2 Samuel 18:16-18 – The danger of unfettered pride and power

What a tragic ending for a man who was so privileged. Absalom was so well-endowed. This is what 2 Samuel 14:25-26 said of him. ^“Now in all Israel was no one as handsome as Absalom, so highly praised; from the sole of his foot to the crown of his head there was no defect in him.” We are also told that when he cut his hair which was only done once at the end of the year, it would weigh about 200 shekels by the royal standard. The picture we have of Absalom was: he was physically attractive but totally insensitive to the ways and will of God. While a good look in life is a gift and is welcomed, it is the character of a person that really matters. What good is it to be handsome and charming but lacking a sincere heart and an honest character? Remember, God looks at the heart and not at the outward appearances. If one does not take care of one’s heart, one’s good looks do not matter at all.

Here in three verses, we find Absalom dead. A young man so charismatic and with so much to look forward to, yet so tragically terminated. Why? Unfettered pride and greed. Now that he was dead, there was no point for the fight to go on, so Joab blew the trumpet to end all hostilities. Unceremoniously and hastily, Joab’s men took his lifeless body, threw it into a deep ditch, and covered it with a pile of stones. Every one of Absalom’s crestfallen men quickly scattered and scurried each to his own tent, signaling their total defeat. Verse 18 tells us that Absalom did not have an heir to propagate his name. Being a conceited person, and did not have a son to perpetuate his name, he vainly built a monument to himself in the King’s Valley in remembrance of himself, long before his death. 

      

The monument Absalom built bears testimony of his pride and his unhealthy desire for reputation, power, and pre-eminence. He wanted to perpetuate his name but in an obtrusive way. This was probably what motivated him to contrive all the underhanded means to achieve fame. Instead of promoting honor and glory, Absalom’s vain attempt led to shame and perpetual disdain. His death and the monument he built remain as a warning and admonition to us on how we should navigate through the pitfalls of life. Pride and unfettered lust for power are ingredients for one’s downfall. These were the very baits the enemy of our soul would use to tempt us. Value the life and privilege that God has granted us. Do not let pride and the quest for power disrupt God’s plan for us. What God has destined will never be taken from us, when we choose to walk humbly and uprightly before Him. It will certainly come in His perfect timing. In His time He makes all things beautiful!