1. David fled from his son out of Jerusalem

We continue the lecture on Psalm and today’s reading part is Psalm 3. The poem is preceded by the caption ‘A psalm of David. When he fled from his son Absalom.’ In general, captions of Psalm are added by the compiler and don’t summarize necessarily contents of poems or details about writers. However I think the caption of Psalm 3 gives useful informations for better understanding of the writer¡Çs feeling. And we will admit that today’s poem was written by the king David himself. The king revealed through lyrics the bottom of his mind during the time of escape from his son.

David unified the tribes of Israel to establish a new kingdom. But he was taken over the throne by Absalom, one of his sons. Absalom rebelled against his own father and expelled him out of Jerusalem. Absalom was pushed by hatred of his father to take action . We find details of how he carried out the plot in 2 Samuel 15-17 ; - Then Absalom sent secret messengers throughout the tribes of Israel to say, “As soon as you hear the sound of the trumpets, then say, ‘Absalom is king in Hebron.’ ” Two hundred men from Jerusalem had accompanied Absalom. ¡Ä he (Absalom) also sent for Ahithophel David’s counselor. And so the conspiracy gained strength, and Absalom’s following kept on increasing. A messenger came and told David, “The hearts of the men of Israel are with Absalom.” Then David said to all his officials ¡Ä, “Come! We must flee,¡Ä. We must leave immediately, or he will move quickly to overtake us and bring ruin upon us and put the city to the sword.""(2 Samuel 15:10-16)

David had many concubines and children with them. And the anomalous relationship interior of the family generated troubles and conflicts. For example, Amnon, the oldest son and the heir-apparent of David, raped his half-sister Tamar, daughter of David with Maachah. David could not punish Amnon adequately though the Bible condemned sexual relations between half-brothers and sisters. (see Leviticus 18:11) ). David had scruples about accusing severely Amnon because he also had committed a sin, an adultery with Bathsheba, the wife of Uriah, a soldier of his army.

Absalom was another son of David with Maachahr, in other words an elder brother of Tamar. He gat furious about the unfair judgement of his father. So he killed Amnon to avenge his sister. But, at that time, David condemned Absalom to expulsion out of the palace. Thus Absalom resented his father¡Çs decision and, two years later, made up the conspiracy to grasp at the ruling power of David.

Absalom sent for David’s counselor Ahithophel who was the grand father of Bathsheba. Ahithophel was also having the same rencor as Absalom because David killed Uriah, the husband of Bathesheba to take her. We see that the whole tragedy came from David’s sinful conduct.

David awaited the judgement of God by admitting the fact ; - Then the king (David) said to Zadok, “Take the ark of God back into the city. If I find favor in the LORD’s eyes, he will bring me back and let me see it and his dwelling place again. But if he says, ‘I am not pleased with you,’ then I am ready; let him do to me whatever seems good to him.” (2 Samuel 15:25-26)

After the prayer, he set off from Jerusalem to avoid the fight with his own son. But his escape destabilized the balance of power. Many officers and soldiers came to join the army of Absalom who succeeded to the throne. They wanted to maintain present situation even under the new king. The majority of citizens also stood on the side of Absalom and showed hostility against David. As usual throughout the human history, the crowd praise and adore winners and look down losers. Especially, those who resented that David had replaced the king Saul cursed David.

Shimei was one of them. Because Saul and Shimei were both Benjamites (Children of Jacob). He openly expressed scorns for David ; - “Get out, get out, you man of blood, you scoundrel! The LORD has repaid you for all the blood you shed in the household of Saul, in whose place you have reigned. The LORD has handed the kingdom over to your son Absalom. You have come to ruin because you are a man of blood!"(2 Samuel 16:7-8)

2. Thrown out by the society

Psalm 3 is a song which sings sorrow of a man in distress. The man, David, was crying aloud to God ; - O LORD, how many are my foes! How many rise up against me! Many are saying of me, “God will not deliver him.” (Psalm 3:1-2)

The people thought he reaped what he sowed, the sinful act. They were sure that God won¡Çt forgive him. We remark here that Jesus was mocked in a similar way on the Cross ; - He trusts in God. Let God rescue him now if he wants him, for he said, ‘I am the Son of God.’ “(Matthew27:43)

That crowd were also sure that God won’t save Jesus. David heard the same mockery which would be heard by Jesus, his descendent. But David was resilient. It is true that he had committed a sin and was tortured by the result. Nonetheless he dared say to God, in spite of all ; - But you are a shield around me, O LORD; you bestow glory on me and lift up my head. To the LORD I cry aloud, and he answers me from his holy hill. (Psalm 3:3-4)

‘Lift up my head’ he cried. He begged God to recall to the people his faithful act done before.

Jewish people lift up their head toward the sky when they pray God. Prayer is a cry to God. Though the crowd disdained openly David, he cried out, ‘God, you are a shield around me!’ Because he believed that God would protect him as a shield on which arrows would rebound off. And he was sure of God¡Çs response to his cry.

If we are surrounded by enemies we won’t be able to sleep tight. Bur David, by believing in God’s protection could fell asleep in the middle of enemies. And peaceful sleep brought him courage and power back. Good rest is the best source of force. Thus he arrived to sing ; - I lie down and sleep; I wake again, because the LORD sustains me. I will not fear the tens of thousands drawn up against me on every side. (Psalm 3:5-6)

Strong belief that God remains always on our side makes us courageous regardless of any dire straits. So David called for support of God : - Arise, O LORD! Deliver me, O my God! Strike all my enemies on the jaw; break the teeth of the wicked.(Psalm 3:7)

He knew that he was deserted by the society ; - O LORD, how many are my foes! How many rise up against me!(Psalm3 : 1)

But he wasn¡Çt seeking revenge on them. Because a person who can trust totally in God will never take revenge. Instead, he asked God for blessing even to those offencive people ; - From the LORD comes deliverance. May your blessing be on your people.(Psalm 3:8)

3. We must reap the fruit of our sin

Today’s invocation verse is 1 Samuel 18:33 ; - The king was shaken. He went up to the room over the gateway and wept. As he went, he said: “O my son Absalom! My son, my son Absalom! If only I had died instead of you—O Absalom, my son, my son!”

The verse is David’s mourning for his dead son Absalom. Reiteration of the words ‘My son’ shows how David’s sorrow was deep. Absalom, one of David’s sons, grabbed the throne by expelling his father. Then he became arrogant and complacent because of absence of experiences. He thought he was all mighty and ignored any counselors¡Ç words. As a result, people didn’t not appreciate his rein anymore. Meanwhile, combats between David¡Çs and Absalom¡Çs armies became inevitable. David stayed at the back of troops to be safe during the war by respecting the advice of his men. They thought the death of David must be crucial for all the party. David then ordered his soldiers to arrest Absalom alive, not to kill him. Because, despite the son¡Çs conduct, David loved him. He didn’t hate Absalom.

Nonetheless, Joab, the captain of the army, killed Absalom without hesitation whereas solders were reluctant.(see 2 Samuel 18:4) Because Joab thought the presence of the son must generate other problems in the kingdom. Thus the messenger of the victory reported also the death of Absalom to David. When David heard it, he went up into a room to mourn for that loss, instead of congratulating on the victory.

David couldn¡Çt judge and condemn fairly Amnon who had conducted a sinful act. Because David himself did likewise, the adultery with Bathsheba. (see 2 Samuel 11) Therefore Absalom killed Amnon as the revenge of his raped sister. In contrast, David expelled Absalom for the murder. Absalon revolted against David to object to the biased judgement but he lost the combat and died.

David recognized that his own sin resulted in death of two of his sons. He understood that he reaped the fruit of his sin.

David retrieved the throne. The men of the tribe of Israel, who had supported Absalom, admitted David¡Çs rule again. But they did so reluctantly, not willingly. They had taken part of Absalom because they disapproved the domination of David. After the incident, David intensified the control over the people in order to make the kingdom more stable. Naturally, the squeezing policy increased complaints of people. David who had been respected as ‘Man of God*1′ became a pitiless ruler who oppressed minor tribes other than Judah. After the death of Solomon, the successor of David, the united kingdom of Israel split up into two kingdoms, Judah and Israel*2.

The Tribes of Judah and Benjamin remained loyal to the family of David whereas the other tribes formed the kingdom of Israel. The book 1 Kings tells us how David was in his old days ; -¡Ä he could not keep warm even when they put covers over him. So his servants said to him, “Let us look for a young virgin to attend the king and take care of him. ¡Ä The girl was very beautiful; she took care of the king …, but the king had no intimate relations with her.(1Kings 1:1-4)

The revolt of Absalom made David lifeless and completely unresponsive to surroundings. He died as if he were an anonymous old person. The story leads us to reflect on Grace and Salvation. I think that the crucial factor which distinguish the saved from the unsaved is the presence of Christ. Of course, David, as a man of the time of the Old Testament, didn’t know Jesus Christ. And only those who know the Cross of Jesus Christ are given forgiveness and peace by God. The recognition of the Cross and the Resurrection must separate decisively followers of Jesus from the others, including David.

Psalm 3 represents David¡Çs authentic faith in God. He had been in spiritual and peaceful communications with God. Nevertheless that relationship changed afterwards. He lost the ultimate salvation because he didn’t know Jesus. There should be no forgiveness without the redemption by the Cross.

Jesus said ; - “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave— just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Matthew 20:25-28)

Those who have ruling power must corrode. Because they begin inevitably to consider themselves to be gods. In consequence, they lose peaceful mind by missing salvation. For those people fall away from God. They cannot rejoice in anything spiritually.

David obtained again the power of king. Nonetheless it was achieved in exchange of his son¡Çs life. The victory must taste very bitter. David had prayed ; - Arise, O LORD! Deliver me, O my God! Strike all my enemies on the jaw; break the teeth of the wicked.(Psalm 3:7) And the prayer was listened. Teeth of his enemy was broken. But the enemy was his own son. After all, David could do nothing but to mourn for his death.

Tough his body remained alive, David died spiritually. The salvation would not be given to rulers. It must be granted to those who serves. And we learn to serve through trials given by God. When David sang Psalm 3 he was unpopular and threatened with death by his son. He was depressed. But God was with him, he knew that. Therefore he could sing ; - I lie down and sleep; I wake again, because the LORD sustains me. I will not fear the tens of thousands drawn up against me on every side.(Psalm 3:5-6)

The salvation is not getting rid of sufferings or difficulties but knowing that the Lord is always with us. Thus David confessed ; - From the LORD comes deliverance. May your blessing be on your people. (Psalm 3:8).

And we also must feel the presence of God beside us.

*1 Man of God http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Man_of_God
*2 Division of the Kingdoms of Israel http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kingdom_of_Israel_(Samaria)#Division