The historical books 1st & 2nd samuel lesson five

[Did eat continually at the king's table] He was fit for no public office, but was treated by the king with the utmost respect and affection. Adam Clarke

M 9:9-12 David’s promise fulfilled

1. 
   In the first half of David's reign he had strengthened and fortified the kingdom of Israel, both within and without, and exalted the covenant nation into a kingdom of God, before which all its enemies were obliged to bow;
   
2. 
   But in the second half a series of heavy judgments fell upon him and his house, which cast a deep shadow upon the glory of his reign.
   

1. 
   David had brought these judgments upon himself by his grievous sin with Bathsheba.
   
2. 
   The success of all his undertakings, and the strength of his government, which increased year by year, had made him feel so secure, that in the excitement of undisturbed prosperity, he allowed himself to be carried away by evil lusts,
   
3. 
   So as to stain his soul not only with adultery, but also with murder, and fell all the deeper because of the height to which his God had exalted him.
   
4. 
   This took place during the war with the Ammonites and Syrians, when Joab was besieging the capital of the Ammonites, after the defeat and subjugation of the Syrians (chapter 10),
   
5. 
   And when David had remained behind in Jerusalem (<2 Samuel 11:1>).
   
6. 
   For this double sin, the adultery with Bathsheba and the murder of her husband Uriah, the Lord announced as a punishment,
   

7. 
   That the sword should not depart from David's house, and that his wives should be openly violated; and notwithstanding the sincere sorrow and repentance of the king, when brought to see his sin:
   

1. 
   He not only caused the fruit of his sin, the child that was born of Bathsheba, to die (ch. 12),
   
2. 
   But very soon afterwards allowed the threatened judgments to fall upon his house, inasmuch as Amnon, his first-born son, violated his half-sister Thamar,
   
3. 
   And was murdered in consequence by her own brother Absalom (ch. 13),
   
4. 
   Whereupon Absalom fled to his father-in-law at Geshur;
   
5. 
   And when at length the king restored him to favour (ch. 14),
   
6. 
   He set on foot a rebellion, which nearly cost David his life and throne (ch. 15-17:23).
   
7. 
   And even after Absalom himself was dead (<2 Sam 17:24-19:1>),
   
8. 
   And David had been reinstated in his kingdom (<2 Sam 19:2-40>),
   
9. 
   There arose the conspiracy set on foot by the Benjaminite Sheba, which was only stopped by the death of the chief conspirator, in the fortified city of Abel-beth-maachah (<2 Sam 19:41-20:26>).
   

1. 
   The period and duration of these divine visitations are not stated; and all that we are able to determine from the different data as to time, given in <2 Sam 13:23,38; 14:28; 15:7>,
   
2. 
   When taken in connection with the supposed ages of the sons of David, is that Amnion’s sin in the case of Thamar did not take place earlier than the twentieth year of David's reign,
   
3. 
   And the Absalom's rebellion broke out seven or eight years later.
   
4. 
   Consequently the assumption cannot be far from the truth that the events described in this section occupied the whole time between the twentieth and thirtieth years of David's reign.
   
5. 
   We are prevented from placing it earlier, by the fact that Amnon was not born till after David became king over Judah,
   
6. 
   And therefore was probably about twenty years old when he violated his half-sister Thamar.
   
7. 
   At the same time it cannot be placed later than this, because Solomon was not born till about two years after David's adultery;
   
8. 
   And he must have been eighteen or twenty years old when he ascended the throne on the death of his father, after a reign of forty years and a half, since,
   
9. 
   According to <1 Kings 14:21>, compared with vv. 11 and 42, 43, he had a son a year old, named Rehoboam, at the time when he began to reign. (From Keil & Delitzsch Commentary)
   

[I will show kindness unto Hanun the son of Nahash] We do not know exactly the nature or extent of the obligation, which David was under to the king of the Ammonites; but it is likely that the Nahash here mentioned was the same who had attacked Jabesh-gilead, and whom Saul defeated. Since David had taken refuge with the Moabites, <1 Sam. 22:3>, and this was contiguous to the king of the Ammonites, Hanun's hatred for Saul might induce him to show particular kindness to David. A.C.

[Thinkest thou that David doth honour thy father] It has been a matter of just complaint through all the history of mankind, that there is little sincerity in courts. Courtiers, especially, are suspicious of each other, and often mislead their sovereigns. They feel themselves to be insincere, and suspect others to be so too. Adam Clarke Commentary

[Shaved off the one half of their beards] The beard is held in high respect in the East: the possessor considers it his greatest ornament; often swears by it; and, in matters of, great importance pledges it. Nothing can be more secure than a pledge of this kind; its owner will redeem it at the hazard of his life. The beard was never cut off except in mourning, or as a sign of slavery. Cutting off half of the beard and the clothes made the men look ridiculous and made them look like slaves. What was done to these men was an accumulation of insult. Adam Clarke

[Tarry at Jericho] This city had not been rebuilt since the time of Joshua; but there were, no doubt, many cottages still remaining and larger dwellings also, but the walls had not been repaired. Since it must have been comparatively a private place, it was proper for these men to tarry in, as they would not be exposed to public notice. Adam Clarke