them into their own ruin. Now where are the rewards, the
preferments, the golden days, they promised themselves from him? Now they see
what it is to take counsel against the Lord and his anointed, and to
think of breaking his bands asunder. And that they might see that God
fought against them, 1. They are conquered by a few, an army, in all
probability, much inferior to theirs in number. 2. By that flight with which
they hoped to save themselves they destroyed themselves. The wood,
which they sought to for shelter, devoured more than the sword, that
they might see how, when they thought themselves safe from David's men, and
said, Surely the bitterness of death is past, yet the justice of God
pursued them and suffered them not to live. What refuge can rebels find from
divine vengeance? The pits and bogs, the stumps and thickets, and, as the
Chaldee paraphrase understands it, the wild beasts of the wood, were probably
the death of multitudes of the dispersed distracted Israelites, besides the
20,000 that were slain with the sword. God herein fought for David, and yet
fought against him; for all these that were slain were his own subjects, and
the common interest of his kingdom was weakened by the slaughter. The Romans
allowed no triumph for a victory in a civil war.
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The
Death of Absalom.
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B. C. 1023.
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9
And Absalom met the servants of David. And Absalom rode upon a mule, and the
mule went under the thick boughs of a great oak, and his head caught hold of
the oak, and he was taken up between the heaven and the earth; and the mule
that was under him went away. 10 And a certain man saw it,
and told Joab, and said, Behold, I saw Absalom hanged in an oak.
11 And Joab said unto the man that told him, And, behold, thou sawest him,
and why didst thou not smite him there to the ground? and I would have given
thee ten shekels of silver, and a girdle. 12 And the man
said unto Joab, Though I should receive a thousand shekels of silver in
mine hand, yet would I not put forth mine hand against the king's son:
for in our hearing the king charged thee and Abishai and Ittai, saying, Beware
that none touch the young man Absalom. 13 Otherwise I
should have wrought falsehood against mine own life: for there is no matter
hid from the king, and thou thyself wouldest have set thyself against me.
14 Then said Joab, I may not tarry thus with thee. And he took three darts in
his hand, and thrust them through the heart of Absalom, while he was
yet alive in the midst of the oak. 15 And ten young men that bare
Joab's armour compassed about and smote Absalom, and slew him. 16
And Joab blew the trumpet, and the people returned from pursuing after Israel:
for Joab held back the people. 17 And they took Absalom, and cast
him into a great pit in the wood, and laid a very great heap of stones upon
him: and all Israel fled every one to his tent. 18 Now Absalom in
his lifetime had taken and reared up for himself a pillar, which is in
the king's dale: for he said, I have no son to keep my name in remembrance:
and he called the pillar after his own name: and it is called unto this day,
Absalom's place.
Here is Absalom quite at a loss, at his wit's end first, and then at his
life's end. He that began the fight, big with the expectation of triumphing
over David himself, with whom, if he had had him in his power, he would not
have dealt gently, is now in the greatest consternation, when he meets the
servants of David, v. 9. Though they were forbidden to meddle with
him, he durst not look them in the face; but, finding they were near him, he
clapped spurs to his mule and made the best of his way, through thick and
thin, and so rode headlong upon his own destruction. Thus he that fleeth
from the fear shall fall into the pit, and he that getteth up out of the pit
shall be taken in the snare, Jer. xlviii. 44. David is inclined to spare
him, but divine justice passes sentence upon him as a traitor, and sees it
executed--that he hang by the neck, be caught alive, be embowelled, and his
body dispose of disgracefully.
I. He is hanged by the neck. Riding furiously, neck or nothing, under the
thick boughs of a great oak which hung low and had never been cropped,
either the twisted branches, or some one forked bough of the oak, caught hold
of his head, either by his neck, or, as some think, by his long hair, which
had been so much his pride, and was now justly made a halter for him, and
there he hung, so astonished that he could not use his hands to help himself
or so entangled that his hands could not help him, but the more he struggled
the more he was embarrassed. This set him up for a fair mark to the servants
of David, and he had the terror and shame of seeing himself thus exposed,
while he could do nothing for his own relief, neither fight nor fly. Observe
concerning this, 1. That his mule went away from under him, as
if glad to get clear of such a burden, and resign it to the ignominious tree.
Thus the whole creation groans under the burden of man's corruption, but shall
shortly be delivered from its load, Rom. viii. 21, 22. 2. The he hung between
heaven and earth, as unworthy of either, as abandoned of both; earth would
not keep him, heaven would not take him, hell therefore opens her mouth to
receive him. 3. That this was a very surprising unusual thing. It was fit that
it should be so, his crime being so monstrous: if, in his flight, his mule had
thrown him, and left him half-dead upon the ground, till the servants of David
had come up and dispatched him, the same thing would have been done as
effectually; but that would have been too common a fate for so uncommon a
criminal. God will here, as in the case of those other rebels, Dathan and
Abiram, create a new thing, that it may be understood how much this
man has provoked the Lord, Num. xvi. 29, 30. Absalom is here hung up, in
terrorem--to frighten children from disobedience to their parents.
See Prov. xxx. 17.
II. He is caught alive by one of the servants of David, who goes directly and
tells Joab in what posture he found that archrebel, v. 10. Thus was he
set up for a spectacle, as well as a mark, that the righteous might see him
and laugh at him (Ps. lii. 6), while he had this further vexation in
his breast, that of all the friends he had courted and confided in, and
thought he had sure in his interest, though he hung long enough to have been
relieved, yet he had none at hand to disentangle him. Joab chides the man for
not dispatching him (v. 11), telling him, if he had given that bold
stroke, he would have rewarded him with ten half-crowns and a girdle, that is,
a captain's commission, which perhaps was signified by the delivery of a belt
or girdle; see Isa. xxii. 21. But the man, though zealous enough against
Absalom, justified himself in not doing it: "Dispatch him!" says he,
"not for all the world: it would have cost my head: and thou thyself wast
witness to the king's charge concerning him (v. 12), and, for all thy
talk, wouldst have been my prosecutor if I had done it," v. 13.
Those that love the treason hate the traitor. Joab could not deny this, nor
blame the man for his caution, and therefore makes him no answer, but breaks
off the discourse, under colour of haste (v. 14): I may not tarry
thus with thee. Superiors should consider a reproof before they give it,
lest they be ashamed of it afterwards, and find themselves unable to make it
good.
III. He is (as I may say) embowelled and quartered, as traitors are, so
pitifully mangled is he as he hangs there, and receives his death in such a
manner as to see all its terrors and feel all its pain. 1. Joab throws three
darts into his body, which put him, no doubt, to exquisite torment, while he
is yet alive in the midst of the oak, v. 14. I know not whether
Joab can be justified in this direct disobedience to the command of his
sovereign; was this to deal gently with the young man? Would David have
suffered him to do it if he had been upon the spot? Yet this may be said for
him, that, while he broke the order of a too indulgent father, he did real
service both to his king and country, and would have endangered welfare of
both if he had not done it. Salus populi suprema lex--The safety of the
people is the supreme law. 2. Joab's young men, ten of them, smite him,
before he is dispatched, v. 15. They surrounded him, made a ring about
him in triumph, and then smote him and slew him. So let all they
enemies perish, O Lord! Joab hereupon sounds a retreat, v. 16. The
danger is over, now that Absalom is slain; the people will soon return to
their allegiance to David, and therefore no more blood shall be spilt; no
prisoners are taken, to be tried as traitors and made examples; let every man
return to his tent; they are all the king's subjects, all his good subjects
again.
IV. His body is disposed of disgracefully (v. 17, 18): They cast it
into a great pit in the wood; they would not bring it to his father (for
that circumstance would but have added to his grief), nor would they preserve
it to be buried, according to his order, but threw it into the next pit with
indignation. Now where is the beauty he had been so proud of and for which he
had been so much admired? Where are his aspiring projects, and the castles he
had built in the air? His thoughts perish, and he with them. And, to signify
how heavy his iniquity lay upon his bones, as the prophet speaks (Ezek.
xxxii. 27), they raised a great heap of stones upon him, to be a
monument of his villany, and to signify that he ought to have been stoned as a
rebellious son, Deut. xxi. 21. Travelers say that the place is taken note of
to this day, and that it is common for passengers to throw a stone to this
heap, with words to this purport: Cursed be the memory of rebellious
Absalom, and cursed for ever be all wicked children that rise up in rebellion
against their parents. To aggravate the ignominy of Absalom's burial, the
historian takes notice of a pillar he had erected in the valley of Kidron,
near Jerusalem, to be a monument for himself, and keep his name in remembrance
(v. 18), at the foot of which, it is probable, he designed to be
buried. What foolish insignificant projects do proud men fill their heads
with! And what care do many people take about the disposal of their bodies,
when they are dead, that have no care at all what shall become of their
precious souls! Absalom had three sons (ch. xiv. 27), but, it seems,
now he had none; God had taken them away by death; and justly is a rebellious
son written childless. To make up the want, he erects this pillar for a
memorial; yet in this also Providence crosses him, and a rude heap of stones
shall be his monument, instead of this marble pillar. Thus those that exalt
themselves shall be abased. His care was to have his name kept in
remembrance, and it is so, to his everlasting dishonour. He could not be
content in the obscurity of the rest of David's sons, of whom nothing is
recorded but their names, but would be famous, and is therefore justly made
for ever infamous. The pillar shall bear his name, but not to his credit; it
was designed for Absalom's glory, but proved Absalom's folly.
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David's
Grief for Absalom.
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B. C. 1023.
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19
Then said Ahimaaz the son of Zadok, Let me now run, and bear the king tidings,
how that the LORD hath avenged him of his enemies. 20 And Joab said unto
him, Thou shalt not bear tidings this day, but thou shalt bear tidings another
day: but this day thou shalt bear no tidings, because the king's son is
dead. 21 Then said Joab to Cushi, Go tell the king what thou hast
seen. And Cushi bowed himself unto Joab, and ran. 22 Then said
Ahimaaz the son of Zadok yet again to Joab, But howsoever, let me, I pray
thee, also run after Cushi. And Joab said, Wherefore wilt thou run, my son,
seeing that thou hast no tidings ready? 23 But howsoever, said
he, let me run. And he said unto him, Run. Then Ahimaaz ran by the way of
the plain, and overran Cushi. 24 And David sat between the two
gates: and the watchman went up to the roof over the gate unto the wall, and
lifted up his eyes, and looked, and behold a man running alone. 25
And the watchman cried, and told the king. And the king said, If he be
alone, there is tidings in his mouth. And he came apace, and drew
near. 26 And the watchman saw another man running: and the
watchman called unto the porter, and said, Behold another man running
alone. And the king said, He also bringeth tidings. 27 And the
watchman said, Me thinketh the running of the foremost is like the running of
Ahimaaz the son of Zadok. And the king said, He is a good man, and
cometh with good tidings. 28 And Ahimaaz called, and said unto the
king, All is well. And he fell down to the earth upon his face before the
king, and said, Blessed be the LORD thy God,
which hath delivered up the men that lifted up their hand against my lord the
king. 29 And the king said, Is the young man Absalom safe? And
Ahimaaz answered, When Joab sent the king's servant, and me thy
servant, I saw a great tumult, but I knew not what it was.
30 And the king said unto him, Turn aside, and stand here. And
he turned aside, and stood still. 31 And, behold, Cushi came; and
Cushi said, Tidings, my lord the king: for the LORD
hath avenged thee this day of all them that rose up against thee.
32 And the king said unto Cushi, Is the young man Absalom safe? And Cushi
answered, The enemies of my lord the king, and all that rise against thee to
do thee hurt, be as that young man is. 33 And
the king was much moved, and went up to the chamber over the gate, and wept:
and as he went, thus he said, O my son Absalom, my son, my son Absalom! would
God I had died for thee, O Absalom, my son, my son!
Absalom's business is done; and we are now told,
I. How David was informed of it. He staid behind at the city of Mahanaim, some
miles from the wood where the battle was, and in the utmost border of the
land. Absalom's scattered forces all made homeward toward Jordan, which was
the contrary way from Mahanaim, so that his watchmen could not perceive how
the battle went, till an express came on purpose to bring advice of the issue,
which the king sat in the gate expecting to hear, v. 24.
1. Cushi was the man Joab ordered to carry the tidings (v. 21), an Ethiopian,
so his name signifies, and some think that he was so by birth, a black that
waited on Joab, probably one of the ten that had helped to dispatch Absalom (v.
15) as some think, though it was dangerous for one of those to bring the news
to David, lest his fate should be the same with theirs that reported to him
Saul's death, and Ish-bosheth's.
2. Ahimaaz, the young priest (one of those who brought David intelligence of
Absalom's motions, ch. xvii. 17), was very forward to be the messenger
of these tidings, so transported was he with joy that this cloud was blown
over; let him go and tell the king that the Lord hath avenged him of his
enemies, v. 19. This he desired, not so much in hope of a reward
(he was above that) as that he might have the pleasure and satisfaction of
bringing the king, whom he loved, this good news. Joab knew David better than
Ahimaaz did, and that the tidings of Absalom's death, which must conclude the
story, would spoil the acceptableness of all the rest; and he loves Ahimaaz
too well to let him be the messenger of those tidings (v. 20); they are
fitter to be brought by a footman than by a priest. However, when Cushi was
gone, Ahimaaz begged hard for leave to run after him, and with great
importunity obtained it, v. 22, 23. One would wonder why he should be
so fond of this office, when another was employed in it. (1.) Perhaps it was
to show his swiftness; observing how heavily Cushi ran, and that he took the
worse way, though the nearest, he had a mind to show how fast he could run,
and that he could go the furthest way about and yet beat Cushi. No great
praise for a priest to be swift of foot, yet perhaps Ahimaaz was proud of it.
(2.) Perhaps it was in prudence and tenderness to the king that he desired it.
He knew he could get before Cushi, and therefore was willing to prepare the
king, by a vague and general report, for the plain truth which Cushi was
ordered to tell him. If bad news must come, it is best that it come gradually,
and will be the better borne.
3. They are both discovered by the watchman on the gate of Mahanaim, Ahimaaz
first (v. 24), for, though Cushi had the lead, Ahimaaz soon outran him;
but presently after Cushi appeared, v. 26. (1.) When the king hears of
one running alone he concludes he is an express (v. 25): If he be
alone, there are tidings in his mouth; for if they had been beaten, and
were flying back from the enemy, there would have been many. (2.) When he
hears it is Ahimaaz he concludes he brings good news, v. 27. Ahimaaz,
it seems, was so famous for running that he was known by it at a distance, and
so eminently good that it is taken for granted, if he be the messenger, the
news must needs be good: He is a good man, zealously affected to the
king's interest, and would not bring bad news. It is pity but the good tidings
of the gospel should always be brought by good men; and how welcome should the
messengers be to us for their message sake!
4. Ahimaaz is very forward to proclaim the victory (v. 28), cries at a
distance, "Peace, there is peace;" peace after war, which is doubly
welcome. "All is well, my lord O king! the danger is over, and we
may return, when the king pleases, to Jerusalem." And, when he comes
near, he tells him the news more particularly. "They are all cut off that
lifted up their hands against the king;" and, as became a priest,
while he gives the king the joy of it, he gives God the glory of it, the God
of peace and war, the God of salvation and victory: "Blessed be the
Lord thy God, that has done this for thee, as thy God, pursuant to the
promises made to uphold thy throne," ch. vii. 16. When he said
this, he fell down upon his face, not only in reverence to the king,
but in humble adoration of God, whose name he praised for this success. By
directing David thus to give God thanks for his victory, he prepared him for
the approaching news of its allay. The more our hearts are fixed and enlarged
in thanksgiving to God for our mercies the better disposed we shall be to bear
with patience the afflictions mixed with them. Poor David is so much a father
that he forgets he is a king, and therefore cannot rejoice in the news of a
victory, till he know whether the young man Absalom be safe, for whom
his heart seems to tremble, almost as Eli's, in a similar case, for the ark of
God. Ahimaaz soon discerned, what Joab intimated to him, that the death of the
king's son would make the tidings of the day very unwelcome, and therefore in
his report left that matter doubtful; and, though he gave occasion to suspect
how it was, yet, that the thunderclap might not come too suddenly upon the
poor perplexed king, he refers him to the next messenger, whom they saw
coming, for a more particular account of it. "When Joab sent the king's
servant (namely, Cushi) and me thy servant, to bring the news, I saw
a great tumult, occasioned by something extraordinary, as you will hear by
and by; but I have nothing to say about it. I have delivered that which was my
message. Cushi is better able to inform you than I am. I will not be the
messenger of evil tidings; nor will I pretend to know that which I cannot give
a perfect account of." He is therefore told to stand by till Cushi come (v.
30), and now, we may suppose, he gives the king a more particular account of
the victory, which was the thing he came to bring the news of.
5. Cushi, the slow post, proves the sure one, and besides the confirmation of
the news of the victory which Ahimaaz had brought--The Lord has avenged
thee of all those that rose up against thee (v. 31)--he satisfied
the king's enquiry concerning Absalom, v. 32. Is he safe? says
David. "Yes," says Cushi, "he is safe in his grave;" but
he tells the news so discreetly that, how unwelcome soever the message is, the
messenger can have no blame. He did not tell him plainly that Absalom was
hanged, and run through and buried under a heap of stones; but only that his
fate was what he desired might be the fate of all that were traitors against
the king, his crown and dignity: "The enemies of my lord the king,
whoever they are, and all that rise against thee to do thee hurt, be as
that young man is; I need wish them no worse."
II. How David received the intelligence. He forgets all the joy of his
deliverance, and is quite overwhelmed with the sorrowful tidings of Absalom's
death, v. 33. As soon as he perceived by Cushi's reply that Absalom was
dead, he asked no more questions, but fell into a passion of weeping, retired
from company, and abandoned himself to sorrow; as he was going up to his
chamber he was overheard to say "O my son Absalom! my son, my son
Absalom! alas for thee! I lament thee. How hast thou fallen! Would God
I had died for thee, and that thou hadst remained alive this day" (so
the Chaldee adds) "O Absalom! my son, my son!" I wish I could
see reason to think that this arose from a concern about Absalom's everlasting
state, and that the reason why he wished he had died for him was
because he had good hopes of his own salvation, and of Absalom's repentance if
he had lived. It rather seems to have been spoken inconsiderately, and in a
passion, and it was his infirmity. He is to be blamed, 1. For showing so great
a fondness for a graceless son only because he was handsome and witty, while
he was justly abandoned both of God and man. 2. For quarrelling, not only with
divine providence, in the disposals of which he ought silently to have
acquiesced, but with divine justice, the judgments of which he ought to have
adored and subscribed to. See how Bildad argues (Job viii. 3, 4), If thy
children have sinned against him, and he have cast them away in their
transgression, thou shouldst submit, for doth God pervert judgment?
See Lev. x. 3. 3. For opposing the justice of the nation, which, as king, he
was entrusted with the administration of, and which, with other public
interests, he ought to have preferred before nay natural affection. 4. For
despising the mercy of his deliverance, and the deliverance of his family and
kingdom, from Absalom's wicked designs, as if this were no mercy, nor worth
giving thanks for, because it cost the life of Absalom. 5. For indulging in a
strong passion, and speaking unadvisedly with his lips. He now forgot his own
reasonings upon the death of another child (Can I bring him back again?)
and his own resolution to keep his mouth as with a bridle when his
heart was hot within him, as well as his own practice at other times, when
he quieted himself as a child that was weaned from his mother. The best
men are not always in an equally good frame. What we over-loved we are apt to
over-grieve for: in each affection, therefore, it is wisdom to have rule over
our own spirits and to keep a strict guard upon ourselves when that is removed
from us which was very dear to us. Losers think they may have leave to speak;
but little said is soon amended. The penitent patient sufferer sitteth
alone and keepeth silence (Lam. iii. 28), or rather, with Job,
says, Blessed be the name of the Lord.
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