2 Samuel 13:21-39 – David: Anger Without Justice

David ‘heard about all these things, and he was very angry’, v21. That’s good. But that was all he did, and that’s bad. David becomes the third father in the books of 1st and 2nd Samuel to ignore the sin of his sons. The first was Eli, then Samuel, and now David. All believers. All saved men. Yet they had sons who didn’t follow in their footsteps. They turned a blind eye to the public sins of those sons. And both there and here, there are terrible consequences. As a result, Amnon isn’t held accountable. Tamar receives no redress. And Absalom takes matters into his own hands.

So why doesn’t David do anything? His sin with Bathsheba casts a shadow over this chapter. David had sinned sexually and then committed murder. In this chapter one of his sons sins sexually, and the other one commits murder. So David’s moral authority to address the sins of his sons is certainly compromised. That’s no excuse for his silence. But what a warning for those of us who are parents. Our sins can really strip away the sense of our moral authority if we have to speak to our children about something, particularly grown-up children. Now all parents sin. All parents fail. All children realise sooner or later that their parents aren’t perfect. But if there’s a radical disconnect between what we say and how we live, they should still listen to us, but it makes it very easy for them not to.

David, both as king, and as Amnon’s father, should have acted. But he didn’t. And David’s silence, his refusal to deal with what had happened, eventually leads to Amnon’s death. Because Absalom took things into his own hands. After David’s sin, God had graciously sent the prophet Nathan to him. That hadn’t been a pleasant experience – but it led to David’s repentance. But by David not intervening, Amnon was left in his sin. He didn’t repent. As one old commentator says: ‘God punished what David would not correct’. If we really love our children, we will correct them. Proverbs 13.24: ‘Whoever spares the rod hates his son, but he who loves him is diligent to discipline him’.

Question

1. Why might David have kept silent?

Prayer Points

1. Pray for the parents in the congregation as they seek to raise their children in the Lord.
2. Use prayer points from your congregation.
3. Pray for family matters.