{"id":10385,"date":"2026-08-29T08:03:27","date_gmt":"2026-08-29T12:03:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/faithloop.org\/?p=10385"},"modified":"2026-08-29T08:03:27","modified_gmt":"2026-08-29T12:03:27","slug":"absalom-returns-to-jerusalem","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/faithloop.org\/zh\/absalom-returns-to-jerusalem\/","title":{"rendered":"Absalom Returns to Jerusalem"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Sarah<\/p><p><a href=\"https:\/\/faithloop.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/2-E5LuGS62crKh.png\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/faithloop.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/2-E5LuGS62crKh-150x150.png\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" alt=\"2.png\" style=\"display:inline-block\"><\/a> <\/p><p>2 Samuel 14 <\/p>\n<p>This happened after Absalom killed his older brother Amnon.<\/p>\n<p>Absalom had run away to Geshur, and he had been hiding there for several years.<\/p>\n<p>King David didn&#8217;t say much about it on the outside.<\/p>\n<p>But deep down\u2026<\/p>\n<p>he really missed his son.<\/p>\n<p>Joab noticed it.<\/p>\n<p>Joab probably thought:<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe old man may not be saying anything, but deep down, he really wants this boy back. I\u2019d better figure out a way to get these two\u2014father and son\u2014to see each other.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>So Joab sent for a very clever woman from Tekoa.<\/p>\n<p>He said to her:<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHere\u2019s what you do.<\/p>\n<p>Put on mourning clothes. Don\u2019t put any oil on your face. Make yourself look like you\u2019ve been mourning for a long time.<\/p>\n<p>Then go see the king and tell him a story.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The woman did exactly what Joab told her.<\/p>\n<p>She came before King David, fell down before him, and said:<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYour Majesty, please help me!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>David asked:<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat\u2019s wrong?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She said:<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI had two sons. One day they got into a fight out in the field.<\/p>\n<p>There was nobody there to stop them.<\/p>\n<p>One of them struck the other and killed him.<\/p>\n<p>Now the whole family is demanding:<\/p>\n<p>\u2018Hand over the one who killed his brother! Let us kill him and pay him back for the life he took!\u2019<\/p>\n<p>But he is my only son now.<\/p>\n<p>If they kill him too, my whole family will be wiped out.<\/p>\n<p>It will be like putting out the last burning coal in the fire.<\/p>\n<p>There will be nothing left.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>David said:<\/p>\n<p>\u201cGo home. I will take care of this.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>But the woman said:<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMy king, if there is any guilt, let it fall on me and my father\u2019s family. You and your throne are innocent.<\/p>\n<p>Please save my son.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>David replied:<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFine. Anyone who is troubling you, bring him to me. I will make sure he never bothers you again.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The woman immediately saw her opportunity.<\/p>\n<p>She said:<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMy king, if you are willing to save my son, then why won\u2019t you bring back your own son\u2014the one who has been living in exile?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>David&#8217;s heart sank.<\/p>\n<p>He knew exactly where this was going.<\/p>\n<p>The woman continued:<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe all have to die someday.<\/p>\n<p>Our lives are like water poured out on the ground\u2014you can\u2019t gather it back up again.<\/p>\n<p>God doesn\u2019t want to simply take people away and abandon them forever.<\/p>\n<p>He makes a way for those who have been driven away to come back.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Then she got to the real point.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMy king, I came here because I know you are wise.<\/p>\n<p>You have the wisdom of an angel of God.<\/p>\n<p>You can understand what is happening throughout the land.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>David listened carefully.<\/p>\n<p>Something didn&#8217;t feel right.<\/p>\n<p>So he asked her:<\/p>\n<p>\u201cLet me ask you something.<\/p>\n<p>Don\u2019t hide anything from me.<\/p>\n<p>Was Joab behind all this?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The woman knew she had been caught.<\/p>\n<p>She answered:<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMy king, you are right.<\/p>\n<p>It was Joab who sent me.<\/p>\n<p>He told me exactly what to say.<\/p>\n<p>He did this because he wanted to help you bring this matter between you and your son to an end.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>David was silent for a moment.<\/p>\n<p>Finally, he said:<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAll right.<\/p>\n<p>Go and bring Absalom back.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Joab was thrilled.<\/p>\n<p>He bowed before the king and thanked him.<\/p>\n<p>Then he went to Geshur and brought Absalom back to Jerusalem.<\/p>\n<p>But David said:<\/p>\n<p>\u201cLet him go to his own house.<\/p>\n<p>He is not to see me.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>And just like that\u2026<\/p>\n<p>Absalom was back in Jerusalem, but father and son still weren&#8217;t really reconciled.<\/p>\n<p>Absalom \u2014 The Handsome Prince<\/p>\n<p>The Bible makes a special point about Absalom&#8217;s appearance.<\/p>\n<p>The guy was good-looking.<\/p>\n<p>From the top of his head to the bottom of his feet, there was no physical defect in him.<\/p>\n<p>And his hair?<\/p>\n<p>Man, that hair was something else.<\/p>\n<p>He only cut it once a year because it got so heavy.<\/p>\n<p>When they weighed the hair he cut off, it came to about two hundred shekels according to the royal standard.<\/p>\n<p>That was a lot of hair!<\/p>\n<p>Absalom also had three sons and one daughter.<\/p>\n<p>His daughter was named Tamar.<\/p>\n<p>And she was beautiful too.<\/p>\n<p>But here&#8217;s the problem:<\/p>\n<p>Absalom had been back in Jerusalem for two whole years, and he still hadn&#8217;t seen his father.<\/p>\n<p>Two years!<\/p>\n<p>The father and son were just stuck like that.<\/p>\n<p>Absalom was probably carrying a lot of frustration inside.<\/p>\n<p>So he went to Joab and said:<\/p>\n<p>\u201cGo talk to my father.<\/p>\n<p>I want to see the king.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>But Joab wouldn&#8217;t come.<\/p>\n<p>Absalom sent for him a second time.<\/p>\n<p>Joab still wouldn&#8217;t come.<\/p>\n<p>Absalom probably thought:<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOh, so that&#8217;s how we&#8217;re gonna play this?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Then he came up with a pretty extreme idea.<\/p>\n<p>He told his servants:<\/p>\n<p>\u201cLook.<\/p>\n<p>Joab has a field next to mine, and there&#8217;s barley growing in it.<\/p>\n<p>Go burn it!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>And that&#8217;s exactly what they did.<\/p>\n<p>Whoosh!<\/p>\n<p>Joab&#8217;s barley field went up in flames.<\/p>\n<p>Joab came running straight to Absalom&#8217;s house.<\/p>\n<p>He was furious.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat is wrong with you?!<\/p>\n<p>Why did you burn my field?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Absalom said:<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI sent for you twice, and you wouldn&#8217;t come.<\/p>\n<p>I wanted you to go to my father and ask him:<\/p>\n<p>\u2018Why did you bring me back from Geshur?<\/p>\n<p>I might as well have stayed there.\u2019<\/p>\n<p>Now I want to see the king.<\/p>\n<p>And if I am guilty, then let him kill me.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Joab finally understood.<\/p>\n<p>This boy really wanted to see his father.<\/p>\n<p>So Joab went to King David and told him what Absalom had said.<\/p>\n<p>David finally said:<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAll right.<\/p>\n<p>Bring him to me.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Absalom came before the king.<\/p>\n<p>He bowed down before his father.<\/p>\n<p>And then\u2026<\/p>\n<p>David kissed Absalom.<\/p>\n<p>Finally, father and son were together again.<\/p>\n<p>For the moment, it looked like everything was okay.<\/p>\n<p>But brothers and sisters, pay attention here\u2026<\/p>\n<p>Things may have looked good on the outside, but the real trouble was just beginning.<\/p>\n<p>Because Absalom had come home\u2026<\/p>\n<p>but inside his heart,<\/p>\n<p>the wounds, the ambition, and the desire for the throne were already growing.<\/p>\n<p>And the storm that was coming\u2026<\/p>\n<p>was going to get bigger and bigger.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Sarah 2 Samuel 14 This happened after Absalom killed his older brother Amnon. Absalom had run away to Geshur, and he had been hiding there for several years. King David didn&#8217;t say much about it on the outside. But deep down\u2026 he really missed his son. Joab noticed it. Joab probably thought: \u201cThe old man [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":10387,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10385","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-bible-reflection"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/faithloop.org\/zh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10385","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/faithloop.org\/zh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/faithloop.org\/zh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/faithloop.org\/zh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/faithloop.org\/zh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10385"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/faithloop.org\/zh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10385\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10386,"href":"https:\/\/faithloop.org\/zh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10385\/revisions\/10386"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/faithloop.org\/zh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/10387"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/faithloop.org\/zh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10385"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/faithloop.org\/zh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10385"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/faithloop.org\/zh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10385"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}