2 Samuel 13. Tamar Was Not Just "Somebody's Sister."

My heart hurts reading this story. And my blood boils. "Bathsheba-gate" was bad. This is worse. 

King David's son, Amnon, engages in premeditated rape. He plans it all out with a servant, how he will entrap his half-sister Tamar. He's the king's son. He gets what he wants, then kicks Tamar out of his room. From then on, Tamar bears the shame. Amnon still smells like a rose, while she tears her clothing and puts ashes on her head. She is the king's daughter. And the king--"Good" King David, whose blood will one day run in Jesus' veins-- does nothing. Because he loves his son Amnon. Because he doesn't want to "ruin his life." So yes, Absalom does avenge his sister and kill Amnon. But David will always have looked the other way when his daughter needed him. 

There's been a recent reminder in social media circles, that when we talk about sexual assault, too often we speak out "because I have sisters, because I have daughters..." when in fact, that should be irrelevant. You should care about women not being sexually assaulted because they are human beings, not because they are related to you or you see some chivalrous duty to "defend" them. This needs to be said over and over, until we get it. 

For people of faith, this isn't just a moral concept, it's theological. We are all made in God's image. We are all precious in God's sight. So precious, in fact, that God was willing to be cast out and humiliated for us, and bear our shame. And if the fact that a woman bears the image of God isn't enough to change our attitude and behavior toward her, whether she's a blood relation sure as hell won't either. Tamar was David's daughter. Tamar was Amnon's half-sister. More than that, she was a human being, who God made on purpose and loved in the depths of God's heart.  

Lord, have mercy. 

Christ, have mercy.

Lord, have mercy.

Amen.