1. He was deeply moral and when His sister Tamar was violated by his half brother, he harbored her in his home, and sought for justice. Tamar would never become a proper bride; her life was ruined by the folly of Amnon. David's inaction (he did nothing in two years) caused Absalom to recognize the "peripheralness" of his existence. II Samuel 13:21, 23.
   
   
2. Absalom asserted himself as a man of justice. Amnon must pay the Biblical price for his lust. Absalom executed Amnon, thus avenging his sister. Absalom's righteous cause prompted him to flee the king's wrath. David's "informatives" simultaneously wrongly relayed that all the kings' sons were killed by Absalom.
   
   
3. Absalom fled to Geshur "and David mourned for Amnon every day."
   
   After three years, "David longed to go to Absalom. For he had been comforted concerning Amnon, because he was dead. II Samuel 13:39."
   
   No attempt was made to bring Absalom home. He was banished at the hand of "good intentions." Not until Joab (David's General) concocted a legal intrusion did Absalom return. The widow of Tekoa presented a case before David using a feigned matter of injustice. It gave her opportunity to speak in Absalom's behalf. It is her words which bear heavy scrutiny at the end of this study.
   
   
4. Absalom is fetched from Geshur and returned to Jerusalem under no reconciling hand.
   
   II Samuel 14:24
   And the king said, "Let him return to his own house, but do not let him see my face. So Absalom returned to his own house, but did not see the king's face."
   
   A huge question looms over this passage. Was David being more king than father? Would the immediate reception of Absalom have shown favor in the face of Solomon? These things are not known, but a high price was exacted of David and Absalom for this failure. "Letting Absalom stew in his own juices," revealed the paternal failure in playing "hide and seek" instead of "humble and seek."
   
   
5. Absalom was a man of tenderness, which was born out by naming his daughter "Tamar," thus restoring a virgin daughter to Israel. His tenderness turned to rebellion as the relationship with father further deteriorated.
   
   II Samuel 14:28 said, "Absalom dwelt two full years in Jerusalem, but did not see the king's face."
   
   How much rejection can one son bear?
   
   He lived in the same town, read the same newspapers, went to the same place of worship and never had a reception. He sought out the man of influence who had caused his return and twice Joab ignored him. He finally did get Joab's attention (II Samuel 14:39).
   
   What did he receive for this great desire to have terms with the king? He got an audience with the king. He bowed like any servant and the king kissed him. No prodigal's reward for Absalom-- just more distance underscored in the inner chamber.
   
   His was the route of modern sons; he learned all his father's tricks, but never knew his devotion. He observed the sin of his father but was not privy to the repentance. He envied his father's position but never understood his father's responsibilities and obligations. Thus began a generational gap which would never be bridged. At the beginning, he never really wanted his father's throne, just his father's home.
   
   
6. Absalom lived under "intimate banishment" for forty years.
   
   "And after forty years ...Absalom said to the king, "Please let me go to Hebron and pay the vow which I vowed to the Lord."

• He attacked his father.
• He formed an army of the nation's dissidents
• He raped his father's concubines, violating them so they could never be with the King again, an act of tyranny, in line with the prophetic curse on David.
• He died in battle as the result of Joab's command and the poor counsel of one who could have saved him.

1. Since it was broadcast live over a local radio station and because it covered one and half hours, the station eclipsed the noon news and continued to 2 pm Sunday carrying the entire sermon and all that happened after.
   
   
2. A church melted before the Spirit of God and young men in long hair and baggy attire were seen being embraced by weeping fathers and mothers. Girls were showered with kisses and hearts were rendered in such an array of emotion that aisles were filled with tears and bodies as hundreds made their way to the altar to pray and seek God.
   
   
3. The phones were lit in the church office and staff was busied counseling those who had heard the broadcast and sought the church's help. It ended somewhere around 5:15 p.m.
   
   
4. I was contacted about midweek by the pastor who told me, "You will never speak in this church again; you have totally disrupted my congregation. You will never speak in this association, and I will personally see to it." He later resigned to become the head man of that Baptist association.
   
   Today, instead of several thousand on Sunday, barely thirty persons attend. Instead of a hundred voice choir and a mighty witness, the legacy of Gail Borden lays in ruins. The message on the exterior of the building which read, "Neither is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name among men whereby we must be saved," has been painted over.

1. II Samuel 17: 14
   
   "For the Lord had purposed to defeat the good counsel of Ahithophel, to the intent that the Lord might bring disaster on Absalom."
   
   All the injustice of David did not excuse Absalom. With the sin comes the judgment. The word "purposed" is an interesting seal.[1] Grown men ARE responsible for the counsel they listen to and the choice of their paths.
   
   
2. II Samuel 14:14
   
   "God does not take away a life; but He devises means, so that His banished ones are not expelled from Him."
   
   (Banished also is an interesting study. [2] If one will do an Englishman's study and check every reference in the Bible that uses this word, many truths will come to light.)

Until Next month,

Dr. Cosby R. Oliver, PhD.