Saturday 23rd November
Read 2 Samuel 18:24-30
“While David was sitting between the inner and outer gates, the watchman went up to the roof of the gateway by the wall. As he looked out, he saw a man running alone. 25 The watchman called out to the king and reported it. The king said, ‘If he is alone, he must have good news.’ And the runner came closer and closer.
26 Then the watchman saw another runner, and he called down to the gatekeeper, ‘Look, another man running alone!’ The king said, ‘He must be bringing good news, too.’ 27 The watchman said, ‘It seems to me that the first one runs like Ahimaaz son of Zadok.’ ‘He’s a good man,’ the king said. ‘He comes with good news.’
28 Then Ahimaaz called out to the king, ‘All is well!’ He bowed down before the king with his face to the ground and said, ‘Praise be to the Lord your God! He has delivered up those who lifted their hands against my lord the king.’ 29 The king asked, ‘Is the young man Absalom safe?’ Ahimaaz answered, ‘I saw great confusion just as Joab was about to send the king’s servant and me, your servant, but I don’t know what it was.’ 30 The king said, ‘Stand aside and wait here.’ So he stepped aside and stood there.” (NIVUK)
Why do you think we are told the story of the messengers? Maybe we are supposed to slow down and observe just how stressed David is. His anxiety palpably oozes off the page. He places himself half-in and half-out of the city. He projects ‘good news’ on the messenger with an absurd non sequitur! It is desperately sad.
When Ahimaaz arrives his first words fail to make any impact on the king. In Hebrew, ‘all is well’ (v28) is literally ‘avshalom’. You can only imagine what that does to the distraught king. There is sensitivity even in the narrating, David is not referred to by name throughout, it is only ‘the king’. It is too raw and personal to use his name.
David says nothing about the battle and its outcome, he is concerned with only one thing. It is all consuming. Ahimaaz wisely says he does not know, though that is unlikely. For Ahimaaz it is only good news, his babbling is unwelcome, and David sets him aside. For all is not well for him.
Have you ever been so consumed by something that it devours every waking moment? Pray for those who may be going through something similar today.
