The Results of Indecisiveness
2 Samuel 13:21-24 NIV
When King David heard all this, he was furious. Absalom never said a word to Amnon, either good or bad; he hated Amnon because he had disgraced his sister Tamar.
Two years later, when Absalom's sheepshearers were at Baal Hazor near the border of Ephraim, he invited all the king's sons to come there. Absalom went to the king and said, "Your servant has had shearers come. Will the king and his officials please join me?"
Get Our Latest News for FREE
When David heard that Amnon had raped Tamar, he was furious. But he did nothing. Perhaps he was hesitant to confront Amnon because he was David's oldest son. Perhaps David's own feelings of guilt about his relationship with Bathsheba make him afraid of being the pot that called the kettle black. For whatever reason, David took no decisive action against Amnon. The result? The ball of anger and distrust among his children kept rolling and growing, and two years later, David's son, Absalom set a trap for Amnon and killed him.
This wasn't the first time David had hesitated to take decisive action against someone. Joab, the commander of David's army, had created severe problems for David when Joab entrapped Abner and murdered him right at the moment that David was working on using Abner in a peaceful settlement. nstead of punishing Joab for the murder of Abner, David let it slide. So, because he got away with it the first time, Abner did it again, later murdering Absalom when David told him to protect the young man's life. David's indecisiveness in dealing with the sins of Amnon and Joab created havoc in both his personal life and in his kingdom. By avoiding the pain of dealing with the sins of these people, David created even greater pain for himself and others in the future.
It's very, very difficult and painful to confront the sins of your family. It's even harder to confront the sins of your friends and co-workers. But look at the example of David. If David had punished Joab the first time he sinned, perhaps Joab would have learned from the punishment and would not have repeated his sin. If David had punished Amnon for what he did to Tamar, the animosity between David's sons might not have escalated like it did. If David had dealt decisively with Absalom's murder of Amnon, perhaps he would have stopped Absalom's later rebellion.
When you see sin around you, stop being indecisive in dealing with it. The pain of confronting the sin in the first place is minor compared to the pain that could result if that sin continues and escalates.
Used with Permission
