What is the context?
Absalom surrounds himself with a chariot, horses and fifty runners, then positions himself where people come with cases for the king. He approves their claims, says no royal deputy will hear them, and promises that he would give them justice. Warm gestures accompany the criticism of David’s administration.
The narrator describes the result as stealing the hearts of Israel. After four years, Absalom asks to go to Hebron to fulfill a vow to the LORD. With David’s permission he leaves, but he has arranged for messengers to announce him as king when the horn sounds.
Two hundred invited men go with him without knowing the plot. Absalom also summons Ahithophel, David’s counselor. Sacrifices and a stated religious purpose provide the setting for a conspiracy that continues to gain support.
How is this passage commonly understood?
Wesley reads Absalom’s treatment of petitioners as a calculated way of winning allegiance. His promise that everyone will receive justice from him is part of his campaign; the narrator does not independently confirm every accusation he makes against David’s government.
Henry emphasizes the misuse of an appearance of devotion and the danger of drawing unsuspecting people into wrongdoing. The invited men’s ignorance matters: being present with Absalom does not prove that all two hundred knowingly joined the rebellion.
The BSB gives four years. Gill discusses that reading alongside the forty years in older translations and the attempts to explain the longer number. The translation difference need not obscure the movement of the story: Absalom has patiently cultivated support before announcing a rival claim to the throne.
What is our position?
We don't have a position on this passage yet. When our study reaches a conclusion the text supports, it will appear here.