And for the whole army the victory that day was turned into mourning, because on that day the troops heard it said, “The king is grieving for his son.” – 2 Samuel 19:2

Today’s Scripture Reading (July 13, 2016): 2 Samuel 19

Early in the third century B.C.E., Pyrrhus of Epirus (in Ancient Greece) was at war with Rome. Pyrrhus defeated Rome at Heraclea in 280 B.C.E. and again at Asculum in 279 B.C.E. (both battles were in Southern Italy.) But even though Pyrrhus won the battles, he realized that in winning he had actually lost the war. The losses inflicted by the enemy on his army were simply too great. He remarked after the Battle of Asculum that “he had lost a great part of the forces he brought with him, and almost all his particular friends and principal commanders” (Plutarch, Life of Pyrrhus). While Rome could easily get new recruits, Pyrrhus only had the men that he had brought with him. His victories had come at too high a price. The battle was won, but the war was lost. And this type of situation ever since has carried his name, it is a Pyrrhic victory – a win that inflicts such a devastating toll on the victor that it is the same as a defeat.

Usually, a Pyrrhic victory occurs because of the number of men lost on the winning side. But sometimes, it is because of who is lost. For Pyrrhus, he had lost numbers, but his defeat was heightened by the loss of commanders – and the loss of friends. David and his men have won the battle against Absalom, but in many ways, at least for David, it is a Pyrrhic victory. While the war is won, David has lost a beloved son.

Many commentators seem to find sin in David’s reaction and righteousness in the reaction of Joab. But it is hard for me to understand why the charge of sin is laid at the feet of David. Joab is a complex character to start off with, and no less in this passage. But David’s reaction is very simple. He has lost a son. And not only is his son dead but in many ways, he realizes that the seeds of his son’s rebellion were found in him. This whole story is part of the cost of his relationship with Bathsheba. While commentators seem to want to call David’s reaction “excessive grief,” I think the level of David’s grief was well within the reality of the situation. The problem extends beyond a simple judgment of sin and righteousness. I can’t imagine the pain that I would be feeling if I was in David’s shoes. And yet the men did have a right to celebrate the victory. For them, this was not the death of a rebellious yet beloved child – it was the death of an enemy and a threat to the life of their king. They could rejoice in the situation. But for David, in many ways, he had won the battle and yet lost the war.

So David was right to mourn, even excessively. Joab was right to challenge the king and get him to shove aside the mourning, at least in public, so that his loyal soldiers could celebrate. The soldiers had won a great victory, but I think that even they could be sympathetic to the pain that David felt on this day of victory – this day of what would come to be called a Pyrrhic victory.

Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: 2 Samuel 20