Oh, Joab!

Mid-August, 2012. Wow. Once September 13th rolls around, I will have been in Wilmington a full year! But, I will save recapping time gone by for later. For the present, I thought it'd be fun to post a cool discovery I had the other while researching a curiosity about the relationships among King David, his politically savvy commander Joab, and his son, Absalom.

ENTER JOAB...

Now Joab is a really interesting character, to put the description kindly. Sometimes he's quite noble and loyal to David and at other times he leaves us to assume his only interests are his own. Often his good action will follow a bad, as if he were struggling to justify himself by clinging to a moral compass all his own. Here's some background before we pick up where I was reading in 2 Sam. 14.

The unfortunate man on the left is the noble Abner, commander of Saul's army, who had just committed himself to David's side to end the civil war between the two houses, and David had sent him home in peace and friendship. As you can see, he didn't make it. (2 Sam 3:26-30.) Joab actually killed him by striking him in the stomach, and he had the help of his brother Abishai, but you get the picture. The motivation? Abner had killed their brother Asahel in battle (fair and square.) Personally I prefer the visual characterization of Joab in the picture below:

David mourns Abner, but then things seem to fall out in David's favor. Two miscreants behead Saul's son, King Ish-bosheth, so David is anointed King over Israel, thus uniting the two nations. They defeat the Philistines and bring the Ark back to Jerusalem. Joab surely helped with that. David brings back his first wife, Michal from her second marriage. God makes his promise to David and grants him a string of military successes. Both Joab and David are kept busy...until David chooses not go out to battle one day, and we get the famous affair of chapter 11. 

Bathsheba just so happened to be the daughter of one of his fighting men and the granddaughter of Ahithophel, his adviser. (Thanks Francine Rivers for pointing out that factoid.) Most likely, she grew up traveling with his band of miscreants and was very familiar with his leadership. As if these close ties weren't sufficient enough to complicate the attraction, Bathsheba was married to Uriah the Hittie, a loyal friend to David and one of his warriors. She gets pregnant, David tries to cover it up, fails, and has Uriah murdered. 

Picture note- I never realized how many movie versions we have made of this crazy love story! I'd like to think the million evidences of grace within it have made it's popularity so enduring...well...indulge me.

Grace Point 1: God is not happy to say the least, but because of his promise to David to bring a king that will reign forever from him house, he forgives the sin and lets him live, though he sternly tells him his house will face the sword. And it does- both literally and metaphorically.

• 1ST BIG SWORD BLOW- One son down. Bathsheba's baby dies.

David repents, and Solomon is born. Meanwhile, Joab captures Rabah and threatens to take it over himself unless David gets his butt down there to claim it. He does.

Joab capturing Ramah's citadel.

(Don't you just love these lego pictures? Here's the original site, if you're interested.)

After a brief respite from sin's consequences, the sword falls again.

• 2ND BIG SWORD BLOW- Another son down. David and Ahinoam's son, Amnon, rapes David's daughter Tamar, daughter of Maacah (sister of Absalom). David is furious and mortified, but does nothing to avenge the wrong. Tamar takes refuge in Absalom's house and lives the rest of her days like a widow. Daughter down.

• 3RD BIG SWORD BLOW- Son in exile. Meanwhile, Absalom, taking the wrong as a personal injury, kills Amnon at a dinner party with all the king's son's in attendance and then escapes to live with his grandpa, King Talmai, of Geshur for three years. "And the spirit of the king longed to go out to Absalom..." (2 Sam. 13).

So, Joab noticed that David’s heart longed for Absalom and came up with a scheme. He hired the "wise woman" of Tekoa to present a crafty story to David in order to secure his order to return Absalom to the kingdom. 

My big question on reading this section was, “WHY would Joab go to such lengths?" So, we surmise….
1. Joab surely was fond of David after so many years- perhaps like a brother- and he admired him, but did not always agree with his judgments. He noticed how David’s heart pined for Absalom. Awwww. But that can’t be all.  2. He knew he was guilty of Abner's wrongful murder and thought perhaps by preventing political disaster with Absalom, he could begin to soften David's treatment toward himself. 3. He could sense the tone of the nation and wanted to avoid any ensuing turmoil for the sake of the nation and the ruling household. 

Joab concocts a story for the Wise woman to tell the king which goes something like this: “I’m a widow and I had two sons to carry on my husband’s name and care for me in my age. But, one of them killed the other! Now, the townspeople want to kill my remaining son in vengeance, but if they do, I will have nothing! Please help.” Then, before relating the story to Absalom, she secures the king’s word in a three-step process, which seems  to foreshadow Peters tri-fold denial and statement of love- (all of which are followed by a personal discovery- Peter’s facing of his guilt after the rooster crows, Peter’s hearing of how he will die, and in this case…well, we’ll get there.) David says, “I will issue a command on your behalf.” She presses further, he says, “If anyone gives you trouble, bring them directly to me.” She demands for him to swear by God’s name and he says, “As the LORD lives, not a hair of your son will fall to the ground.” David then hears from her mouth the parallel to his life. The woman argues that the guilty son in her story is Absalom. The stories don’t really add up- David had others heirs, she did not…. but she has already secured his pardon for the son by the name of God and piqued his emotional interest. She takes Absalom’s absence as a personal wrong against the nation, “For we will certainly die and be like water poured out on the ground, which can’t be recovered…I’ve come to the king to present this matter because the people have made me afraid…” Perhaps David was losing favor already or becoming disconnected with the sentiments of the people.  Perhaps he also hoped to pacify Absalom, whom he most likely knew could not react favorably toward the nation while in exile. 

Pause for a quick character question- Why did the people care so much about Absalom? There is nothing in the chapters beforehand to suggest he had any special connection with them. He makes no notable appeals to the people until he returns and steals their hearts by intercepting their needs at the gate before they could bring them before David. All we know about Absalom’s character is that it was not as noteworthy as his looks. 

He was handsome. 

In fact, he was extraordinarily handsome, as was the rest of his family.  His mother, Maacah was a princess of Geshur, a small nation landlocked by Israelite terrirtory, and was also very beautiful; His sister Tamar was beautiful, and his daughter, whom he names after his sister (perhaps showing his soft spot), was again- very beautiful. His hair was so lush that he had to shave it off every year because it got too heavy for him, and then he had it weighed. 5 pounds. That’s a lot of hair. So, perhaps his debonair looks won him the people’s hearts and made them feel personally wronged at his banishment. Maybe they judged his vengeance against Amnon justified. Maybe they wanted him to be cut some slack because he was just so darn cute. It would not be the first time men had made judgements based more on appearance. Even Samuel on his errand to anoint the king after Saul assumed one of David’s brothers would be God’s choice for their stature and look, and maybe David himself had a softer spot for Absalom because of his physical appearance. 

Whatever the case, the woman’s appeal, “God would not take away a life; He would devise plans so that the one banished from Him does not remain banished.” Has its effect and he gives the order for Joab to bring Absalom home. However, he places Absalom under house arrest- basically- as if to say, you’re home, but I haven’t forgotten what you did. "And Asalom did not see David’s face for two years." 

Grace Point 2- God’s love for the banished. We have all committed acts worthy of death, but God shows mercy, bringing us back from exile. Not because we deserved it. 

Absalom lives in pseudo house-arrest for two years and gets sick of it. I can understand this. He might have thought- “Go ahead and kill me for my wrong or grant me total pardon—this half-business isn’t cutting it. And, most likely he knew David wouldn’t kill him, so he makes his own plans to “make amends” with David. But, he needs Joab to intercede for him. He tries twice to contact Joab, but Joab “was unwilling to come.” (Hm….why?) Absalom’s response, Burn the Barley! A very Samson-like way to get attention…but it worked. 

So Joab acts as intermediary himself, and Absalom receives a kiss of pardon from the king. Joab as Christ prefigure! Who would have thought?

Grace Point 3- Absalom certainly didn’t deserve full pardon, not even the ½ pardon of house arrest. Yet, David granted it. How does Absalom react? He gathers an entourage and schemes to take over the kingdom. He goes to war with his dad. He takes advantage of the grace granted him and then later finds his judgment by the hand of the very one who interceded for him. Again, Joab as Christ figure- sort of.  And David still mourns for him. As little as Absalom deserved pity, David’s heart broke for his son, as God’s heart does for us. 

JUSTICE IS SERVED...

Joab murders Absalom while he hangs in a tree, his head caught in the branches.





Solomon becomes king, as God had promised. 

And Solomon pays back Joab for his murder of Abner...among other wrongs...by sending Benaniah to strike him down in the temple where he'd attempted to flee for refuge. 

Moral? 

Titus 2:12-14 For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people. It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, while we wait for the blessed hope—the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good.

John 8:11 Jesus to the adulterous woman, "Then neither do I condemn you. Go now, and leave your life of sin."

Romans 6:1-2 Should we continue in sin so that grace may multiply? Absolutely not! How can we who died to sin still live in it?

Luke 13:1-5 Now there were some present at that time who told Jesus about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mixed with their sacrifices. Jesus answered, “Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans because they suffered this way? I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish. Or those eighteen who died when the tower in Siloam fell on them—do you think they were more guilty than all the others living in Jerusalem? I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish.”

David, Absalom and Joab…adultery, murder, backstabbing and after all is said and done...grace. 

Piedmont

Fasting and prayer reveals things hidden deeply away in our hearts. Tiredness, also, can do the same, as it tests our self-control. Add all three together and you get my three weeks of fasting concluded with our congregational all-night prayer. It has been a period of tears- both the happy and the sad, a period of dreaming for the future, a time of learning about grace, peace, power, and prayer; a time of seeing prayers answered in unexpected ways, and a special time to see attitudes within my own heart change before my eyes.  It has truly been an exciting time, a precious time. I don't want to forget what I have learned over these few weeks or grow weary of assembling the pieces of the lessons I haven't quite figured out yet-- like I might of a 1000+ piece monochromatic puzzle, the overwhelming feeling I can tend to adopt when attempting self examination. So, while there remains still much to contemplate and process, I believe one particular discovery merits sharing in this post, and that is the discovery of the frailty of my own life.

Moses prays, "Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain a heart of wisdom" (Ps. 90). I believe there is now presented me the opportunity for growth in wisdom. Not that by the recent discovery have I gained any wisdom, but I have gained a greater knowledge of God (though only marginally so), and hopefully wisdom will come through the digestion and application of that new knowledge.

Review with me the last two weeks, in which events and thoughts began to come to a head:

A couple weeks into the internship and things are going well, but the schedule is a mess and Katie is spending exponentially more time on the phone calling (and texting now because no one picks up the phone anymore!)- and sitting, planning Bible studies- and sitting, having Bible studies- and sitting, reading and studying for myself- and sitting, and driving all over Athens while- you guessed it- sitting. Aside from the occasional prayer walk with her mom, which she had enjoyed on a daily basis throughout Christmas break, she is inside either a structure or a vehicle most all day and has not "been able to" devote any time at all to her creative writing, piano playing, singing, dancing, etc... Side note- I suppose this blog sort of counts as creative writing, but I still really want to return to my novel, play ideas, and short stories that are dogging the back of my mind. Katie, however, is loving the growth she's witnessing in her relationships with people and the opportunities to grow and serve, so she sets the right side of her brain at ease, assuring it that she'll get to it soon when she figures out her schedule. After all, she has been told many times and knows herself that it, being half of her mind and probably most of her heart, is very important and that it has needs that must be met as well. Fast forward to a conversation with Mommy that begins with Katie seeking advice about boundaries in friendship with her ex, jumps forward into a deluge of unexpected tears lamenting the absence of the intellectual and spiritual peer-ship the ex provided, and ends with cuddling on the bed and prayer. Mothers are wonderful. Wednesday night Katie and the rest of the campus ministry listen to adaptations of psalms for the purpose of setting their minds to study the poetry, and during one rendition she hears the Piedmont Chamber Singers through the voices of the men's group attempting to imitate the temple worshipers of ancient Jerusalem. Her eyes get teary. She spends the night with Jessica Fridley to be close to campus for her plans there the following day but fails to sleep much. Thursday proves to be a fun day on campus meeting people and having good talks with other disciples- and all partakers are amazed, challenged, and encouraged by the Scriptures. She finds a time to walk through Harris Shoals Park and compose a tune to Psalm 25: "Unto you, O LORD, I lift my soul..." and before she drives home she gets the opportunity to share with a new girl in town, finding she genuinely wants to do so. The next day or so Katie suggests to Daddy that they change their date plans from the usual visit to Barnes and Noble and take a welcome long walk through the Botanical Gardens instead. It is a beautiful day, the exercise is refreshing, and the conversation and company both intriguing and comforting. Fathers are wonderful, too. Sunday morning a still sleepy Katie sits next to her dad, blowing the contents of her runny nose into his hanky because she doesn't have any tissues left in her purse, and the beauty of the North Georgia mountains dominates her thoughts as Sam Laing says the phrase, "Just take a drive up 441" in his point about listening to God through nature. She recounts her many drives to Piedmont and back, drives full of song, prayer, conversations with friends, tears, and shouts of joy...four years of many trips with the perspective of the mountains either straight ahead or in the rearview mirror. She hugs Jessica after service and the tears flow freely with the confession, "I miss Piedmont! I miss the mountains!" But somewhere amidst all of this emotion she remembers she had prayed for God to reveal her heart and thinks back on the week, wondering. There was a reason- though she can't put her finger on it- that she was never drawn to attend to UGA and that she ultimately decided against Oglethorpe- Perhaps it was the noise or the proximity to home. Whatever the turn-off, the calls of 90,000+ barking and yelling "sic 'em!" were not quite "sic'ing" her, nor did the pulse of that tiny refuge of medieval architecture, encased in the arteries and veins of Atlanta traffic, pump in accordance with her own heartbeat. There was a reason she felt the need to retreat to the hills.  The truth dawns on her: She NEEDS nature, perhaps more acutely than some. How would she have survived without those hours sitting by the lake (before and after it was drained), the prayers on the dam (before it was torn down) and the prayers on the bank (after the dam was no more)? How could she have coped with the distressing moments without the wooded walk to the water treatment plant or the wandering through the cemetery down the road? Without the hikes up Mt. Yonah, drives through Sautee, meanderings through Demorest park, and time spent gazing at the stars without too much of a haze from obtrusive street lights? For the first time she regrets borrowing the Norton Anthology of Romantic literature because she knows exactly the poems she would like to read right now.
She NEEDS music and singing- the voice lessons from Mr. Jameson and Mr. Pilkington, piano lessons with Dr. Hayner, and most of all the group experience of Chamber that allowed her to participate in an outpouring of emotion composed for God and others. Music chronicling the hearts of man over centuries, connecting with her own heart through the harmonizing of her peers' voices. Music very much worth sharing through their tours up and down the east coast. She now understands Dr. Hinson's deep craving for "that sound," and the expression of peaceful revelry that would overtake him when "it" would meet his ears. And now that she has known that sound, there is a place reserved in her soul for it- and for its longing. She pauses in gratitude that the more her congregation grows in its worship, the more this connection is achieved, even without the "perfect" intonation or the acoustic glory of the Chapel.
And she could go on. She needs the small class discussion atmosphere in which she can muse on literature and what it reveals about the state of the society in herself and herself in society. The open arms with which her professors would receive her questions and discoveries, however minor. Their desire to know her life, their eager support, and often- their friendship. She needs the safe haven of the bare stage with its ghost light and the sea of empty red seats to gaze upon, the rehearsal room full of yoga mats and temporary set outlines put down in masking tape, the direction of the visionary and the teamwork of the ensemble, the closeness built through experiencing life situations in an alternate reality, yet realizing their effects very much in their own reality. She needs the movement, the discipline, the training, the practice. She needs the artistic medium through which she learns repeatedly to forgive herself and step through comfort zones, knowing she can fail without the fear of humiliation. She smiles: whether or not he knows it, Bill (Mr. G) has taught her this through eight years of instruction: Grace in theatre.
And the list continues. She needed the opportunity to lead Bible Talk for four years and study the Bible with her friends. She needed all the friendships and conversations with the cleaning staff and caf servers, registrars, deans, staff workers, etc... She needed the weekend trips home. She needed the safety net the companionship with Jeremy provided, protecting her from the impure pursuits of other men and encouraging her to deepen her study and convictions. She needed to participate in the church planting at Clemson, to live with Jarrod and Stacey for a summer and give her heart fully to the small body of believers. She needed the early Sunday morning drives over the lake between GA and SC and the time they provided for conversation with the friends who joined her. She needed Java Joes and the way it served as Bible study and catch-up spot. She needed so many things. And so she learns this: that at every turn God provided what she needed, though she could not count the needs. The sheer number of them overwhelms her and she feels intensely weak for a few moments, helpless, yet grateful that she should be so cared for when she's done nothing to merit such care. She dares to think back on the rest of the life, even back to the elementary school years and discovers similar patterns. Why has God seen fit to love her so much? The trying times pale in comparison to the blessings, and she prays along with David, "Protect me, God, for I take refuge in You. You are my Lord, I have no good besides You. The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; indeed, I have a beautiful inheritance" (Ps. 16:1-2, 6).

I raise my eyes toward the mountains. 

Where will my help come from?

My help comes from the LORD, 

The Maker of heaven and earth.

He will not allow your foot to slip; 

your Protector will not slumber, 

Indeed, the Protector of Israel 

Does not slumber or sleep.

The LORD protects you;

the LORD is a shelter right by your side.

The sun will not strike you by day

or the moon by night.

The LORD will protect you from all harm;

He will protect your life.

The LORD will protect your coming and going

both now and forevermore.

Ps. 121

So to all I know and love at Piedmont, in Clemson, those in Athens who maintained friendships with me as I was away, and even those in Kentucky (sorry I left you guys out): "I give thanks to my God for every remembrance of you...because I have you in my heart...For God is my witness, how I deeply miss all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus. And I pray this: that your love will keep on growing in knowledge and every kind of discernment, so that you can determine what really matters and can be pure and blameless in the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God" (Phil. 1:3-11).