The KT OLLA Web Stories

NOW David and his party passed the last house in the city as they finally reached the border. They reached the Brook of Kidron bordering Jerusalem; so, they made to cross over. King David halted in his steps. He wasn’t riding a regal horse today; for he was so low in spirit to sit on a high horse. He stopped to examine all that he was by then. All that he was left with. So, he allowed everyone to pass in front of him, watching each and every one of his men in sheer gratefulness that he wasn’t alone in that trial. It was the royal bodyguards who went first. The six hundred soldiers who followed him from Gath, when he was a fugitive and hiding from Saul the former king. Those valiant men went before their king now, and crossed the brook. Then as the soldiers passed before David, the man began to worry about their safety. He feared for their lives and that of everyone. These gentlemen has done enough for David! No, they’ve definitely done more than enough! Or aren’t they the same men who ...

THE journey out of the palace and the capital city was quite a long one for the old ruler. Every step away from his seat of power was lead heavy, and wearisome. David’s company were a host of many thousands willing to follow the king to his grave. They were people who willingly swore their lives to him. Notable among these crowd of supporters were the six hundred soldiers he’d won for himself in Gath. These men of war were foreigners to Israel; yet they’d pledged themselves to David since when he was nobody. And that day, they were ready go with him through this raging fire. Also in that large company of supporters were the Levite who offered sacrifices for the nation on the altar of God. Four of these men went before the flock of people, bearing on their shoulders the Ark of God’s Covenant, the revered symbol of His presence. That reverent ark was something of no small impotance to Israel. Its presence alone was often the evidence needed that God was still there with them. So, the Lev...

KING David’s order came at last. The order was for everyone on his side at the palace. Yet this order was one he’d never given before. At least, not in the face of an advancing foe. It was an order unlike David. ‘We must run for our lives!’ the ruler announced. ‘If we want to escape the Third One’s sword, we must leave Jerusalem right away!’ Definitely, that command surprised everyone. Everybody standing at attention before the king in his courts. Yet none of those courtiers could give voice to their astonishment. But, at least, Joab made the effort. The middle-aged general knew the army of Israel so well. The excellence of their might and skill. The glory of their battles and triumphs. He knew his ruthless army like the back of his hand. Aw, no matter how strong the prince’s bones are now, can they be as iron as the lion? Why won’t he be crushed if my lord the king gives the order now? Or why is the battle axe of Israel slacking at this time of war?! Then he tried to speak his mind. B...

WHEN a report that his usurper was close reached the king, the latter knew it was time he decided what to do with his son. King David had stalled over making a decision all the whole while. Lest he hack down his own child in one hasty moment. His wise chief counsel had equally lingered in advising him. The reason was that he was currently studying Absalom’s battle strategy. So he’d promised to come up with the best counter just when it’d matter most. That man had excused himself from the royal courts for days, too. But it was on the basis of his curious study that David excused him. So, when other nobles went to find him, they took back reports to the king that he was truly observing the prince. That he was studying the young man’s footprints everywhere he’d plotted things. But then, that man was a sneaky old chap with a giant goal. As he wanted to be the one who stirred the hand which stirred the kingdom. Well, he wanted to be seen and praised as the power behind the throne. He wanted...

ABSALOM couldn’t sit still in Hebron, after he announced himself the king of Israel. The boy knew too well that there couldn’t be two kings over one kingdom. So he understood that he’d drawn the battle line between his father and him. The significance is just one of two hefty things. It is either he killed David and rule; or he was killed by him and lose. Whatever it was in the end, only one man could sit as king. But the Third One had sworn he’d see that fight to the finish. That he’d be the last man standing after arms had well been laid to rest. So, when David’s chief counsellor lingered to join the prince, the anxious kid couldn’t wait any much longer. He feared his father’s tactics when it came to attacks and their counters. He feared his ruthless army, too. Particularly his wild pack of bodyguards, the six hundred men from Gath. Yes, Absalom dreaded an early counter. So he decided to advance his men steadily, heading north from Hebron south of their capital city. His troop and en...

THE loud flourish ended, and as soon as it ceased the Third One’s fifty surrounded him in a wild rush. Then they crashed to the ground before him with a shout. ‘Long live Absalom! Long live the king!’ ‘Long live Absalom! Long live the king!’ That cry went on for an endless time. So much the two hundred elders couldn’t stand to watch any longer. Those dazed men knew what this was. For it was what any man in the ancient times wouldn’t dream to see in front of him, and yet stand undecided. Treason... it was treason. Whatever side the men stood, it was going to be treason. Yet they dared not sit on the fence. So then, the men altogether chose what they thought could earn them an easier sentence. Right there, they crashed to their knees around a standing Absalom. It was a keen, desperate cry to be spared that whimpered beneath the voices of those people. But what the new king heard were just the praises they chanted. ‘Long live Absalom! Long live the king!’ ‘Long live Absalom! Long live the...

THE following week the Third Prince of David galloped through the long dusty ways that led to Hebron. But the prince didn’t travel those rough rocky paths alone. He went with a crowd of two hundred men. Alongside his fifty-man entourage. Those two hundred people who escorted the prince were reputable men of the highest sort. Nobles, sages, judges and merchants. Absalom had sent to fetch them all. But then, Absalom’s two hundred were only an ignorant flock of sheep in this next game of the throne seeker. Those men – wise and noble as they were, happened to know nothing about the prince’s masterplan. I seek to go to Hebron in seven days’ time (the boy had written in a sealed invite). I go up to worship and seek pardon before the God of Abraham and Israel. Therefore, fathers of our people, I request your noble presence to, please, lead me in this humble sacrifice of mine. Truly, Absalom knew that he wouldn’t have got all of the men on his side if he’d stated his real cause. As a matter of...

KING David’s explanation came riding on a gentler voice. But the gentle speak couldn’t stop the surprise it could stir. ‘My child is going to Hebron to worship,’ the monarch cooed, leaning towards his army chief. ‘He said he wants to sacrifice at the mountain in Hebron, where I used to worship while I was king there. ‘You know, it was the vow he made to God while he was on exile. That time he was away from all of us and lonely in Geshur. ‘He said he vowed that if my God indeed brings him back, he’d once more remember where I bore and brought him up – alongside his older brothers.’ He leaned back and sighed. ‘And now he remembers! My Absalom remembers where he veered off! ‘He remembers home! He remembers the son of whom he is! And he’s back to me now, Joab! He’s back, he’s really back!!’ The king stopped to gaze at his stunned soldier. ‘Oh Joab, you’ve got sons and daughters, haven’t you?’ Joab’s eyes told that he was trying to follow. ‘Then tell me,’ shot the monarch, ‘what can be more...

JUST as soon as the commander of David’s army stepped into the chamber of power, he sighted the Third Son leaving already. This was the throne room and the favourite prince was done with his assignment there. Right before any adversary could show up. Prince Absalom said his parting words, bowing down to the king as Joab stormed in with burning steps. And then the prince quietly took his leave. The kindred foes almost collided at the doorway. Joab wanted to hold down this youngster and, in fact, demand what he was there for straightaway. But the man knew his business was rather with the king. Not with ‘this sly cat’ who came in to eye the throne. Or so were the general’s fuming thoughts. So then, brave Joab decided to be cautious in order that he wouldn’t give himself away too early. And it was equally this thought that drummed within the skull of the young prince. Therefore, the two cousins simply said a quiet greeting when their shoulders brushed against each other at the doorway. The...

ON the day that followed the Third One’s night of plotting, it was his closest adversary who woke up with a headache. Joab rose up with the early morning sun in his house near the palace. It was some sudden concern about Absalom’s growing fame that stirred him. The soldier’s sleep through the night had been quite a short one. He’d lost his sleep at the first crow of the cock at dawn. Even when he’d only gone to bed at midnight. And so, when the man sought his lost sleep in vain, he was compelled to linger on the ongoing development in Absalom’s camp. Within the four years that had quickly swept past, Joab told himself that the prince’s spreading fame was happening only because the young man craved attention. That, when Absalom couldn’t catch his father’s eyes since he returned from exile, he decided to settle instead for the people’s acceptance. Well, it was King David who first told the concerned soldier this line of thought, when the ruler’s son’s name started to blossom in Israel. A...

LIFE’s circles continued to spin and time quickly rolled past. Sunrises and sunsets every day soon counted up to so many days. New moons until each full moon also numbered many months. Time passed on so fast and it was four years already. In four years, Absalom had won the heart of Israel from the gates of Jerusalem. His fame had spread far and wide throughout the whole kingdom. But fame was never the Third One’s goal. And the support he’d garnered over four years was only a means to an end. Yes, the young man wasn’t merely chasing after a big name. Nor was he simply wanting a crowd of cheerers for fun. No, Prince S’alom was chasing just one goal. Or better still, two. And it was the great throne that his father sat on. Well, with the head of that father who wouldn’t let him rule. ‘After all,’ he talked to himself one night, ‘I have successfully taken out Amnon, the First Heir. ‘And the next in line to David is a settled case. Chileab my half-brother is just a sheepish clown nobody get...

ISRAEL’S war chief was on his toes from the day he saw the prince’s manner at the city gate. And since he hadn’t found a solid evidence against the young man, he decided to plant a spy among his entourage. Joab did this by buying over one of Absalom’s aides with a doubled sum of what his master had paid him. So, without the prince suspecting, he made the needy man his eyes at the gate. But still, there was nothing cogent that Joab could hold against the prince. There at the gates of Jerusalem, the Third Prince sorted out from among the travellers, just those who were going to see the king to judge their case. Absalom would stop such a person, ask them where they hailed from, and listen to them as a prince of David. Then in spite of whatever their case was, he’d simply justify them. ‘The law is on your side,’ he’d say. ‘But one thing stands between you and justice. ‘Listen, my friend, as much as your case is good, there’s no representative of the king to hear it. ‘Why, Israel is as the ...

ONE early morning, one of Joab’s spies ran back to him with the latest of the prince’s activities. Then the war chief mounted a horse and raced to see the treacherous act. For the report came that the Third had forcefully taken the gate of their city, the great city Jerusalem. The news came that the prince was there receiving tribute from everyone who entered Jerusalem, and forced back all those who wouldn’t pay their toll fee to him. Joab rushed to the city gate with the pace of a sweeping wind. He knew it that the Third One had been planning treason. ‘And here,’ he told himself, ‘is the evidence already.’ However, when David’s captain got to the gate and lurked somewhere close to study, he was hit by surprise at what he saw. For what he saw was a different game he had no clue about. Yes, there at the gates of Jerusalem, Joab saw merchants and travellers come in and out of the city, as freely as working ants go in and out of their holes. Then those subjects of David were all paying th...

Running into a rock? The times are testing everywhere in the world. Outdoor is the heat of violence and crime; indoors are the worst cases of lack or need. Everything seemed like the end is here, when most people are just starting to live. But whether it is the beginning of the end, or nothing like it at all… well, all of us just wants to survive. We mean, really survive. Like running into a rock till the heat of God’s sun passes. For this too shall pass, we know. But then, a question sometimes bothers us – particularly at this time. And it is this one thing that we often ask: “Isn’t there something we can do to escape these harsh realities? Isn’t there something we can do at the very least?” The whole world had stayed home at a time, till we were all tired of hiding. But home stopped proving to be a good shelter those times. In fact, plagues opened locked doors and stole away our dear ones. We had thereafter fled outside, running from those things that plagued our earth. We hid in roc...

WHEN the Third Prince schemed on usurping the throne that night, he thought hard on where to start fighting. The real problem was how to win on Israel. Since he’d become unpopular from the day he killed the heir, and was first banished from homeland. So, the prince had returned from exile to a cold reception from his countrymen. And already he doubted the fact that anyone would be willing to follow him now. Even still, Absalom wasn’t giving up on becoming king. For he decided now to buy himself a small crowd of men to serve as his entourage. Along with a fleet of horses and chariots to go before him. This was where the young clever chap decided to start his ploy. And those buys were to fetch him a commanding feel of royalty. So the scorned little one would reappear a promising hero to Israel. It was a game of the mind. A game with a masterplan. Yes, Absalom knew he wouldn’t get anyone to follow him like some six hundred men who had willingly followed his father from Gath, before David ...

 PRINCE Absalom got up with a sudden start. It was the bolt of inspiration that stirred him up. He sat up on the bed and beamed an excited face. ‘Ah come on! Why do I look for flaws to beat a flawless man?’ Then he stood up and struck his head with two fingers. And his clever skull dropped a puzzle. ‘It’s a thing for the quick mind,’ he spoke up. ‘Yes, the cobra’s merit can well be his demerit—that is if you’re the faster shooter! ‘David has got himself a name in Israel; but my gentle father can only be modest about that acclaim. ‘Well, I his son and pride will ride that fame he owns to himself! I will pride that name faster than him or any one of his sons!’ Now he turned to speak to himself. He turned inwards and did some scolding. ‘Listen Absalom, Third Son of King David! The cobra’s broad neck and pride is yours to claim. ‘For you are young and swift. Swifter than the quickest of David’s steps! ‘Why, you are strong and smarter than your father, huh! And just you can chop off t...

 THAT evening when Absalom had his eyes on the Flaming Throne, and fled—by the time he got home to rest, his whole being had caught the flames. And the Third One was on fire with ambition. So, when it was time for bed, the prince’s eyes were flaming already. His head also pounded with thoughts, so much sleep was nowhere around it. Therefore, Absalom left his wife’s side on their bed and went to the guest chamber to think. And all through the long night, he stayed awake and brainstormed on how to usurp David. Absalom stood leaning on a wall as he gave it a hard thought for a long while. Then he sat down on the bed to brainstorm some more. He did that till his head ached. No, there were no loopholes presenting themselves yet. So the prince worried that finding a crack in his flawless father would prove impossible. His father had an unquenchable pack of 600 warriors for a troop. And himself was a killer beast when it came to the art of war. Therefore, no foe had ever routed his privat...

BEFORE it was night on the day Joab’s field got burned, the man went to the palace of the king of Israel. He reported the thing to David. King David felt sorry for the loss, hearing that Joab lost a precious barley farm only because he wouldn’t flout the king’s order. He was touched, so he decided to take the burden off his commander. He decided to heed Absalom’s demand. Yes, David planned to see his son as the latter requested. Yet he told himself that the meeting wouldn’t go beyond seeing the young man. So the next morning he sent to bring Absalom. But as soon as the prince appeared before the king and bowed himself, David could no longer hold it in. He stood up, went down to Absalom, and raised him up. He laid his head on his own shoulder and patted him on the back. ‘Ah my son, welcome home! Welcome home!’ he moaned. Absalom simply broke down in tears right there. ‘I’ve only wanted to see you, Father! I’ve always only wanted to see you!’ David looked in his son’s eyes at that addres...

JOAB didn’t care for the exchange of pleasantries when he arrived at Absalom’s place. His visit wasn’t a pleasant one after all. So the man just went straight to the matter that brought him. ‘Why did you burn down my field?’ he spat his question standing in front of the prince in the house. ‘What have I got to do with you that you’ll raze down my labour in one day?’ Now Absalom was seated with his arms folded across his chest in a settled stance. Everything was his plan; and that plan had worked to bring his father’s aide. So the young prince looked up at the fifty-year-old, who also happened to be his cousin. He smiled and replied him. ‘You’re finally here in my house, General. So why stand aloof and talk down at me. ‘Get your butt down and let’s have a talk.’ He tapped the space beside him on the straw mat where he sat. Joab just looked away and scoffed beneath his breath. ‘Aw, a talk. As if there’s anything to talk about!’ But Absalom was insistent. ‘You’re here already, aren’t you?...

FLAMES of fire rose and flew across a barley field. The burning blades hissed and crackled, and broke down into ashes. Harvest was just a few weeks away for the owner of this field. His barleys were ripening in shades of gold and brown. But then the fire came; and everything golden was burned to nothing. Everything promising became ashes. Absalom’s donkey stood a step away from the fire that afternoon, as the young man watched the field destroyed from the back of his animal. His servants also stood with him, adding more straw to the fire. Now a young man who saw the fire had hurriedly taken the report to his master, the owner. And it was Joab who owned that burning field. ‘Your barley field has just caught fire, my lord!’ the servant trembled on his knees. But Joab wasn’t prepared either. ‘What? My own barley field?’ The lad stammered. ‘I’m… I’m afraid so, my lord. And by the time I got to know it, it was beyond any control!’ Joab was really hit. ‘Oh goodness! Goodness me!’ But the boy...

JOAB travelled to faraway Geshur on the northern borders of Israel in the days that followed. The king’s house had learned that the exiled prince stayed there. Joab, commander of David’s soldiers, didn’t however ride there with an entourage of chariots or horses. No, he scaled the hills and mountains all the way to Absalom, just himself and his shieldman. It was in a single large caravan. Now, Absalom had fled to Geshur with his small family, when he killed Amnon three years back. He took his wife and his two boys. But the prince wasn’t returning home with that number now. It was just with his wife and a little daughter. And even Joab wondered what on earth happened in Geshur. It seemed nemesis had tailed the Third Prince to Geshur when he ran from it. And when it caught up with him at last, it was pitiless in what it did. Absalom lost his two lanky boys when he arrived that city. The boys were too fatigued by the running that they fell very ill. But they didn’t survive that running fr...

THE woman spoke up and King David was shaken up a little. ‘Your Royal Majesty, I know you are fair and just. That you will not dash the hope of a poor widow as I. But why? ‘Why has your Majesty refused to pardon his prince Absalom, and ask him back from exile? ‘Why have you not waved your son’s murder as you freely did mine? ‘In this only thing, my lord the king seems to deal unfairly with us God’s people. ‘Yet the Almighty will not end a man; but He devises means to bring his banished ones home. ‘But here am I, the poor widow you have justified! Truly, I have only taken it on me to ask mercy for my own son’s error. ‘And indeed, I do not mean to poke at the king, Your Majesty!’ Upon those words the woman fell prostrate to the ground and lay there frightened to her bones. She waited for the king’s verdict. But David leaned back in the throne seat, and mused a moment. The wise king could smell something straight up. He sniffed the hand of his general in the matter. He smiled. This is Joa...

THAT time three years after Absalom’s banishment, it seemed the prince had someone in his homeland. Seemed he had a man who heard him cry. But that man who was for the Third Prince wouldn’t even dare to bring the boy’s case before the king. Even when he was the king’s general. His name was Joab. Truly, not a man dared plead this matter with King David, and ask the father to bring back his son. No, not this closest aide in fact. Actually, the king had ceased mourning Amnon; and now he badly missed his third son. Even so, to ask the monarch to reconsider and pardon the offender, was to recklessly walk on thin ice. David was a man of order and principle; but his clemency defied explanations. His discipline was on a whole new level; yet when he was gracious, it was to degrees that amazed everyone. Yes, the king’s justice was the frightening sort; but the way he waved unpardonable deeds, men couldn’t help but cry. And no sane man would fight Absalom’s matter with David. But then someone did...

FLEEING Jerusalem wasn’t a sudden thing for Absalom. The young man seemed to have got it mapped from early start. It was to be his exit method if his schemes did fall through. And yes, they did. So here he was, escaped already. And safe. The Third Prince had reached Geshur in the North by the fifth night. And his maternal grandfather, the king of the city, was there to shelter him. It did indeed seem the Prince had got everything within the grasp of his hand. But things were actually different.  That night that the Third One arrived in the city of Geshur, he was welcomed with a sumptuous feast. But that night, Absalom lost all taste in life. He looked at the banquet and remembered the last meal his brother took. He lost appetite right there. Yet he must eat the meal served in his honour; and so he forced himself.  But everything turned tasteless for the young prince. And he felt empty and vain. Indeed, Absalom knew he was welcome here. He knew he wouldn’t be on the run anymore...

IN the days following the tragedy that struck the house of the King of Israel, the aging ruler was compelled to ponder on the cause of that woe. Every day was laden with care and concern. Every day, the king stayed in his bedchamber and did not appear in the throne room. He would mourn the death of Amnon and wonder why his little brother killed him. Well, he’d got lots of time to think and figure that out. On one of those lonely days, when the old man wouldn’t even be comforted in the arms of his wives, the man untied the knots eventually. And the discovery he made was too frightening that he couldn’t endure. Yes, the king knew his third son so well; after all, he was his favourite child. The young prince was a gentle handsome cub. From head to toe he was a replica of the king’s graceful self. The quiet prince was the first child of the king’s third wife, Maacah. Maacah herself was the beautiful princess of the king of a faraway land, called Geshur. Yes, the king of Israel loved Maacah...

THE sons of the king charged their mules back to the capital in a mad race. But the news about their incident travelled faster; for it reached the king first. Indeed, a hasty messenger had run with the report ever before the dramas were done. He’d picked up a young ass and fled to bring the king news. It was night in the city of Jerusalem, and the monarch rose from his throne and tore his clothes in the height of misery. He garbed himself in mournful sack clothes, and fell on the ground grieving terribly. ‘Ah, woe, woe! Woe befalls me, ah, ah! My sons are all gone in one day!’ But that was the report that came to the king by the hand of a hasty servant. So, he lamented through the dusking night that his Third had killed all of his brothers. All his ministers were down with him also, mourning in rags and ashes. Now as the lament went on without an end, a brother to the ruler and a close associate to him contemplated the matter. His name was Jonadab. He reasoned within himself: The Third...

A FIRE erupted in a great dynasty. It was a fire that wanted two heads: the king and his first son. But that fire was never like those started by men. Nor was it ignited by a brood of conspirators. That fire. It was itself a man, the third prince and pride of the king. So, they called his name Shalom, or Peaceful. But the boy’s fire was that of great nemesis. And judgement.