Focus Chapters:
- 2 Samuel 12:26-31
- 1 Chronicles 20:2-3
- 2 Samuel 13-14
Standout Verse(s):
THE ACTION
2 Samuel 13:1-5 NLT
Now David’s son Absalom had a beautiful sister named Tamar. And Amnon, her half brother, fell desperately in love with her. Amnon became so obsessed with Tamar that he became ill. She was a virgin, and Amnon thought he could never have her.
But Amnon had a very crafty friend—his cousin Jonadab. He was the son of David’s brother Shimea. One day Jonadab said to Amnon, “What’s the trouble? Why should the son of a king look so dejected morning after morning?”
So Amnon told him, “I am in love with Tamar, my brother Absalom’s sister.”
“Well,” Jonadab said, “I’ll tell you what to do. Go back to bed and pretend you are ill. When your father comes to see you, ask him to let Tamar come and prepare some food for you. Tell him you’ll feel better if she prepares it as you watch and feeds you with her own hands.”
THE REACTION
2 Samuel 13:11-14 NLT
But as she was feeding him, he grabbed her and demanded, “Come to bed with me, my darling sister.”
“No, my brother!” she cried. “Don’t be foolish! Don’t do this to me! Such wicked things aren’t done in Israel. Where could I go in my shame? And you would be called one of the greatest fools in Israel. Please, just speak to the king about it, and he will let you marry me.”
But Amnon wouldn’t listen to her, and since he was stronger than she was, he raped her.
Observation (s):
- Neither Jonadab, Amnon’s friend, nor Amnon seriously considered the option of Amnon marrying Tamar. Instead Jonadab’s first reaction was to give him counsel that deviated from God’s laws.
So Amnon told him, “I am in love with Tamar, my brother Absalom’s sister.”
“Well,” Jonadab said, “I’ll tell you what to do. Go back to bed and pretend you are ill. When your father comes to see you, ask him to let Tamar come and prepare some food for you. Tell him you’ll feel better if she prepares it as you watch and feeds you with her own hands.”
- Amnon followed Jonadab’s counsel and ended up sinning against his sister and God.
But as she was feeding him, he grabbed her and demanded, “Come to bed with me, my darling sister.”
“No, my brother!” she cried. “Don’t be foolish! Don’t do this to me! Such wicked things aren’t done in Israel. Where could I go in my shame? And you would be called one of the greatest fools in Israel. Please, just speak to the king about it, and he will let you marry me.”
But Amnon wouldn’t listen to her, and since he was stronger than she was, he raped her.
Application:
We all need good counsel. No matter what level we are at, we tend to have someone who we can seek and trust to give us “good” counsel. For example: kings have counsellors whose advice they depend on, schools provide guidance counsellors to guide their students and we have our spouses, families or friends who we can talk to.
Amnon had his friend, Jonadab. In this situation we see the consequences of bad advice/counsel being given and followed. When Amnon tells Jonadad of his travail, his first reaction is to suggest tricking David and everyone into getting Tamar within Amnon’s grasp. Eventually this suggestion leads to an act in which Amnon sins against God and wrongs Tamar, his sister and love. Later on, we learn that Amnon is eventually killed, for his wrong against Tamar, by Absalom, his brother.
Good counsel should never cause you to forsake God’s way, if you act on it. Check the persons whom you trust to give you counsel. Does the counsel they give meet the baseline needed for it to be considered “good counsel”? Does it cause you to keep to God’s way?
