2 Samuel 9:13 - "And tell Amasa, 'Aren't you my flesh and blood? May God punish me and do so severely if you don't become commander of my arm from now on instead of Joab!'"
The setting: David's kingdom has begun to crumble. His son Absalom who has nearly overtaken his kingdom has now been killed. However, there is still a threat of civil war in the country with many more lives than the 20,000 already lost at risk. Trust on all sides is broken and there is great disunity in the country. Sound familiar?
How can a leader attempt to rectify this situation? You're grieving the loss of a son, people are hurting, and trust and life is hanging by a delicate thread.
David made a bold move in his attempt to restore trust and order to the land. He replaced one of his longest tenured and closest allies, Joab, with Amasa, a former ally of his rival and son, Absalom. This maneuver "sent a message of reconciliation to those who had supported the rebellion." Consider what these actions would look like in today's world - it would be like a leader or president making a political rival's right-hand man his own right hand-hand man. People would call it crazy!
But here is the Lifeway commentary on this verse, "Building trust is often more a matter of lending it to others with the belief that they will reciprocate in like manner." David took a chance by trusting Amasa with this authority, power, and closeness. And look at the results in verse 14, "So he (David) won over all the men of Judah, and they unanimously sent word to the king: 'Come back, you and all your servants.'"
David's extending an olive branch of trust to the "other side" showed that he was willing to work with others to rebuild the country and restore trust and unity. Sometimes when we extend trust, we don't know if it will be reciprocated. But the only way to find out is to try. It may not always look pretty on the surface, but trust is necessary to form and build new, untested relationships.
The setting: David's kingdom has begun to crumble. His son Absalom who has nearly overtaken his kingdom has now been killed. However, there is still a threat of civil war in the country with many more lives than the 20,000 already lost at risk. Trust on all sides is broken and there is great disunity in the country. Sound familiar?
How can a leader attempt to rectify this situation? You're grieving the loss of a son, people are hurting, and trust and life is hanging by a delicate thread.
David made a bold move in his attempt to restore trust and order to the land. He replaced one of his longest tenured and closest allies, Joab, with Amasa, a former ally of his rival and son, Absalom. This maneuver "sent a message of reconciliation to those who had supported the rebellion." Consider what these actions would look like in today's world - it would be like a leader or president making a political rival's right-hand man his own right hand-hand man. People would call it crazy!
But here is the Lifeway commentary on this verse, "Building trust is often more a matter of lending it to others with the belief that they will reciprocate in like manner." David took a chance by trusting Amasa with this authority, power, and closeness. And look at the results in verse 14, "So he (David) won over all the men of Judah, and they unanimously sent word to the king: 'Come back, you and all your servants.'"
David's extending an olive branch of trust to the "other side" showed that he was willing to work with others to rebuild the country and restore trust and unity. Sometimes when we extend trust, we don't know if it will be reciprocated. But the only way to find out is to try. It may not always look pretty on the surface, but trust is necessary to form and build new, untested relationships.
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