Useful Bible Studies > 2 Samuel Commentary > chapter 18
Job praised God after the loss of all his property and the deaths of all his children (Job 1:21). The author of Lamentations was aware of God’s kindness every day, even after an enemy army had completely destroyed Jerusalem (Lamentations 3:22-24). Habakkuk found joy in God after the loss of both the harvest and the farm animals (Habakkuk 3:17-18).
David was a very holy man. He had just heard the news of the defeat of his enemies. So, we would expect him to praise God who had rescued him and his nation from their great cruelty. However, David would not do that because the leader of his enemies was Absalom, his own son. At that moment, it did not seem to matter to David that he and his nation had peace, SHALOM in the Hebrew language. He only cared about whether his son Absalom was safe. David’s word for ‘safe’ was the same word, SHALOM in the Hebrew language.
The army commander, Joab, had told Ahimaaz that ‘the king’s son is dead’ (18:20). Ahimaaz probably realised that he meant Absalom. However, David had other sons who probably joined in the battle (see 2 Samuel 3:2-5). Ahimaaz did not want to tell the king about this. So, when David asked about Absalom, Ahimaaz did not answer his question. He simply told David about the confusion when Joab sent him. Ahimaaz did not know what was happening – but Joab had sent another runner to report about that. Ahimaaz called that other runner ‘the king’s servant’. That man had seen clearly these events and he could tell David about them.
Next part: At last, David hears that Absalom is dead (2 Samuel 18:31-32)
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