DCLM Daily Manna 2024: DCLM Daily Manna 20 August 2024: A Tragic Route
Text: 2 Samuel 19:1-7 (KJV)
1 And it was told Joab, Behold, the king weepeth and mourneth for Absalom.
2 And the victory that day was turned into mourning unto all the people: for the people heard say that day how the king was grieved for his son.
3 And the people gat them by stealth that day into the city, as people being ashamed steal away when they flee in battle.
4 But the king covered his face, and the king cried with a loud voice, O my son Absalom, O Absalom, my son, my son!
5 And Joab came into the house to the king, and said, Thou hast shamed this day the faces of all thy servants, which this day have saved thy life, and the lives of thy sons and of thy daughters, and the lives of thy wives, and the lives of thy concubines;
6 In that thou lovest thine enemies, and hatest thy friends. For thou hast declared this day, that thou regardest neither princes nor servants: for this day I perceive, that if Absalom had lived, and all we had died this day, then it had pleased thee well*.
7 Now therefore arise, go forth, and speak comfortably unto thy servants: for I swear by the LORD, if thou go not forth, there will not tarry one with thee this night: and that will be worse unto thee than all the evil that befell thee from thy youth until now.
KEY VERSE: 2 Samuel 19:1-7 (KJV)
“And the victory that day was turned into mourning unto all the people: for the people heard say that day how the king was grieved for his son.”
Beautiful names do not necessarily translate into good hearts. Some people with the worst characters also have very good names. Such was the case of Absalom, whose name literarily means “father of peace”. But he turned out to be a big problem for David, bringing so much distress to his father’s kingdom due to his lust for power and authority.
Absalom was slain in the battle against David’s army. When news came to David that his son had been killed, what would have been a joyous celebration of victory was turned into a sorrowful moment. Joab was, however, quick to remind the grieving king that beyond being his son, Absalom died as an enemy of the nation whose life should not be valued more than that of other Israelites. If he would retain the already fragmented kingdom, Joab advised David to go and speak comfortingly to the people.
Jesus cautioned against rebellion. He taught that those who aspire to be great among the people or be chief should first be their servant. By this injunction, inordinate ambition is not allowed among God’s people. Similarly, rebellion is equated in the Scripture with the sin of witchcraft which must be avoided altogether (1 Samuel 15:23).
Desperate ambition is deadly. It also breeds unnecessary rivalry, cutthroat competition and disorder. But as David did, believers should mourn when the sinner dies in his sin because the final destination of the unrepentant sinner is hell and this should cause us to be sorrowful when they die. The onus, therefore, is on us to preach the gospel to the unsaved around us. Unlike David, believers and leaders in positions of authority must not magnify their personal or family challenges above the challenges of those they lead.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:
The road to hell is paved with inordinate ambition.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR:
Daniel 1-2
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Daily Manna 20 August 2024
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