A Father's Grief

The ancient land of Israel was torn by civil war and King David was forced to flee Jerusalem with a small army of loyal friends. Worse yet, the rebellion was led by the king’s own son, Absalom. Absalom had already murdered his brother and was now trying to kill his father to gain the throne.
Prospects for victory that day were slim and David’s generals insisted that he stay behind lest he be killed. As David reluctantly saw them off, he said, “Be gentle with the young man Absalom for my sake.” Then the anxious father awaited news.
Later, two runners returned with the news. David’s army was victorious, but twenty thousand lives were lost in the battle and Absalom was one of them. The Bible says, “The king was shaken. He went up to the room over the gateway and wept.” In his grief David wailed, “O my son Absalom!… If only I had died instead of you – O Absalom, my son, my son!”
Absalom was a traitor and a murderer, but he was also David’s son and David loved his son. Armies and thrones and politics were forgotten as the king grieved the death of his son.
Grief is like that. It isn’t rational, it’s emotional and it shakes us to our core. David was devastated by the loss of his son, but he turned to God for solace – just as we can in our grief. Listen to David’s words:
“In my distress I called…out to my God. From his temple he heard my voice; … He reached down from on high and took hold of me; … the Lord was my support.”

Related Scripture: Psalm 18:6,16,18


© 2007 Leith Anderson