“I Sat Alone”

Why Did YHWH Seek to Bring Disaster to Absalom? (2 Sam. 17.14b)

“…18 Hence, Absalom's behaviors and utterances aimed at expressing an aspiration for justice are a deception on his part meant to steal the hearts of the people. 19 Absalom's duplicity is also found in 2 Sam. 15.7-8.…”

“…Although we cannot determine whether he truly made that vow, it is clear he wittingly deceives David by employing YHWH's name. 20 Absalom's deception throws doubt on his ability and qualifications to be a righteous judge. In this sense, the deception conflicts with Deut.…”

“…17.14bβ, YHWH seeks to bring disaster upon Absalom ( ‫את-הרעה‬ ‫‪‬אל-אבשלום‬ ‫ יהוה‬ ‫לבעבור‪‬הביא‬ ). The expression "YHWH will bring ‫,בוא(‬ hiphil) disaster ‫)רעה(‬ to X" is frequently employed in the context of the condemnation of idolatry in the book of Kings (1 Kgs 9.9;14.10;21.21,29;2 Kgs 21.12;22.16,20). 1 In light of this usage, Absalom commits a grave sin as compared with idolatry, and thus YHWH brings retribution against him.…”

The Literary Structure of the Books of Samuel: Setting the Stage for a Coherent Reading

“…While the intermezzos in 2 Samuel 8, 9 and 20 are acceptable, the same term can hardly be said to apply to the narratives in 2 Samuel 5-7. Second Samuel 7 is one of the focal points of the entire books of Samuel (see Avioz 2005). Keys (1996: 81) considers 2 Samuel 1-9 a unit, structured as follows: As we have seen with earlier cases, the unity is formed by repeating a modern word, which does not necessarily reflect the text.…”