2 Samuel 13:1-22
Verse 21 When King David heard all this, he was furious.
This is a story which most of us would rather just skip over but it tells us some about David’s role as a father. He had been so busy with his own life it appears his children were missing the character building expected of royalty. These actions were not revealing a refinement that would go well with regal apparel. They had not received the proper upbringing that was required of God’s people.
One of the reasons for lack of proper upbringing was because David hadn’t followed God’s commands about marriage. His oldest son, Amnon, was from a wife gained from one of the surrounding nations. She may have been the daughter of a regional king and given as a peace token but by taking her as his wife, David opened the door for his offspring from her to be raised under the influence of false gods and ungodly regulations. David was setting himself and his family up for troubles.
David had also failed to be a good example of what a godly husband and man looked like as he had continued to take wives for himself including his newest wife, Bathsheba. It wasn’t like David’s older children were still youngsters who may miss the various indiscretions of their father, they were young adults and would not have missed the way their dad treated his wives and other women who caught his eye. David was not a chaste man.
It is this lack of proper rearing and poor example which led to the horribly shameful event in today’s reading. David didn’t even know his son well enough to know he was faking being ill. The king was so detached from his children that even his nephew knew how to pull one over on him. The scheme devised by his brother’s son was to not only get his cousin the girl he wanted but also to get the king involved in the whole matter. It may have worked just as well if Amnon sent for Tamar himself but he wanted to make sure his cousin got what he wanted and the king could make it happen.
Though he had a hand in his daughter being harmed the king became furious. But who was he angry at? If he was angry at his nephew the king would have to admit that he had been played by the younger generation. If he was angry at his son he would again have to admit that he had allowed himself to be duped. No matter who he was angry at, he did nothing about it. Given an opportunity to defend his daughter’s honor by punishing his oldest son, the king instead does nothing.
Making It Personal
Have you ever wished someone would stand up and defend you? Have you ever stood for someone who had been wronged? Who needs defending today?
Making It Personal Kids
How close do you watch how your mom and dad act? Do they act like Jesus? How important is it to follow mom and dad’s example as they follow Jesus’ example?
Closing Prayer
Father, we don’t like to think about these types of things happening but we know they do. Give us wisdom to know who needs us to stand up for them so we can show them the love You show us. In Jesus’ name, amen.