Please God

From II Samuel 14-17:

1. It is interesting that Joab was so concerned about bringing Absalom back. Yet later Joab did not want to go and talk / see Absalom, to the point that Absalom had to have his servants set Joab's barley field on fire to get him to pay attention. I am guessing that Joab wanted Absalom back to please King David. The bible talks about seeking to please God rather than men in both Galatians 1:10 and also in I Thess. 2:4.

2. An interesting note is how Ahithophel gets involved. He sides with Absalom against David. We shall find out later that it is because he is actually the grandfather of Bathsheba and perhaps harbors displeasure over the whole Uriah / Bathsheba / David affair. (See II Samuel 11:3 and II Samuel 23:34 for proof.)

3. I wonder if David was aware that Absalom was out by the road leading to the city gate telling all of the people what he was telling them. If I were King David, I probably would have given him the authority to judge (similar to the position that Joseph had in Pharaoh's court in Egypt) so that he could see how challenging it actually is. I guarantee that he would not have everyone's undivided support if he had been tasked with this. (My experience is that no matter what you do, someone is bound to be dissatisfied with your decision.) This also would have given David a break from dealing with some of these matters. Delegation is a wonderful training tool!

4. David was wise to know that he needed to flee. It seems to me that he must have had some inkling that Absalom was going to try this and that it was a danger; otherwise, why would he have any idea that he needed to flee?

5. Ziba, the servant of Mephibosheth, stated that Mephibosheth was hoping to gain the kingdom back. However, later we will find that he claimed otherwise and said his servant betrayed him. What a mess, being the king and all, and having to deal with people jockeying for position within your realm.

6. Everyone highly regarded Ahithophel's advice. It says his advice was like one who inquires of God. Does this mean that he was just very wise in the ways of the world, or does it also mean that everyone took his advice very seriously?

7. God rescued David from the plight he was in by causing everyone to listen to the advice of Hushai instead of Ahithophel. So ultimately, God is the one who saved David, not Hushai. Hushai was only the vehicle through which God accomplished his will.

8. It is interesting that, among others, Shobi son of Nahash of the Ammonites came to provide relief to David and those fleeing with him. One would think that the Ammonites would rather use this opportunity to destroy their enemy.