When Pride Gets in the Way (2 Samuel 18-21)
What’s one thing you’re most proud of? For Absalom it was his hair but that pride played a key role in his downfall in 2 Samuel 18.
2 Samuel 18 - 21
Today's Scripture Passage
A Few Thoughts to Consider
Is there an area of your life where you are exceptionally proud?
Maybe you have certain natural gifts or abilities that others do not. You take pride in your reputation, status, or influence. For Absalom, one of his primary points of pride was his hair. This feature of Absalom's appearance is mentioned specifically in 2 Samuel 14:25-26, where it's stated that,
25 No man in all Israel was as handsome and highly praised as Absalom. From the sole of his foot to the top of his head, he did not have a single flaw. 26 When he shaved his head—he shaved it at the end of every year because his hair got so heavy for him that he had to shave it off—he would weigh the hair from his head and it would be five pounds according to the royal standard.
As Adam Clarke writes, “It was probably his personal beauty that caused the people to interest themselves so much in his behalf.”[1] He was charming, charismatic, and easy on the eyes. However, as Joyce Baldwin notes, “Ironically, it was his hair that would on a future occasion cause his death.”[2]
After David and Absalom’s forces go to war, 2 Samuel 18:9-10 says, 9 “Absalom was riding on his mule when he happened to meet David’s soldiers. When the mule went under the tangled branches of a large oak tree, Absalom’s head was caught fast in the tree. The mule under him kept going, so he was suspended in midair. 10 One of the men saw him and informed Joab. He said, ‘I just saw Absalom hanging in an oak tree!’”
Robert Bergen notes, “The words used by the soldier to report Absalom’s condition are of great theological and thematic significance.”[3] This is because in Deuteronomy 21:21-23 God said, 22 “If anyone is found guilty of an offense deserving the death penalty and is executed, and you hang his body on a tree, 23 you are not to leave his corpse on the tree overnight but are to bury him that day, for anyone hung on a tree is under God’s curse.” Because of Absalom’s sin, he would die a cursed man. His hair, once a symbol of pride and glory, ultimately contributes to his demise.
The same principle holds true today. It’s often our greatest point of pride that results in our downfall. If we take pride in our speaking abilities, a careless word might bring us to our knees. If we take pride in our work, a poor economy might reveal our fragility. And if we take pride in our perfect family, it might take an untimely death to force us to realize our only hope is found in God.
