Absalom Returns to Jerusalem from Geshur
- Dates
- 984 BC
After Absalom murders his half—brother Amnon, he flees to Geshur. Joab uses a trick to convince David to let Absalom come back from exile. Absalom returns but does not see the king for 2 years.
In detail
Joab had attained his purpose through deceit to convince David to reconcile with Absalom. The king wisely commissioned him to carry the tidings to Absalom and to bring him home. Joab had good reason for thanking the king. If David had granted an unfavorable decision, Joab would have been held accountable for the situation. But Absalom was not allowed into David's presence.
Absalom's murder of Amnon was not yet forgotten, and for the sake of the nation and Absalom himself, David felt it necessary to show his abhorrence of the crime that had been committed. Being at home but not being allowed to see the face of his father or to appear with his brethren at the court began to prey upon the mind of Absalom. He felt that he was being wronged, and the people came to sympathize with him. In the eyes of the nation he was a hero who was to be praised for an act of right and justice rather than a criminal to be shunned for a misdeed.
Bible passages
- 2 Samuel 14:1-24
1 Now Joab the son of Zeruiah perceived that the king’s heart was toward Absalom. 2 And Joab sent to Tekoah, and fetched thence a wise woman, and said unto her, I pray thee, feign thyself to be a mourner, and put on now mourning apparel, and anoint not thyself with oil, but be as a woman that had a long time mourned for the dead: 3 And come to the king, and speak on this manner unto him. So Joab put the words in her mouth. …
Text of the King James Version.