Mercy, Justice, and Easter in the Story of a Broken Kingdom

We've been in a series called "Relate." The biblical character David has been our case study for thinking biblically about relationships. This tension is in view: can mercy and justice co-exist? Can rebels be restored, and rules still stand? Easter answers that question.

Let's start with the backstory. Near the end of King David’s reign, Israel is unraveling.

His son Absalom has led a rebellion. The nation is at war. The throne is threatened. The kind of situation that demands clarity: treason must be answered, justice must be done, order must be restored.

But in the middle of that national crisis, David speaks not only as a king—but as a father.

Before the battle begins, he gives his soldiers a public instruction: treat Absalom gently.

It’s a startling command. Absalom isn’t merely a misguided son. He is an insurgent. He has tried to steal a kingdom. He has shamed his father publicly. He has endangered thousands of lives. And yet David’s instinct is mercy.

The battle ends. Absalom is killed. The rebellion is crushed. The kingdom is preserved.

And when David hears the news, he collapses into grief.

He cries out—a line so raw it still catches in the throat:

“Would I had died instead of you…”

It is the cry of a father whose love outruns what the moment allows. A wish spoken into the air: If only I could take the consequence for you. But he can’t.

Mercy and Justice, Split in Two

This is where the story becomes more than ancient history. It becomes a mirror of our moral world. Because two forces are colliding:

David embodies mercy.

He loves the rebel. He longs for restoration. He wants gentleness where others demand severity. In David, we see the ache of compassion—especially for those who have caused real harm.

Joab embodies justice.

Joab is David’s military commander. He is not sentimental, and he is not confused. He sees what rebellion does to a nation. He understands that if Absalom lives, the kingdom will never heal. So he acts decisively. The sword falls. The threat is removed.

And we feel the tension because, in a sense, both men are “right.”

• Mercy without justice cannot protect what is good.

• Justice without mercy cannot restore what is broken.

  
  

David’s mercy is beautiful—but it cannot secure the kingdom. Joab’s justice is necessary—but it cannot heal the heart.

So the story leaves us unsettled—because mercy and justice are divided, and neither one can carry the full weight alone.

The Wish David Cannot Fulfill

David’s cry is the emotional climax of the whole moment:

“Would I had died instead of you…”

It is the longing for substitution. Let the father take the punishment so the son can live.

But David cannot do it.

If David dies, the kingdom collapses. If Absalom lives, rebellion continues. There is no path where justice is upheld, and the guilty one is spared.

So Absalom dies for his own rebellion, and David can only weep and wish.

That’s the ache at the heart of the story: We are left wanting a mercy strong enough to satisfy justice. And a justice clean enough to make mercy possible.

Easter Is Where Mercy and Justice Finally Meet

This is why Easter matters.

Because Easter is not simply a message of comfort. It is the announcement that the moral tension we all live with—how to be merciful without abandoning justice, and how to be just without crushing mercy—has been resolved in Jesus.

At the cross, mercy and justice are not split across two figures. They meet in one person.

God does not ignore rebellion. Justice is not softened. Sin is not minimized.

But instead of justice falling on the guilty alone, the King Himself absorbs it.

David said, “Would I die instead of you?”God said, “I will.”

And He did.

Jesus is the innocent Son who hangs on a tree—not for His own rebellion, but for ours.

Absalom suffers for his own treason.Jesus suffers for ours.

Joab’s sword preserves a temporary kingdom.The cross establishes an eternal one.

The cross shows us the miracle: God’s mercy and God’s justice united forever.

And because Jesus lives, the final word is not rebellion, shame, or death.

It is restoration.

The wish David could not fulfill—

“Would I had died instead of you”—

is answered in the empty tomb. He did.

And because He did, rebels can come home, justice can stand, and mercy can reign forever.