9 And Absalom meeteth before the servants of David, and Absalom is riding on the mule, and the mule cometh in under an entangled bough of the great oak, and his head taketh hold on the oak, and he is placed between the heavens and the earth, and the mule that 'is' under him hath passed on. 10 And one man seeth, and declareth to Joab, and saith, 'Lo, I saw Absalom hanged in an oak.' 11 And Joab saith to the man who is declaring 'it' to him, 'And lo, thou hast seen—and wherefore didst thou not smite him there to the earth—and on me to give to thee ten silverlings and one girdle?' 12 And the man saith unto Joab, 'Yea, though I am weighing on my hand a thousand silverlings, I do not put forth my hand unto the son of the king; for in our ears hath the king charged thee, and Abishai, and Ittai, saying, Observe ye who 'is' against the youth—against Absalom; 13 or I had done against my soul a vain thing, and no matter is hid from the king, and thou—thou dost station thyself over-against.' 14 And Joab saith, 'Not right—I tarry before thee;' and he taketh three darts in his hand, and striketh them into the heart of Absalom, while he 'is' alive, in the midst of the oak. 15 And they go round—ten youths bearing weapons of Joab—and smite Absalom, and put him to death. 16 And Joab bloweth with a trumpet, and the people turneth back from pursuing after Israel, for Joab hath kept back the people; 17 and they take Absalom and cast him in the forest unto the great pit, and set up over him a very great heap of stones, and all Israel have fled—each to his tent. 18 And Absalom hath taken, and setteth up for himself in his life, the standing-pillar that 'is' in the king's valley, for he said, 'I have no son to cause my name to be remembered;' and he calleth the standing-pillar by his own name, and it is called 'The monument of Absalom' unto this day.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on 2 Samuel 18:9-18
Commentary on 2 Samuel 18:9-18
(Read 2 Samuel 18:9-18)
Let young people look upon Absalom, hanging on a tree, accursed, forsaken of heaven and earth; there let them read the Lord's abhorrence of rebellion against parents. Nothing can preserve men from misery and contempt, but heavenly wisdom and the grace of God.