So Absalom dwelt two full years in Jerusalem, and saw not the king’s face.
Joab was the agent who twice brought about Absalom's restoration to David, first securing his return from exile and then securing his admission to the king's presence after he had spent two full years dwelling in Jerusalem without seeing the king's face. That repeated mediation placed Absalom under obligation and trust toward both David and Joab, yet Absalom violated that trust by turning the restored position into an occasion for conspiracy and revolt. The course of the rebellion therefore showed that the reconciliation had been abused, with kindness and forgiveness made the stepping-stone to treason. Joab himself afterward perceived that his own intercession on Absalom's behalf had contributed to making that rebellion possible.
Joab was the agent who twice brought about Absalom's restoration to David, first securing his return from exile and then securing his admission to the king's presence after he had spent two full years dwelling in Jerusalem without seeing the king's face. That repeated mediation placed Absalom under obligation and trust toward both David and Joab, yet Absalom violated that trust by turning the restored position into an occasion for conspiracy and revolt. The course of the rebellion therefore showed that the reconciliation had been abused, with kindness and forgiveness made the stepping-stone to treason. Joab himself afterward perceived that his own intercession on Absalom's behalf had contributed to making that rebellion possible.