Bible Men: King David: How He Dealt With Death

The beauty of Israel is slain upon thy high places: how are the mighty fallen! 2Sa 1:19 

And the king was much moved, and went up to the chamber over the gate, and wept: and as he went, thus he said, O my son Absalom, my son, my son Absalom! would God I had died for thee, O Absalom, my son, my son! 2Sa 18:33  

Death’s Sacrifices

There was a time death used to inspire fear. But today our encounter with it is more informed. In the old days people couldn’t even be seen anywhere near a morgue, but today people get inside and even spend considerable time there.

Today morgues are funeral homes, and they’re plush affairs, having even air condition, TV and music. In the old days there was only the public hospital mortuary and only the brave could enter there.

Today the burial scene has greatly transformed. In the old days there were no hearses. The dead were carried in an open pick up, or on top of a matatu, or a bicycle. Quite a few died at home and they stayed there (preserved in cold charcoal) until the day of burial.

Today burial scenes are elaborate. In the old time people were lowered using ropes, today it is a machine. Old days burials were short affairs, today burials are long, sometimes lasting (like weddings) the whole day, what with viewing of the dead, taking of pictures, speeches by family representatives, friends, the ubiquitous administration, politicians and lastly the church service and reading of tributes.

In the old days there used to be a single tent, today it is a costly affair with multiple tents, hundreds of seats, and food by a catering firm. In the old days mourners took plain tea and left, today it is a hefty budget exercise.

Christ dignified the human body, but the urge to turn it into an idle is always our undoing. Death used to usher in a somber moment, today it is a feast.

Personally I should vouch for a simple one hour send off, without a coffin (I think they are unsightly), with plain ash and soil (ash to ash and dust to dust). It is not just uncomplicated, it is aesthete.

The Death of His Foe King Saul

The death of King Saul was remarkable. He was David’s sworn enemy throughout his life, and yet when he died, David did not celebrate but he mourned him.

David forgot all that he had suffered at his hands, but only embraced lovely memories about his arch foe. He hated him, but he was his king and God’s anointed. He hated him, but in death king Saul was like all of us, he was human.

The lament of David in his song embellishes his humanity. His is a picture of true biblical love which, “Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things” (1Co 13:7).

And David behaved himself wisely in all his ways; and the LORD was with him. 1Sa 18:14

And David lamented with this lamentation over Saul and over Jonathan his son: (Also he bade them teach the children of Judah the use of the bow: behold, it is written in the book of Jasher.) The beauty of Israel is slain upon thy high places: how are the mighty fallen! 2Sa 1:17-19  

That wasn’t a sarcastic rejoinder but more like sadness at a broken mirror (of which we all are). The mirror falls, breaks into splinters, and some find their way into the hearts of the living. “For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known” (1Co 13:12).  

May God grant us all a heart like David’s. Not that he was a saint, but God alone had pronounced him as one. David had nothing to boast about, for he was God’s as much as Saul was his too. “And they mourned, and wept, and fasted until even, for Saul, and for Jonathan his son, and for the people of the LORD, and for the house of Israel; because they were fallen by the sword” (2Sa 1:12).  

The Death of His Son Absalom

That he forgave the son who wanted to kill him only adds glitter to David’s heart. I don’t think it was power which Absalom was really after, but to get at his father for years of ignoring him. I think it was this anger which enraged the young man.

Yet in life David really loved his son, but rather than show it, he had restrained himself. His death pierced him like a knife. He lost his mind and he forgot he had an army of hundreds of loyal soldiers under his watch.

His own sorrow and bitterness combined to make him almost unrepentant. His army threatened a mutiny unless he repented, which he did. Sorrow, like love, makes one blind. David loved his son, but it came too late. Absalom’s own bitterness destroyed him.

Are you angry with yourself for another’s death? Are you angry with God? Be angry at all costs. But remember the battle is not yours but his… It wasn’t your fault. Parenting is tough. We keep silent in the hope the silence will speak louder than words, only for our hopes to be astonished. Are we to blame? No. The Lord giveth and the Lord taketh, praise be the name of the Lord.

What do you see in your enemy? Is there hope? Would you cry for him when he dies or would you rejoice?

Love your enemy and pray for him. Turn the other cheek and do not resist evil, says Christ in his Sermon on the Mount. Because it is when I am weak that I am strong.

The Death of King David

The great king David’s reign also came to an end at last: “So David slept with his fathers, and was buried in the city of David” (1Ki 2:10). 

“Thy gentleness hath made me great” he cried, and so too we cry to God every day because it is only through his mercy that we have come this far.  

LORD, make me to know mine end, and the measure of my days, what it is; that I may know how frail I am. Psa 39:4  

Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing. In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. 1Th 5:16-18 

God bless!