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II Samuel
Chapter
18 (Continued)
{Verses
19-33: Race to Headquarters}
{Verses
19-20: Ahimaaz Denied Permission to Carry News
to Headquarters}
19~~Then
Ahimaaz, the son of Zadok, said
"Please
sir, let me run,
and
announce the good news {basar} to the king . . .
how
that Jehovah/God has vindicated him
from
the hand of his enemies."
{Note: Ahimaaz is a very mature believer and RBT says he will succeed his father Zadok as the High Priest under Solomon. He is only going to deliver the 'good news' - the victory in battle. He understands that the 'bad news' of his son's death can wait until David can be prepared for it coming.}
20~~And
Joab replied to him {Ahimaaz},
"You
shall not bear the good news this day,
but
you shall announce the good news
'on
another occasion'/'another day'.
But
this day . . . you shall announce the good news,
because
the king's son is dead."
{under military procedure Joab repeats the command (and then
adds a reason)}
{Note: David has been known to take out bad news on the courier of the news. Joab is afraid the topic of Absalom will come up and David will kill this man whom Joab likes. So, he is trying to protect Ahimaaz in his refusal. But the truth is, Ahimaaz is the one best prepared to break the news to David gently and he will end up doing so.}
21~~Then
said Joab spoke to the African/Cushite/Cushi
{kuwshiy -word means 'their blackness'},
"Go
report to the king what you have seen."
And
the African saluted/'bowed himself'
{a sign showing submission and respect for authority}
to
Joab, and took off running.
{Note: This is not a 'racial issue' here. This is an issue of the soul. Joab is not willing to risk the life of a mature believer who shows great promise. Instead, it is this Ethiopian's job to carry the news to the king. He must have been the Headquarter Runner. Probably was a great athlete.}
{Future
High Priest Asks Again}
22a~~Then
Ahimaaz the son of Zadok
'persisted
yet again' and said to Joab,
"Please
sir, come what may . . .
let
me also run after the African."
{Note: RBT says that Ahimaaz would have known the African and must have known he would not break the news gently to David. Ahimaaz is determined to make this as easy as possible on David.}
22b~~And
Joab said,
"Why
will you run, my son,
there
will be no reward for your going?"
{Idiom: 'why' here is two Hebrew words that literally mean 'On
account of this'}
{Note: Joab is implying that the African is a far faster runner and will get there first anyway. So, even if given permission, Ahimaaz would not get there in time anyway.}
23a~~But,
come what may sir, said he {Ahimaaz},
"Please
let me run."
And he {Joab} 'thought about it and commanded' him, "Run."
23b~~Consequently,
Ahimaaz ran by the way of the plain,
and
out ran the African.
{Note: The African took the short route to David over the mountains. But Ahimaaz thought first. And, he ran on better ground for running - the plains. So the route was longer but faster and Ahimaaz got there first.}
24~~While
David was sitting between the two gates/
'inner
and outer gates of the fortified city of Mahanaim'
{double wall system - gates were defended by two walls with two
guard rooms to give great security to the gate David was sitting
up in the gate courtyard}
and
the watchman/'officer of the day'
went
up to the 'top of the tower on the wall'/'observation tower',
and
stared intently and saw,
behold
. . . a man running alone.
{Verses
25-27: Report of Officer of the Day}
25a~~Then
the watchman/'officer of the day'
called
out and reported to the king
{informing him of the runner coming}.
And
the king replied,
"If
he is alone, then there is good news in his mouth."
{Note: David concluded that one man was good news. A number of men would probably be his army in retreat.}
25b~~And
he {the runner - Ahimaaz}
kept
coming nearer and nearer.
26a~~Then
the watchman/'officer of the day'
spotted
another man running
and
the watchman/'officer of the day'
called
out unto the 'sentry of the gate', and said,
"Behold
another man running alone {spotting the African}."
26b~~And
the king commented,
"He
also brings good news."
27a~~Then
the watchman/'officer of the day' commented,
"In
my opinion,
the
running style of the first {messenger}
is
like the running of Ahimaaz the son of Zadok."
{idiom: literally 'I am the one seeing' - meaning 'in my opinion'}
27b~~And
the king replied,
"That
one is an honorable man
{David has known Ahimaaz for a long time and has great respect for
him}
and
he will come with the better good news."
{Note: David knows Ahimaaz is filled with divine viewpoint from doctrine in his soul. David knows that Ahimaaz can handle any situation better than most. David knows that Ahimaaz has the honor of an aristocrat.}
{Verses
28-30: Report of Ahimaaz to David}
28a~~And
Ahimaaz hailed/called out to the king and said,
"Hail/Victory
{shalowm}."
{Note: Shalowm is a Jewish greeting. It means 'hello' or prosperity. It also can be used for military victory which certainly is in view here. And, it is used for 'peace' since all peace comes from military victory (but that is not the use of the word here). So, Ahimaaz is probably hailing the king here with the battle news all in one word.}
{Ahimaaz
Now Meets the King on the Steps as Ahimaaz Catches His Wind}
28b~~And
he kneeled fell down
with
his face toward the ground before the king, and said,
"Praise
belongs to Jehovah/God . . . your 'Elohiym/Godhead,
Who
has shut down the men
'who
revolted'/'that lifted up their hand'
against
my Lord the king."
{Note: Ahimaaz gave David the good news of victory and let that sink in before David would learn of the death of Absalom. This is very courteous and respectful of this man of doctrine/'divine viewpoint'.}
29~~Then
the king inquired,
"Is
the young man Absalom safe?"
And
Ahimaaz replied,
"I
saw a great confusion
when
Joab sent the king's servant {the African},
and
me, your servant,
but
I knew not what was happening."
{Note: From this and the next verses, apparently Joab told the African and Ahimaaz NOT to mention 'Absalom'. So Ahimaaz respects the command of Joab AND its intent. The African will only technically respect the command and probably try to obtain reward from David for being the first to tell him of Absalom's death.}
30~~Then
the king said unto him,
"Turn
around, and stand aside here."
So he turned aside, and stood 'at attention'/still.
{Verse
31-32: Report of the African}
{Official
Report Straight from Joab}
31a~~And,
behold, the African came.
And
the African spoke,
"Let,
my Lord the king receive the Good news."
{Note: The African bowed to Joab when he started the run. But no bow to the king is mentioned here. Apparently, personality is the issue to the African and he respects Joab but not David at this point. And, that is arrogant. He should have respect for his position and bow to the king. He either does not have the doctrine to cover this situation or he is not applying it to this experience - authority arrogance - rejecting the authority of the king here. So he is following protocol and asking permission first to give the message, and David apparently gives permission.}
31b~~"For
Jehovah/God has vindicated you this day
of
all those who revolted/'rose up' against you."
{Note: This is very similar to what Ahimaaz reported. Joab gave appropriate credit to Jesus Christ Who controls history. Apparently, this is ALL Joab wanted said to David. He killed Absalom and it was his duty to tell David directly what he had done and why.}
{African's
Addendum to Joab's Official Statement}
32~~And
the king said unto the African,
"Is
the young man Absalom safe?"
And
the African answered,
"May
the enemies of my Lord the king,
and
all who revolt/'rise up' against you
for
evil . . .
'let
become'/be as that young man is."
{Note: The African used flattery and did NOT name Absalom by name - probably as Joab ordered him not to do. But, he shrewdly was the first to let the king know his condition - thinking he would be rewarded!}
{King's
Emotional Arrogance}
33a~~Then
the king was 'emotionally disturbed'
and
went up to the guard room above the gate, and wept.
And
as he went, he cried,
"O
my son Absalom . . .
my
son, my son . . . Absalom!
{David
Divorced from Reality}
33b~~If
only I had died for you, O Absalom . . . my son, my son!"
{Note: If the country is to be saved, David must be alive and make great difficult decisions. Here, in 'abnormal grief' he is in emotional arrogance. The country is in great danger if David does not recover quickly.}
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