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Absalom
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ab'-sa-lom (father of peace)
RELATED: Abiathar, Ahithophel, Amasa, Amnon, David, Hebron, Hushai, Joab, Maacah, Tamar, Wood of Ephraim, Zadok |
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Easton's Bible Dictionary
father of peace; i.e., "peaceful" David's son by Maacah
( 2
Samuel 3:3 ; Compare 1
Kings 1:6 ). He was noted for his personal beauty and for the extra-ordinary
profusion of the hair of his head ( 2
Samuel 14:25 , 14:26
). The first public act of his life was the blood-revenge he executed against
Amnon, David's eldest son, who had basely wronged Absalom's sister Tamar. This
revenge was executed at the time of the festivities connected with a great sheep-shearing
at Baal-hazor. David's other sons fled from the place in horror, and brought the
tidings of the death of Amnon to Jerusalem. Alarmed for the consequences of the
act, Absalom fled to his grandfather at Geshur, and there abode for three years
( 2
Samuel 3:3 ; 13:23
- 38
).
David mourned his absent son, now branded with the guilt of fratricide. As the
result of a stratagem carried out by a woman of Tekoah, Joab received David's
sanction to invite Absalom back to Jerusalem. He returned accordingly, but two
years elapsed before his father admitted him into his presence ( 2
Samuel 14:28 ). Absalom was now probably the oldest surviving son of David,
and as he was of royal descent by his mother as well as by his father, he began
to aspire to the throne. His pretensions were favoured by the people. By many
arts he gained their affection; and after his return from Geshur ( 2
Samuel 15:7 ; marg., RSV) he went up to Hebron, the old capital of Judah,
along with a great body of the people, and there proclaimed himself king. The
revolt was so successful that David found it necessary to quit Jerusalem and flee
to Mahanaim, beyond Jordan; where upon Absalom returned to Jerusalem and took
possession of the throne without opposition. Ahithophel, who had been David's
chief counsellor, deserted him and joined Absalom, whose chief counsellor he now
became. Hushai also joined Absalom, but only for the purpose of trying to counteract
the counsels of Ahithophel, and so to advantage David's cause. He was so far successful
that by his advice, which was preferred to that of Ahithophel, Absalom delayed
to march an army against his father, who thus gained time to prepare for the defence.
Absalom at length marched out against his father, whose army, under the command
of Joab, he encountered on the borders of the forest of Ephraim. Twenty thousand
of Absalom's army were slain in that fatal battle, and the rest fled. Absalom
fled on a swift mule; but his long flowing hair, or more probably his head, was
caught in the bough of an oak, and there he was left suspended till Joab came
up and pierced him through with three darts. His body was then taken down and
cast into a pit dug in the forest, and a heap of stones was raised over his grave.
When the tidings of the result of that battle were brought to David, as he sat
impatiently at the gate of Mahanaim, and he was told that Absalom had been slain,
he gave way to the bitter lamentation: "O my son Absalom, my son, my son Absalom!
would God I had died for thee, O Absalom, my son, my son!" ( 2
Samuel 18:33 . Compare Exodus
32:32 ; Romans
9:3 ).
Absalom's three sons ( 2
Samuel 14:27 ; comp 18:18
) had all died before him, so that he left only a daughter, Tamar, who became
the grandmother of Abijah.
Hitchcock's Dictionary of Bible Names
father of peace
Smith's Bible Dictionary
(father of peace) Third son of David by Maachah, daughter
of Tamai king of Geshur, a Syrian district adjoining the northeast frontier of
the Holy Land. (Born B.C. 1050.) Absalom had a sister, Tamar, who was violated
by her half-brother Amnon. The natural avenger of such an outrage would be Tamars
full brother Absalom. He brooded over the wrong for two years, and then invited
all the princes to a sheep-shearing feast at his estate in Baalhazor, on the borders
of Ephraim and Benjamin. Here he ordered his servants to murder Amnon, and then
fled for safety to his grandfathers court at Geshur, where he remained for three
years. At the end of that time he was brought back by an artifice of Joab. David,
however, would not see Absalom for two more years; but at length Joab brought
about a reconciliation. Absalom now began at once to prepare for rebellion. He
tried to supplant his father by courting popularity, standing in the gate, conversing
with every suitor, and lamenting the difficulty which he would find in getting
a hearing. He also maintained a splendid retinue, ( 2
Samuel 15:1 ) and was admired for his personal beauty. It is probable too
that the great tribe of Judah had taken some offence at Davids government. Absalom
raised the standard of revolt at Hebron, the old capital of Judah, now supplanted
by Jerusalem. The revolt was at first completely successful; David fled from his
capital over the Jordan to Mahanaim in Gilead, and Absalom occupied Jerusalem.
At last, after being solemnly anointed king at Jerusalem, ( 2
Samuel 19:10 ) Absalom crossed the Jordan to attack his father, who by this
time had rallied round him a considerable force. A decisive battle was fought
in Gilead, in the wood of Ephraim. Here Absaloms forces were totally defeated,
and as he himself was escaping his long hair was entangled in the branches of
a terebinth, where he was left hanging while the mule on which he was riding ran
away from under him. He was dispatched by Joab in spite of the prohibition of
David, who, loving him to the last, had desired that his life might be spared.
He was buried in a great pit in the forest, and the conquerors threw stones over
his grave, an old proof of bitter hostility. ( Joshua
7:26 )
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia
ab'-sa-lom ('abhshalom, "father is peace," written also
Abishalom, 1
Kings 15:2 , 10):
(1) David's third son by Maacah, daughter of Talmai, king of Geshur, a
small territory between Hermon and Bashan.
(1) A General Favorite:
Absalom was born at Hebron (2
Samuel 3:3), and moved at an early age, with the transfer of the capital,
to Jerusalem, where he spent most of his life. He was a great favorite of his
father and of the people as well. His charming manners, his personal beauty, his
insinuating ways, together with his love of pomp and royal pretensions, captivated
the hearts of the people from the beginning. He lived in great style, drove in
a magnificent chariot and had fifty men run before him. Such magnificence produced
the desired effect upon the hearts of the young aristocrats of the royal city
(2
Samuel 15:1).
(2) In Exile:
When Amnon, his half-brother, ravished his sister Tamar, and David shut his eyes
to the grave crime and neglected to administer proper punishment, Absalom became
justly enraged, and quietly nourished his anger, but after the lapse of two years
carried out a successful plan to avenge his sister's wrongs. He made a great feast
for the king's sons at Baalhazor, to which, among others, Amnon came, only to
meet his death at the hands of Absalom's servants (2
Samuel 13:1). To avoid punishment he now fled to the court of his maternal
grandfather in Geshur, where he remained three years, or until David, his father,
had relented and condoned the murderous act of his impetuous, plotting son. At
the end of three years (2
Samuel 13:38) we find Absalom once more in Jerusalem. It was, however, two
years later before he was admitted to the royal presence (2
Samuel 14:28).
(3) Rebels against His Father:
Absalom, again reinstated, lost no opportunity to regain lost prestige, and having
his mind made up to succeed his father upon the throne, he forgot the son in the
politician. Full of insinuations and rich in promises, especially to the disgruntled
and to those having grievances, imaginary or real, it was but natural that he
should have a following. His purpose was clear, namely, to alienate as many as
possible from the king, and thus neutralize his influence in the selection of
a successor, for he fully realized that the court party, under the influence of
Bathsheba, was intent upon having Solomon as the next ruler. By much flattery
Absalom stole the hearts of many men in Israel (2
Samuel 15:6). How long a period elapsed between his return from Geshur and
his open rebellion against his father David is a question which cannot be answered
with any degree of certainty. Most authorities regard the forty years of 2
Samuel 15:7 as an error and following the Syriac and some editions of the
Septuagint, suggest four as the correct text. Whether forty or four, he obtained
permission from the king to visit Hebron, the ancient capital, on pretense of
paying a vow made by him while at Geshur in case of his safe return to Jerusalem.
With two hundred men he repairs to Hebron. Previous to the feast spies had been
sent throughout all the tribes of Israel to stir up the discontented and to assemble
them under Absalom's flag at Hebron. Very large numbers obeyed the call, among
them Ahithophel, one of David's shrewdest counselors (2
Samuel 15:7).
(4) David's Flight:
Reports of the conspiracy at Hebron soon reached the ears of David, who now became
thoroughly frightened and lost no time in leaving Jerusalem. Under the protection
of his most loyal bodyguard he fled to Gilead beyond Jordan. David was kindly
received at Mahanaim, where he remained till after the death of his disloyal son.
Zadok and Abiathar, two leading priests, were intent upon sharing the fortunes
of David; they went so far as to carry the Ark of the Covenant with them out of
Jerusalem (2
Samuel 15:24). David, however, forced the priests and Levites to take it back
to its place in the city and there remain as its guardians. This was a prudent
stroke, for these two great priests in Jerusalem acted as intermediaries, and
through their sons and some influential women kept up constant communications
with David's army in Gilead (2
Samuel 15:24). Hushai, too, was sent back to Jerusalem, where he falsely professed
allegiance to Absalom, who by thins time had entered the royal city and had assumed
control of the government (2
Samuel 15:32). Hushai, the priests and a few people less conspicuous performed
their part well, for the counsel of Ahithophel, who advised immediate action and
advance upon the king's forces, while everything was in a panic, was thwarted
(2
Samuel 17:1); nay more, spies were constantly kept in contact with David's
headquarters to inform the king of Absalom's plans (2
Samuel 17:15). This delay was fatal to the rebel son. Had he acted upon the
shrewd counsel of Ahithophel, David's army might have been conquered at the outset.
(5) Absalom's Death and Burial:
When at length Absalom's forces under the generalship of Amasa (2
Samuel 17:25) reached Gilead, ample time had been given to David to organize
his army, which he divided into three divisions under the efficient command of
three veteran generals: Joab, Abishai and Ittai (2
Samuel 18:1). A great battle was fought in the forests of Ephraim. Here the
rebel army was utterly routed. No fewer than 20,000 were killed outright, and
a still greater number becoming entangled in the thick forest, perished that day
(2
Samuel 18:7). Among the latter was Absalom himself, for while riding upon
his mule, his head was caught in the boughs of a great oak or terebinth, probably
in a forked branch. "He was taken up between heaven and earth; and the mule that
was under him went on" (2
Samuel 18:9). In this position he was found by a soldier who at once ran to
inform Joab. The latter without a moment's hesitation, notwithstanding David's
positive orders, thrust three darts into the heart of Absalom. To make his death
certain and encouraged by the action of their general, ten of Joab's young men
"compassed about and smote Absalom, and slew him" (2
Samuel 18:15). He was buried in a great pit, close to the spot where he was
killed. A great pile of stones was heaped over his body (2
Samuel 18:17), in accordance with the custom of dishonoring rebels and great
criminals by burying them under great piles of stone (Joshua
7:26 ; 8:29).
Thomson reforms us that Syrian people to this day cast stones upon the graves
of murderers and outlaws (LB, II, 61).
(6) David's Lament:
The death of Absalom was a source of great grief to the fond and aged father,
who forgot the ruler and the king in the tenderhearted parent. His lament at the
gate of Mahanaim, though very brief, is a classic, and expresses in tender language
the feelings of parents for wayward children in all ages of the world (2
Samuel 18:33).
Little is known of Absalom's family life, but we read in 2
Samuel 14:27 that he had three sons and one daughter. From the language of
2
Samuel 18:18, it is inferred that the sons died at an early age.
(7) Absalom's Tomb:
As Absalom had no son to perpetuate his memory "he reared up for himself a pillar"
or a monument in the King's dale, which according to Josephus was two furlongs
from Jerusalem (Ant., VII, x, 3). Nothing is known with certainty about this monument.
One of the several tombs on the east side of the Kidron passes under the name
of Absalom's tomb. This fine piece of masonry with its graceful cupola and Ionic
pillars must be of comparatively recent origin, probably not earlier than the
Roman period. |
W. W. Davies
(Apocrypha) (Codex Vaticanus, Abessalomos and Abessalom; Codex Alexandrinus, Absalomos,
the King James Version Absalon):
(2) Father of Mattathias, a captain of the Jewish army (1
Macc 11:70 ; Ant, XIII, v, 7).
(3) Father of Jonathan who was sent by Simon Maccabee to take possession of Joppa;
perhaps identical with Absalom (1) (1 Macc 13:11 ; Ant, XIII, vi, 4).
(4) One of two envoys of the Jews, mentioned in a letter sent by Lysias to the
Jewish nation (2
Macc 11:17).
Tags:
absalom, ahithophel, amnon, bible commentary, bible history, bible reference, bible study, david, define, hair, head caught in branch, hushai, joab, tamar
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