2 Samuel Chapter 19 Verses 1 – 4

 I want to walk a fine line here with a point that needs to be made.

David is definitely broken over the loss of his son. It could even be

that the weight of losing Amnon, the weight of losing his firstborn of

Bathsheba and the weight of what happened to his beloved daughter

Tamar are all wounds reopened with the loss of Absolom. At any rate,

entirely understandable that David is mourning his loss.

 Here’s the difficulty. It’s his loss. Not the loss of his people. Absolom

had made himself their enemy. He had caused them to lose their

homes, their lives, their security, on and on. So, for them, for David’s

people, today was a great day of victory.

 Here’s the difficult point that needs to be made, David is hurting his

people with his personal distress, and at least part of that is not right.

It’s not good. This is something I am, somewhat always have been, on

high alert in my own life and I know why, because of how others

attitudes and conditions affect me.

 If I am angry, upset, sad, tired, the like…, I have no right to let that

harm others. Maybe you feel differently. In fact, after four and half

decades of life, 20 years of ministry, and 25 years into my career, I am

SURE that many (if not most folks) feel differently.

 Can you imagine the weight that Jesus carried? Not only knowing for

His entire earthly ministry that He would go to the cross, but also just

being around folks that are the opposite of righteous when He is

perfectly righteous. No one doing anything right or as good as He

could do? Knowing that so many around Him would go to hell. Just

the frustration of being limited in human form…, on and on the list

goes.

 And yet He was full of grace. Full of love. Served and served and

served. Healed and uplifted His friends! The One that the world

actually revolved around made it so it didn’t. This is the opposite of

what David is doing. David is mourning to the point that he is hurting

others. There’s at least a portion of that, some say very small, others

like me say 100%, that is sin.

 1 Thessalonians 4:13, Paul said, “I do not what you to be ignorant

brethren, concerning those who have fallen asleep, lest you sorrow as

others who have no hope.” Christians sorrow. We struggle. We get

tired, discouraged, angry, sad…, but the mature Christian does all of

those things within an unshakable foundation of faith and hope.

 Each one of us, it is good to have people in your life that can cry when

you cry, laugh when you laugh, and mourn when you mourn. We all

need that and that is wonderful. David is hurting his entire nation.

Totally different. And in light of eternity, totally wrong.

 Some call me heartless for this type of teaching. I’m not. Actually, it’s

the opposite. I will struggle greatly and take it to the Lord and edify

my brother. I will choose positivity, to say things that impart grace and

strength, even when I’m weak. And oh, how I wish others would step

into that kind of Christianity and hold fast to what Paul taught in

Romans 8:18, “I consider that the sufferings of this present time are

not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in

us.”

 Jesus said, speaking of Peter’s self-loathing that would come after his

failure, Luke 22:32, “I have prayed for you, that your faith should not

fail; and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren.”

 The people of David, it says here, stole back into the city. No

procession of victory. David has robbed them of that joy and that

adulation. They came back as if they had done something wrong,

that’s the sentiment, because David, their king and commander is

drowning in his own grief. As heartless as this sounds, David is being

very selfish and Joab has the spine to tell him…

2 Samuel Chapter 19 Verses 5 – 8

 (The word used for “disgraced” is “to dry up.”) Good on David. We

don’t see a verbal response from David, he just receives this

correction, gets up and makes himself available to support his people.

In fact, we don’t read again of his calling out for Absolom. It’s the one

thing entirely consistent and amazing about David. When he is

corrected, he corrects. Very rare character trait but entirely

commanded of all of us by the Word of God.

2 Samuel Chapter 19 Verses 9 – 14

 The chatter in the city is understandable. Will he come back? Will he

kill us all? What is going to happen now that Absolom, whom we

followed, has been killed? It’s understandable. David just simply says,

I’ll be happy to come back but you need to call for me. He doesn’t

want to force his way back onto the throne.

 And it seems here that David demotes Joab. Perhaps this was in return

for Joab killing Absolom. We aren’t told…

2 Samuel Chapter 19 Verses 15 – 23

 A couple of things are going on here. This is the same Shimei that

threw stones at David and cursed David as he left the city. It was not

only a scene of disgust for David but it was a scene revealing the

cruelty of character in Shimei. Even if he disdained David, to do what

he did was absurd and something only someone very dark would do.

 Notice, however, how he approaches David. He says six of the most

difficult words for any of us to screech out, “I know that I have

sinned.” He not only takes accountability but he chooses to see that

what he did and who he was, was wrong. That is the recipe to leads

to real change. That is repentance. That is humility (notice his

position of falling down before David).

 He says, “Do not let my lord impute iniquity to me.” He ascribes

honor to David and acknowledges his authority and capability. AND,

his repentance was accompanied by blatant, obvious action. He was

the first to come… Let me tell you if anyone can hear this,

accountability, repentance and humility will almost always be met

with grace. Exactly what happens here.

 Almost always…? Yes. Notice, David is secure in who he is. He says,

“For do I now know that today I am king over Israel?” David doesn’t

need to prove to himself or to anyone else that Shimei, what Shimei

did to him, was wrong. It doesn’t change anything about him. He is

secure in who he is and being secure in who you are sets you free to

show grace, forgiveness, and kindness to others.

 Sometimes security in who you are needs time to be rebuilt after a

disgrace. David appears to not need time but many will. And just

because someone doesn’t immediately return grace for repentance

doesn’t mean it isn’t the right thing to do on the part of the offender.

Forgiveness won’t always immediately be accompanied by grace. It

will eventually, once identity is rebuilt and hearts are healed.

Sometimes there is a period of consequence as recovery takes place in

a relationship or circumstance. Doesn’t mean there isn’t forgiveness,

there just isn’t healing yet…

2 Samuel Chapter 19 Verses 24 – 30

 It appears that David has grown weary of the saga between Ziba and

Mephibosheth. David had given all to Ziba and now he pulls back half

to grant to Mephibosheth. Mephibosheth however could care less of

the estate. He was only wanting David to be restored as king. It does

work out for Mephibosheth because he ends up spared in a couple of

chapters when the Gibeonites ask for his life.

2 Samuel Chapter 19 Verses 31 – 43

 Interesting, we begin to see a dispute here between Judah, (which

included Simeon), the beginning of the southern tribes, and the men of

Israel or the ten northern tribes. There will indeed be a civil war in

David’s life between the two.