We have been reading through the stories of early Israel history when they were ruled by kings. The first king was Saul and then David became king.

Reading through these stories over the past several weeks has put David in a very different light for me. David has always been one of the heroes of the Bible. Under David as king, Israel achieved its greatest moments of strength in the region. Israel was successful militarily in many battles and David was able to accumulate a large amount of wealth.

Most of the Psalms are attributed to David although it is unlikely that David wrote many if any of the Psalms. The Psalms were more likely a collection of writings from several writers who wrote words that were intended to be sung or recited in worship. Words which we use in worship today.

Over the past two weeks we have been reading stories which tell of the beginning of David’s downfall. We’ve read stories of rapes committed by David and then by his son Amnon as well as discarding a woman who risked her life to safe his.

We read of how David tried to cover up his violence as well as his son’s violence against women. We read of how David went to the extreme of committing murder to cover up his predatory behavior.

As I have read these stories of David and as I have read the stories which we will be addressing today, I have come to see David as more of a tragic and complicated figure. Israel achieved so much under David’s leadership, but he and his sons also committed some atrocious acts especially against innocent women. Today we will hear more of the sad story of David’s family.

A couple of weeks ago we addressed the rape that David’s son Amnon committed against his sister Tamar. When David found out about the rape of his daughter, he participated in a cover up because Amnon was his oldest son. But Absalom, another of David’s sons, avenged the rape by having his brother Amnon killed.

What happens next is a story of continued tragedy for David’s family. Absalom loses respect for his father David after David’s weak response to this violence against his Tamar.

Absalom sat at the edges of the city and told anyone who would listen that his father David was not a good king and that if he was king then he would be much more just than his dad.

Eventually, Absalom decides that he should be the new king now and not wait until the death of his father David. So, Absalom flees to Hebron and announces that he is the new king. Absalom raises a large enough army that David flees the area.

Eventually, the armies of David and Absalom come into conflict with one another. David’s army kills 20,000 of Absalom’s soldiers. But then, riding a mule across the countryside, Absalom’s beautiful hair that he was very proud of gets caught in a tree where he is left hanging between life and death.

David had given his officers instructions to not kill Absalom in battle. But while Absalom is left hanging from the tree, one of David’s officers comes upon him where he kills him with his sword.

Our reading today is the moment when David receives word about the death of his son. The words come from a Cushite messenger which is modern day Ethiopia.

Read 2 Samuel 18:31-33

Are these the tears of someone who is crying for the death of his son or are these the tears of someone crying as he realizes that his reckless behavior has led to the downfall of his kingdom? Or are they the words of someone crying for the end of both. Tears for the death of his son and tears for the death of what all he thought was his kingdom?

This is another of those passages of scripture which is difficult to try to interpret and find good news from. But maybe this is one of those stories from scripture which is there for us to read and say, I know this story as well.

I know the story of someone who had so much but then squandered it all away. I know the story of someone who was victimized by someone in power.

This period of Israel’s history is seen as their glory years. But as we read these biblical stories, we realize that the glory years were not so glorious for everyone. There is another story of rape from David’s family that I have not mentioned yet.

After David left his palace to flee Absalom, he left 10 women behind to tend to the house. These women were David’s concubines or his sex slaves. When Absalom came upon these women, he raped them as a sign of power over his father. Absalom did this in front of all of Israel according to the text.

So these glory years were not so glorious to all of these women who were victimized. Women who are not given names in the Bible or given voices to speak to their trauma.

Much like the many people who have lived on these lands where we sit who have been victimized as well but given no voice to speak their trauma. People we would refer to as Natives or enslaved.

We know these types of stories today as well. The stories of women who were inappropriately touched or abused by powerful men and who felt that they could say nothing. The stories of young people abused by church leaders who felt that they could say nothing.

But others of us know the stories of people who had so much but then squandered it away. The friend or family member with the addiction problem. The person who reached success but then his own greed caused him to lose it all through being caught in illegal activity.

The friend with the perfect marriage who ran away with the boyfriend who turned out to not be the greener grass. Maybe these are the stories of our friends and family or maybe these are our stories.

Maybe what we can learn from David’s story is to not look at the lives of others and think to ourselves, I wish my life was like that person’s life. Because maybe their life is not so wonderful after all.

David and his family is at its core a story of tragedy. It is a story where they had so much but then lost so much.

But maybe today we can hold up this story and see that their story in our story as well. That if our story includes victimization, that we are not alone because there are people in the Bible that were victimized as well.

That if our story is a story of loss and tragedy, that there are biblical stories that mirror our story. That there are people in the Bible that had it all but lost it all. And so by looking at their stories we don’t feel so alone in our story.

I once heard someone say to me that they want to come to church and hear feel good stories that make them feel good about themselves. I’m afraid an honest reading of the Bible doesn’t lend itself to that.

Some stories of the Bible are there to teach us that our struggles are real but that we are not alone in our struggle. That others have been there as well.

Last week we got to see play out in front of the international community what it looks like to be so talented but yet struggle in the moment. We saw the weight of pressure come down upon the greatest gymnast of our lifetime Simone Biles. But we also witnessed her get back on the balance beam and win a medal and conquer her fear as an inspiration to all of us.

We are not alone in our struggles. We have companions in the Bible. And when we are being the church as we are called to do, then we are companions to one another in our journeys.

Thanks be to God that we are not alone. AMEN.

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-Given: August 8, 2021 in Allison Creek Presbyterian (York, SC)