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2 Samuel 18:1-18:33 Priorities Shape Us

Wakefien — Mon, 28 Sep 2026 18:29:42 GMT

Created page with "= Title: Priorities Shape Us = Big Idea: What you make a **priority** will **shape** your actions, your relationships, and the way you respond to God’s purposes. God’s pla..."

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= Title: Priorities Shape Us =
Big Idea: What you make a **priority** will **shape** your actions, your relationships, and the way you respond to God’s purposes. God’s plan will come to fruition, but your priorities will determine how you **interact** with His will as it unfolds.
Christ Focus: Following Christ is more than giving Him lip service. Jesus calls us to **reorder our lives around Him** — to make Him our **highest priority** and allow that priority to **shape everything else**.
Application: Examine your priorities and ask God to reveal where your life needs to be **refocused around Him**.

= Introduction =
== Image: Snacks are a Priority ==
When Emily and I travel, we make **food a priority**. Seriously, when we traveled to China, we packed an **entire suitcase of snacks**. Alaska, you guessed it, a suitcase of snacks. Montana, the **first stop before the hotel** was Walmart to buy snacks. When we go on a trip, you can **bet on two things**: I will pack enough clothes to change a couple of times a day (because I have my own problems), and we will have a **boatload of snacks**. Why? Because snacks **really matter to us**, and so we make them a **point of emphasis**. Anyone who spends much time with us knows that we **really care about snacks**.

We all have priorities, whether we **realize it or not**. What we **value most** eventually shows up in the way we spend our time, make decisions, use our resources, and relate to other people.

The problem is that we can *say* Christ is our priority while our lives reveal something **very different**. We may say that we trust God while prioritizing **control**. We may say that family matters while prioritizing **success**. We may say that holiness matters while prioritizing **comfort**.

== Need: We Often Prioritize Things Over Christ, but Our Priorities Will Affect How We Intersect with God's Plan. ==

2 Samuel 18 gives us a **sobering picture** of what happens when our **priorities collide with God's purposes**. David desperately wants Absalom to live. Others are focused on defeating Absalom. Absalom is focused on preserving himself and his position. And behind all of it, God is **accomplishing His purposes**.
Our priorities do not determine whether God’s plan succeeds. They determine **how we live within God’s plan**.

== Preview: In This Passage, We Will See Three Things About Our Priorities: ==
* **Revelation** — Our priorities are revealed by what we do.
* **Results** — Our priorities produce consequences we cannot always control.
* **Recognition** — Our priorities shape how we see and experience the world.

== Text: 2 Samuel 18:1-18:33 (Read With Each Main Point) ==
== Setting the Stage: ==
David has **fled Jerusalem** because of Absalom’s rebellion. Absalom has now gathered an army and is pursuing his father. The battle is coming, but David’s heart is **divided**. He wants victory for his kingdom, but he desperately wants **mercy for his son**.

That **tension** becomes the heart of this chapter.

= Body =
== **Revelation** — Your Priorities Are Revealed by What You Do (18:1-9). ==
=== The way you delegate tasks reveals your priorities (18:1-4). ===

David organizes his army into three divisions under Joab, Abishai, and Ittai. He wants to go into battle with them, but the people **refuse**.
If we simply read verses 1–4, we might conclude that David is making some **very good decisions**. He is organizing his army under capable commanders, dividing his forces strategically, and expressing a willingness to go out with his men rather than sit safely behind the lines.

And David’s men reveal something about **their priorities** as well. They are deeply concerned about **protecting their king**. They tell David, “You shall not go out. For if we flee, they will not care about us. Or if half of us die, they will not care about us. But **you are worth ten thousand of us**.” Their willingness to risk their own lives for David demonstrates how **highly they value him**.

So even in these opening verses, priorities are **already becoming visible**.

Even the way we organize our lives reveals what we value. What gets our time? What gets our attention? What gets protected? What are we willing to
sacrifice? Our priorities eventually become **visible in what we do**.

So far, everything looks fairly reasonable.

But then David says something that brings a **potential problem into the light**.

=== The instructions you emphasize reveal your priorities (18:5). ===

David gives his commanders a **very specific command**: “Deal **gently**, for my sake, with the young man Absalom.”

Notice what David **emphasizes**. The battle is important, but **Absalom is his priority**.

I want you to understand something about the situation. David has a **significant number of people** with him. The Hebrew word אֶ֫לֶף (eleph), translated “thousand,” can refer to a thousand, but it can also refer to a clan or military unit. So we should be cautious about imagining David standing there with a precisely numbered army of thousands of individual soldiers. Whatever the exact number, the point is clear: there are **a lot of people with David**, and these people are about to **risk their lives for him**.

Think about the situation.

These men have remained loyal to David while his own son has rebelled against him. They have followed David into exile. They have gathered together to **fight for their king**. And just moments earlier, they essentially told David, “You are more valuable than all of us. Stay here and protect yourself.”
And after all of that, David’s **primary instruction** is:

“Make sure you **don't hurt Absalom**.”

Are you kidding me?

Anyone who has ever received even basic security or tactical training understands the problem here. It is **difficult to win a battle** when you have specifically taken the enemy commander **off the table** as a legitimate target.

David is asking his soldiers to fight a rebellion while simultaneously **protecting the man leading the rebellion**.

It is an **extraordinarily difficult command**.

But it also tells us something **extremely important about David**.

Now we know his **priority**.

David is focused on **protecting his rebellious son**.

And this is where we need to be careful. David’s love for Absalom is **not itself wrong**. A father should love his son. The problem is that David’s priorities have become **disordered**. His concern for Absalom is influencing the way he responds to a rebellion that has brought **enormous danger** upon the kingdom and upon God’s people.

What we **repeatedly emphasize** reveals what matters most to us.

=== Even the things we place our confidence in reveal our priorities (18:6-9). ===

The battle takes place in the forest of Ephraim, and the text tells us that the forest **claims more lives than the sword**. The Hebrew word translated “swallowed up” (in the NIV, from the word for “eat”) normally applies to the sword eating a victim, but here it is **the forest**. That little detail is **significant**. This is not a clean, controlled battle taking place in the streets of a city. The **terrain itself** becomes part of the battle. The fighting is taking place in difficult country, and Israel’s losses are significant.

Then Absalom encounters David’s servants, and his head becomes **caught in the branches of a great oak** while his mule continues on.

There is something almost **ironic** about this scene.

Absalom has spent his life pursuing position, power, and recognition. He has carefully cultivated his appearance, his reputation, and his following. He has **stolen the hearts of the people** and declared himself king.

And now the man who wanted to make a name for himself is **literally hanging helplessly from a tree**.

The very pursuit of his own glory has become **part of his downfall**.

Absalom’s plans, his position, his army, and his own strength cannot ultimately protect him.

He isn’t finally stopped by a superior military strategy. He is **caught by a tree**.

There is a **ton of irony** here. Absalom was obsessed with his hair (at least that is what the narrator implied in 14:25-26), he placed himself on a mule — a **symbol of royalty** — and those two facts come together to **secure his demise**. His hair gets caught, and his mule continues on.

Now, we should not make the mistake of saying that every unusual event in life is a **direct judgment from God**. But in this narrative, the author clearly wants us to see **God’s providence at work**. The rebellion that Absalom has carefully planned is **unraveling**, and even the circumstances of the battlefield are working against him.

Absalom has been fighting against God’s purposes, and **God’s purposes are not going to be defeated**.

This brings us back to priorities.

Absalom’s priority was his **own glory**. David’s priority was **protecting his son**. And God’s priority was **accomplishing His purposes**.

Those priorities are now **colliding**.

=== Action Step: Take an honest inventory of your life. What do your actions reveal about what you actually prioritize? ===

Think about your children for a moment. What do you check on the most? Their homework? Their sports practice? Their grades? Their friendships?
Their devotional life?

There is nothing wrong with caring about any of those things. But which one receives the **greatest attention**? Which one do your children see you **consistently emphasizing**?

What you *say* is important and what your life *demonstrates* is important are **not always the same thing**.

And that is something we need to **examine honestly**, because our priorities don’t just reveal something about us.

They begin to **shape the people watching us**.

And that is where we need to go next.

== **Results** — The Effects of Your Priorities Are Not as Predictable as You Might Expect (18:10-18). ==
=== Your priorities will influence the priorities of others (18:10-12). ===

One of David’s men sees Absalom hanging from the tree and **refuses to kill him** because he remembers David’s command.

David’s priorities have affected the **decisions of those serving under him**.

Take a second and think about this. We have a **fascinating situation** here. The leader of a rebellion is **completely vulnerable**, hanging helplessly from a tree, and yet the soldiers are **afraid to act**. In fact, the man who reports the situation to Joab goes so far as to say that even if Joab had given him a **thousand pieces of silver** on the spot, he still would not have killed Absalom because he knew what David’s priorities were.

Think about the **influence of that**.

David said, “Protect Absalom.”

And his men **heard it**.

They **remembered it**.

And when the opportunity came, it **shaped what they were willing to do**.

This is one of the **sobering realities of leadership**: what matters to you will eventually **matter to the people watching you**.

Your children are watching. Your spouse is watching. Your friends are watching. Your church is watching. The people you lead are watching.

Look, you are **constantly being watched**.

I grew up in a pastor’s home, and at times it felt like living in a fishbowl. You become very aware that people are watching what you do. But the truth is, this isn’t just true for pastors. Your children are watching you. Their friends are watching you. Your friends are watching you. The people you work with are watching you.

And they are **learning from you**.

What do they see you **prioritize**?

What do they see you **get excited about**?

What do they see you **protect**?

What do they see you **sacrifice**?

Your priorities are **teaching people** even when you aren’t trying to teach them.

But let me take this in a slightly **different direction**.

Maybe your priorities are not **completely aligned with God’s priorities**. Maybe there are things that matter deeply to you — things you want, things you value, things you **desperately want to control**.

Well, I have some **bad news**.

=== Your priorities do not guarantee that you will control the outcome (18:13-15). ===

David had done everything he could to **protect Absalom**.

He had announced publicly, so that everyone could hear, that Absalom was **not to be harmed**. The soldier understands the **seriousness of that command**. He knows that killing Absalom could **cost him his own life** because David had specifically ordered his men to deal gently with his son.

But it **doesn’t matter**.

Joab ultimately **kills Absalom**.

Look at this from a few different angles.

David wanted one thing.

Joab wanted another.

Absalom wanted another.

And **none of them gets to control the final outcome**.

David wanted Absalom to live.

Joab wanted the rebellion ended.

Absalom wanted the throne.

But **God’s purposes were going to prevail**.

This is where we need to be careful with our priorities. We often live as though if we prioritize the right things — or simply work hard enough — we can **guarantee the results we want**.

But Scripture repeatedly reminds us that **faithfulness does not equal control**.

You can make wise decisions and still get an **outcome you didn’t want**.

You can love your children faithfully and still watch them make **foolish choices**.

You can work hard and still **fail**.

You can pray faithfully and still receive an **answer you didn’t expect**.

You can do what is right and still experience **painful consequences**.
**Faithfulness is our responsibility**. **Control is not**.

And the more we try to control what belongs to God, the more we discover how **little control we actually have**.

The more we try to control, the more we find ourselves **out of control**.

=== When self-exaltation is your priority, the outcome can become devastating (18:16-18). ===

Verse 18 is fascinating.

Absalom had apparently prepared a **monument for himself** in the King’s Valley. The text tells us that he had no son to preserve his name, so he had erected a pillar and named it after himself.

It seems that Absalom had been thinking about his **legacy**. He wanted his name to be remembered. He wanted his position and accomplishments to outlive him.

And perhaps he imagined that one day he would die and be buried there with honor.

But that is **not what happens**.

Instead of an honorable burial beside his monument, Absalom’s body is **thrown into a pit in the forest** and covered with a **great heap of stones**.

There is a **striking contrast** here.

Absalom built a monument to preserve his name, but his body ends up **underneath a pile of stones**.

There are other examples in Scripture where a heap of stones becomes a **symbol of disgrace** rather than honor. Achan was buried under a heap of stones after his sin brought devastation on Israel at Ai (Joshua 7:26), and the king of Ai was similarly cast into a great heap of stones after his defeat (Joshua 8:29).

The contrast is **powerful**.

Absalom’s priority was his **own name**.

His **own position**.

His **own glory**.

His **own legacy**.

And in the end, the man who spent his life trying to make a name for himself becomes remembered primarily for his **rebellion against his father** and his **failed attempt to seize the throne**.

When **making a name for yourself** becomes your priority, you may end up building the **very legacy you never wanted**.

=== Image: I know someone who intentionally taught their children that money was the most important thing in life. Yet those children eventually became almost completely indifferent to money. ===

There is something important here: you can influence people, but you **cannot control them**.

You can teach your children.

You can model your priorities.

You can lead faithfully.

But you cannot determine what someone else will **ultimately do** with what you have taught them.

Our priorities influence others, but they do not give us **control over others**.

Our priorities influence others, but they do not give us **control over others**.

=== Action Step: Don't make your priority an outcome you want God to give you. Make your priority faithfulness to God, regardless of whether the outcome is what you hoped for. ===

Ask yourself:

Am I prioritizing faithfulness, or am I prioritizing control?

Because those are **not the same thing**.

God has not called us to **control the outcome**.

He has called us to **follow Him faithfully**.

And sometimes faithfulness means **trusting God** even when the outcome is **not what we wanted**.

== **Recognition** — Our Priorities Shape How We See and Experience the World (18:19-33). ==
=== Your priorities may not be the same as the priorities of others (18:19-23). ===

Ahimaaz wants to run and tell David the news. Joab initially tells him **not to go**.

We don’t really know all the reasons Joab doesn’t want Ahimaaz to deliver the news. Perhaps Joab is trying to protect Ahimaaz from David’s anger. Perhaps he knows that a foreigner would be less likely to be recognized and therefore less likely to face consequences. Or perhaps Joab simply understands that Ahimaaz is **not the right person** to deliver this particular message.

Whatever the exact reason, Joab once again demonstrates his tendency to **maneuver and manage situations** to achieve the outcome he wants.

But there is something else worth noticing here.

Different people have **different priorities**, and those priorities influence how they see the **same situation**.

Ahimaaz is thinking about delivering the news.

Joab is thinking about the consequences of delivering the news.

Ahimaaz sees an **opportunity to run**.

Joab sees a **potential problem to manage**.

Two people can look at the same situation and see **completely different things** because their priorities are different.

Eventually, Ahimaaz secures permission to run. He takes off and actually **outruns the Cushite runner** Joab had assigned.

But as he approaches David, we begin to see something even **more important about priorities**.

=== Your priorities will impact what others tell you (18:24-29). ===

David is sitting between the gates, **waiting for news**.

When he sees Ahimaaz approaching, David immediately asks, “Is **all well**?”

And when Ahimaaz arrives, David’s next question is even **more revealing**:

“Is the **young man Absalom safe**?”

David doesn’t primarily care about the battle.

He doesn’t ask how many soldiers were lost.

He doesn’t ask whether the rebellion has been defeated.

He doesn’t ask whether the kingdom is secure.

His **first concern is Absalom**.

“Is the young man Absalom safe?”

The question reveals **what matters most to David**.

Our priorities don’t just affect what we do. They affect what we notice, what questions we ask, and **what answers matter to us**.

Think about that for a moment.

If I tell you about something that happened today, what part of the story are you going to remember? What detail are you going to ask about? What part of the story will cause you to celebrate or become upset?

Often, our questions reveal our priorities **more clearly than our answers do**.

Ahimaaz knows the truth, but he carefully delivers **only part of the information**. He tells David that there has been a great commotion, but when

David presses him about Absalom, Ahimaaz essentially **avoids the question**.

And then the Cushite arrives.

Now David is going to hear the news he has been **waiting for**.

=== Any priority that is not ultimately aligned with God’s priorities will eventually bring grief (18:30-33). ===

When the Cushite arrives, the news is **not what David had hoped to hear**.

Absalom is dead.

And David is **devastated**.

We need to be careful here. David’s grief is **not wrong**. His love for his son was real. A father should grieve the death of his child, even when that child has done terrible things.

But David’s grief also **exposes something deeper**.

His love for Absalom had become **entangled with a priority** that could not ultimately be reconciled with **God’s purposes**.

David wanted Absalom to live.

God had brought an **end to Absalom’s rebellion**.

And when David finally learns that Absalom is dead, he **collapses in grief**.

There is something **deeply human** about David’s response. He is not grieving because Absalom deserved to live. He is grieving because Absalom **was his son**.

But the chapter forces us to wrestle with an **uncomfortable question**:

What happens when something we love becomes **more important to us than what God has commanded**?

Sometimes the thing we prioritize most becomes the very thing that causes us the **greatest grief**.

David’s problem was not that he loved Absalom too much.

His problem was that his love for Absalom had become **disconnected from God’s purposes**.

And that is a **danger for all of us**.

**Good things can become ultimate things**.

Family can become **more important than faithfulness**.

Comfort can become **more important than obedience**.

Success can become **more important than character**.

And even something we genuinely love can become something we are **unwilling to surrender to God**.

=== Image: Lens Tinting ===

Think about wearing a pair of glasses with a particular tint. Everything you look at is filtered through those lenses. You may be looking at the same world as everyone else, but you are seeing it through a **different filter**.

Our priorities work much the same way.

They become a kind of **lens through which we interpret life**.

If my priority is comfort, I will see inconvenience differently than someone whose priority is service.

If my priority is success, I will see failure differently than someone whose priority is faithfulness.

If my priority is control, I will see uncertainty differently than someone whose priority is trusting God.

And if my priority is Christ, I will begin to see everything else through the question, “How does God want me to respond to this?”

=== Action Step: Ask God not simply to bless your priorities, but to change your priorities. ===

The question is not:

“How can I get God to help me accomplish what matters most to me?”

The better question is:

“God, **what matters most to You**, and how can I **reorder my life around that**?”

We don’t need God to become an assistant to our priorities.

We need God to become the **center of our priorities**.

= Conclusion =

The question this chapter leaves us with is not simply, “What are your priorities?”

The more important question is, **“Who determines your priorities?”**

David loved his son. That love was real. But his priorities became **tangled in his desires**, his relationships, and his hopes for the future.

Absalom prioritized his **own glory**, and it destroyed him.

Joab prioritized **victory**, and he was willing to disregard the king’s command to accomplish it.

David prioritized **Absalom**, and when Absalom died, David was **crushed**.

And throughout all of it, **God’s purposes continued to move forward**.

That is why following Christ cannot simply be something we say. Jesus does not call us merely to acknowledge Him. He calls us to **follow Him**.

Christ says, in effect, “Let Me determine what matters most.”

So take some time and **examine your life**.

What gets your **best time**?

What gets your **greatest attention**?

What are you **unwilling to sacrifice**?

What do you think you **cannot live without**?

What do your decisions reveal about **what matters most to you**?

Then ask God to show you where your priorities have **drifted**.

Because what you prioritize will **shape you**.

And ultimately, the goal is not simply to have better priorities.

The goal is to make **Christ our highest priority**, and allow **everything else in our lives to fall into its proper place around Him**.

2 Samuel 16:1-17:23 Wisdom Often Means Stepping Back

Wakefien — Mon, 28 Sep 2026 18:29:16 GMT

Created page with "= Title: Wisdom Often Means Stepping Back = **Big Idea:** True wisdom refuses to seize control, choosing instead to trust God to accomplish His purposes. **Christ Focus:** Jes..."

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= Title: Wisdom Often Means Stepping Back =
**Big Idea:** True wisdom refuses to seize control, choosing instead to trust God to accomplish His purposes.
**Christ Focus:** Jesus is the perfectly wise King who entrusted Himself to the Father’s will rather than seizing power or retaliating against His enemies. Because He trusted the Father completely, we can patiently trust God amidst opposition and uncertainty.
**Application:** Resist the urge to force outcomes through anger, manipulation, or worldly wisdom. Instead, patiently obey God and trust Him to accomplish His purposes in His timing.

= Introduction =
== Setting the Stage: ==
Last week we watched David’s world collapse. Absalom stole the hearts of Israel, declared himself king, and forced David to flee Jerusalem. Rather than plunge the nation into civil war, David willingly left the city, trusting the Lord with the outcome.

As David leaves Jerusalem, he encounters both kindness and hostility. Ziba provides provisions for David’s weary company (16:1–4), while Shimei publicly curses and humiliates the king as he flees (16:5–14). Back in Jerusalem, Absalom seeks counsel from Ahithophel and Hushai concerning how to defeat David (16:15–17:14). Although Ahithophel’s military strategy is nearly flawless, God causes Absalom to reject it. Through Hushai and a network of faithful servants, David receives warning in time to escape across the Jordan (17:15–22). Ahithophel, seeing that his counsel has been rejected, takes his own life (17:23).

On the surface, this passage appears to be about political maneuvering, military strategy, and competing counselors. Beneath the surface, however, it asks a much deeper question:

**Who is truly wise?**
== Need: ==
Every one of us faces situations where we want to take control. We want immediate justice. We want quick solutions. We want to force outcomes in our favor. But God’s wisdom often calls us to do something much harder — to patiently trust Him while He works behind the scenes.

== Preview: ==
This passage shows us three characteristics of genuine wisdom:
- Wisdom waits instead of retaliating.
- Wisdom refuses to trust solely in human solutions.
- Wisdom rests confidently in God’s providence.

== Text: 2 Samuel 16:5–17:23 (selected portions) ==

= Body =
== **Wisdom Waits** — Genuine wisdom leaves room for God to work (16:5–14). ==

=== Wisdom refuses to retaliate simply because it has the power to do so (5-10). ===
David is fleeing for his life; his kingdom is collapsing. Now, as if things couldn’t get worse, a man from Saul’s family comes out to meet him — not with sympathy, but with stones and curses. David has the power to make it stop. This is what makes the moment so significant. David is surrounded by loyal soldiers; all it would take is one command to silence Shimei. Yet, David refuses.

Let’s slow down and look at what is happening.

In verse 5, as David and his group move east of the Mount of Olives, we are introduced to a relative of Saul named Shimei. At this point, we don’t know much about Shimei, other than that he has apparently been holding a deep grudge against David. He comes out and begins throwing stones at David and his men, cursing him.

Now, I don't know about you, but in my opinion, being hit with rocks hurts — even if they are relatively small rocks thrown from a distance.
I was curious about the NIV’s use of the word “pelted” in verse 6, so I looked it up in the Hebrew text. The word is saqal (סקל), and it is frequently used for stoning, including the stoning of someone to death as an act of judgment under the law. This isn’t the picture of someone casually tossing a few pebbles in David’s direction. Shimei is aggressively assaulting David and his men as they pass.

Then we get to his words in verse 7.

Have you ever heard the phrase, “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me”? Most of us know there isn’t a lick of truth in that saying. Words can hurt deeply, and Shimei’s words are particularly cruel, filled with accusations and humiliation.
And notice something else: some of what Shimei says isn’t even true.

He calls David a “murderer” and a “scoundrel.” He claims that David is being punished because he stole Saul’s kingdom. But David didn’t murder Saul, and he didn’t steal the kingdom from Saul. David had repeatedly honored Saul and refused to take his life even when he had the opportunity.
Yet Shimei’s accusations probably still hurt.

Why? Because even though David had gone above and beyond to honor Saul and his family, some still viewed him as the enemy. David is now experiencing the consequences of a rebellion that has turned his own son against him, and amidst that pain, Shimei comes along and pours gasoline on the fire.

My point is this: Shimei is doing everything he can to hurt and humiliate David.
So what is the natural response when someone does everything they can to hurt you?

Enter Abishai.

Abishai responds to the offense almost exactly as I probably would have. David is surrounded by his own troops and special guard. Someone is attacking David, throwing rocks at him, cursing him, and humiliating him. So Abishai essentially says, “Why are we putting up with this? Let me go over there and remove his head.”

Simple. Problem solved.

But David responds with a definitive no.

And I want to take just a moment to recognize the wisdom in David’s decision.

The country is about to enter a civil war, but David is very careful about who his enemy actually is. The conflict is with Absalom and those who have followed Absalom — not with the entire house of Saul.

Yes, David might have been completely justified, politically speaking, in eliminating Shimei. But to do so would have been to attack the wrong enemy. David refuses to allow his anger to expand the conflict beyond what is necessary.

But this is more than political strategy.

=== Wisdom recognizes that God may be accomplishing purposes we cannot yet see (10-11). ===
David acknowledges that even Shimei’s cursing may ultimately serve God’s sovereign purposes. Rather than insisting upon his own rights, David entrusts himself to the Lord.

Look carefully at what David says in verse 10:
> “If he is cursing because the LORD said to him, ‘Curse David,’ who can ask, ‘Why do you do this?’”

David isn’t saying that everything Shimei says is true, nor that Shimei’s behavior is righteous. And he certainly isn’t saying that God approves of Shimei’s sin.

David is recognizing something much deeper: God is sovereign even over this painful moment.

And David understood why.

Shimei was wrong about Saul, but David knew God had already foretold that consequences would come because of his sin with Bathsheba and Uriah.
Go back to 2 Samuel 12:10–11:
> “Now, therefore, the sword will never depart from your house, because you despised me and took the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your own.”
> “Out of your own household I am going to bring calamity on you.”

God had promised that David would experience consequences because of his sin, and now David is living through some of those consequences.

That is why David can say in verse 11:
> “Leave him alone; let him curse, for the LORD has told him to.”

And then David says something remarkable:
“It may be that the LORD will look upon my misery and restore to me his covenant blessing instead of his curse today.”
I want us to sit in that for a moment.

There is no doubt that what was happening to David was painful. There is no doubt that David was being humiliated. There is no doubt that Shimei was taking advantage of David’s circumstances.

And yet David refuses to seize control.

Why?

Because David knows that God is still God even when David doesn't understand what God is doing.
David doesn’t know what God will do next: He doesn’t know whether God will judge Shimei, restore his kingdom, or even whether he will survive the rebellion.

But he knows God.
And that is enough.

I have to admit that I have a rebellious, anti-authoritarian streak in me, and my natural reaction is to take justice into my own hands. When someone treats me unfairly, I want to correct the record. When someone hurts me, I want them to know they hurt me. When someone does something wrong, I want to fix it.

But David reminds us that there are moments when the wisest thing we can do is nothing — not because the wrong doesn’t matter, and not because justice doesn’t matter, but because God is at work in ways we cannot see.

When I insist on taking control, I may actually get in the way of what God is doing.

And it may be that God is not only working on the situation around me; He may be working on me.

Sometimes the person I most want God to change is the very situation God is using to change me.

=== Waiting on God often requires humility and self-control (10-14). ===
Patience is not weakness. It is the strength to trust God’s timing rather than demanding our own.

If I were to pick out one phrase from this passage, it might be David’s statement:
> “It may be that the LORD will look upon my misery and restore to me his covenant blessing instead of his curse today.”

Think about the faith behind that statement.

David’s world is falling apart. His son has rebelled against him, his kingdom taken, his enemies pursuing him. A man is throwing rocks and cursing him.

Yet, David’s response is not, “How dare you?” His response is, “It may be that the LORD will...”
David doesn’t know what God is going to do.
But David knows who God is.
And that is wisdom.

David’s confidence isn’t ultimately in his ability to control the situation. His confidence is in the character of God.

Psalm 86 is not specifically connected to this event — we don’t know when it was written — but it gives us a beautiful picture of David’s heart and his understanding of God. Listen to how David describes his relationship with the Lord:
> “Hear me, LORD, and answer me,
> for I am poor and needy.
> Guard my life, for I am faithful to you;
> save your servant who trusts in you.
> You are my God; have mercy on me, LORD,
> for I call to you all day long.”

Then in verse 5:
> “You, LORD, are forgiving and good,
> abounding in love to all who call to you.”

And in verse 11:
> “Teach me your way, LORD,
> that I may rely on your faithfulness;
> give me an undivided heart,
> that I may fear your name.”

And then verse 15:
> “But you, LORD, are a compassionate and gracious God,
> slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness.”

That is the kind of God David is trusting.
David is not simply saying, “I’ll try to be patient.”

He is saying, “I know the God who is sovereign over this situation. I know He is compassionate. I know He is gracious. I know He is faithful. Therefore, I don’t have to take control.”

That is what makes David’s response so remarkable.

=== Action Step: Where are you tempted to “fix” a situation through anger, revenge, or control instead of patiently trusting God? ===

I am going to be blunt here: I think most of us strategize, manipulate, and try to control far too much. We want to control what people think, how they respond, and how our circumstances turn out. But sometimes wisdom means stepping back and trusting that God sees what we cannot see and is doing what we cannot do. Waiting on God does not mean doing nothing; it means refusing to take control of what belongs in God’s hands while faithfully doing what He has called us to do.

== **Wisdom Rejects Mere Human Solutions** — Human wisdom cannot accomplish what only God can do (16:15–17:14). ==

=== Human wisdom can appear remarkably effective (15-23). ===
I have had the opportunity to work with some truly intelligent people in my life. Indeed, there are many brilliant individuals in the world.
When I was in graduate school, my first Number Theory professor was an Englishman at the top of his field. Every day he would walk into class with no notes, write on the board for fifty minutes, and then leave. The next day he would walk in and pick up exactly where he left off. When we asked him questions, he would remind us of something he assumed we had learned in eighth grade — something that was itself far more complex than anything I had ever seen.

The man was mathematically brilliant, even if he sometimes struggled to understand his students.
Absalom had a brilliant strategist of his own. His name was Ahithophel, and Scripture says that his advice was regarded as if someone were receiving an oracle from God.

That is a remarkable statement.

Ahithophel wasn’t a fool. His advice was intelligent, calculated, and strategically effective.

His first piece of advice was for Absalom to publicly take possession of David’s concubines. This was far more than an act of personal immorality. It was a public declaration that Absalom had taken David’s place. Everything that belonged to David now belonged to Absalom — from the most public aspects of kingship to the most intimate.

And it was a point of no return.

Absalom had not simply rebelled against his father; he had publicly declared himself to be David’s replacement.

From a human perspective, Ahithophel’s advice was effective. It strengthened Absalom’s claim to the throne and made reconciliation with David virtually impossible.

=== Human wisdom often measures success without considering God’s will (1-4). ===

Then Ahithophel gives Absalom his second piece of advice: pursue David immediately while he is exhausted, vulnerable, and disorganized.

The strategy is brilliant.

David has just fled Jerusalem. His forces are scattered. His supporters are exhausted. If Absalom attacks immediately, Ahithophel believes he can kill David before David has time to regroup.

Absalom likes the plan, and the elders of Israel like the plan.

Why wouldn’t they?

It makes sense.

And that is exactly the problem.

There is nothing inherently wrong with strategy. There is nothing wrong with thinking carefully, gathering information, or making a good plan. The problem is that throughout this entire conversation, there is no mention of seeking God.

They are asking, “What is the best way to accomplish our goal?”

They are not asking, “What does God want?”

And those are not the same question.

This is the point I want us to understand: human wisdom can be remarkably good at answering the wrong question.
Ahithophel knows how to defeat David. He doesn’t know whether God intends David to be defeated.

And neither do we.

We can have a well-reasoned plan, good information, experienced advisors, and a strategy that makes perfect sense — and still be moving in the wrong direction.

We need God’s wisdom, not merely human wisdom.

=== God can overturn even the best human plans (5-14). ===

Then something remarkable happens.

Absalom asks Hushai for his counsel.

Hushai is secretly loyal to David, and he gives Absalom a completely different strategy. Instead of immediately attacking David, Hushai tells Absalom to gather a massive army and personally lead them into battle.

Strategically, Hushai’s plan is actually worse.

It gives David time to escape.

It gives David time to regroup.

It gives David time to strengthen his position.

And yet Absalom chooses Hushai’s plan over Ahithophel’s.

Why?

Verse 14 gives us the answer:
> “For the LORD had ordained to frustrate the good advice of Ahithophel in order to bring disaster on Absalom.”

Don’t miss that.

Ahithophel’s advice was good advice.

The problem wasn’t that Ahithophel suddenly became stupid.

God simply determined that his good advice would not accomplish its intended purpose.

That is the point of this entire section. We can talk about strategy and political maneuvering, but underneath all of it is a much greater reality:

God is sovereign over human wisdom.

The wisest person in the room can still be wrong.

The most carefully constructed plan can still fail.

And sometimes God will frustrate a perfectly reasonable plan because He is accomplishing something we cannot see.

=== Image: Some of history’s greatest failures came when intelligent people mistook their limited understanding for complete understanding — and forgot that God sees what they cannot. ===

Some of history’s greatest failures have occurred when intelligent people acted on information that proved incomplete.
In 1781, British General Cornwallis found himself trapped at Yorktown with Washington’s American army and French forces closing in around him. Cornwallis believed British relief forces would arrive, and based on the information available to him, remaining at Yorktown made sense.

But the relief never came.

The French fleet controlled the Chesapeake, Washington’s army completed the siege, and on October 19 Cornwallis surrendered.
Cornwallis wasn’t unintelligent. He simply couldn’t see everything that was happening.

He could see his army.

He could see Washington’s army.

He could assess his defenses.

He could make reasonable calculations.

But he couldn’t see what was happening beyond his field of vision.

And that is us.

We can gather information, seek advice, make careful plans, and use everything we know — and still not know everything that matters.

We are intelligent, but we are not omniscient.

God sees what we cannot see.

Proverbs 16:9 says:
> “The heart of man plans his way, but the LORD establishes his steps.”

The question isn’t whether we should make plans.

The question is whether we are wise enough to recognize that our plans are always limited by what we cannot see.

=== Action Step: Ask yourself, “Is my decision shaped primarily by God’s Word or simply by what seems most practical?” ===

Before you make a decision, don't just ask, “What makes the most sense?”

Ask, “What does God say?”

Don’t merely seek the advice of people who are intelligent. Seek people who are wise enough to submit their intelligence to God.

And don’t confuse a plan that works with a plan that is right.

Sometimes the most practical decision is not the most faithful decision.

Human wisdom asks, “What can I accomplish?” God’s wisdom asks, “What is God calling me to do?”
---
== **Wisdom Trusts God’s Providence** — God’s purposes cannot be defeated (17:14–23). ==

=== God accomplishes His purposes through ordinary people and ordinary events (14-17). ===
Hushai, Jonathan, Ahimaaz, a servant girl, a woman with a well, and countless unnamed people all become instruments in God’s plan.
Think about this for a moment. Two young priests who probably seemed relatively insignificant are positioned to carry information to David that will ultimately save his life. I doubt Jonathan and Ahimaaz woke up that morning thinking, “Today God is going to use us to preserve the king.”
And what about the woman with the well?

I doubt she ever imagined that the ordinary well in her backyard would one day become part of the story of how God preserved David’s life.
The text almost reads like a spy movie. There are secret messages, messengers, hidden information, a servant girl carrying a warning, and people hiding in a well while enemies search for them.

But unlike a spy movie, we already know the outcome.

Why?

Because God has determined to frustrate Ahithophel’s counsel and preserve David.

And notice how God does it.

He doesn’t send an angel.

He doesn’t perform some spectacular miracle.

He simply uses ordinary people doing ordinary things at exactly the right time.

That’s an important reminder about God’s providence.

God doesn’t have to use extraordinary people to accomplish extraordinary purposes.

The two priests matter.

The servant girl matters.

The woman with the well matters.

The people who carry messages matter.

Even the seemingly insignificant details matter.

We often look for the big moments where God is obviously at work, but Scripture repeatedly reminds us that God is just as sovereign over the small details as He is over the dramatic ones.

The best spy movies have a twist where the person we thought didn’t matter turns out to be the linchpin.

In God’s providence, there are no insignificant people.

God is sovereign enough to use anyone and anything He chooses to accomplish His purposes.

=== God’s providence quietly overrules human schemes (17-22). ===

One of my favorite aspects of this narrative is that no explicit miracle occurs.

No angel appears.

The ground doesn’t open up.

The heavens don’t split apart.

God simply orchestrates people, timing, decisions, geography, and circumstances to preserve His king.
And that’s providence.

When humans scheme, it may look like wrong is going to prevail. It may look like everything is moving in the wrong direction. But God’s purposes are not threatened by human schemes.

Sometimes I think we don’t fully appreciate how many seemingly minor details God is working through at any given moment.
Think about that well.

I wonder who first dug it.

I wonder why they dug it in that particular place.

I wonder how many times people used that well without giving it a second thought.

And then one day, that ordinary well becomes part of God’s plan to protect David’s messengers.

Or think about the covering they hid beneath.

Who made it?

Who spun the thread?

Who wove it together?

Did that person have any idea that one day their ordinary work would be used to conceal the people carrying God’s message to the king?
Probably not.

But that’s the beauty of providence.

God is working through details we may never recognize as significant.

And if we really believe we serve a God who can overrule human schemes, then we should also believe that even the seemingly insignificant details of our lives can be taken up into His purposes.

That should change how we view ordinary faithfulness.

The work you do may seem insignificant.

The conversation you have may seem insignificant.

The person you encourage may seem insignificant.

The seemingly small act of obedience may seem insignificant.

But we don’t know what God may be doing through it.

We don’t have to see the whole picture to be faithful in the part God has given us.

=== Those who build their hopes upon human wisdom are ultimately left empty (23). ===

And then we come to Ahithophel.

Verse 23 tells us that when Ahithophel saw that his advice had not been followed, he went home, put his house in order, and hanged himself.

Think about the contrast.

Ahithophel was extraordinarily intelligent. His advice was regarded as being almost like an oracle from God. He had a reputation for wisdom, influence, and political insight.

But when his plan failed, what did he have left?

Nothing.

His wisdom couldn’t save him.

His influence couldn’t save him.

His reputation couldn’t save him.

And ultimately, he took his own life.

The tragedy of Ahithophel is that he had tremendous wisdom about navigating circumstances, but he had no foundation when circumstances stopped going his way.

He had built his hope on his own ability to understand and control what was happening.

And when that control disappeared, so did his hope.

When we build our hope on human wisdom, we will eventually find ourselves grasping for control over things we were never meant to control.

That’s the danger.

Human wisdom says, “If I can understand enough, plan enough, and control enough, I can make life work.”

God’s wisdom says, “You don't have to control everything because God is in control.”

Realizing that David’s restoration is inevitable and that a brutal execution for treason awaits him, the veteran politician hangs himself to retain control over his final fate.

Think about that last sentence for just a minute. When we build our hope on human wisdom, all we can do is grasp at control, so much so that it costs us everything.

=== Action Step: Trust God’s providence even when His purposes are invisible. Faith often means believing God is working before we can see the results. ===

Faith often means believing God is working before we can see the results.

You may not understand why something is happening.

You may not see how God could possibly use a particular circumstance.

You may not even recognize what God is doing until years later.

But you don't have to see the whole plan to trust the One who does.

God’s providence means that nothing is insignificant when it is in the hands of a sovereign God.

= Conclusion =

David survives not because he was the strongest king, but because God remained faithful to His promises.

Ahithophel had brilliance.
Absalom had power.
David had God.

The greatest display of wisdom in this passage was not clever strategy but humble dependence.

David’s wisdom ultimately points beyond itself to the wisdom of Christ. Jesus is not merely another wise king; He is the Wisdom of God incarnate (1 Cor. 1:24). He willingly submitted Himself to betrayal, injustice, and death, knowing that the Father’s sovereign purpose could not fail. In His resurrection, God vindicated His Son and established the eternal kingdom that no rebellion can ever overthrow.

The world’s wisdom says, “Take control.”
God’s wisdom says, “Trust Me.”
The world’s wisdom says, “You need this win.”
God’s wisdom says, “You can afford to lose this battle because I have already won the war.”

One of the clearest marks of spiritual maturity is learning that sometimes the wisest thing you can do is faithfully obey, patiently wait, and allow God to accomplish what only He can do.

2 Samuel 15 Is God Still God When the Walls Crash Down?

Wakefien — Mon, 28 Sep 2026 18:28:50 GMT

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= Title: Is God Still God When the Walls Crash Down? =
Big Idea: Because God remains sovereign even when our world falls apart, we must respond to catastrophe with faithful trust rather than despair.
Christ Focus: We can depend on God even in catastrophe because we know that the ultimate victory was already secured in Christ.
Application: Determine before catastrophe comes that you will trust God’s sovereignty, submit to His will, and look for evidence of His faithful work.

= Introduction =
== Image: The Enemy Within: The Betrayal of Tony Stark ==

In the 2008 film *Iron Man*, Tony Stark’s greatest enemy isn’t a foreign terrorist or a rival corporation — it’s Obadiah Stane, the man he trusted most. Obadiah had been his father’s business partner, Tony’s mentor, and the one person he believed was looking out for him. But behind the scenes, Obadiah had orchestrated Tony’s kidnapping because he wanted control of Stark Industries. The betrayal reaches its climax when Obadiah walks into Tony’s home, smiles, paralyzes him, rips the life-sustaining Arc Reactor from Tony’s chest, and leaves him to die. Tony wasn’t betrayed by an enemy; he was betrayed by someone he considered family.

As painful as that fictional betrayal is, David’s was even greater. He wasn’t betrayed by a rival king or a foreign nation. He was betrayed by his own son and by many of the very people he had spent years leading and serving. Sometimes the deepest wounds don’t come from our enemies — they come from those we trusted the most.

== Need: We need to prepare ourselves for catastrophe not by suspiciously protecting ourselves but by determining to faithfully trust God no matter what. ==
== Preview: Today we’ll see three realities every believer must embrace: ==
- Betrayal is inevitable in a broken world.
- Submission is the true test of faith.
- Hope can still be found because God remains at work.
== Text: 2 Samuel 15 read with each main point. ==
== Setting the Stage: ==

David has already suffered the consequences of his own sin. His family has unraveled. Amnon is dead. Absalom has spent years cultivating popularity while David failed to deal decisively with the problems in his home. Now everything comes crashing down.

2 Samuel 15 begins with the phrase “In the course of time.” This phrase, used regularly throughout 2 Samuel, marks a temporal introduction, telling us that what we are about to read makes sense if we look at what comes before. In other words, the problems we will see in 2 Samuel 15 are all connected with the problems we have seen over the last several weeks.

The roots of Absalom’s rebellion run deep into David’s earlier failures as a father. When Amnon raped his half-sister Tamar, Absalom orchestrated his murder and fled to Geshur for three years — a crisis that exposed David’s inability to maintain order within his own household. Though David yearned for reconciliation, he struggled to forgive his son’s violent response. Rather than addressing the underlying dysfunction that plagued his family, David allowed the wound to fester.

**what do we do when it all comes crashing down?**

= Body =
== **Betrayal** — In a broken world, even those you trust may fail you (1-12). ==
=== Absalom stole the hearts and minds of the people (1–6). ===
Standing at the city gate, Absalom patiently won the people of Israel through flattery, empty promises, and carefully crafted appearances. Rather than serving the people, he manipulated them for his own advancement.

We have studied the Hebrew word לֵב (lēvav, “heart”) before, so I won’t spend much time here. Remember that in the Hebrew mind, the heart was more than the seat of emotion; it also represented the mind, the will, and the center of decision-making. When verse 6 says that, “Absalom stole the hearts of the men of Israel,” it means far more than winning their affection. He captured their thinking. He reshaped how they viewed David and convinced them that he was the better king.

This wasn't accidental. Absalom knew exactly what he was doing. Every step of his plan was deliberate.

First, he looked like a king. Verse 1 tells us that he acquired a chariot, horses, and fifty men to run before him. Long before he ever wore a crown, he wanted people to see him as royalty. Appearance often precedes influence.

Second, he undermined the king. Every morning he positioned himself at the city gate where legal disputes were heard. As people arrived seeking justice, Absalom sympathized with their frustrations and subtly suggested that David had failed them. Then he offered the solution: “If only I were judge in the land...” (v. 4). Without openly attacking David, he planted seeds of discontent until people began believing that David no longer cared.

Finally, he weaponized affection. Instead of allowing people to bow before him as protocol demanded, Absalom reached out, embraced them, and kissed them. In the Ancient Near East, a kiss often carried political significance. It could symbolize loyalty, covenant, or royal favor. By initiating the kiss himself, Absalom created the illusion that he wasn’t an exalted ruler but an approachable friend. He acted like a humble servant while quietly presenting himself as the people’s true king.

It was political manipulation at its finest. For four years, Absalom carefully cultivated an image that won not only the people’s affection but also their allegiance.

=== Absalom used worship as a cover for rebellion (7–9). ===
Having won the people’s confidence, Absalom was ready for the next stage of his plan.

He approached David with what sounded like a deeply spiritual request. He claimed he needed to travel to Hebron to fulfill a vow he had made to the Lord. It sounded noble. It sounded humble. It sounded like worship.

It was none of those things.

Verse 7 tells us that Absalom patiently maintained this deception for four years. Just as he had waited two years before murdering Amnon, he was willing to wait years again until the timing was perfect. Like before, he even asked David’s permission to carry out his plan.

There is tremendous irony in David’s response: “Go in peace.” Peace was the very thing Absalom intended to destroy.

What is perhaps most disturbing is that Absalom had no hesitation about using God to advance his own agenda. He wrapped rebellion in the language of worship. He used a vow to the Lord as camouflage for treason.

That is the nature of a hardened heart. There are people who are so consumed by power, prestige, or profit that they will even use religion as a tool to accomplish their own purposes.

=== Image: Church CEO phishing scams ===
Every few months someone in our church receives an email that appears to come from me. The message usually says I’m in a meeting, need help immediately, and asks them to buy gift cards for someone on staff.

The scam isn’t just dishonest — it intentionally exploits trust. These scammers know that people want to help their pastor, so they use my name to manipulate others for financial gain. They have no concern for truth, integrity, or even the fact that they are invoking God’s church for their own profit.

Absalom did the same thing on a much larger scale. He used the language of worship to disguise rebellion.

=== Absalom declared himself king (10–12). ===
Once everything was in place, Absalom set his plan into motion.

Messengers were secretly stationed throughout Israel. At the sound of the trumpet they would all proclaim, “Absalom reigns in Hebron!”

To strengthen his position, Absalom invited two hundred respected men from Jerusalem. They came innocently, unaware of the conspiracy, yet their very presence gave legitimacy to his rebellion. From David’s perspective, they appeared to have sided with Absalom. From everyone else’s perspective, if these influential men were with Absalom, perhaps everyone else should be too.

Then came perhaps the greatest blow of all: Ahithophel, David’s trusted counselor, defected to Absalom’s side. What had begun as private deception had become national rebellion.

Notice how quickly evil spreads. Four years of quiet manipulation suddenly erupted into a full-scale crisis. The people found themselves following a man they never intended to crown.

That is often how deception works. Rarely does it announce itself. It grows slowly, patiently, almost imperceptibly, until one day people discover they have given their loyalty to someone utterly unworthy of it.

=== Action Step: Guard your heart — not by becoming cynical, but by anchoring your trust in the One who will never betray you. ===
The lesson is not that we should become suspicious of everyone around us.

The lesson is that we should never place ultimate confidence in people.

People will disappoint us. Leaders will fail. Friends may betray us. Even family members can break our hearts.

But human unfaithfulness should never cause us to doubt God’s faithfulness.

Guard your heart — not by becoming cynical, but by anchoring your trust in the One who will never betray you.

== **Submission** — The true test of faith is how we respond when life falls apart (13-29). ==
=== David accepted that catastrophe had come (13–18). ===
Rather than clinging desperately to the throne and turning Jerusalem into a battlefield, David chose to flee, protecting both the city and its people.

The emphasis of verses 13-18 here is on the intentionality with which David acts. We can see several priorities in David’s actions.

First, David prioritizes the lives of those around him. David is less concerned with power and more concerned with the safety of those with whom he is associated. I want us to notice the significance of David’s actions here: power was not worth the lives of those for whom David bore responsibility.

Second, David prioritizes the safety of the city. David could have commanded his forces and the city to prepare for a siege and battle, but power was not worth the destruction of people and the city. Catastrophe had come, and David was willing to accept that catastrophe.

Third, David made sure that things were taken care of. David was fleeing but not abandoning, and so David left ten women, his concubines, to care for the palace. Here too, we can see David’s focus on protecting life. These women could not be mistaken by Absalom as an elite palace guard; these were merely caretakers. “Jerusalem was to be a city of peace (cf. Ps 122:6–9), so only individuals excluded from active participation in military conflict would be permitted to preserve David’s interests in the city.”[^fn1]

There is something important for us to see here. Catastrophe has a way of exposing what we truly value. David valued people more than power. When everything was falling apart, he wasn’t asking, “How do I keep my throne?” He was asking, “How do I protect the people God has entrusted to me?”

=== David refused to make everything about himself (19–22). ===
We see David’s heart even more clearly in his conversation with Ittai the Gittite.

Ittai was a foreigner who had only recently joined David. Humanly speaking, David needed every soldier he could get. Yet instead of demanding loyalty, David offered him an honorable way out.

“Why should you come with us? Go back...”

David wasn’t interested in building the largest army possible. Once again, he placed the well-being of another person ahead of his own interests.

I love this moment because pressure reveals character.

David is losing nearly everything — his throne, his home, even the loyalty of many of his people. Yet he isn’t grasping for control. He isn’t manipulating people into staying with him. Instead, he is thinking about what is best for someone else.

That kind of leadership inspires loyalty.

Listen to Ittai’s response:
> ”As surely as the LORD lives, and as my lord the king lives, wherever my lord the king may be, whether it means life or death, there will your servant be.”

David’s character under pressure produced devotion in those around him.

=== David entrusted himself to God’s will (23–29). ===
The clearest picture of David’s submission comes when the priests arrive carrying the Ark of the Covenant.

If David had wanted to manipulate God, this was his opportunity.

The ark represented God’s presence among His people. Earlier in Israel’s history, people had treated it like a lucky charm, assuming that simply possessing the ark guaranteed victory. Think back to Eli’s sons, who carried the ark into battle against the Philistines as though they could force God to fight for them.

David refuses to make the same mistake.

Instead, he tells Zadok:
> ”25 Take the ark of God back into the city. If I find favor in the LORD’s eyes, he will bring me back and let me see it and his dwelling place again. 26 But if he says, ‘I am not pleased with you,’ then I am ready; let him do to me whatever seems good to him.”

This is one of the clearest moments of spiritual maturity in David’s life.

Notice what he is not saying.

He is not saying, “Whatever happens, happens.”

He is not throwing up his hands in despair.

He recognizes that these events may very well be God’s discipline for his own sin, and he willingly places himself under God’s authority.

David lays out two possibilities. If God chooses to restore him, then David will return and worship before the ark once again. If God chooses not to restore him, then David will accept God’s decision.

That isn’t defeat.

That is surrender.

David stops trying to control the outcome and entrusts himself completely to the Lord.

But don’t mistake submission for passivity.

David sends Zadok and Abiathar back into Jerusalem, where they can gather information about Absalom’s movements. David does everything wisdom requires while leaving the results entirely in God’s hands.

That is biblical submission.

It is doing everything God has called you to do while trusting Him with everything you cannot control.

=== Image: The song “Praise you In this Storm” ===
Casting Crowns became close to a ten-year-old girl named Erin Browning after learning that she had performed one of their songs at school. Soon afterward, Erin was diagnosed with bone cancer. As the band watched Erin and her family walk through months of suffering, they witnessed something that deeply challenged their own faith.

After Erin passed away, lead singer Mark Hall reflected that watching her mother worship God through unimaginable loss exposed how conditional his own worship often was. He realized it was easy to praise God when life was good. The real test came when the storm refused to end.
That experience inspired these words:

> I was sure by now
God, You would have reached down
And wiped our tears away
Stepped in and saved the day
And once again
I say, “A-men” and it's still rainin’
But as the thunder rolls
I barely hear Your whisper through the rain
“I’m with you”
And as Your mercy falls
I’ll raise my hands and praise the God who gives
And takes away
And I’ll praise You in this storm
And I will lift my hands
For You are who You are
No matter where I am
And every tear I’ve cried
You hold in Your hand
You never left my side
And though my heart is torn
I will praise You in this storm

That is exactly what David is learning.

He doesn’t know whether he will ever sit on the throne again.

He doesn’t know whether he will ever see Jerusalem again.

He only knows that God is still God.

And that is enough.

=== Action Step: Don’t wait until catastrophe comes to decide whether you will trust God. ===
Settle that question today.

Determine now that no matter what happens — whether God gives or whether He takes away — you will submit to His wisdom, worship His goodness, and trust that His purposes are always better than your own.

== **Hope** — Even in catastrophe, God is still quietly accomplishing His purposes (30-37). ==
=== David’s grief was real (30–31). ===
It is possible to read this chapter like a history book — simply tracing the events without ever feeling the weight of what David is experiencing.

But the author won’t let us do that.

David isn’t simply leaving Jerusalem; he is leaving behind everything he has spent decades building. He has been betrayed by his own son, a son with whom he has shown remarkable patience. His kingdom is collapsing, his family is in ruins, and the prophecy Nathan delivered years earlier in 2 Samuel 12 is now unfolding before his eyes.

So David climbs the Mount of Olives weeping.

He goes barefoot.

His head is covered.

These aren’t random details. They are the visible expressions of profound grief. David isn’t pretending everything is fine. He isn’t suppressing his emotions. He is mourning because what is happening is genuinely heartbreaking.

Sometimes we imagine that trusting God means pretending the pain doesn’t exist.

It doesn’t.

Faith does not eliminate grief.

Faith gives us somewhere to take our grief.

But notice this:
David’s grief is real, but it is not the end of the story.

=== God’s providence began appearing in small ways (32–37). ===
Just as David reaches the summit of the mountain, someone appears.

His name is Hushai.

At first glance, it seems like an insignificant detail. One loyal friend arrives wearing torn clothes and dust on his head, mourning alongside David.

But this is far more than a chance encounter.

God is already providing exactly what David needs before David even knows he needs it.

David immediately realizes Hushai can serve a greater purpose by returning to Jerusalem. There he will quietly counter the counsel of Ahithophel, work alongside Zadok and Abiathar, and become part of the network God will use to preserve David’s kingdom.

It isn’t flashy.

There are no miracles.

No fire falls from heaven.

No army of angels appears.

Instead, God works through faithful people making wise decisions at exactly the right time.

That is often how God’s providence works.

When we are in the middle of catastrophe, we long for dramatic interventions.

Instead, God frequently provides quiet mercies.

A timely phone call.

A faithful friend.

An encouraging word.

An unexpected opportunity.

A door that quietly opens.

We often recognize God’s hand only when we look back and realize He had been working all along.

Verse 37 ends with a small but significant ray of hope.

David is still in exile.

Absalom is still in Jerusalem.

Nothing has been resolved.

But God has not stopped working.

=== Ultimate hope rests in the Lord (John 14:25-28). ===
That same truth belongs to us today.

Jesus never promised His followers a life free from storms.

In fact, on the night before His own betrayal, Jesus told His disciples:

> “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you... Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.”

Notice that Jesus didn’t promise the absence of trouble.

He promised His presence in the middle of it.

Because Christ died, rose again, ascended to the Father, and sent the Holy Spirit, we are never abandoned in our suffering.

The Spirit dwells within us.

Christ intercedes for us.

The Father sovereignly governs every circumstance.

Even when the walls come crashing down, we are never outside God’s care.

=== Action Step: Determine now that when catastrophe strikes you will look for hope. ===
When catastrophe comes, don’t spend all your energy asking, “Why is this happening?”

Instead, begin looking for the quiet evidence that God is still at work.

His providence is often found not in spectacular miracles but in ordinary mercies.

The God who met David on the Mount of Olives is the same God who walks with His people today.

= Conclusion =
When the walls come crashing down, we discover what we truly believe about God.

David lost his throne, his home, his reputation, and even the loyalty of his own son. Yet he learned that God’s reign had not been threatened.

Centuries later another King would also leave Jerusalem, cross the Kidron Valley, ascend the Mount of Olives, and be betrayed by someone close to Him. Unlike David, Jesus’ suffering was not the result of His own sin but of ours. Through His willing submission to the Father’s will, He secured a hope that no catastrophe can ever destroy.

The question is not whether tragedy will come. It will.

The question is whether, when it does, we will continue to believe that God is still God.

[^fn1]: Robert D. Bergen, 1, 2 Samuel, vol. 7, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1996), 403.

2 Samuel 14 Grace and Justice Are Meant to Be Held Together

Wakefien — Mon, 28 Sep 2026 18:28:21 GMT

Created page with "= Title: Grace and Justice Are Meant to Be Held Together = Big Idea: Because God perfectly unites justice and grace, His people must pursue both with humility and wisdom. Chri..."

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= Title: Grace and Justice Are Meant to Be Held Together =
Big Idea: Because God perfectly unites justice and grace, His people must pursue both with humility and wisdom.
Christ Focus: Jesus Christ perfectly embodies both grace and justice. At the cross, God did not ignore justice in order to show grace, nor withhold grace in order to satisfy justice. Christ bore the penalty our sins deserved so that God could remain perfectly just while graciously forgiving sinners.
Application: Evaluate your own sense of justice by God’s character rather than your emotions. Seek justice without becoming harsh, and extend grace without excusing sin.

= Introduction =
== Image: ==
Imagine a parent dealing with two children. One accidentally breaks an expensive family heirloom. The other deliberately destroys a sibling’s favorite toy in anger. In both situations the parent must show both justice and grace — but not necessarily in the exact same way.

== Need: Grace is not the opposite of justice but sometimes we treat it that way. ==
We often think justice and grace pull in opposite directions. When someone talks about justice, we worry there is no grace. When someone emphasizes grace, we assume justice has been abandoned. Scripture presents a very different picture.

== Preview: Today we will look at an object lesson, God's Model of Justice, and general principle - don't be petty. ==

== Text: 2 Samuel 14 read with each main point. ==

== Setting the Stage: ==
If 1 Samuel is the story of the demise of Saul and the rise of David then 2 Samuel is the story of David’s kingdom — both the victories and the failures. We have a tendency to make our favorite biblical characters into heroes but we need to realize the hero of Scripture is Jesus. Everyone else is a sinner and has lots of problems!

In 2 Samuel 13 we saw devastation strike the family of David and now in 2 Samuel 14 David’s family continues to unravel under the consequences of his own sin. Amnon has violated Tamar. Absalom has murdered Amnon. For three years Absalom has lived in exile while David remains emotionally paralyzed — longing for his son but unwilling to resolve the situation.

Now, Joab recognizes the stalemate and devises a plan. He sends a wise woman from Tekoa to present David with a fictional legal case that mirrors his own family. Without realizing it, David renders judgment on himself.

The dilemma is significant. God’s Law calls for justice against murder, yet David also desires reconciliation with his son. The chapter forces us to wrestle with a question that every believer eventually faces:

How do we pursue justice without abandoning grace, and how do we show grace without ignoring justice?

= Body =
== **Object Lessons** — Sometimes a hypothetical exposes realities that our emotions hide (14:1-11). ==
The college students I worked with used to preface difficult conversations by saying, “Hypothetically...” and then proceed to describe a real-life situation. They understood something important. Whether it was a desire for privacy, a fear that the story might get out, or simply because they were too emotionally involved to think clearly, the distance created by a hypothetical often gave them the space to understand foundational truths before applying them to reality.

=== Reality 1: Life in a fallen world is complicated because every person involved is a sinner (1–7). ===

Joab — whom I probably would not describe as wise so much as shrewd — recognizes that David longs to be reconciled to Absalom. So he devises a plan to expose the inconsistency between David’s heart and his actions.
Now, don’t misunderstand me. David’s problem is not that he has been too harsh. His problem is almost the exact opposite. David has failed to deal justly with the sins of his sons. Absalom murdered his brother and deserved justice. Amnon raped Tamar and deserved punishment. Time and again David has shown himself unwilling to act as a father and as king. But that is a sermon for another day. Let’s look at the woman’s story.

The woman arrives and weaves an intricate story to demonstrate that life in a fallen world is complicated because we are all sinners. The woman’s story immediately draws David into the complexity of life after the Fall. There are victims, perpetrators, grieving parents, and painful consequences. Sin rarely affects only one person.

Notice how much brokenness fills this story. Her husband is dead. Death itself is the result of the Fall, and now this widow is left to fend for herself with her two sons. The sons fight — a reality anyone who has brothers or has raised boys understands — but the fight escalates until one kills the other. Once again, we see the devastating effects of sin. Under God’s Law, murder deserves death. Yet the story becomes even more complicated because the rest of the family is not motivated solely by justice. They also stand to gain financially if the remaining son dies. Greed has mixed itself into their pursuit of justice. Sin is running rampant throughout the story.

And guess what: it is not always black and white even if it appears that way on the surface.

Genesis 9:6 states, “Whoever sheds human blood, by humans shall their blood be shed; for in the image of God has God made mankind.”

So the penalty is death right? Not so fast.

In Israel great value was placed on the importance of not cutting off a family line:

Deuteronomy 25:5-6
> If brothers are living together and one of them dies without a son, his widow must not marry outside the family. Her husband’s brother shall take her and marry her and fulfill the duty of a brother-in-law to her. 6 The first son she bears shall carry on the name of the dead brother so that his name will not be blotted out from Israel.

And so the women appeals to David because the death of both sons would cut off the family name.

Look, I will be honest with you, you don’t have to look very far to find real life examples where no matter what decision you make someone is going to be hurt and someone is going to be breaking God’s Law. Seriously, this is life in a fallen world.

One of the reasons I love working with young adults is that I get to watch them mature. They graduate from high school excited about a particular cause, convinced that every issue has a simple solution. Then life happens. They begin to discover that while their cause may be important, real life is often far more complicated than they imagined. As they mature, they realize that the problem of sin cannot be solved simply by taking a louder stand. Life in a fallen world requires wisdom.

And this is exactly why we need Jesus. You and I cannot solve the problem of sin. We cannot write enough laws, pass enough policies, or convince enough people to change. None of those things can remove the corruption of the human heart. Only Jesus can do that. The ultimate answer to sin is not merely better systems but a better Savior.

=== Reality 2: God has written a sense of justice into every human heart, but sin distorts that sense (7). ===

The relatives demand justice, yet their motives are mixed with greed. Even our desire for justice can become corrupted by sin. I want to pause here because this is incredibly important. God has written a sense of justice into every human heart.

Look at Romans 2:14-15,
> (Indeed, when Gentiles, who do not have the law, do by nature things required by the law, they are a law for themselves, even though they do not have the law. They show that the requirements of the law are written on their hearts, their consciences also bearing witness, and their thoughts sometimes accusing them and at other times even defending them.)

But here is the thing, our hearts are corrupted in the Fall. Jeremiah 17:9 states:
> The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?

The result is that our sense of justice becomes distorted. It doesn’t take long to see it. Politicians become consumed with power and write laws to protect themselves rather than pursue justice. Those entrusted with enforcing justice sometimes abuse their authority. Entire groups of people gather around their own version of justice while overlooking the bigger picture, often manipulated by clever leaders with hidden motives.

=== Reality 3: Grace is not the absence of justice, but it often challenges our natural instincts (7–11). ===

David, moved by the woman’s story, assured her he would resolve the matter. Despite her concerns about justice, he promised her son would not be harmed, swearing an oath that not even a hair on his head would fall. Ironically, the mercy he is willing to extend in a hypothetical case is the very mercy he struggles to apply in his own family.

And this is the crux of our problem. We too often think of grace and justice as being diametrically opposed but that is not the case. In this case, God’s law called for the death of the murderer, but God’s Law also valued life and the family name.

And here we come to the heart of the issue. We often imagine grace and justice standing on opposite sides of the courtroom, but Scripture does not present them that way.
God’s Law clearly declared that murder deserved death. Yet that same Law also protected the vulnerable, valued life, and sought to preserve families. The difficulty in this case is not that God’s justice is unclear. The difficulty is that living in a fallen world often presents situations where multiple biblical principles intersect.

So what would perfect justice have looked like in this particular case? I have to admit that I don’t know. I don’t believe the living son should simply walk away without consequence. But I also understand why David hesitates to execute the only remaining heir of a grieving widow.

That uncertainty should produce humility. When we cannot perfectly discern how justice ought to be applied, our instinct should not be arrogance but grace. Grace does not ignore justice. Grace recognizes that we are finite people seeking to apply God’s perfect justice in an imperfect world. It slows us down. It tempers our certainty. It reminds us that there are often people made in God’s image on every side of a difficult situation.

Ultimately, the only place where grace and justice are perfectly and completely united is at the cross. There, justice is fully satisfied, and grace is freely offered.

=== Action Step: Take a step back and do an attitude check. When are you likely to let your fallen nature control your sense of justice? ===

== **God’s Model** — God’s character reshapes our understanding of justice (14:12–20). ==
=== God’s justice has always been wiser than simplistic retaliation (12–14). ===
The woman reminds David that, “God devises means so that the banished one will not remain an outcast.” God delights in restoring sinners without ever compromising His righteousness.

In the Old Testament Law there were particular circumstances where an exception to the death penalty was in place (Numbers 35:15) — the sanctuary cities — and while that did not apply here since it was premeditated murder, the woman appeals to these laws to emphasize that God is a God of restoration.

#### Christ Focus

I want to pause here for just a moment because there is something important happening. I know that the woman has taken liberty with the interpretation of Numbers 35:15. God did provide a way for people to escape the death penalty in Israel by fleeing to a city of refuge, but to say this is a way for a banished person to be restored is way beyond what the text pronounces. But the principle the woman is citing is a valid principle — we serve a God who does restore.

Let me read Genesis 2:17 to you, “but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die.” Guess what, Adam ate from the tree and he did not immediately physically die. Theologians have developed all sorts of explanations but here is the simple fact. God is a merciful God who creates ways to maintain justice without immediately destroying life.

OK, let me be really precise just for a minute:
“Adam did die that day. He was separated from God, driven from the garden, and became subject to physical death. Yet God did not immediately execute the full physical penalty his sin deserved. Instead, He clothed Adam and Eve, promised a Redeemer, and allowed them to live under His mercy. From the very beginning of Scripture we see a God who upholds justice while showing extraordinary grace.”

The most important example of this principle is the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We deserve death, the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life and God in his brilliance provided a way for our death penalty to be paid so that we can enjoy life. Jesus Christ died on the cross atoning for our sins and offering us the opportunity to place our faith in his death as payment. Yes, we deserve to be struck down immediately from our sin and separated for eternity from the Holy god but in his wisdom God has provided a way.

Your first task is to accept that way if you have not. Your second task is to live in light of that way.

=== In a fallen world things are often far more complicated than black and white (15-17). ===

The woman returns to her complicated scenario and — with carefully chosen words and a generous amount of flattery — urges David to respond wisely. While her motives are not entirely pure, the principle she highlights is important. Living in a fallen world requires wisdom because every situation is not identical.

#### Real life often requires wisdom because every situation is not identical.
Biblical justice is never arbitrary, but neither is it mechanical. It requires wisdom, discernment, and careful application.

Let me be very clear about what I am not saying. I am not suggesting that justice is relative or that truth is whatever we want it to be. Scripture teaches objective truth and objective morality. What I am saying is that applying God’s truth wisely often requires more than simply reacting emotionally or reaching for the first answer that comes to mind. We need the wisdom of God because life in a fallen world is often far more complicated than we initially realize.
When I say things are more complicated than black and white I am not saying we embrace relative or post-positivist epistemologies. What I am calling for is that we recognize that there is a lot at work and we need the wisdom of God if we are to live in a fallen world.

It is not that anything goes, but it is that we need God’s wisdom to live in a fallen world rather than our own wisdom — or worse — our own emotional responses.

=== And so we need to remind ourselves that we often oversimplify the situation (18-20). ===

Joab manipulated the woman who manipulated David. It really was not a great situation, but the outcome was that David realized that he was also *not* dealing with something that needed to be dealt with. A lot of time I think we are often both intellectually lazy and intellectually biased. We crave simple answers because they are easier to defend. We naturally interpret situations through our own experiences, our traditions, our personalities, and our preferences. Instead of asking, “What does God’s wisdom require?”, we often ask, “How can I fit this into the conclusion I already reached?”

We so want a situation to be simple so we ignore other details. Or we want it to fall the way we were taught as a kid or the values we instilled in our children, or the preferences we have, so we simplify it and ignore anything other than our way of thinking.

#### We should be cautious whenever we think every situation has an easy answer and ask, “Is the answer easy or do I just want it to be easy or my way?”

Scripture is absolute. God’s moral character is absolute. But my understanding of every situation is not. Fallen people often apply absolute truth imperfectly because we possess limited knowledge, mixed motives, and sinful hearts.

=== Image: Star Wars: “Only a Sith deals in absolutes.” ===
I enjoy Star Wars but one quote really bothered me for a long time. When confronting Anakin, Obi-Wan tells Anakin, “Only a Sith deals in absolutes.” It really bothered me because I believed in absolute truth. I believed in absolute right and wrong. And guess what, I still do but what I have found is that there is some real truth in the statement, “only a Sith deals in absolutes,” because while Scripture certainly teaches absolute truth, our application of truth often requires wisdom and humility. We often take Absolute truth that God exists and has a moral code he expects us to follow to mean that everything I believe and hold dear is absolute truth.

News flash: you are not God and neither am I. This means we can’t possibly know all the absolutes. One of my theology professors once said, “The one thing I know for certain is that I’m wrong about something in theology — I just wish I knew what it was.” That kind of humility ought to characterize every believer. Hold tightly to what God has spoken clearly, but hold your own conclusions with enough humility to keep listening to God’s Word.

=== Action Step: Before taking an absolute position, ask, “Is this an absolute God has clearly spoken about, or am I making my own preference absolute?” ===

== **A General Principle** — Hold justice and grace together instead of settling for pettiness (21-33). ==

=== David extends partial grace without pursuing true justice (21-24). ===
He allows Absalom to return, yet refuses to see him. Justice is never completed, and reconciliation never truly begins.

Notice what is happening. David has been manipulated into bringing Absalom home even though Absalom deserved the death penalty for murdering Amnon. Yet David does not truly restore him. Instead, he does the bare minimum. Absalom is allowed back into Jerusalem, but he is forbidden from seeing the king.

Some commentators suggest David kept Absalom at a distance because he did not want the people to think he was soft on justice. There may be some truth to that. But the reality is that David had been soft on justice. Absalom deserved justice, yet David refused to administer it. At the same time, he also refused to fully forgive and restore his son. Instead, David chose the middle ground — a place where nothing was actually resolved.

He neither carried out justice nor pursued genuine reconciliation. He simply tried to ignore a problem that desperately needed to be addressed.

Honestly, I think this makes David look petty. His punishment of Absalom is simply refusing to see him. It accomplishes nothing except allowing the tension to simmer beneath the surface.

If I’m honest, this is an area where I struggle as well. I don’t enjoy telling people they’re wrong. My natural tendency is to avoid difficult conversations and hope the problem works itself out. Sometimes that looks gracious on the surface, but in reality it can simply be laziness or fear.

One lesson I’ve had to learn is this: ignoring a problem is not the same thing as showing grace. Partial grace without addressing the real issue usually leaves everyone frustrated and rarely leads to genuine restoration.

I can honestly say I have almost never regretted having a difficult conversation that needed to happen. Yet I still find myself tempted to avoid them because of fear.

=== Absalom’s approach to Joab is pretty petty (25-30). ===
The writer goes to great lengths to describe Absalom’s appearance. Why? Because from a worldly perspective, Absalom looked like the perfect king. He was handsome, impressive, charismatic, and the kind of person people naturally wanted to follow.

But appearances can be deceiving.

While Absalom’s outward appearance was impressive, his inward character was deeply corrupted. His handsome appearance concealed a proud and manipulative heart. He is exactly the kind of leader the world admires but God rejects.

After two years of living in Jerusalem without seeing David, Absalom grows impatient. He sends for Joab to arrange a meeting with the king, but Joab refuses to come. So what does Absalom do? He orders his servants to burn Joab’s barley field.

That has absolutely nothing to do with the issue at hand.

This is not justice. This is manipulation. This is a man so consumed with getting his own way that he is willing to destroy someone else’s livelihood simply to force a conversation.

#### Absalom responds with pride and pettiness instead of repentance.
Rather than humbly seeking reconciliation, he resorts to intimidation and destruction. Instead of confronting his own sin, he creates more victims.

That is the nature of sinful character. When our hearts are ruled by pride, sin rarely remains isolated. It spills over into the lives of everyone around us. Sin doesn’t solve problems — it multiplies them.

=== Half-measures in justice and grace together with pettiness leave relationships broken (31–33). ===
Ironically, Absalom gets exactly what he wanted. Joab arranges the meeting. David receives his son, and the chapter ends with the king kissing Absalom — a public sign that he has been restored.

Everything appears to be resolved.

But nothing has actually been resolved.

Neither David nor Absalom has honestly dealt with the real problem. There has been no repentance, no justice, no meaningful reconciliation, and no transformed relationship. The appearance of peace simply covers unresolved sin that will soon erupt into open rebellion.

We'll see that unfold next week.

For now, this chapter leaves us with a sobering reminder: when we refuse to deal honestly with sin, whether through fear, pride, or pettiness, the problem does not disappear. It simply waits for another opportunity to grow.

=== Action Step: Ask yourself, “Am I pursuing genuine reconciliation, or merely winning? Am I reflecting both God’s justice and God’s grace?” ===

= Conclusion =
David’s family demonstrates what happens when justice and grace are separated. Justice without grace becomes harsh. Grace without justice becomes permissive. Half-hearted attempts at either only deepen the wound.

The good news is that what David could not accomplish, Christ did perfectly.

At the cross, justice was fully satisfied because sin was truly punished. At the cross, grace was fully displayed because sinners were freely forgiven.

The gospel calls us to become people who refuse the false choice between justice and grace. Because we have received both from Christ, we can extend both to others.

2 Samuel 13:23-39 There Is a Right Way to Deal With Sin

Wakefien — Mon, 28 Sep 2026 18:27:56 GMT

Created page with "= Title: There Is a Right Way to Deal With Sin = Big Idea: The wrong response to sin often creates even greater devastation than the original offense. Christ Focus: Christ p..."

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= Title: There Is a Right Way to Deal With Sin =

Big Idea: The wrong response to sin often creates even greater devastation than the original offense.

Christ Focus: Christ perfectly dealt with sin. He neither ignored it like David nor sought personal vengeance like Absalom. At the cross He satisfied God’s justice, extended forgiveness to repentant sinners, and now calls His people to entrust justice to God while pursuing reconciliation whenever possible.

Application: When you have been sinned against, refuse bitterness, pursue biblical reconciliation whenever possible, forgive as Christ has forgiven you, confront sin lovingly when necessary, and entrust justice to God rather than taking revenge into your own hands.

= Introduction =

In *The Count of Monte Cristo*, Edmond Dantès is falsely imprisoned because of the betrayal of several men who are jealous of him. After years in prison, he escapes, discovers a tremendous fortune, and returns under a new identity. But instead of simply enjoying his freedom, he devotes himself to revenge, carefully orchestrating the downfall of the men who destroyed his life. His anger is understandable; he was genuinely wronged. But as his plans unfold, revenge begins to reshape him. He becomes so consumed with making his enemies pay that innocent people are caught in the destruction, and Dantès himself loses the ability to simply move on from what happened to him. Vengeance promises to make the other person pay, but it often makes you pay too. Revenge may satisfy your anger for a moment, but it cannot heal your wound; instead, it often creates another wound that you will carry with you.

Last week we went hard into our need to deal with sin early. This week we continue with a still challenging topic.

== Need: If you live in the world, then you will be sinned against. But the way you handle that will make all the difference. ==

== Preview: We need to guard against bitterness, avoid escalation, facing brokenness with the Gospel and not our own means. ==

== Text 2 Samuel 13:23–39 (Read the entire passage at the beginning.) ==

== Setting the Stage: Briefly recap Amnon’s rape of Tamar (2 Samuel 13:1–22) and David’s failure to administer justice. ==

Absalom’s story doesn’t begin with rebellion — it begins with silence. In 2 Samuel 13, Amnon, David’s firstborn, becomes consumed with desire for his half-sister Tamar. Following the calculated advice of his cousin Jonadab, he feigns illness, lures her into his chamber under the pretense of needing her care, and violently rapes her. Then, in a cruelty almost worse than the act itself, his lust turns to loathing, and he throws her out — leaving Tamar to tear her ornamented robe, put ashes on her head, and live “a desolate woman” in her brother Absalom’s house. Scripture tells us that when King David heard all this, “he was furious.” And that’s it. Fury — but no action. No justice for Tamar. No consequence for Amnon. The law of God demanded a response, but the king who had been forgiven much apparently could not bring himself to confront in his son the echoes of his own sin with Bathsheba.

= Body =

== **Bitterness** — Unresolved sin breeds bitterness (2 Samuel 13:23–29). ==

Let me remind you how the previous scene ended. Listen again to 2 Samuel 13:22:

>And Absalom never said a word to Amnon, either good or bad; he hated Amnon because he had disgraced his sister Tamar.

Those words are meant to leave us uneasy. The rape of Tamar is over, but the story is not. Sin has not been dealt with. Justice has not been pursued. Forgiveness has not been extended. Nothing has actually been resolved.
As we begin the second half of this narrative, we discover that unresolved sin never simply disappears. Left alone, it grows.

=== Absalom silently nurtured bitterness for two years (23–24). ===

We need to understand what the text is doing here. The text makes a point of telling us that Absalom waited two years to do anything. Perhaps Absalom spent the time plotting and planning revenge. Perhaps he was waiting for David to act. The text does not really tell us, all we know is that Absalom hated his brother and waited to act.

The text of these first two verses is also important. The phrase “all the kings sons” in verse 23 may very well be a reference to all of the kings sons with the exception of the crown prince. In other words there would have been a distinction between those who were David’s sons and the one son who was in line for the throne. Amnon was David’s firstborn son, born to Ahinoam of Jezreel while David was reigning in Hebron (2 Samuel 3:2). That made him the presumptive heir to the throne. So when we read that Absalom invited all the King’s sons it is entirely possible that this invitation excludes Amnon. To that Absalom makes an invitation to his father David and all the royal court.

We will get further into the details here in just a minute but what I want to suggest to you right here is that Absalom seems to know what he is doing and how to manipulate David.

But I think there is another narrative going on under the surface. Specifically…

=== David underestimated the danger of unresolved sin (25–27). ===

David responded to Absalom in verse 25 and told him that it would be too much for the King and his court to attend. Absalom pushes, but the king takes a stand and while offering encouragement to Absalom — a blessing — yet he still refuses to join in the activities.

Then comes the surprising request: “If you will not go, please let my brother Amnon go with us.”

Absalom set the trap and asks if instead Amnon, presumably the crown prince, will come. On the surface, Absalom has made a reasonable request — if the King cannot come then please send the next best thing, the crown prince. David immediately hesitates. “Why should he go with you?” It is one of the most revealing questions in the passage. David senses that something is not quite right, yet when Absalom continues to press the matter, David relents and sends Amnon along with the other princes.

The text really presents us with more questions than answers. Why was David reluctant to go? Did he think there was some danger? Why did David allow Amnon to go? Did he not realize the hatred that Absalom had been harboring and nursing?

And sitting underneath all of this is the bigger issue. Why is David, the ruler, the judge of the people, so unable to rule and judge in his own family? What is going on with David that he allows this sort of behavior? At best, David is an overindulgent father who lets his kids run the show.

Whatever the answer, one thing is clear: David once again failed to deal wisely with sin within his own household. His failure to address Amnon’s sin created an environment where bitterness was free to grow unchecked.

=== Bitterness eventually produced premeditated murder (28–29). ===

When the moment finally arrives, Absalom gives the signal. After Amnon’s heart is “merry with wine” and his guard is down, Absalom’s servants strike him down exactly as they had been instructed.

Under the Law, Amnon deserved to die. That would have been just. But this is not justice. This is calculated revenge.

God’s Law prescribed severe punishment for sexual sin (Deut 22:23-29), but God had never authorized Absalom to become judge, jury, and executioner. In seeking justice his own way, Absalom committed another grievous sin. Rather than ending the cycle of evil, he expanded it.

That is one of bitterness’s greatest lies. It convinces us that because we have been deeply wronged, we are justified in responding however we choose. But another person’s sin never gives us permission to sin ourselves. Sin is never overcome by more sin.

=== Image: The Bible warns about bitterness. ===

Several biblical passages directly connect bitterness to spiritual and moral corruption:

Hebrews 12:15 warns that a “bitter root” can grow up to cause trouble and defile many, presenting bitterness as something that spreads destructively beyond the individual who harbors it. Deuteronomy 29:18 similarly cautions against allowing a “root” to develop that produces “bitter poison,” framing bitterness as a spiritual toxin that can contaminate an entire community.

The connection between bitterness and active sin appears most explicitly in Acts 8:23, where Peter tells Simon that he is “full of bitterness and captive to sin,” directly linking the two conditions. James 3:14–16 describes how harboring “bitter envy and selfish ambition” in your heart produces disorder and every evil practice, showing how internal bitterness manifests in outward wrongdoing.

Ephesians 4:31 commands believers to eliminate bitterness along with rage, anger, slander, and malice, treating it as a destructive emotional state requiring active removal. Job 5:2 observes that resentment “kills a fool,” emphasizing bitterness’s self-destructive nature, while Proverbs 14:10 notes that “each heart knows its own bitterness,” acknowledging bitterness as an internal condition that isolates the person experiencing it.

These passages collectively present bitterness not as a passive emotion but as a spiritual root system that, left unchecked, produces widespread corruption — both within the individual and throughout their relationships and community.

=== Action Step: Bring your hurt before God, pursue biblical reconciliation whenever possible, and refuse to nurture a desire for revenge. ===

When you have been deeply sinned against, don’t allow silence and resentment to become the soil where bitterness grows. Bring your hurt before God, pursue biblical reconciliation whenever possible, and refuse to nurture a desire for revenge.

If someone has deeply wounded you, don’t confuse forgiveness with pretending nothing happened. Bring your hurt honestly before the Lord. Pursue reconciliation whenever repentance makes it possible. Seek justice through the means God has established (which you can find for New Testament believers in Matthew 18). But refuse to cultivate bitterness or take personal revenge. Those responses only multiply the devastation that sin has already caused.

---

== **Escalation** — Sin answered with sin only multiplies the damage (2 Samuel 13:30–33). ==

=== David’s earlier failure opened the door to greater tragedy (30–31). ===

The first report that reaches David’s ears is devastating. The messenger reports that **all** of the king’s sons have been killed. What is striking is that David never questions the report. He immediately tears his clothes and begins mourning.

Perhaps David knew there was a problem all along. Perhaps the guilt of his earlier failures made this report seem entirely believable. Whatever the reason, David’s household is suddenly overcome with grief.

But the reality is that the devastation did not begin here. It began with David’s own sin with Bathsheba. It continued when Amnon violated Tamar. It deepened when David failed to administer justice. Now it reaches another tragic chapter as Absalom answers sin with more sin.

That is the nature of sin. Left alone, it never stays contained. It grows.

What strikes me about David’s response is this: David tears his clothes and mourns now, but where was this mourning earlier? Where was this sorrow over Amnon’s sin? David is guilty of mourning the consequences of sin more than mourning sin itself.

I think that is a danger for all of us.

Far too often we grieve the mess sin creates while never grieving the sin that created the mess. We mourn broken relationships, lost trust, damaged reputations, and painful consequences, but do we mourn our rebellion against God? Scripture repeatedly calls God’s people to hate sin because it is first and foremost an offense against a holy God (Psalm 51:4; James 4:8–10).

David’s earlier failure opened the door for greater tragedy.

Sometimes people like to speculate about generational sin — the idea that the consequences, behaviors, and patterns of one generation are passed on to the next. I think some people have taken that concept farther than Scripture does, but I also think others ignore an important reality. Children learn from their parents. They watch us. They imitate us. If we refuse to deal with our own sin, we should not be surprised when our children struggle with many of the same sins or the same patterns of responding to sin.

So deal with your sin.

Now there is a real danger here. Someone could hear that and immediately think about the person sitting across the aisle. “I hope they heard that.” Stop. That is not what I am saying.

I am not telling you to deal with your neighbor’s sin. I am telling you to deal with **your** sin.

The person who thinks, “I’ve got this figured out,” is probably the person who most needs this reminder. We are all sinners. The people closest to us see our weaknesses, our attitudes, our pride, and our blind spots. If you have children, they see them too. None of us are exempt.

=== Everyone around David knew justice had never been done (32-33). ===

I know David was the king, and confronting the king would have been intimidating. But someone needed to speak because it becomes painfully clear that everyone knew what David had been ignoring.

Look at verse 32:

> *But Jonadab son of Shimeah, David’s brother, said, “My lord should not think that they killed all the princes; only Amnon is dead. This has been Absalom’s express intention ever since the day Amnon raped his sister Tamar.”*

Did you catch that?

Jonadab knew. And as far as I can tell this is the same Jonadab who had given Amnon the idea in the first place.

He knew Absalom’s hatred had been growing ever since Tamar was assaulted. Apparently this was no secret. David may have ignored the problem, but others had not.

Nathan had already warned David that the consequences of his own sin would not remain hidden (2 Samuel 12:10–12). Ultimately this would take the form of a very public violation of David’s concubines but now we see the prequel. The sword would not depart from David’s house. What Nathan prophesied is now unfolding before our eyes.

Everyone around David could see that justice had not been handled properly, and because justice had been neglected, bitterness had been given room to grow.

=== Image: Escalation is a real concern ===

I am not going to name names because I could probably point to almost every family represented here, but I have watched this happen with siblings more times than I can count.

One sibling gives another a shove. The other responds with a shove back. That turns into a punch. Before long they are rolling around on the floor, and nobody even remembers who started it.

That is escalation.

What began as one offense quickly became something much bigger because each person felt justified in responding just a little more forcefully than the other.

The same thing happens with adults. Someone hurts us, so we hurt them back. They respond, so we respond again. Before long, two sinful people have multiplied the damage because neither one was willing to let God deal with justice.

That is why Paul writes in Romans 12:17–21:

> *Do not repay anyone evil for evil... Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath... Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.*

That does not mean justice should never be pursued. Scripture clearly teaches that God has established authorities to administer justice (Romans 13:1–4). But there is a world of difference between pursuing justice through God’s appointed means and taking personal vengeance into our own hands.

As a principle for life, refuse revenge. Pursue justice when appropriate, but always leave vengeance to the Lord.

=== Action Step: Commit yourself to responding to sin with biblical repentance, forgiveness, truth, and justice rather than sinful retaliation or feigned ignorance. ===

Refusing to deal with sin God’s way never leaves the damage contained. Commit yourself to responding to sin with biblical repentance, forgiveness, truth, and justice rather than sinful retaliation.

---

== **Brokenness** — Revenge leaves relationships shattered (2 Samuel 13:34–39). ==

=== Revenge devastates everyone around us (34–36). ===

With vengeance having been carried out, it is time for everyone to come together and assess the damage.

The king’s remaining sons flee for their lives and eventually arrive back at the palace weeping as they come. David and all of his servants also tear their clothes and mourn. The entire royal family has been thrown into chaos.

A man is dead. The presumptive heir to the throne is gone. The stability of David’s household has been shaken. What began with one act of sexual sin has now grown into murder, fear, and brokenness.

I imagine that in the confusion of the moment no one knew what would happen next. Would Absalom continue his revenge? Would more blood be shed? Was anyone in the royal family safe? What would happen to the kingdom?

That is what revenge does. It never stays isolated. It sends shockwaves through everyone connected to it.

But perhaps the saddest part is this: after all of the planning, all of the waiting, and all of the revenge, nothing has actually been fixed.

=== Revenge cannot restore what sin has destroyed (37–38). ===

The narrator paints a heartbreaking picture.

- Tamar is still desolate.
- Amnon is dead.
- Absalom is in exile.
- David’s family is fractured.

The passage tells us that Absalom fled to Geshur, where he remained for three years under the protection of his grandfather Talmai, king of Geshur.

You have heard me say it before, and I will say it again: **God is the Redeemer. We are not.**

Sin destroys. It leaves behind a wake of brokenness that no human being can fully repair. We naturally want to fix what has been broken. We want to make things right. But when we try to accomplish God’s work through sinful means, we only deepen the damage.

Think about Tamar.

Her life had already been devastated by Amnon’s sin. She was abandoned and left desolate. Absalom, to his credit, had taken her into his home and cared for her (2 Samuel 13:20).

But now what happens?

Because Absalom chose revenge instead of trusting God, he is forced into exile. Once again Tamar loses the protection and provision of the brother who had cared for her.

That is the tragedy of revenge. It promises to make things right, but instead it often creates new victims.

Only God can redeem what sin has destroyed. Only God can bring beauty from ashes (Isaiah 61:1–3). Only God can restore what has been lost.

We are not the Redeemer. When we take matters into our own hands instead of trusting Him, we usually make things worse.

=== Revenge leaves wounds that are difficult to heal (39). ===

Verse 39 is one of the saddest verses in the chapter.

After time had passed and David had come to terms with Amnon’s death, the text tells us that “King David longed to go out to Absalom.”

David misses his son.

The anger has cooled. The grief has settled. There is a desire for reconciliation.

But revenge leaves wounds that are difficult to heal.

One son is dead.

Another son is living in exile.

Tamar remains broken.

David is left grieving the destruction of his own family.

Revenge promised closure, but it delivered only deeper heartache.

Sadly, I have known families where brothers and sisters no longer speak to one another. Parents and children have become estranged. Sometimes the original offense was significant. Sometimes, after enough years have passed, no one can even remember exactly how the conflict began. They only know the relationship is broken.

Life is too short to allow bitterness and revenge to write the final chapter of our relationships.

As far as it depends on you, seek reconciliation. As far as it depends on you, forgive. As far as it depends on you, leave vengeance in God’s hands (Romans 12:18–19).

=== Action Step: Trust God with justice, seek peace where possible, and pursue relationships marked by forgiveness instead of retaliation. ===

Recognize that revenge never delivers what it promises. Trust God with justice, seek peace where possible, and pursue relationships marked by forgiveness instead of retaliation.

= Conclusion =

== Review ==
- Bitterness grows when sin is left unresolved.
- Sinful responses to sin only multiply the damage.
- Revenge leaves broken relationships instead of healing.

== Gospel ==
Unlike David, Jesus never ignored sin. Unlike Absalom, Jesus never took personal vengeance. Instead, He bore God’s righteous judgment against sin on the cross so that justice and mercy could meet. Because Christ has forgiven us, we are now free to forgive others, pursue reconciliation, and entrust justice to God.

== Invitation ==
Where are you responding to sin with bitterness, revenge, avoidance, or anger? Bring that hurt to Christ. Trust Him to deal with sin rightly, forgive as you have been forgiven, and walk in the freedom that comes from leaving justice in God’s hands.

2 Samuel 13:1-22 Choose to Deal with Sin Before It Becomes a Problem

Wakefien — Mon, 28 Sep 2026 18:27:30 GMT

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= 2 Samuel 13:1-22: Choose to Deal with Sin Before It Becomes a Problem =
Big Idea: When the warning signs of sin appear, we must take swift action to stop it. Sin rarely erupts suddenly; instead, it grows when we refuse to deal with it early.
Christ Focus: Amnon, a son of David, used his position to exploit and destroy the vulnerable. Jesus, the greater Son of David, used His authority to protect the vulnerable and lay down His life for sinners. Where Amnon selfishly took what was not his, Christ willingly gave Himself for those who had nothing to offer.
Application: Identify and confront temptation while it is still small. Invite godly people into your life who will challenge you rather than affirm sinful desires.

= Introduction =
== Need: Very few people wake up one morning and decide, “Today I'm going to destroy my life.” ==

Most great moral failures don’t begin with a catastrophic decision. They begin with a thought that is entertained, a temptation that isn’t rejected, a compromise that seems harmless, a conversation with the wrong person, one more excuse...
By the time everyone sees the disaster, the real battle has already been lost.

We live in a world, and inhabit hearts, where the seeds of sin are constantly being sown. Yet, too often, we dismiss the early warning signs, thinking we can manage or contain temptation. We tell ourselves “it’s not a big deal... yet,” only to find ourselves entangled in a web of consequences that could have been avoided. We desperately need to learn how to identify sin’s subtle beginnings and decisively intervene before it overwhelms us.

== Preview: Today, in 2 Samuel 13, we’ll see a stark example of what happens when sin is left unchecked. Through Amnon’s tragic story, we will explore three crucial aspects of sin that compel us to act swiftly: its profound **danger** when entertained, its truly **revolting** nature once indulged, and its **broad and devastating consequences** for everyone involved. ==

== Text: 2 Samuel 13:1-22 will be read with each point. ==

== Setting the Stage: ==

It has been almost a year since we last studied David’s life. The last major event we examined was David’s sin with Bathsheba and his desperate attempts to hide it. We saw that sin rarely appears all at once. Instead, it follows a predictable path.

Today we encounter another tragedy — not through David, but through his oldest son, Amnon. Once again Scripture allows us to watch sin develop step by step before it reaches its devastating conclusion.

Let’s begin with verses 1-5.

= Body =
== **Danger** — Sin is truly, profoundly dangerous (2 Samuel 13:1-5). ==

=== The peril of dwelling on temptation. ===

To understand these verses, we need to remember David’s family.

David had multiple wives. Two are especially important here.

Ahinoam gave birth to David’s oldest son, **Amnon**.

Maacah gave birth to **Absalom** and **Tamar**.

That means Tamar was Amnon's half-sister.

Even that reality makes us uncomfortable, but if we stop there, we miss the point of the passage. The real problem isn’t merely Amnon’s attraction. The real problem is that he refuses to deal with it.

Instead of rejecting sinful desires, he nurtures them.

He dwells on them.

He feeds them.

Eventually the text says he becomes physically sick because of his obsession.

This is not love.

It is selfish infatuation.

James tells us that desire gives birth to sin (James 1:14-15). Temptation itself is not sin, but entertaining temptation is incredibly dangerous.

Whatever continually occupies our minds eventually begins to shape our hearts.

Our identity should be rooted in Christ, yet when we continually feed sinful desires, those desires begin shaping who we become.

=== The peril of ungodly counsel. ===

Amnon’s next mistake is just as dangerous.

Rather than seeking someone who would challenge him spiritually, he surrounds himself with someone who will encourage his sinful desires.

Enter Jonadab.

The narrator introduces Jonadab with an interesting description. He is called “a very shrewd man” (חָכָם). The word can describe wisdom, but it can also describe someone who is crafty or cunning depending on the context.

The author deliberately introduces two pairs:

- Tamar and Absalom.
- Amnon and Jonadab.

Tamar is described as beautiful.

Jonadab is described as clever.

One pair represents innocence.

The other represents sinful wisdom.

Jonadab notices that Amnon is troubled, but instead of confronting his sinful desires, he helps him fulfill them.

That is incredibly dangerous.

The people closest to us are either helping us become more like Christ or helping us justify our sin.

Think about how often people justify terrible decisions because a friend encouraged them. The wrong friends rarely pull us toward holiness. More often, they simply reassure us that our sin is reasonable.

=== The peril of worldly advice. ===

Jonadab’s advice is astonishingly wicked.

He could have said:

- “Get over yourself.”
- “This desire is sinful.”
- “Let’s pray together.”
- “Let’s find you a godly wife.”

Instead, he carefully constructs a plan that manipulates David’s compassion and Tamar’s kindness.

The most dangerous advice is often advice that helps us get what we want without ever asking whether we should want it.

Our culture often says:
> “If you feel it, you should express it.”

Scripture says:
> “If it’s sinful, you should crucify it.”

The voices we listen to matter.

=== Action Step: Put safeguards in your life that interrupt sin before it has a chance to grow. ===

Invite people into your life who love Christ enough to lovingly challenge you instead of affirming every desire you have.

---

== **Revolting** — Sin is revolting, even if we convince ourselves otherwise (2 Samuel 13:6-15a). ==

=== Sin leads us down a path of selfish manipulation. ===

Amnon’s obsession quickly becomes deception. Notice the steps Amnon takes: first, deception. He lies, pretending to be ill, and David comes to check on his son. Amnon makes a request of the king which seemed reasonable to David, and David responds. Something worth noting is the number of times the text uses familial terms like ‘brother’ and ‘sister.’ The text is preparing us for the irony and truly revolting nature of the situation. Amnon’s request does not seem odd to David because it is not unreasonable for Amnon to ask his sister to bake him some bread, but in reality, we know what is happening.

Amnon is manipulating and betraying his father’s trust so that he can exploit his sister’s kindness.

Here is the truth: sin always promises satisfaction but requires selfishness. Sin leads us to selfishness; it leads us to manipulation. If you are finding yourself a little uncomfortable with everything happening, then you are getting it — this *is* uncomfortable, because sin *should* be uncomfortable. Sin breeds sin! Think about it: often, the path to sin is itself more sin. A child who is going out to a party to ‘get drunk’ with friends (already sinful) lies to their parents to do it. Sin breeds sin!

But it is even worse than that: once sinful desire takes root, it always demands more.

=== Sin leads us farther than we ever intended. ===

I don’t need to go into detail; the text does that itself. But what I do want to point out is the revolting nature of how far Amnon went. Here is the thing, though: that same capacity for evil is within each of us. We can sit here and be disgusted by Amnon and his actions, but if that is all we do, we are missing the point. You see, nobody wakes up in the morning and decides to throw away their future. Each of us is only one bad decision from a worse decision, and a worse one after that. Sin, if allowed to fester, will lead you down a path that you cannot imagine going down. If you don’t believe me, then just take a minute and consider the number of pastors who have destroyed ministry with an extramarital affair. These men do not wake up one morning and say, “I am going to destroy the ministry.” No, they wake up one morning and say, “How did I get so far down this path?”

One of the best stories illustrating the nature of sin is in Genesis 4 with Cain and Abel. God warns Cain that sin is waiting, crouching, ready to devour, but Cain does not heed God’s warning.

Look at Genesis 4:6-7:
> “6 Then the Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? 7 If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it.”

Tamar does everything she can to stop what is about to happen. She pleads with Amnon. She reminds him, “I’m your sister.” She calls his actions for what they are — an evil, shameful act. She appeals to God’s standards, reminding him that this is not how God’s people are to live. She warns him that this sin will ruin both of their lives: she will bear the shame, and he will be known as a wicked fool in Israel. She even offers a lawful alternative, suggesting that he speak to the king instead of committing this terrible sin.

In other words, God places obstacle after obstacle in Amnon’s path. Every plea is another opportunity to stop. Every warning is another chance to repent. But Amnon refuses to listen. The text says, “he would not listen to her.” Instead, he overpowers her and rapes her. In just a few short words, the narrator records the horrifying violence of the act, emphasizing that Tamar is completely innocent while Amnon treats her as nothing more than an object to satisfy his sinful desires.

There is another sobering connection here. Amnon is following the pattern that David himself established. Just as David summoned Bathsheba to satisfy his sinful desires, Amnon summons Tamar. David’s private sin has now begun bearing fruit in his own family. Sin never stays contained; it spreads and devastates everyone it touches.
Notice how many opportunities existed for Amnon to stop, but he refused to take his sin captive. Every decision moved him one step farther down the path. No one wakes up intending to destroy lives. Sin progresses one compromise at a time.

=== Sin is never as satisfying as it promises. ===

Verse 15 may be one of the most shocking reversals in Scripture.

> Then Amnon hated her with intense hatred. In fact, he hated her more than he had loved her.

What he called love was never love. But the problem is even deeper than that: sin is never satisfying in the end.

Proverbs 20:17 states:
> “Food gained by fraud tastes sweet, but one ends up with a mouth full of gravel.”

Satan always advertises temptation. He never advertises disgust.

Amnon imagined fulfillment. Instead he found emptiness, hatred, and shame.

Look, this is real life, and if you have lived long enough and reflected well enough, you have probably experienced this. Sin looks appealing; you dwell on it, then eventually you partake, and then all of a sudden you realize that what you thought would bring you joy is, in fact, nothing short of disgusting. This is how sin works! Sin looks good, it really does, but it always leaves you lacking.

Sin is like rubber bait on a hook. The bait looks appealing, it smells right, and maybe even for a split second tastes right, but the hook is hidden. The fish who takes the bait quickly finds that the bait is not what it seemed, and at the same time, things are now much worse.

=== Action Step: Ask God to help you see sin as it truly is — not attractive, but destructive. ===

I don’t think I can emphasize this enough. This is the action step that matters. Let’s be really blunt: Amnon’s sin was sexual in nature, and many, many people will struggle with this. Maybe it is not an affair; maybe it is pornography; maybe it is reading novels that are far too graphic; maybe it is a movie or TV show that, while not technically pornography, is serving the same lust as pornography. There are safeguards, apps, and security settings we can enact; we can and should seek accountability, but what we *really* need is to see sin as destructive and not attractive.

This goes for other sins too: alcohol destroys people, as does gambling, gossip, greed, consumerism, and idolatry. We need to see sin as it truly is *before* we commit the sin, not after!

---

== **Broad** — Sin has broad and devastating consequences (2 Samuel 13:15b-22). ==

=== Sin devastates real people. ===

The story deliberately slows down after Amnon’s sin. Why? Because the narrator wants us to stop looking at the sinner for a moment and begin looking at the victim.

Notice Amnon’s first words after violating Tamar.

> “Get this woman away from me!”

Just moments earlier, he was willing to manipulate his father, deceive his servants, and force himself upon Tamar because he claimed to “love” her. Now he won’t even call her by name. She has become nothing more than an inconvenience to be discarded.

Tamar immediately recognizes what this means.

> “No!” she cried. “Sending me away would be a greater wrong than what you have already done to me.”

That statement can sound surprising to modern readers until we understand the culture.

In the ancient world, a young woman’s virginity was closely connected to her future marriage and security. A woman without a husband had very few opportunities to provide for herself. By taking Tamar’s virginity outside of marriage, Amnon had stolen far more than her purity. He had robbed her of her future, her reputation, and much of her hope for a normal life.

According to the customs of the day, Amnon should have accepted responsibility for what he had done and cared for Tamar. Instead, after using her for his own sinful desires, he threw her away.

That is the nature of lust.

Lust always promises intimacy, but it produces exploitation.

Lust treats people as objects to satisfy desires instead of image-bearers to be loved and honored.

This is why God takes sexual sin so seriously. Sexual intimacy was created by God to express covenant love within marriage. When it is twisted by lust, manipulation, or abuse, it doesn't merely break a rule — it deeply wounds people made in God’s image.

The narrator makes sure we feel Tamar’s grief.

She tears her ornate robe, the robe that identified her as one of the king’s virgin daughters.

She puts ashes on her head.

She places her hand on her head and walks away weeping aloud.

The royal robe is torn. The ashes cover her beauty. The crying echoes through Jerusalem. The narrator refuses to let us overlook the human cost of sin.

=== Sin’s effects spread far beyond the sinner. ===

The devastation doesn’t stop with Tamar. One man’s private sin becomes an entire family’s tragedy. Tamar’s future is shattered. Absalom begins nursing hatred that will eventually explode into murder and rebellion. David becomes angry, yet he fails to act.

Eventually Amnon loses his own life, but only after his sin sets in motion events that begin tearing apart David’s household.

Sin never stays private. It spreads. It infects families. It damages churches. It scars marriages. It shapes children. It leaves wounds that often last for years. People sometimes say there is no such thing as a victimless crime. The same is true spiritually. There is no such thing as a victimless sin.

=== Sin destroys relationships. ===

Every major relationship in this story is broken. Brother against sister. Brother against brother. Father against son. Trust is shattered. Love is replaced by hatred. Fear replaces safety. Silence replaces justice.

This is exactly what sin has been doing ever since Genesis 3. Ultimately, every broken human relationship points to an even greater tragedy. Sin first breaks our relationship with God.

Our rebellion separates us from the One who created us, and every broken relationship around us is ultimately a reminder that something much deeper has been broken between humanity and our Creator.

That is why this story leaves us longing for a better Son of David.

Amnon used his position to exploit the vulnerable.

Jesus, the true Son of David, uses His authority to rescue the vulnerable.

Amnon took for himself. Jesus gave Himself. Amnon brought shame. Jesus bore shame so that sinners could be forgiven and restored.

=== Action Step: Don’t let fear of punishment be your only motivation for holiness. ===

Think about the people your sin would affect.

Every sinful choice either strengthens or weakens your relationships — with God, with your family, with your church, and with those who love you.

Love for God and love for others should move us to fight sin while it is still small.

== Conclusion ==

Most people never think they will become the person whose life falls apart. Neither did Amnon.
The tragedy didn’t begin in verse 14. It began in verse 1. Some of us may still be living in verses 1-5.

The sin hasn’t happened yet. The affair hasn’t begun. The addiction hasn’t become public. The bitterness hasn’t become hatred. God, in His mercy, is giving us warning signs. Don’t wait until the consequences become irreversible. Kill sin while it is still a thought. Confess it while it is still hidden. Run from it while escape is still possible. The best way to avoid the devastation of sin is not to recover from it later. It is to deal with it today. Christ offers both forgiveness for past failures and power to fight present temptation.
Run to Him while there is still time.

Christ stands ready to meet you at the threshold where you are right now. He offers freedom from sin and forgiveness for past sin through his death and resurrection.

If you have accepted Christ’s offer of salvation, then in Him, you have already been indicted, judged, executed, and resurrected — you are “dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.” This isn’t a future promise; it’s your present identity. The power of accusation that sin holds over you has been broken. You stand in Christ, hidden in His identity, and thus free from any accusation.

But this freedom demands a response.
> Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. (James 4:7)

> And God is faithful; He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, He will also provide a way out so that you can endure it. (1 Cor 10:13)

The escape route exists — you must take it now, before the thought becomes action, before the hidden sin becomes public devastation.

Consider what awaits those who turn toward Christ rather than away from Him.
> If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9)

> Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord. (Acts 3:19)

This is not condemnation but restoration:
> …there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. (Rom 8:1)

The mercy you need is available today.
> …approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. (Heb 4:15–16)

Don’t wait for the consequences to force your hand. Run to Christ while the choice is still yours to make.

Sermon Notes

Wakefien — Mon, 28 Sep 2026 18:27:05 GMT

‎2 Samuel

2 Samuel 19 — Focus Matters

Wakefien — Mon, 28 Sep 2026 18:23:03 GMT

Created page with "= Title: 2 Samuel 19 — Focus Matters = Big Idea: Keep your focus on what matters, even when life gets messy. Christ Focus: Jesus never lost sight of the Father's purpose, ev..."

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= Title: 2 Samuel 19 — Focus Matters =
Big Idea: Keep your focus on what matters, even when life gets messy.
Christ Focus: Jesus never lost sight of the Father's purpose, even when surrounded by complicated, sinful, and self-focused people. Unlike David, whose return to Jerusalem did not permanently unite Israel, Christ gives Himself to reconcile His rebellious people to God and ultimately gathers His people into one kingdom and one family.
Application: Ask yourself, "What has my attention, and is it actually what matters?"

= Introduction =
== Image: Keeping the airplane level. ==

Before I installed an autopilot in my airplane, I used to ask Emily to fly when I needed a break. We would get up to our cruise altitude, and I would tell Emily, “Keep the airplane at this altitude and direction and just fly while I take some time to rest and relax a little.”
The first time, I was surprised that neither of us got sick. We would hit a little air pocket, and the airplane would drop 20 feet. Emily would immediately pull back on the stick to get those 20 feet back, but then we would be in a rising thermal and shoot past our altitude, so she would push the nose forward. Back and forth, up and down, we would go until I finally realized I was giving Emily the wrong advice.
I was having her focus on the little details of altitude when, in reality, she needed to just keep the airplane straight and then occasionally correct for minor deviations in altitude. So I changed my advice.
“Just look out the window. You see this picture? Keep the airplane looking like this. If the horizon drops, pull it back up.”
Once Emily's focus changed, the whole experience changed. We were no longer chasing altitudes; we were simply coasting through the air. I had time to relax, eat something, and just take a break. When Emily needed help figuring something out, she just asked, and we were able to thoroughly enjoy the flight.
The key was focus.

== Need: What has your attention will shape your reactions, your relationships, and ultimately the direction of your life—so we need to learn to keep our focus on what actually matters. ==
== Preview: In 2 Samuel 19, we will see how keeping our focus on what matters means taking responsibility when emotions take over, persevering when people are complicated, choosing grace when we have been hurt, and pursuing unity instead of fighting for recognition. ==

== Setting the Stage: ==

I want to set the stage here for just a moment by reminding you of where we have been. We started with a major problem as Amnon violated Tamar. This led to Absalom killing Amnon and eventually leading a rebellion against King David. A war was fought, and Absalom was killed.
So where does that leave us? David is broken—a brokenness that really started with Bathsheba. The kingdom is in pieces, and it would appear as if everything is broken.
But brokenness has a superpower that we often miss: brokenness gives us the opportunity to reexamine our own lives and polish the rough edges.

== Text: 2 Samuel 19 read with each main point ==

= Body =
== **Responsibility** - Keep your focus when your emotions want to take over (2 Samuel 19:1-8). ==

What most people would have assumed was going to be a victorious celebration was turned into a time of mourning. Instead of marching into the city as victors, the soldiers slinked into the city as if they had actually lost the battle. Victory was turned into defeat, and the loyalty of David's men was beginning to wane.

=== How you react in any situation will affect how others react (1-4). ===

OK, you don't have to like this fact, but that doesn't change the fact: **emotions are contagious.** How you respond to a situation will affect how the people around you respond.

Let me give you a specific positive example.

There is a fascinating biological reality to how we connect with one another: smiling is quite literally contagious. When we see someone smile, special brain cells called **mirror neurons** fire automatically, triggering an involuntary reflex in our own facial muscles to mimic that expression. This phenomenon, known as facial mimicry, is one of the ways our brains help us connect emotionally with other people. A single smile doesn't necessarily stop with the person who started it; it can create a ripple effect that affects the mood of everyone in the room.

Unfortunately, the opposite is also true.

Here we see this playing out. David is broken and upset, and his emotional state is having a profound impact on everyone around him. His grief has become their grief. His mourning has become their mourning. His private pain has become a public problem.

Now, I want to be careful here. This does not mean that you can never show emotion. Emotions are good. God created us with emotions, and Scripture certainly doesn't tell us to pretend that we aren't hurting when we are hurting.

What it does mean is that **we need to take responsibility for our emotions.** We cannot allow our emotions to exercise so much control over us that they begin controlling the people around us or preventing us from doing what God has called us to do.

=== A wise person needs people who can stand outside the situation and tell them when they are reacting poorly (5-7). ===

I don't know exactly what to think of Joab. In general, I think Joab causes a lot of problems, is a hothead, and gives David a lot of headaches. However, on occasion, Joab gets it right, and here, despite all of Joab's shortcomings, he nails it.

Joab approaches David and essentially tells him, "You need to get up and do your job."

The people who had risked their lives for David were now sneaking into the city in shame. They had won the battle, but David's response was making them feel as though they had done something wrong.

Joab wisely recognized that there comes a point when David's grief has to give way to his responsibility.

Look, I know David was upset. I know he was hurt. I know he was grieving the loss of his son. But there came a moment when David had to get up, take control of himself, and return to his responsibilities.

And sometimes we need people in our lives—hopefully people who are better than Joab—who are willing to look us in the eye and say, "Knock it off. It's time to move on."

We all have blind spots. Sometimes we are too close to a situation to see what our emotions are doing to us or to the people around us. That's why we need people who can stand outside the situation and tell us the truth.

=== A wise person listens when someone they trust tells them what they don't want to hear (8). ===

At the end of it all, David listened. He got himself put back together, went out to the gate, and began acting as king again.

I don't want to spend too much time here because the text says what it says. The important point is that **David regained control of himself and returned to his responsibility.**

His emotions were real, but they could not be allowed to determine his actions.

=== Image: I trust Emily to give me real feedback on everything from preaching to landing the airplane. ===

In general, I am a words-of-affirmation person, but there is one person who is allowed to give me words of criticism, and that is Emily. I trust her to give me real feedback, and she does.

After a sermon, I will ask her, "How did such and such go?" And I trust her to give me honest feedback.

Emily also gives me feedback on my landings. Seriously, she grades every one of my landings. I usually get a B-plus. I think I have only gotten an A once, landing in Lexington, Nebraska, when Emily couldn't even tell if the wheels were down yet or not. She has high standards, in case you were wondering.

The reason I trust her criticism is because I trust her. I know she isn't trying to tear me down. She is trying to help me become better.

And that is exactly the kind of person we need in our lives.

=== Action Step: Identify someone you trust to give you honest feedback—and give them permission to tell you when your response is becoming unhealthy or unwise. ===

This is part of taking responsibility for yourself. That might sound a little strange, so let me explain.

You are responsible for yourself. You are responsible for your choices, your actions, and your responses. But you also need to recognize that there will be times in life when you are simply too close to a situation to recognize your own limitations.

When that happens, wisdom means having someone you trust who has been given permission to step in and say, "You're not seeing this clearly. You need to step back. You need to calm down. You need to change course."

**Taking responsibility for yourself sometimes means giving someone else permission to help you see yourself clearly.**

== **Perseverance** - Keep your focus when people are complicated (2 Samuel 19:9-18a). ==
As verse 8 comes to a close, we see a significant reality: the people had been at war, and now they faced an interesting quandary. They had rallied behind Absalom, but Absalom was now dead. David was still alive, but he had fled Jerusalem. So what were they supposed to do? Should they put their confidence back in David?
=== Real life is messy, and people do not always make good decisions (9-10). ===

An interesting situation begins to unfold in verses 9 and 10. As the people begin picking up the pieces of their own broken lives, they start talking about what to do about the king. They had fallen in line behind Absalom, David had fled, and now Absalom was dead. The question was whether they should now decide to follow David.

The picture we should have in our minds is something like this: if you were to visit the market, you would probably hear people talking about whether or not they should bring David back as king. But what you would also probably find is that it was all talk and no action.

In real life, talk is cheap. People will talk a lot, but when it comes time to make a decision or take a stand, people scatter.

I mean it. I have seen this time and time again. People talk about wanting change, but what they often really mean is that they want someone else to make the change. People talk about supporting something new until the work actually begins.

We need to be people who persevere even when we are standing alone. We need to be willing to take a stand even when others are only willing to talk about taking a stand.

**Real life is messy, and you may find yourself standing alone, but that does not mean you should stop doing what is right.**

=== Sometimes people—and committees in particular—struggle to make obvious decisions (11-13). ===

David recognized a reality that needed to be resolved. The people were waiting on the elders to make a decision, so David took the next step: he called on the elders to actually make the decision.

Then he followed that up by promising his nephew Amasa a position as commander of the army. By calling on the elders and promising Amasa this position, David was shoring up his position both within his own family and within Judah.

It is striking to me that the decision to bring David back as king should have been fairly obvious. Absalom was dead, David was the rightful king, and the people were already talking about restoring him.

But the reality is that people can be a pain. People often have their own agendas, and those agendas can keep them from making the best decision for everyone involved simply because the right decision isn't quite in their own interest.

The result is that people sometimes struggle to make the right decision even when the right decision seems obvious.

Nevertheless, we need to persevere.

=== Getting the right thing done sometimes requires saying the right thing at the right time (14-18a). ===

With the right people in place, David was prepared, and the men of Judah brought David back into Israel. Moreover, Shimei, from the tribe of Benjamin, who had previously cursed David, brought 1,000 men to welcome David back.

So what actually happened here?

Here is what I see: after the victory, the throne was not necessarily secure. David still had a divided kingdom and uncertain loyalties. But David, working with his people, said the right things to the right people at the right time. He took action to move the people toward the right decisions and ultimately restore the kingdom to himself.

Life would be a lot easier if everyone simply did what they were supposed to do when they were supposed to do it. But that is not the world we live in.

People need to be motivated. They need to be talked to. They need to be persuaded. They need to be brought along.

**This is simply part of working with people.**

If we are going to keep our focus on what matters, we cannot allow the complications of people to make us give up on what needs to be done.

=== Action Step: When you are dealing with complicated people or situations, don't give up simply because the obvious solution is not happening. Ask, "What needs to be said, and who needs to hear it?" ===

== **Grace** - Keep your focus on restoration rather than retaliation (2 Samuel 19:18b-30). ==

Grace, I have to say, is a tough nut to crack. On the surface, sure, we can make sense of it, but to actually show grace? Oof, that is hard.

I remember the phrase I was once taught for grace: "God's riches at Christ's expense." I am incredibly thankful for God's grace, but what does grace look like for each of us? Well, let me suggest that grace is something we freely receive from God but something we can choose to extend to others.

And don't worry, there are plenty of opportunities in life to show grace.

=== People make mistakes, and sometimes their mistakes will hurt you (18b-20). ===

Recall that Shimei was the one in 16:5-8 who cursed David as he fled into exile. In fact, the text tells us that Shimei pelted David with stones while calling David a murderer and a scoundrel. Abishai had even asked David for permission to go over and execute Shimei.

There is no doubt that Shimei's words and actions had hurt David. And now Shimei realizes the mistake he has made.

To his credit, Shimei comes before David humbly and ready to admit his mistake. He acknowledges that he was wrong and asks David to forgive him. He also points out that he is the first from the tribes of Joseph—representing the northern tribes of Israel—to come and greet David as he returns.

In other words, Shimei recognizes that David is the king, and he is taking the first step toward reconciliation.

=== How we respond to people who admit their mistakes reveals our character (21-23). ===

As you might expect, David had some very loyal men who had strong opinions about Shimei. One of those men, Abishai, takes a strong stand: Shimei should be put to death.

I don't think Abishai has done anything wrong here. What I see is a man who is loyal to David and wants to defend David's honor. From Abishai's perspective, Shimei had publicly cursed the king and deserved to be punished.

That being said, I want us to focus on David's response.

Look at what David says in verse 22: "What does this have to do with you, you sons of Zeruiah?" In Hebrew, the phrase is literally something like, "What to me and to you?" It is a way of saying, "Abishai, this is not your decision to make."

David recognizes that he is king. More importantly, David recognizes that this is not the moment for more bloodshed.

I suspect David also understands that showing grace toward Shimei will help him win back the hearts of the people. In fact, we discover in 1 Kings 2:8-9 that David later instructs Solomon to deal with Shimei.

But what I see here is David's character on display. David does not need more bloodshed. David does not need to settle the score. David does not need revenge.

**David has more important things to do than settle every score.**

And that matters.
=== Sometimes the right way forward is simply to move forward regardless of what has happened in the past (24-30). ===

With Shimei behind us, it is now time to move to Mephibosheth.

Recall that Mephibosheth was the son of Jonathan whom David had chosen to honor greatly. When David fled Jerusalem, his servant Ziba made the claim that Mephibosheth was celebrating David's demise and hoping to reclaim his grandfather Saul's kingdom.

Now, as David returns, Mephibosheth comes before him to try to clear things up. David asks why Mephibosheth had not gone with him, and Mephibosheth explains that he had been betrayed by Ziba and slandered.

David, instead of getting deeply into the specifics of who said what and who was telling the truth, simply tells them to divide the property.

Mephibosheth's response is telling. He essentially says, "Let Ziba have it all. I am just glad that my lord the king has returned safely."

At this point, David decides that the details of the dispute do not need to consume him. The king is back. The kingdom needs to be restored. There are more important things in front of him.

Sometimes the right way forward is simply to move forward.

There are times when we need to confront sin. There are times when justice needs to be pursued. There are times when wrongs need to be addressed. But there are also times when, having dealt with what needs to be dealt with, we need to stop looking backward and start moving forward.

**Not every wrong needs to become a lifelong battle.**

=== Action Step: Ask yourself, "Am I trying to move forward, or am I still trying to make someone pay for what happened?" ===

== **Unity** - Keep your focus on what matters instead of fighting over recognition (2 Samuel 19:31-43). ==
=== Even after God brings us through a crisis, we can lose focus over secondary things (31-39). ===

Another man, Barzillai, who had been part of the Transjordan delegation that supported David, arrives next. David offers him the great honor of becoming part of the royal court, but Barzillai declines the offer and instead asks that Kimham be given the honor.

The point here is not that Barzillai is right or wrong, or that David is handling this exactly right or wrong. The point is that there are always tons of details that need the attention of a leader, and it is easy for a leader to get bogged down in those details.

David probably genuinely wanted Barzillai to be part of the royal court. Having an older, respected man from the Transjordan region—a region where the kings had traditionally struggled to exercise control—could have been useful. But this was not the primary focus.

So when Barzillai offers an alternative, David simply says yes and moves on.

I think there is something important here for all of us. **Not everything that deserves our attention deserves our focus.**

There will always be details, decisions, requests, and opportunities competing for our attention. Wisdom means knowing what matters most and being willing to let some things go. David wisely moves forward and Barzillai wisely offers his honor to another.

=== Self-focus turns secondary issues into major conflicts (40-43). ===

Finally, we see things begin to boil over.

David is from Judah, and some of the Israelites see a problem with the way David is being welcomed home. They ask, in effect, "Why should Judah get all the credit? Why weren't we included?"

Then the people of Judah respond, and before long, a disagreement about who gets to be closest to the king turns into a major conflict.

I want you to notice how petty this is.

The kingdom has just been rescued from a rebellion. David has been restored to Jerusalem. The nation has survived a devastating civil war. This should be a moment of celebration.

Instead, the people are arguing over who gets the closest relationship with the king.

**They have lost focus on what matters because they have become focused on themselves.**

And that is dangerous.

What begins as a minor disagreement can become incredibly destructive when our focus shifts from what matters to what we think we deserve.

As we will see in chapter 20, this self-focus and absorption with our own importance will turn a minor squabble into something incredibly destructive.

=== Action Step: When conflict arises, ask, "Is this actually about what matters, or is this about me?" ===

= Conclusion =
== What has your attention? ==
== What has captured your focus? ==
== Is it actually what matters? ==

Sermon Notes

Wakefien — Mon, 28 Sep 2026 18:21:58 GMT

‎2 Samuel

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	[[2 Samuel 11-12 How will you respond to sin in your life?]]		[[2 Samuel 11-12 How will you respond to sin in your life?]]
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		+	[[2 Samuel 13:1-22 Choose to Deal with Sin Before It Becomes a Problem]]
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		+	[[2 Samuel 13:23-39 There Is a Right Way to Deal With Sin]]
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		+	[[2 Samuel 14 Grace and Justice Are Meant to Be Held Together]]
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		+	[[2 Samuel 15 Is God Still God When the Walls Crash Down?]]
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		+	[[2 Samuel 16:1-17:23 Wisdom Often Means Stepping Back]]
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		+	[[2 Samuel 18:1-18:33 Priorities Shape Us]]

	[[2 Samuel 19 — Focus Matters]]		[[2 Samuel 19 — Focus Matters]]

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	[[2 Samuel 11-12 How will you respond to sin in your life?]]		[[2 Samuel 11-12 How will you respond to sin in your life?]]
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		+	[[2 Samuel 19 — Focus Matters]]

	====1 Kings====		====1 Kings====