Reading: 2 Samuel 19-21, Psalm 92
The great unwinding from the high point of the kingdom of Israel continues today. David has had some good moments in his recovery of the throne from his son Absalom, but in the process we will see he has become surrounded by some very dangerous and bloodthirsty men, as well as created rifts in the tribes of Israel that will eventually rise to full blown revolution and a splintering of the nation into two major kingdoms and several independent groups.
Today we reach the end of David’s major story line. We will not see his death and the ascendance of his son to the throne until the first chapters of the book of Kings, but this is the end of David’s activity. Beginning in chapter 21 and continuing to the end of 2 Samuel, there is a kind of coda of the reign of David written in a particular Hebrew style that emphasizes the center of the story, sort of like the Day of Atonement sitting at the middle of Leviticus. The events in chapters 21-24 are not set in chronological order with the rest of the book of Samuel, and because they are very much one literary unit, I am going to deal with them all together tomorrow.
We left David wailing for his son Absalom on the other side of the Jordan following the victory over his rebellious son. While this might be expected of any man whose son has just died, as we have been reminded several times by in our story, David is not any man. He is the anointed one of Israel. His attitudes and actions affect all of the people. David’s loyal servants, who have just risked death in battle for him, instead of celebrating victory are stealing into the city in shame. Meanwhile the rest of the people have gone home, and are arguing about whether bringing David back as king is even a good idea. Joab, realizing that this will not end well, confronts David’s inaction.
Joab is an interesting character in the story of David. He is David’s nephew and easily his most loyal and capable servant. He is a brilliant on the battlefield, leading the assault on Jerusalem and most of David’s other campaigns. He is no less adept at the royal court, manipulating events during the story of Absalom and here. On the other hand, he is bloodthirsty, disobedient, and will brook no rivals, as we saw in his murder of Abner. We will see that he is not done killing his rivals, and will by the end of our story be the most powerful man in the kingdom.
Roused by Joab’s rather extensive accusations, David goes out to greet the people in what is basically a victory session. Then he sends out a message to the elders of Judah and to Amasa, another of his nephews who had led the army of Absalom. Pay attention to what he does here. David is favoring his own family and tribe by calling them to Gilgal, the place where Joshua had led the people over the Jordan and where Samuel declared Saul king. David is using Gilgal as his place of return deliberately, but unlike Joshua and Samuel, he calls only the tribe of Judah, who he knows he can trust. He also tells Amasa he will command the army in the place of Joab, which will not end well for Amasa.
While David is at Gilgal confirming his kingship, several of those people who had part in the rebellion of Absalom show up to beg forgiveness, all of whom have connections with the family of Saul. Shimei, who cursed David as he fled from Absalom, Ziba the servant of Saul, and Mephibosheth the son of Jonathan. In all three cases David chooses to be magnanimous, though he has reason to be angry at at least two of the three and perhaps all of them, depending on how honest you think Mephibosheth is being. In either case, what is revealed is David’s great annoyance with Joab and Abishai and his determination to reduce their influence. There is one more audience with an elderly man who sheltered David in the wilderness, who asks that David deal kindly with his son rather than him, as he is too old to enjoy and rewards. With this wrapped up, David proceeds towards Jerusalem to take up again his throne.
But hold on, there is a problem. The people of the northern tribes express displeasure at not being called to Gilgal for the king’s restoration. The men of Judah do not handle the situation well, telling off the men of the northern tribes with “fierce words” which prompt one of the men, Sheba, to launch yet another rebellion, this time centered on the northern tribes. David arrives back in Jerusalem with the men of Judah and sets about putting things back in order. There is a line about the ten concubines that Absalom violated that sounds rather harsh but is actually set in contrast to the actions of Absalom- they are now theoretically of the house of Absalom, but David keeps and provides for them anyway. Then David turns to dealing with the threat of Sheba.
David has Amasa gather the army, but Amasa is no Joab. Seeing the delay, David turns to Abishai, notably not Joab, to pursue Sheba. However, we are told it is Joab’s men who go out. They know who they are really following. When Amasa catches up to them, Joab straight up murders him under the guise of friendship. There is no excuse about justice for a brother, as with Abner. Then he has a man stand over Amasa’s body and have the men declare loyalty to Joab as they pass by. He goes on and lays siege to Abel, where Sheba is with his army. But there is no battle. The leaders of the city send a “wise woman” to speak with Joab. It is probable that this “wise woman” was a sort of prophetess in the tradition of Deborah, dispensing judgment and wise words to the rulers of the city. Anyway, this woman speaks of the tradition of her city as a center of wisdom and provision for the surrounding countryside, and challenges Joab’s bloodthirstiness in assaulting it. Joab agrees to spare the city if they will kill the rebel, Sheba. She agrees, and Joab ends this little rebellion without a fight, disperses the army and goes back to Jerusalem.
The end of our narrative is a second list of David’s court officials. Compare it with the one in 2 Samuel 8. Notably absent is the preeminence of David himself as the dispenser of justice. Instead, the list is headed by Joab as commander of all the armies. There is also a minister of forced labor, which did not exist previously. Finally, David’s sons are no longer are serving as “priests,” which is not surprising given their activities over the last seven chapters. The closing narrative of David’s kingship leaves the people of Israel with unresolved tensions between tribes, a murderous general as the most powerful man in the kingdom, and the beginning of forced labor within Israel. It is not the great kingdom of the anointed one for which the book of Samuel hoped.