Today, I am reading and commenting on 2 Samuel 18-19.

This passage reads as if the people of Judah did not begin seeking David’s return as king after Absalom’s death until David sent messages to them suggesting it would be in their best interest.  It appears that David sent those messages after others in Israel reached out to him about him returning as king.  Then once David did return as king, the men of Judah asserted greater credit for his return than the other tribes, starting the divide which came to fruition upon Solomon’s death.  Now I want to point out that this divide actually seems to have begun on the part of the other tribes.  I find it interesting that the other tribes count themselves as ten, but Shimei, a Benjamite, counted himself as “first from the tribes of Joseph” to come and greet David upon his return.  I am not sure of the significance of this, just something I noticed.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.