# KingDavid_BCWR_20200114

Who: King David.

When: While he waits, in between the gates, to hear back about his son after
sending his army against the rebellion his son started.
What: David is anxious to hear that all has gone well with his son, that he is
alive and well, captured, chastised and eager to repent. But he is afraid (and
perhaps more certain of) the opposite: Joab is a ruthless commander, his men are
highly trained, and he awaits the news that his son was killed in battle.
To whom: David is talking to himself.
Arc: David begins uncertain of his decision to send out the armies agains his son.
By the middle, he has convinced himself that that was the right thing to do. But in
the ending, his certainty cracks and he faces the grim reality that his decision
may cost his son his life, and he is not ready for that.
-OR- He tries to keep his composure while discussing the political advantages of
suppressing a rebellion. He tries to keep his composure while talking about all the
reasons he, as the rightful king of Israel, is justified in using military force to
suppress the rebellion. He tries to keep his composure by talking about his son
only as a traitor to the nation, and to the family, and that he deserves this. But
he starts cracking, and he starts worrying about his son. The cracks reveal that
David is actually deeply troubled about his decision to send an army against his
son, because it risks killing him. Has he orchestrated the killing of his own son?
What does he want: David wants to be convinced/convince himself that he's done the
right thing.
What's at stake: If David cannot make peace with his decision, then his confidence
and sense of self will be deeply shaken.
Does he succeed? David emerges from this monologue a broken man, confused and
helpless. Full of regret.

~~He blames himself for this situation and wonders if there were another way, what
he could have done differently to avoid this to resolve this, besides resorting to
violence against his son. He is torn between his responsibilities as a king and his
love for Absalom as his father.~~

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Maybe they were right — maybe I am getting too old for this. It's been a long time
since I've gone out to war myself... Heck, it's been a long time since we've been
to war at all... The city gets quiet when the troops are sent out.

(Pauses. Listening to the silence.)

I'd hoped that peace would last in my time. That's what every king hopes for, I
suppose. Stability. Peace. A safe place for his subjects to live their lives, have
families, grow old... (trailing off)

But we don't always get what we hope for. Life's too complicated for that. Things
never really turn out the way you think they will. (Laughs quietly to himself.)
Who'd have thought that I'd be king? I was the smallest in my family, you know, the
youngest. And now here I am...

(Laughs to himself again.) I guess being king doesn't look like very much now.
You've caught me at a bad time. The kingdom's at war; there's, uh, there's been an
uprising. I had to get out of Jerusalem and hunker down here.

(Starts to crack during this paragraph.)

No, life doesn't ever really turn out the way you hope it does. I mean take a look
at what's going on now. This uprising, for example. The people of Israel... running
after a traitor and declaring *him* king at Hebron. Who could have seen this
coming? (Laughs to himself again.) There you are, running a flourishing kingdom,
composing beautiful poetry, raising up a beautiful family, and then — ha! — and
then, and then all of a sudden you get this news — out of nowhere — that your own
so-- that some guy has run off and made himself king. And he's been building up a
following from (Laughs to himself.) — get this — from right underneath your nose!
(Laughing to himself.) Life sure has a way of throwing curveballs.

(Regaining composure.)

So you roll with it, you know, you roll with it. When you're king and there's an
uprising, only one thing really makes sense, you know? "Do it for the good of the
nation" — that's what my closest adviser told me. "You're king," he said, "and you
have a duty to suppress this uprising." That's completely right. It's my duty.
"This is rebellion," my adviser said. Right. I totally agree. Swift and decisive
action had to have been taken. There was an imminent threat to the safety and
security of the kingdom, of the people — of course I have to deal with it, and deal
with it forcefully. "Send out the army," I told them. (Speaking out.) "Place a
third under Joab, a third under Abishai, and a third under Ittai, my best
generals."

(Still speaking out.)

"Deal swiftly with the uprising."

(Pause.) (Quietly. Solemnly.)

"Deal swiftly with... my son?"

(Staring out, distracted and yet focused.)

Life has a way of taking terrible turns. Your own son... turned against you.
Inciting rebellion. Wishing you dead.

(Trying to convince himself. Struggling to compose himself.)

Rebellion is rebellion. My own son wants to murder me. I must deal with this, deal
with him. There must be justice.

But how can I bring down the hammer on my own son? So decisively and...
mercilessly?

As I think about it, I... I...

I don't know... To strike down my own son, the same way I struck down Goliath? He
was an enemy of Israel and the lines were drawn and clear. But this... this is no
giant champion of the Philistines. He is no foreigner.

He is my son. He is my little boy.

When he was seven, I taught him how to fight, how to use a sword... (Laughs to
himself, reminiscing.) It was too heavy for him at first, but he so wanted to
please me. And he kept at it and grew big and strong.

When he turned ten, I put him on his first horse and we practiced what it'd be like
to ride into battle together, bravely leading on armies to defend Israel.
"Look at me! Look at me!" He exclaimed when he finally managed to stay on without
getting bucked off. He was so determined.
And I am now supposed to raise up an army against him? And send against my own son
the same weapons that repelled wicked and cruel nations?

O God! What am I supposed to do? Is it true, that this is what I must do, as all my
advisers have said? I can't... I don't know if I can. But I know I must. Spare him,
Lord, from the worst of it. Don't let anyone harm him. But I know... I know this
rebellion must be stopped. My son Absalom cannot be king over Israel. O Lord, but
how? You, O my God, are just and You are also full of mercy. Show me how to be the
same... show me... show me...

Life has a way of throwing you for a loop. I stood right here by the gates as I
watched the army march by. Thousands of men, marching out to stop my own son. I
told them to deal gently with him, with the young man, for my sake.

But is that enough? Will that even mean anything?

O God, what have I done?