Absalom
He stole the hearts of Israel and rose against his father, who wept, "Would God I had died for thee."
Old Testament · c. 1000 BC · 2 Samuel · Also known as Son of David
About Absalom
Absalom was David’s handsome son. After his half-brother Amnon raped his sister Tamar and David did nothing, Absalom waited two years, then had Amnon killed, and fled into exile. Brought back but kept at a distance, he won the people’s loyalty at the city gate, "so Absalom stole the hearts of the men of Israel," and then declared himself king. David fled Jerusalem. In the battle that followed, Absalom’s head caught in an oak tree, and David’s commander Joab killed him against the king’s orders. David’s grief is one of the most piercing laments in Scripture.
Nathan had warned David that "the sword shall never depart from thine house" (2 Samuel 12:10). Absalom’s rebellion is part of that bitter fulfilment, and David’s family story is told with unflinching honesty.
The story
No blemish in him
"In all Israel there was none to be so much praised as Absalom for his beauty: from the sole of his foot even to the crown of his head there was no blemish in him." Each year he cut his heavy hair, which weighed two hundred shekels.
2 Samuel 14:25-26
He stole the hearts
Back in Jerusalem, Absalom stood by the city gate and told everyone with a lawsuit, "there is no man deputed of the king to hear thee," and kissed those who bowed to him. "So Absalom stole the hearts of the men of Israel." Then at Hebron he had himself proclaimed king, and David fled Jerusalem.
2 Samuel 15:1-14
Caught in the oak
David ordered his commanders, "Deal gently for my sake with the young man, even with Absalom." In the battle in the wood of Ephraim, Absalom rode under an oak, "and his head caught hold of the oak," leaving him hanging. Joab killed him.
2 Samuel 18:5-15
O my son Absalom
When the news came, David went up to the chamber over the gate and wept: "O my son Absalom, my son, my son Absalom! would God I had died for thee, O Absalom, my son, my son!"
2 Samuel 18:33
Key moments
- Avenges Tamar: Two years later. (2 Samuel 13:28-29)
- Exile in Geshur: Three years. (2 Samuel 13:38)
- Steals Israel’s hearts: At the city gate. (2 Samuel 15:6)
- Proclaimed king at Hebron: David flees. (2 Samuel 15:10)
- Dies in the wood of Ephraim: Caught in an oak. (2 Samuel 18:9)
Questions about Absalom
In meetBible these answers are given in Absalom’s voice. They are written by hand and checked against Scripture.
Why did you rebel against your father?
Scripture never states my reason. It gives the background: after Amnon wronged my sister Tamar, our father "was very wroth" but did nothing; I took revenge and lived three years in exile; when I came back, my father wouldn’t see me for two more years. Then I won people over at the gate and had myself proclaimed king. Readers suggest ambition, bitterness, or both; the text lets my actions speak.
Did your hair get caught in the tree?
That’s how the story is often told, because Scripture mentions my heavy hair earlier. But the text itself says, "his head caught hold of the oak, and he was taken up between the heaven and the earth." It says my head, not specifically my hair.
Did David still love you?
Even as I fought him, my father commanded, "Deal gently for my sake with the young man, even with Absalom." When he heard I was dead, he wept: "O my son Absalom, my son, my son Absalom! would God I had died for thee." His grief was so great that Joab had to warn him he was shaming his own loyal soldiers.
Connected people
Read it yourself
Start with 2 Samuel 13–18.