2 Samuel 18 Bible Study (Absalom's Death) | Pastor Daniel Batarseh

We're in second Samuel chapter 18. Cherish these moments because we have, including this chapter, seven chapters left in our study of second Samuel. We're coming near the end. What will happen after second Samuel? I do not know.

I don't think we will jump into first Kings right away. Maybe we will, but we might take a little break and address different things, different topics. Might have a q and a or two. So enjoy these moments. I pray that you do enjoy these moments.

We take our time in the scriptures, and that is what we are going to do with this chapter. And one of the benefits of being here week after week is that you don't need much background information because you're so familiar with the narrative already, and so I will not give you an exhaustive background. What I will say, though, before we even open up the verses is here is that we have reached the climax. We have reached the pinnacle. We have reached the peak of this story between David and his son, Absalom.

They're about to face off in war, a war that Absalom wanted and a war that David dreaded. He did not want to engage in this, but they are left with no other choice lest they be consumed by an evil man and a deceived nation. And so before we break into this, I wanna pray one more time. Our brother prayed so grateful for that. It's a habit of mine to pray before we even read a verse, and so I wanna do that with you before we read the first few verses here together.

Oh, lord, there is so much joy in our hearts to be gathered in a place with people who love the truth. Lord, we are not here because we have to be. We are here because we get to be. It is an absolute delight to be in your presence and to be with those who are the excellent ones of the land, the saints of the land. We ask, Lord, that you would open our eyes as we sang, and, Lord, that you would burn our hearts for you, and that you would give us understanding in our minds so that we can be shaped and molded into the very image of your son.

Help the delivery of this word. May it be under the power of the spirit. May it be filled with unction, compassion, truth. Let it not be mingled with error. Oh, lord.

Let there be the delivery that you intended this message to be delivered, and we ask that you would be exalted. In Jesus' name, amen. Are you with me? Let's read verse one together. Then David mustered the men who were with him and set over them commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds.

And David sent out the army, one third under the command of Joab, one third under the command of Abishai the son of Zuriah, Joab's brother, and one third under the command of Ittai the Gittite. And the king said to the men, I myself will go also will also go out with you. But the men said, you shall not go out, for if we flee, they will not care about us. If half of us die, they will not care about us, but you are worth 10,000 of us. Therefore, it is better that you send us help from the city.

The king said to them, whatever seems best to you, I will do. So the king stood at the side of the gate while all the army marched out by hundreds and by thousands. They are not in Jerusalem. Remember? They're at Mahanaim.

They are beyond the Jordan. They're in a different place because David obviously is in exile, but they're prepared to go to war. And what I wanna highlight to you first is what we see here in verse two. Notice David's willingness to participate in this war. He says clearly, I myself will also go out with you.

That is impressive. And one of the joys again of a Bible study of a systematic study verse by verse, chapter by chapter, is that you get to see many things, and one of the things that you get to see is character development or the decline of character in in the case of Saul. But we see something here about David that is praiseworthy. Why are they in this place to begin with? Well, it all started in second Samuel 11 when David decided not to go to war.

You remember that. Right? That's where all the trouble began. He was on the rooftop when he was supposed to be on the battlefield, and that's where he was exposed to Bathsheba and where he entertained temptation to the point where he committed a grievous sin. And here we see now a different David with a much more difficult task ahead of him, but still a willingness to say, I will go out to fight this war.

You might disagree with me, but what I see here is a man who has learned from his mistakes. What I see here is a man who understood how his negligence and his unwillingness to be where god called him to be originally is the reason why he's in this dilemma to begin with, and he does not want to repeat that mistake. And I wanna tell you that's what true repentance looks like. Repentance is not merely feeling sorry for your sin or even regretting what your sin has done to you. Repentance is a willingness to change.

It's a change of mind. It's looking at what your sin has done, looking at what sin is, and then agreeing with God's word about it, and then more than that agreeing with God's power to overcome it in the future. There's not much that David could do about the past, and that's true for all of us. To meditate on it, to wallow in it, to feel shame from it doesn't benefit anybody including yourself. But what you and I can do with our past failures is what David is doing here, to make an effort, by the grace of God, to be in the will of God.

Never mind what happened yesterday. Never mind what happened last year. Never mind what happened five years ago. Where are you today? Where are you in the will of God today?

Where are you in your hatred for sin today? Where are you in your alertness and watchfulness against temptation? That is what is most important here. And David is not just proving his growth in godness in this point. You've heard me say it sometime before.

I don't remember exactly when it was. There's another example, another example where we are given proof that David did indeed learn from his past and endeavor to seek to honor God with his today. Do you have any idea what I'm talking about? Let me give you a hint. It's not in the book of second Samuel.

I'll just tell you for the sake of time. Go to first Kings. David is near the end of his life. All you have to do is flip a few pages to the right. And we're told in first Kings one one, David was old and advanced in years, and he could not get warm.

His body was shutting down. And so the servants came up with a plan, and that plan was to bring a very beautiful woman and to park her inside his bed and to keep him warm by close proximity. But what's interesting about that is what we see here in verse four. The young woman was very beautiful, and she was of service to the king and attended to him, but the king knew her not. An interesting statement for the Holy Spirit to include in this.

Let me say this first. Temptation will follow you all of your days. Temptation will follow you until your last days. The same temptation that David experienced on that rooftop, which is interesting because the very same description of this young woman is given to Bathsheba. We are told in second Samuel 11 that Bathsheba was a very beautiful woman.

And now we come to first Kings where David is old in years, and we are introduced to another woman who is very beautiful. And so understand that the fight against temptation, the fight against sin will follow you until your final breath. Keep that in mind so that you know how to be strengthened day after day. But the Holy Spirit wants to tell us something. The king knew her not.

Like, why is that important for me to know? And the reason why it's important is because the Holy Spirit wants us to know David has grown. David is a different man. David doesn't look at a very beautiful woman the same way he did when he was at the peak of his life, the peak of his reign. No.

He's a changed person, and I think there's a pattern here worthy of imitation. I think there's a standard here for the children of God, and here it is. The the more you grow in years, the more you grow in life, the stronger you should have a resistance against sin. We should grow from glory to glory. Right?

We we need to learn. We don't wanna stay in the same place that we were twenty years ago. And And unfortunately, that's the case for many people. They're the same. They they submit to their passions in their sixties the same way that they did in their twenties, if not even worse.

But what God wants to do with us is very much this, to graduate us in godliness, and to empower us, and to give us victory to victory, strength to strength. And David is a wonderful example of that here. So we read on. He decides that he wants to go to war, but you heard it. The men said you're not coming with us.

We we honor you. We admire you. We respect you. But, David, you coming out with us is gonna be more of a distraction than anything else. They want you.

They don't care about us. They want your head. They want your life. Your son wants you. You're the biggest threat here.

You're the trophy. And so they they advised David to stay back and to supervise the war from a safe place. And they also probably understood the difficulty of of going to war with your own son. And so there is wisdom packed in what these men are saying, and I would say they are in the right. They are in the right.

What they are advising here is totally on the bull's eye. And what I, again, admire, there's something more to be admired of David, is how he responds to these men who are in lower positions, lower ranks, how they how he responds to their objection. He says here, whatever seems best to you, I will do. That's humility. Remember Absalom when he was pumped up by Hushai to go into war, his ego was inflated because Hushai was saying, why don't you go out into battle?

It will be a show. It will be glorious. You will receive all the credit. And and at first, when Ahifophel brought the advice, he he was willing to stay back. But because Hushai knew how to appeal to his arrogance, he was now he was in, and it led to his own demise.

But here we see David who receives instruction from his men, and he is willing to stay back and to listen to them. And I think that's a wonderful trait for any leader in any context. Some people in here are leaders in different contexts. Some here are aspiring to be leaders. Maybe some here haven't identified the gift of leadership that is in you.

But one of the things to be mindful of as a leader is to be open minded and humble enough to receive the counsel of those who might not occupy a high position, who might not have your same history or knowledge, but who have a perspective that you might not have. And God tests us. God tests us often by bringing people to us that, might not have position, might not have prestige, but walk with the Lord and wanna give you something from the Lord, and you have to be willing to accept that. Unfortunately, one of the common things among leaders, not all leaders, but some leaders fall into the temptation of being so enamored with their God given authority or ability that they get drunk. They get drunk in their own pride, and and one of the ways pride manifests is that it's your way or no other way.

It's my plan. It's my decision. It's my idea, and no one else's. You have to agree with me. And leaders if they're not careful they can become extremely stubborn and very difficult to work with.

And yet we see here David who was who was humble enough to open his eyes and his hearts to others, and that made him a greater commander. That made him more effective and successful. And again for those who are leaders, who desire to be leaders, remember this that there are times where you have to make decisions that will represent other others. Right? And that's true for an elder run church.

Elders have to make decisions on behalf of the people at times. And elders have to sometimes or leaders, again in your home, at your work, wherever you're a leader, leaders have to make decisions regardless of the opposition or regardless of different people's fears or opinions. You have to stand your ground especially if it's black and white truth. But leaders also have to understand that there are unclear situations and there are non doctrinal matters that require humility in your approach. And one of the examples of this is not just an old testament observation.

You see this in the early church With a guy like Paul, Paul was a cutthroat leader. I like Paul. Paul's like, are you in or are you out? You wanna serve or you not wanna serve? Mark, you're in or are you out?

You know what? Go back. And actually, don't come back. Might sound aggressive, but he was a guy that got things done, and he wanted people to be sold out or not in at all. But that same Paul, right, we see something in him in a hint in the book of first Corinthians.

I want you to turn there and see this for yourself. In first Corinthians 16, the Holy Spirit gives us an insight into how Paul dealt with those who served with him. First Corinthians 16 verse 12. Apparently, the Corinthians were asking for the presence of Apollos. They really liked Apollos.

In fact, you had a whole little camp of Apollos followers in the church. And Paul responds to an apparent request for him or wondering where he's at, and he says this in first Corinthians sixteen twelve. Now concerning our brother Apollos, I strongly urged him to visit you with the other brothers, but it was not at all his will to come now. He will come when he has opportunity. How many of us just read by just read past that?

Like, okay. That's an unimportant detail. No. You see Paul as a leader and how he operated as a leader. He strongly urged Apollos to go with the brothers to the Corinthians.

And you know what Apollos said? Paul, I don't sense the Lord's leading on it. I don't think I should be going. Maybe Apollos was a little concerned because of the factions in the church, and he didn't wanna go there and create even more problems. Whatever the reason was, Paul said, I need you to go, and Apollo said, I I'm not gonna go now.

And you know what Paul doesn't do? He doesn't shame him. He doesn't abuse him. He doesn't threaten him. He doesn't demote him.

He works with him. Okay. I'm not gonna force you to go. So if you don't want to go, then go when you feel like you need to go. That's wonderful.

That that radiates humility. That's the kind of person you want to work with, an understanding person, a patient person, a person that doesn't just have their understanding, their view, and their ideas, and everybody else has to surrender it no matter what. No. We see here that Paul was a man that we should strive to be. And if you're gonna serve the Lord, you're gonna work with other people, guys.

You know that very well. And again, there are moments where, especially leaders, you have to make a stand no matter the protest or the opposition. But there are other times where things are more open ended, and you have to be sensitive to others and be careful not to impose your convictions on others forcefully, and to allow the Lord to lead people at different stages in life from their own convictions that they've been given in their gray areas of our sanctification. So David here says, alright. Whatever you think is best to do, we'll do that.

He agreed. But we stopped at verse four, and we see that before these commanders head out their own way, David gives a final instruction in verse five of second Samuel 16. What does he ask of them? This is what he says. And the king ordered Joab and Abishai Ittai, deal gently for my sake with the young man Absalom.

And all the people heard when the king gave orders to all the commanders about Absalom. So David was very intentional by being open about this charge. Leaders, and everybody stopped before they made their way into the battlefield. Whatever you do, deal gently with the young man Absalom. And he wanted others to hear that charge.

And you can sense the compassion and the heartfelt appeal in this order, can you not? And and look how even, David phrases and identifies Absalom. Deal gently with what? The young man. He's young.

Right? He's foolish. He's inexperienced. He's unwise. He's given over to the passions of the flesh.

Just remember, he he's he's younger. Right? Yeah. He's younger, but he's a he overthrew the throne. He might be younger than you, David, but he's a grown man.

David is trying to color his son in a certain way so that the people can feel what he feels, and it's difficult for a parent, especially I I can only imagine. There there is there is a there's a special love for your children that almost can cloud your judgment. And others see something, and something so obviously blatantly wrong and evil, and yet as a parent you are less willing to admit that. This is what David is experiencing. But don't get caught up in the emotion of the moment.

Don't go too far and and feel for David to the point where you you don't determine what is right or wrong. Is this right or wrong? Is what David requesting according to God's will? Here's my answer. No.

The very mess that everyone is in right now is because when Absalom should have been disciplined, he was kept alive by his father. And even after all that has transpired with that act of mercy, what I say, even disobedience to the law of God, David is still convinced that dealing gently with Absalom is gonna change him. There is a lot of evil in our day that's being tolerated in the name of gentleness. Right? In the name of kindness, in the name of love.

And that is dangerous because people are unwilling to confront evil and are willing to be ignorant about certain sins because they think it's the most effective way to win people over. No. It's true that you're called to be gentle. Don't forget it. It's one of the fruit of the Holy Spirit or the fruit of the Holy Spirit.

But But never forget your ultimate example of what gentleness is. Jesus says in Matthew eleven twenty nine, learn from me for I am, what, gentle and lowly. Learn from me. He says, learn from me, and he gives two descriptions about himself. I am gentle, and I am lowly.

If you want to know what gentleness looks like, look no further than the Christ. And when you look at Jesus's life as given to us in the Gospels, you see his gentleness, but you also see his sternness, And you see a stance that he makes. The gentleness is an operation in certain cases with a certain audience. But where Jesus, who never lies and says he is gentle, he's the ultimate example of gentleness, you see him, especially with religious hypocrites who did things in the name of God, you see him in a way that people might say, Jesus, that's not very Christ like. But he is gentle.

And so being gentle doesn't call us call for us to be compromising or to not be strong or not to be severe against certain sins and certain habits and certain ideologies. No. We we are required to make a stand. And, unfortunately, David did not make a stand. He still doesn't wanna make a stand.

And if I just wonder what second Samuel would have looked like if they listened to David. What would have Absalom done? Because there's an incredible insight. Right? Many people love to quote Romans two where it talks about the gentleness of God.

Right? His kindness leads us to what? Repentance. Yes. It does, but it depends on who recognizes that kindness and is willing to submit their lives and revelation to that kindness.

We love to quote that, and that is a wonderful thing to quote, but let me give you another one. It's found in Isaiah 26. Isaiah 26, you get a different insight about how people respond to God. In Isaiah 26 verse nine, the prophet says, my soul yearns for you in the night. My spirit within me earnestly seeks you.

And he goes on to say, for when your judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world learn righteousness. When your judgments are in the earth, people wake up and they say, this god is holy. I can't entertain sin. He is sovereign. He is in control, and out of holy fear, they come to him in righteousness.

But then look at verse 10. It's an added commentary. If favor is shown to the wicked, he does not learn righteousness. In the land of uprightness, he deals corruptly and does not see the majesty of the Lord. Not everybody responds to God's favor appropriately.

There are those who abuse God's favor. They enjoy what he has for them, but they never turn to him. And so it is true that kindness leads to repentance. God's kindness does do that and it aims to do that, but it's not a 100% guarantee. Man is responsible in responding to god's kindness in the way he designed it.

But it's true that for some, favor only enables them to remain headstrong in their sin. And what they need, in fact, is a revelation of god's judgment. And to see the severity of God, Romans 11 tells us consider both the kindness and what? The severity of God. We just wanna consider his kindness.

Paul says, no. The the saint Paul preach salvation by faith. Salvation through grace. Right? The saint Paul says, don't just consider his kindness in Romans 11, consider his severity.

We need a balance. And in this case, Absalom was not handling the kindness given to him the way he should have. What he needed was judgment. It makes you wonder if there was an appropriate protocol made for Absalom to receive this judgment. Who know he could have repented.

He could have cried out to God for mercy. He could have been like Manasseh who was so wicked and vile, but when he was brought low, when he experienced personal exile, he's he stopped, he paused, and acknowledged God as Lord. But we often, in the name of love, don't trust in God's wisdom, and that gets us in a lot of trouble. And we're gonna see what's gonna happen to Absalom. Verse six.

So the army went out into the field against Israel, and the battle was fought in the Forest Of Ephraim. And the men of Israel were defeated there by the servants of David, and the loss there was great on that day, 20,000 men. Who is outnumbered here? David? Who was, more vulnerable to being defeated?

David. And yet we read here that they were gaining the victory, And the reason why they were gaining the victory is because of their experience and their mentality. They were seasoned warriors, and we're speaking naturally here. Obviously, God was on their side. We're gonna see that in a moment.

But these men though they were smaller, were at an advantage. Ultimately, again, because God was on the side of David, because God is always on the side of truth. But there's an interesting verse in Ecclesiastes that I like to allude to from time to time. It's in Ecclesiastes nine four, and it says, better to be a living dog than a dead lion. Have you ever heard that saying?

Better to be a living dog than a dead lion. And the the the meaning of that is, it teaches about the hope of life. Right? As long as you have, you have life, there is still hope for you. No matter what your status is, no matter what you are in this life, you're always at an advantage if you have life.

But there's a spiritual principle behind it as well. When you compare a dog to a lion, what's more impressive? The lion, of course. What's more, demanding of people's adoration and love and respect? The lion.

Dog is common. And so let's look at this in a spiritual sense. It's better to be small, better to be humble, better to be seen as common in the eyes of others, but have the life of God than to have glamour and gifting and resources and be devoid of the spirit. That is true for you individually, and that is especially true for local churches. Is it not?

People measure local churches and their success based on numbers and resources and and performance and and all these different humanistic ideas. But may I say this to you, better to be a dead or a living dog than a dead lion. Better to have the life of God and not have the mane and not have the roar and not have the strength in the flesh because life with God is ultimately what we're after. And we see that with this scenario. God's assistance was with David.

Because look at verse eight. The battle spread over the face of all the country, and the forest look at this. The forest devoured more people that day than the sword. How does a forest kill more people than javelins and spears? Now obviously this was strategic.

Right? Because they had so many more people than David did and so to bring him in a place like this dense and difficult, it would demand them to split up and it was easier for them to conquer. But what you see here also is God's invisible hand at work. The forest devoured more people and naturally speaking, it was because of the difficult terrain. There were swamps and hills and crevices and animals, and we don't know.

We we get an idea what's gonna happen with Absalom, how it was difficult. But it reminds us of a verse in Joshua. When we study the book of Joshua, maybe you remember the story where Joshua himself was outnumbered. And God encouraged them when he was about to face various kings. Do not be afraid.

Right? I'll be with you. And the way he showed up is that he rained hailstones on the enemies of Israel. And there in Joshua ten eleven, we are told that more were destroyed by the hailstones than by the sword. To show us again that regardless of how limited your resources are, how outnumbered you may seem to be, you are never at a disadvantage when you live to please God.

Whatever you're lacking in the natural, you are always the majority when you are walking with God. Whether that's hailstones from heaven or a forest that fights for you, God is the one who's providentially making this all happen. I fear for those. I fear for those, like Psalm two says, who plan and plot against the anointed one because they will fail. David here succeeds.

In verse nine, we zoom in from this general summary of this battle to the main instigator of all this blood. Verse nine, and Absalom happened, I like that word, happened to meet the servants of David. Absalom was riding on his mule, and the mule went under the thick branches of a great oak. And his head his head caught fast in the oak, and he was suspended between heaven and earth while the mule that was under him went on. So here's Absalom riding a mule in some part of this forest, and all of a sudden, maybe a branch with a fork like design caught him by the neck.

Many people assume that his hair was caught. It's not explicitly clear. One thing's for certain is that he was caught by the head, whether that be his hair or his neck, and he was suspended in the air. And the mule, which is fascinating because when you're saying why would he ride a mule, because that's what kings would ride, a mule. And the same the same seat that he fought for and rebelled for and deceived for, in a matter of seconds just disappeared from under him, just taken from him like that.

And here he is hanging from a tree like how this seems almost comical, but it's really a pathetic sight. It's tragic. This man who had the whole nation tied around his finger is now tied on a tree. Remember how Ahithophel died. Right?

He hung himself, and Absalom is about to die by hanging as well. So here he is suspended. Right? But you have to remember, when we studied earlier, we realized that we're told by the Holy Spirit that god had purposed to destroy Absalom. And that's why he believed Hushai's advice instead of Ahithophel's advice.

God is behind all of this, and so don't be mistaken. The design by which David rather Absalom is about to experience death is ordained by God himself. This is not random. This is actually strategic. God wanted Absalom to hang from a tree, And I believe it communicates two things.

The first thing is, and this is the beauty of understanding the Old Testament, God had given a law to the nation of Israel that if anybody were to commit a crime worthy of death, what was to happen to them? They're to be hung on a tree. If you want the reference for that, it's Deuteronomy 21. In Deuteronomy 21 verse 22 to 23, it says there you should hang them on a tree, and then 23 tells us that those who are hung on a tree are what? Cursed by God.

Paul utilizes this reference in Galatians three to speak about how Christ became a curse for us. Right? But we see here that this man was worthy to be cursed by God. And this is the frightening thing. You know, David was reluctant to discipline his son and to execute judgment the way the law demanded, but he could not escape God's justice.

And men today might find loopholes in our governments. Men today might evade. They might trick. They might bribe their way out of their sin, but they will not ultimately be able to to flee from God's coming wrath. The unrepentant will know the satisfaction of God's wrath.

No matter what is going well for them in this life, everything can change in a moment, and it will, in eternity. And so what does God wanna communicate through this? Out of all the ways that Absalom could have been dealt with, he hangs him on a tree so that people would know, that Absalom perhaps would known, and those who would read the story would know this man is cursed by God. This man has no favor from God. This man has no support, but from God.

This man is in disobedience to God, and God is expressing his displeasure over him. But again, we read earlier that Absalom was a man of pride, and we are told that from the soles of his foot to the crown of his head, there was no blemish found in him. He was gorgeous. K? He was brilliantly beautiful.

I mean, people were just mesmerized by his looks. And on top of that, he had charisma, and he just put the whole nation under a spell. But after that description, we are told that this man who is recognized for his beauty recognized that beauty himself. And one of the ways that he expressed his acknowledgment of his unique look is that he cut his hair once a year and he did work something that I don't know anybody's ever done. He weighed his hair.

Who does that? He weighs his hair to show obviously, it's a public thing to show just how luscious and glorious that set of hair on his head was. Isn't that ironic? No. It's not ironic.

The very same head that Absalom boasted in is where his shame came. The very same thing that he praised and he adorned and he he made public and allured people with would be the means of his own death. That same head now is hanging. It's hanging and he looks like a trapped animal. And the lesson is very clear.

If we're not careful, what we put our confidence in can become our curse. Put your confidence in the Lord. Learn to give God glory for everything that is good in your life. Could be your looks. It could be your abilities.

It could be your successes. It could be your accomplishment. Make it a habit to know how to crown him when people seek to crown you. Whatever good you possess, whatever whatever it is that you think makes you unique, remember, you didn't make it yourself. God put it on you, and he has one intention with it for him to be glorified through it.

And, unfortunately, this man used his looks to deceive a nation, which you've heard me say before. If you look at the if you look at the old testament, there are different there are handful of moments where we are told about somebody's attractiveness or their looks. It's like, why would the Holy Spirit tell us that? It's it's because one, that's a temptation. When somebody is attractive, that's a temptation that they have to deal with on a daily basis.

They can give into that temptation to utilize it for their flesh and for their advancement in life, or like in the case of Daniel and David and Joseph and Esther, they used it for the glory of God. Even with all the advantage that they might have with their attraction, they still submitted to the will of God, and they found greater pleasure in pleasing him than pleasing their flesh. That was not the case for this man. So here he is hanging from a tree for God to pronounce the curse on him and for him to realize that his pride led to his demise. And something interesting happens.

This you know, one of the things that I love about bible study, reading the bible through and through, is encountering unnamed characters in the bible. Like, just actors that show up and then disappear. But these individuals, what blesses me the most is when they prove to have more Christ like character than the main characters of the story. And that is what you and I are about to see in verse 10. So here's here's Absalom hanging and dangling from a branch.

And verse 10 says, and a certain man saw it and told Joab, behold, I saw Absalom hanging in an oak. Joab said to the man who told him, what? You saw him? Why then did you not strike him there to the ground? I would have been glad to give you 10 pieces of silver and a belt.

But the man said to Joab, even if I felt in my hand the weight of a thousand pieces of silver, I would not reach out my hand against the king's son. For in our hearing, the king commanded you and Abishai Ithai, for my sake, protect the young man Absalom. I like this guy. Unnamed, unidentified, but what a man he was. This soldier who sees Absalom refuses to kill him.

The report comes to Joab. Joab, in in essence, rebukes him. Not only rebukes him, but scolds him. Says, you know what? If you would have killed him, I would have crowned you.

I would have given you money, and I would have given you a belt with some belief to be some kind of military promotion, some kind of badge of honor, some kind of medal. I would have showered you and recognized you. And this man says, look. Even if you multiply that money, I would not care. For one sole reason, the king has a will.

And what's more important to me than your money and your promotion is him being pleased. Now isn't it funny that soldiers of Christ today face that same temptation to be disloyal to Christ? Money, the love of money and position or opportunity or some kind of advancement. Those things are just as real temptations as it was here for this young man, for this soldier. Unfortunately, many do not find the the grace and the strength to be able to stand for the cause of Christ.

This man was devoted. This man stood still. And what I love is his answer in verse 12. You heard it. Right?

He quotes David. Not only does he quote David, he reminds Joab what David said, who he said it to. Like this man was attentive when David spoke in verse five. He was all ears. And not only that, he guarded it in his heart, he kept that as a principle in his bosom throughout this war.

And this man loved his king. It's so clear and it's so obvious. We see here that he was again attentive to his word, that he was committed to the cause, and he was immovable when he was tempted. Now compare verse 12 to verse 15. And 10 young men, Joab's armor bearers, surrounded Absalom and struck him and killed him.

So you have 10 other guys who were who were probably in the same position of this man, maybe in in lower rank. And when they had opportunity, they struck the man, especially after Joab did it because Joab initiated. He took three javelins, and he struck Absalom. And the other guy said, well, Joab did it. Let's do it.

And that's what we see in a lot of people's lives today, their followers. All they know what to do is imitate somebody who has some kind of influence, some kind of persuasive personality, some kind of gifting. They just follow other people. That's all they do. They have no conviction.

They have no sense like this man of the will of the king and that orchestrating their every step. Now what's fascinating is king David was not present for this man to feel the accountability of his lord. No. He wasn't present. All this young man had was the word of the king.

That's all he had, and that's all he needed. He learned the word of the king, and he lived by the word of the king. And this man had enough sense to live for the king even in the absence of the king, and that what is what makes the the true Christian effective. Right? Don't follow other people.

Don't do that. Learn and ask the Lord to give you such an understanding of his his person, the reality of who he is, the authority of his words so that when temptation comes, you can be like this individual here. Don't go with the crowd. The crowds are often wrong. And so you have two types of soldiers here.

You have the soldier who understands the commands of his lord and walks by, and you have others who who are in the same field, the same battle, but they they look at others and they look and they compare their standard to their standard and they just follow that. Holiness is not you comparing yourself to other Christians who are struggling. Holiness is you comparing yourself to Christ and Christ alone. If you if you if you use yourself and measure up to other believers, you're not gonna go very far. But if Christ is ever before you, oh, he will take you higher and higher, and you will know greater joys in his will for your life.

This man doesn't move. And here, I love what he says here in verse 13. On the other hand, if I dealt treacherously against his life, and look at this in parentheses, and there is nothing hidden from the king. There is nothing hidden from the king. This man knew that David had such a high tech intelligence agency that even if he were to do this and he kept it ambiguous, whatever the case may be, he would be found out and he would be dealt with accordingly.

Now if that's true for a man like king David, how much more true for the heavenly king? You can't hide anything from him. You can't. He sees all. He hears all.

He is present in all places. And this man, naturally speaking, had an awareness of David's knowledge. How much more the believer. You know, you have a lot of Christians and people around the world that talk about my iPhone. Here's what I say.

Look at all the ads that pop up when I have this conversation. You're more afraid of your iPhone than the Lord. You have more people who who fear Mac than they do fear God Almighty. Yeah. Your your phone can hear you, but you know what's more important?

God can hear you. God can see you. I don't know if that encourages you or what, but encourages me. There's nothing hidden from the king. Then you yourself would have stood aloof.

And look what Joab says. Joab said, I will not waste time like this with you. Like, get out of my face. Who are you to stand up against me? I will not waste time like this with you.

And he took three javelins in his hand and thrust them into the heart of Absalom while he was still alive in the oak. And 10 young men, Joab's armor bearer, surrounded Absalom and struck him and killed him. I feel tension with this verse. And the reason why I feel tension is because I understand where Joab is coming from to some regard. Because Joab knows David enough to realize that he's most likely going to pardon him if we capture him alive, And that's gonna be the end of the kingdom.

That's gonna be end of Joab. And so he realizes David is not in his right place of thinking. And so he steps in, and he takes matters into his own hands, and he eliminates him as a threat forever. But at the same time, he's being disloyal to the king. And this is what I love about the scriptures is that things are not so black and white.

They're complicated, complex because life is complex. It's not it's not black and white as we would like it to be. But there's all these there's all this nuance, and there's all this what ifs, and there's all this, yeah, you could go this way, but you can also go that way. And so we get that impression here. It's very real because it is real.

It's a real story. And so he just makes a decision, and then you wonder what's his motive. Is he fiercely loyal to David? Because he did love David. But remember, we've studied Job enough to know that whenever he's committed murder outside of a warlike scene, it's usually motivated by personal agenda.

Whenever he sees a threat, he eliminates that threat. And remember, Absalom and Joab are not in good terms. What did Absalom do to Joab at one point when he was trying to get his attention and he wasn't answering the phone? He burned his barley field. Right?

Alright. You're not gonna answer your phone? Let me just set this field on fire. And then Joab says, what are you doing? Is Joab upset with Absalom?

Is Joab regretful that he tried to bring Absalom and David together and it failed? We have we have no clear indication. But what is obvious is the irony of all of this. Here is Absalom who became a king as a rebel, and now he is dying at the hands of a rebel. Here is Absalom who when he stayed back, took over the kingdom, listened to the advice of a man named Ahithophel who said, take your father's concubines and violate them on the rooftop.

And how many concubines did David leave behind? 10. The scripture tells specifically that 10 concubines were left behind. How many armor bearers killed Absalom? Yeah.

God's retribution is very precise. Scary, isn't it? You just see how all of this connects, and you see how God's mind is so specific in his dealings with man. You violated 10 concubines? Well, here are ten ten armor bearers who would deal with you accordingly.

So we read on. Joab blew the trumpet, verse 16, and the troops came back from pursuing Israel from Joab for Joab restrained them, and they took Absalom and threw him into a great pit, the forest in the forest and raised over him a very great heap of stones. And all Israel fled everyone to his own home. This reminds us of Joshua again. Right?

Achan rebels against the word of the Lord. It creates this kind of, tension in the camp between them and God unknowingly, but they seek God. God says there's rebellion in the camp. They bring out Achan and his family, and they stone them, and they create this heap of stones as a memorial. And we see the same here with Absalom.

And what's more tragic is that that is the pillar by which people will remember him, but that was not his intention while he was alive. Absalom had a goal for the way he would die. Absalom had a goal for what would happen after he would die, and it's found here in verse 18. Now Absalom in his lifetime had taken and set up for himself the pillar that is in the King's Valley for he said, I have no son to keep my name in remembrance. He called the pillar after his own name, and it is called Absalom's monument to this day.

That's how he wanted to be remembered. He wanted to be seen as royalty even after his death, and instead, he's buried underneath a pillar of rocks in the depths of some forest. There are men who prefer to live in obscurity. They don't care about recognition. They just wanna they just wanna live a normal life, provide food for their family, do some, you know, fun activities, go on vacation, and just and just be buried peaceably and just move on.

Right? And that's I get that. But there are other people who wanna live for a legacy. They wanna be remembered for an accomplishment or some kind of honorable deed or a way of life that will be praised by others. People people organize their lives for that very goal.

And that could be right, and then it also be dangerous. Right? It just depends what your ultimate motive is. And this man had that. He wanted a legacy.

He wanted people to I mean his pride was so overwhelming that he wanted people talking about him even though he wasn't around to be talked about. And so he sets up a monument for yourself. Hint, you don't set up monuments for yourself. You let other peoples build a monument for you. Right?

You don't do this unless you are totally consumed with love for self, and that is true for him. And it's as though the sign off on Absalom's life is for us to reflect on all that has just taken place because of this main reason. He was a man filled with pride, and God brought down his pride. At the same time, God does encourage us to seek after, or at least motivates us to live in a certain way with a reward of honor. But it's not a pillar found in this life.

It's not a memorial here. People wanna be remembered in history books. People want, their names to be found in museums, and God wants us to look beyond this world and whatever platform or stage is presented to you as a goal in life. And Jesus tells one church, and that one church represents the church at large. He tells this church of what will come to them, what they can expect if they are but conquerors in this life.

And I wanna end there with you. It's in Revelation chapter three. In Revelation chapter three, he says in verse 12 to the church in Philadelphia, the one who conquers, I will make him a pillar in the temple of my God. Never shall he go out of it, and I will write on him the way you would inscribe on a pillar. I will write on him the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, the New Jerusalem, which comes down from my God out of heaven, and my own new name.

You wanna build a pillar for yourself. Let it be found in the temple of God for all of eternity. This is what he tells these believers. If you're gonna strive after any kind of honor in this life, let it be for the one that will really matter at the end of it all. I will set you up as a pillar.

That speaks of permanence, and that speaks of stability. Yes. But it also speaks about the honor that would be shown in ancient times where names would be inscribed on pillars in certain places. What the Lord says is, there is a level of honor that awaits you in my very presence. If you do but one simple thing, and that's be a conqueror.

If you wanna know what a conqueror is, just look at the rest of the churches and what the Lord asks of them. It's very simple. It's to keep his word, to stand by his word, to never deny his word. That's all the Lord asks of us. And that pillar awaits you.

Let your name be forgotten. Let people remember you no more. But strive and be motivated by this, that there is an eternal commendation that awaits you, believer. I know it's hard to see it now. I know it's hard to feel the force of that because you are so distracted by your senses, but take it by faith that God will crown and adorn and bestow praise on those that don't have the viral sermons on YouTube, that are not sought after conference speakers, that don't have worship teams and Dove Awards, that are obscure, unrecognized, tucked in some corner of some hut somewhere, disc discipling a church of 12 in a very unforgiving part of the world.

And yet though no one will acknowledge them, there is a pillar waiting for some of them. Our God is amazing. And oh, I wish that Absalom would have lived for that pillar instead of making his own. Oh, I wish that his future would be different because here he has this pillar waiting for him, but he is banished for all of eternity. What does it matter what you accumulate in this life if it'll all perish?

And it will perish. And so we see the end of this man's Absalom. His presence, his plans, they all have come to a halt, but that doesn't mean David's story is over just yet. That doesn't mean David's troubles are over just yet. We still have the rest of 18 and the rest of this book to discover together.

Let's pray. Lord, help us be good soldiers. Help us be like David who learned from his mistakes. Help us not to dwell on the past, but believe that you care about what we do with our todays and our tomorrows. And so for lord for those lord who have committed grievous sin, shameful sin, may they be comforted by the fact that you have through repentance, you have taken that sin, thrown into the sea of forgetfulness, and you do not bring it back to us again.

Help us be strengthened that there are new mercies for us every morning. And so, Lord, we will not be discouraged by even long seasons of perhaps lukewarmness or disobedience. We will realize and believe that how we end is what really matters. Lord, help us be like this unnamed fellow who is absolutely energized and strengthened by one thing, what the king has said. Never mind leaders who represent the king.

Never mind what the crowds do in the name of the king or against the king that they claim to represent. Lord, help us live under your presence every step of the way. If there is anything that we are inclined to boast in, lord, our wealth, our strength, our appearance, our accomplishments, our spiritual disciplines, Lord, we pray that you would teach us how to give glory to you in all things. Help us acknowledge you for every ounce of goodness we enjoy or people love us for. And, Lord, help us to do what is right even when it is hard.

Help us to stand for the truth in gentleness, yes, but not in a compromising way. Even if it deals with family, even if it deals with friends, friends that we've known for years, help us stand for the truth because you are worthy of that honor. And you told us that the cost of discipleship means that we must forsake our love for wives, husbands, children, because you are worthy of that kind of devotion. Lord in this place, may the hearts of your people, the soldiers of Jesus Christ who are present, who are watching, may they feel your favor. And may they realize that through this trek and through this battle, it will be difficult.

But you have a reward for those who will conquer. Help us be conquerors in this life. Help us more and more to have our mindset on things above. Help us, oh lord, overcome all the flares and all the temptations and all the allurements of this world. Lord, it's becoming easier to do that by seeing all the corruption and the filth, but lord, we are still susceptible to falling and to medicating our pain through sin.

So keep us strong. Lord, as we sing now in closing, be blessed. And as we part ways, oh lord, though not in the presence of our elders, though not in the presence of other believers, may we be again like this man who simply had the word of the king, and that was enough to govern him. Oh, may the word have such authority over us in all things, in all ways, at all times. We bless you, Lord.

We bow our hearts before you, and we praise you for the word, which is eternal life. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.