2nd Samuel 17:14
2nd Samuel 17:14 (see also Jeremiah 18:6)
Then Absalom and all the men of Israel said, “The counsel of Hushai the Archite is better than the counsel of Ahithophel.” For the LORD had ordained to thwart the good counsel of Ahithophel, so that the LORD might bring calamity on Absalom.
From the standpoint of Jeremiah 18:1-13, why should we view God’s reluctant plan to bring calamity upon Israel any different than with Absalom? The problem is that Calvinists read unconditional decrees of Determinism into 2nd Samuel 17:14 so that Absalom was predestined for Hell, and that simply is a forced to conclusion.
Question: Why did the Lord ordain “calamity” for Absalom?
Answer: The word “calamity” is reminiscent of Jeremiah 18:8-11: “If that nation against which I have spoken turns from its evil, I will relent concerning the calamity I planned to bring on it. Or at another moment I might speak concerning a nation or concerning a kingdom to build up or to plant it; if it does evil in My sight by not obeying My voice, then I will think better of the good with which I had promised to bless it. So now then, speak to the men of Judah and against the inhabitants of Jerusalem saying, ‘Thus says the LORD, “Behold, I am fashioning calamity against you and devising a plan against you. Oh turn back, each of you from his evil way, and reform your ways and your deeds.”’” Clearly the planned calamity is conditional.
