2 Samuel 3:11-16: a reflection

In the midst of the power struggle between the houses of Saul and David, we glimpse the grief of those caught as pawns in others' schemes: Michal is taken from her husband Paltiel, who follows her weeping, powerless to keep her. Her husband went with her, weeping as he went, the account says, and followed her to Bahurim; then Abner said to him, Go, return, and he returned. Michal and Paltiel were moved about as pieces in the political maneuvering of men in power, their own grief and bonds counting for little against the schemes of others. Paltiel's weeping, and his being sent back, show the real human cost when people are treated as pawns in others' power games. This is a sobering glimpse of the sorrow of those used as pawns, and God's care for them. People treated as pawns in others' schemes suffer real grief. The powerless are often hurt by the power games of others. God sees the sorrow of those used as pawns. We do well not to treat people as pawns for our purposes.

Notice the human sorrow behind this political transaction. To the men in power maneuvering for the kingdom, Michal was a piece to be moved, a bargaining chip; and Paltiel, her husband, counted for nothing in their calculations. But the account pauses to show his grief: he followed her weeping, until he was sent back. Here is real human sorrow, the pain of those caught as pawns in the schemes of others, their bonds and feelings disregarded by those with power. This is a sobering glimpse, and it speaks to us in two ways. First, it reminds us that God sees and cares about those who are used as pawns, disregarded and hurt by the power games of others; the weeping of the powerless does not escape his notice, even when it is disregarded by those in power. And second, it warns us against treating people as pawns for our own purposes, disregarding their feelings, their bonds, their dignity, as mere pieces to be moved in service of our aims. Every person is more than a piece in our schemes; each has feelings, bonds, and dignity that matter to God. We do well to treat people as persons, not pawns, and to remember God's care for those those in power disregard. God cares for those used and hurt as pawns by those in power. Do not treat people as pawns for your own purposes. Every person has dignity that matters to God, not to be disregarded. The sorrow of the disregarded does not escape God's notice.

That is worth taking to heart, for God sees and cares about those used as pawns and hurt by the schemes of others, and we do well not to treat people as pawns for our own purposes. We can disregard the feelings, bonds, and dignity of others, treating them as mere pieces to be moved in service of our aims; but the account pauses to show Paltiel's grief, his weeping as Michal was taken, a real human sorrow. God sees such sorrow. Do not treat people as pawns for your purposes; treat them as persons with dignity, and remember God's care for those those in power disregard. Treat people as persons with dignity rather than as pawns for your own purposes, and remember God's care for those used and hurt by the schemes of others, as in the power struggle over the kingdom Michal was taken from her husband Paltiel, who followed her weeping until he was sent back, his grief and their bond counting for little against the maneuvering of men in power; for to those maneuvering for the kingdom Michal was a piece to be moved and Paltiel counted for nothing, but the account pauses to show his real human sorrow, the pain of those caught as pawns in the schemes of others, and this reminds us both that God sees and cares about those who are used, disregarded, and hurt by the power games of others, whose weeping does not escape his notice even when those in power disregard it, and warns us against treating people as pawns for our own purposes, disregarding their feelings, bonds, and dignity, since every person is more than a piece in our schemes and has dignity that matters to God, so that we do well to treat people as persons, not pawns.