2 Samuel 18 brings us to the climax of Absalom’s rebellion and forces us to face a sobering truth: rebellion against God’s king always carries a terrible price. After chapters of suffering, sin, and partial repentance, the story finally comes down to a brief, almost understated battle and one unforgettable death—Absalom, the rebel son, hanging helpless between heaven and earth, buried under a traitor’s heap of stones. As Joab acts with hard clarity and David crumples under the weight of his grief, we see that the cost of restoring the kingdom is the death of a son hung on a tree. In this study, we’ll trace that cost from Absalom’s grave to the cross of Christ, where God Himself pays the price to rescue snake-bitten rebels like us.
How We Got Here: From Tamar to Absalom’s Rebellion
2 Samuel 18 is the climax of the story of the rebellion of Absalom. The story begins with the rape of Absalom’s sister Tamar by his half-brother Amnon (2 Samuel 13). Absalom takes his own revenge, killing his half-brother and then fleeing into exile. After 3 years in exile, he is allowed to return to Jerusalem and reunites with this father King David (2 Samuel 14). But Absalom’s rebellion continues as he declares himself king (2 Samuel 15), forcing David to flee Jerusalem (2 Samuel 16) while the Lord keeps David safe through a variety of faithful servants (2 Samuel 17).
In 2 Samuel 18 we see how the story ends. In a Hollywood movie, this chapter would be the climax. The camera would show each twist and turn of the battle. At first the rebel forces would gain the upper hand, forcing back our heroes. But just when all appears lost, our hero would summon some last shred of inner strength and the tide would slowly turn in his favor. His courage would inspire his friends to try just a little harder, and then step by step, the villains would be beaten back.
But in our text the battle is allotted only three short verses. Instead, the narrator focuses our attention on: 1) how Absalom dies and 2) how David both fears for and reacts to the news of Absalom’s death, especially when David learns that the price of rebellion is the death of his son.
A Family Feud That Becomes a Kingdom Battle(2 Samuel 18:1-5)
- The commanders of the divisions on both sides are related to David.
- If David takes part in the battle, it makes him an easier target, multiplies their risk and place them in greater jeopardy. So they ask David to remain in the city.
- Death is the appropriate response for Absalom’s treason. As king David must know this, but as father, he cannot bear it, just like he could not bear to sentence his other son, Amnon, for his crime against Tamar.
The Battle the Narrator Barely Mentions (2 Samuel 18:6-8)
- Absalom’s troops are decimated with a tremendous loss of life. Then the narrator shifts his attention to the fate of Absalom himself.
The Son Hung on a Tree (2 Samuel 18:9-18)
- The details of Absalom’s burial (2 Samuel 18:17) mark him as a traitor. Compare Absalom’s burial with Joshua 7 where Achan is buried under a large pile of stones for his sacrilege; Joshua 8 where the king of Ai after having been hanged on a tree is thrown into a pit; and Joshua 10 where five enemy kings are hanged from trees and thrown into a cave which is sealed with large stones.
- Note Deuteronomy 21:22-23: “And if a man has committed a crime punishable by death and he is put to death, and you hang him on a tree, his body shall not remain all night on the tree, but you shall bury him the same day, for a hanged man is cursed by God. You shall not defile your land that the LORD your God is giving you for an inheritance.”
- Absalom, the would-be King, dies with no legacy, no son, no house of his own and is buried in a traitor’s grave. But that leaves a textual problem: We need to reconcile 2 Samuel 18:18 with 2 Samuel 14:7: “There were born to Absalom three sons, and one daughter whose name was Tamar. She was a beautiful woman.” The most likely explanation is that Absalom’s sons preceded him in death, especially since they are not named in 14:27. Most only his daughter survived into adulthood.
- David’s orders to spare Absalom were clear and public but hardly wise. Joab did what was best for David and the nation, regardless of David’s wishes.
- Absalom’s death on the battlefield was politically necessary, legally required and morally justifiable
- Every time we pray “deliver us from evil” we implicitly ask God to bring judgment on evil.
David’s Grief: ‘O My Son Absalom’ (2 Samuel 18:19-19:8)
- The messenger reports the spiritual reality: “The Lord has delivered you from the hand of your enemies.” Joab and the army recognize that this is a kingdom battle for God’s chosen King.
- Finally David understands that the price of rebellion and the penalty for treason is the death of a son — a son hung on a tree. It is a cost David cannot bear. Notice the five-fold repetition of “my son” — as if his grief cannot be contained.
- David let his role as father take precedence over his role as God’s chosen king. Joab realizes the damage the King’s grief can do to the nation and he takes action.
- God’s anointed king is a suffering king. David foreshadows Jesus, who is called a man of sorrows, acquainted with grief (Isaiah 53:3).
- The price of restoring the kingdom is the death of a son hung on a tree.
- It is a price David cannot bear to pay, but it is a price God pays for us.
- David’s grief gives us a glimpse of the price our heavenly father was willing to pay on our behalf.
He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed.– 1 Peter 2:24
You are not your own, 1Co 6:20 for you were bought with a price. – 1 Corinthians 6:19
David’s cry over Absalom—“O my son Absalom, my son, my son… would I had died instead of you” —gives us a small window into the staggering cost of a son’s death. Yet David ultimately cannot pay that price; his grief overwhelms him and he neglects his calling as king. We need another king and another Father. In Jesus, the true Son is lifted up like the bronze serpent in the wilderness, bearing the poison of our sin so that whoever looks to Him “should not perish but have eternal life.” At the cross we see that the price of rebellion is indeed the death of a son hung on a tree—but it is the Father Himself who chooses to pay it for us. That is what is so amazing about grace, and that is why, as people bought with such a price, we bow in worship and trust the King who died in our place.
For more detail and explanation, please listen to the podcast.
Next: 20 2Samuel 19 David Restored as King
Previous: 18 2Samuel 17 Hushai’s Warning Saves David
Series: The Rebellion of Absalom
Also: 2Samuel: David as King
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Podcast Season 7, Episodes 6
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