I WASN’T EXPECTING THAT
Opening Prayer
Holy God, I thank You that You are over all and above all. You know the beginning from the end. I trust You.
Read 2 Samuel 18:1–18
David mustered the men who were with him and appointed over them commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds. 2 David sent out his troops, a third under the command of Joab, a third under Joab’s brother Abishai son of Zeruiah, and a third under Ittai the Gittite. The king told the troops, “I myself will surely march out with you.”
3 But the men said, “You must not go out; if we are forced to flee, they won’t care about us. Even if half of us die, they won’t care; but you are worth ten thousand of us. It would be better now for you to give us support from the city.”
4 The king answered, “I will do whatever seems best to you.”
So the king stood beside the gate while all his men marched out in units of hundreds and of thousands. 5 The king commanded Joab, Abishai and Ittai, “Be gentle with the young man Absalom for my sake.” And all the troops heard the king giving orders concerning Absalom to each of the commanders.
6 David’s army marched out of the city to fight Israel, and the battle took place in the forest of Ephraim. 7 There Israel’s troops were routed by David’s men, and the casualties that day were great—twenty thousand men. 8 The battle spread out over the whole countryside, and the forest swallowed up more men that day than the sword.
9 Now Absalom happened to meet David’s men. He was riding his mule, and as the mule went under the thick branches of a large oak, Absalom’s hair got caught in the tree. He was left hanging in midair, while the mule he was riding kept on going.
10 When one of the men saw what had happened, he told Joab, “I just saw Absalom hanging in an oak tree.”
11 Joab said to the man who had told him this, “What! You saw him? Why didn’t you strike him to the ground right there? Then I would have had to give you ten shekels of silver and a warrior’s belt.”
12 But the man replied, “Even if a thousand shekels were weighed out into my hands, I would not lay a hand on the king’s son. In our hearing the king commanded you and Abishai and Ittai, ‘Protect the young man Absalom for my sake.’ 13 And if I had put my life in jeopardy—and nothing is hidden from the king—you would have kept your distance from me.”
14 Joab said, “I’m not going to wait like this for you.” So he took three javelins in his hand and plunged them into Absalom’s heart while Absalom was still alive in the oak tree. 15 And ten of Joab’s armor-bearers surrounded Absalom, struck him and killed him.
16 Then Joab sounded the trumpet, and the troops stopped pursuing Israel, for Joab halted them. 17 They took Absalom, threw him into a big pit in the forest and piled up a large heap of rocks over him. Meanwhile, all the Israelites fled to their homes.
18 During his lifetime Absalom had taken a pillar and erected it in the King’s Valley as a monument to himself, for he thought, “I have no son to carry on the memory of my name.” He named the pillar after himself, and it is called Absalom’s Monument to this day.
New International Version (NIV)
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Reflect
Have you faced unexpected moments in life? How have you dealt with them? How does it help to know that God is in control?In 2011 Jamie Lawson wrote a song called “Wasn’t Expecting That.” The song keeps repeating the refrain “I wasn’t expect-ing that” every second line as he tracks different scenarios through life. Today’s passage involves lots of plotting, scary encounters and “I wasn’t expecting that” moments.
There is a battle raging and troops have been scattered all over the land (1–8). They are on the lookout for Absalom and are told to go easy on him. David wants a victory but doesn’t want his son killed. As the battle rages a “wasn’t expect-ing that” moment comes. Absalom catches his hair on the branch of a tree and is left hanging in the air. If this were a Hollywood movie he would be safely rescued from the tree and returned to the homestead. The story doesn’t have a happy ending. He is killed with spears and thrown into a pit.
Absalom died for a cause and was discarded, but there was a future king who was also discarded and killed. The main difference is this Son and King was faithful to his Father. Jesus died, but rose from the grave, overcoming death—wasn’t expecting that?
Apply
Do you know someone who is going through an “unexpected moment”? How can you encourage him or her with the hope of God’s grace today?
Closing prayer
Give thanks for those unexpected moments of God’s grace, and most importantly, give thanks for Jesus.
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