Righteousness and justice are the foundation of your throne; love and faithfulness go before you. Blessed are those who have learned to acclaim you, who walk in the light of your presence, Lord. Psalm 89:14-15.

As I read 2 Samuel 14, as I look around at the history of all of us and at our lives filled with choices good and bad and the repercussions of all of those decisions and actions, how can I not yearn for God’s Kingdom to fill this Earth for every one of us? Righteousness and justice are the foundation of your throne; love and faithfulness go before you.

Joab, commander of David’s army, used deception to convince David to allow his son, Absalom, to return to Jerusalem, v. 1-24. David saw through that deception and allowed it and Absalom was brought back but confined to his own home. In all Israel there was not a man so highly praised for his handsome appearance as Absalom. v. 25. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart. 1 Samuel 16:7.

Joab intervened for Absalom and Absalom repaid him by burning down his field of barley so Joab would come to see him. “I want to see the king’s face”. v. 32.

Can you imagine? Absalom lived two years in Jerusalem without seeing his father, David, so he took matters into his own hands just as he had done in murdering his half brother Amnon. He burned down a field to get the attention of Joab so Joab would convince his father, David, to see him. It worked. And the king kissed Absalom. v. 33.

In the commentary below it said: Why is so much attention given to Absalom in chapters 13-19? His revenge against Amnon and rebellion against David were beginning the final decline of David’s kingdom that had been prophesied in 12:10-12. (Now, therefore, the sword will never depart from your house, because you despised me and took the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your own. This is what the Lord says: “Out of your own household I am going to bring calamity on you. Before your very eyes I will take your wives and give them to one who is close to you, and he will sleep with your wives in broad daylight. You did it in secret, but I will do this thing in broad daylight before all Israel.”)

God does not show favoritism. He never withdrew His love from David but David’s actions had repercussions that lasted his whole life and indeed for the whole nation. David understood that and was able to pour out his love for God in beautiful Psalms we can read today. I can read about the trials David faced but I can’t judge David. I can learn from his life and the greatest lesson David taught me is his love for God.

Righteousness and justice are the foundation of your throne; love and faithfulness go before you. No human king can lay claim to that. No human can lay claim to that. What a difference God’s Kingdom is! Blessed are those who have learned to acclaim you, who walk in the light of your presence, Lord. We can read about all the kingdoms that have come before us and we can see the “kingdoms” of this world today. Can we see the difference? We can choose to walk in the light with God leading us. What a difference that makes in our hearts and minds!