II Shmuel 18: Missing the Forest and the Trees

YINR 929: Tanach Yomi · Sep 28, 2026 · 4m

The chapter begins with almost a mirror image of the Batsheva story. There, David remained behind in the city while Yoav and the army went out to fight. Here, David insists on going out with his troops, but his commanders implore him to remain behind in the city for his own safety. David seems determined not to repeat his earlier mistake, yet once again the decisive action will take place far from him.As the battle unfolds, the Navi gives us a strange description of the battlefield: “The battle spread out over that whole region, and the forest devoured more troops that day than the sword …