2 Samuel 19:8-10
Verse 8 So the king got up and took his seat in the gateway. When the men were told, “The king is sitting in the gateway,” they all came before him. Meanwhile, the Israelites had fled to their homes.
No matter how out of line Joab had been in his scolding of the king, the king responded as Joab had desired. The king stopped crying and went down to sit in the gate. Remember Absalom had sat in a gate trying to turn people against his dad and now in his moment of grief the king takes a similar place and tries to win his men back.
Word got out the king had come out of his mourning and was sitting in the gate and all the men came out to him. Did you catch that? ALL the men came to him. David had lost a son but could see he was still loved by those with him. His son may have deserted him but his men were still as loyal as ever. Imagine the king sitting there mulling over what Joab had said and seeing the men coming out one by one and walking straight to him.
Both David and his men were finding their spirits lifted by this sharing of support. The men were seeing the support of the king and the king was seeing his men truly cared about him. Many of them had likely heard the command not to hurt the prince and knew some in their ranks hadn’t obeyed orders which had caused the grief the king was experiencing and David couldn’t help but know the blood of his son was not on every hand of these men. Only a few were responsible for the murder of his son, the whole army didn’t deserve his disappointment.
There was another army and portion of the nation who were having their own grief and confusion of how to respond to the news of Absalom’s death. They had chosen David’s son as their king and were behind him all the way, when news came of his being killed and the troops started arriving home defeated, the people of Jerusalem had to take a hard look at what they really wanted. By choosing to follow Absalom they had turned their backs on King David. The people in Jerusalem were now having to decide, if they wanted David back as king or were they going to further shun him. They also needed to find out if he would even consider continuing on as their king after what they had part in doing to him. This would be a true test of character for the king and the people.
Making It Personal
When have you had to reconnect with someone after an uncomfortable time? Did it take prompting from a third party? Who do you need to take steps to reconcile with today?
Making It Personal Kids
Have you ever had to talk with a friend after a hard time with them? What makes reconnecting easier? Do you need to tell someone you are sorry for how you treated them?
Closing Prayer
Father, thank You for taking the steps to reconcile with us through Jesus’ coming and dying for us. Give us wisdom in which steps to take to reconcile with those we are disconnected from. In Jesus’ name, amen.
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