And thus his sin again found him out, and brought stern punishment. Still, we may well believe that, guilty himself of adultery and murder, and with his two eider sons stained with such terrible crimes, David's administration of justice had become half hearted. It was the suitors on their way to the king whom Absalom accosted, and made believe that he would be more assiduous in his duties than his father, and that he would have decided every suit in favour of the person to whom he was talking, whereas really one side alone can gain the cause. On the contrary, the woman of Tekoah obtained an audience, as a matter of course and Absalom would not have risen up thus early unless David had also taken his seat in the early morning on the royal divan to administer justice. It is a mistake to suppose that David altogether neglected his judicial functions. Probably all causes between citizens were tried by it, just as causes in the country were tried by the mishpachah (see note on 2 Samuel 14:7) but with an appeal in weighty matters to the king. At the gate of the city the elders were the judges, and, though the higher authority of the king may have weakened the action of this citizen court, yet passages such as Isa 50:1-11 :23 and Jeremiah 5:28 imply, not only its continued existence, but also that it retained much importance. The gate would be that of the royal palace, where the king gave audience and administered justice. In India it is still common for men of rank to be attended by runners on foot, who will keep up with horses or elephants for an incredible distance.
Probably his grandfather Talmai practised similar magnificence at Geshur. Chariots and horses Hebrew, a chariot and horses that is, a chariot for state occasions, in which Absalom rode, while fifty footmen ran at his side. The Hebrew is a more precise phrase than that on which we have commented on 2 Samuel 10:1 and 2 Samuel 13:1, and implies that Absalom began his devices soon after obtaining his liberty.
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