2 Samuel 15:1

1 As time went on, Absalom took to riding in a horse-drawn chariot, with fifty men running in front of him.

2 Samuel 15:1 Meaning and Commentary

2 Samuel 15:1

And it came to pass after this
After the reconciliation of David and Absalom, and the latter was admitted to court again:

that Absalom prepared him chariots and horses;
to make himself look grand and respectable among the people; perhaps he got these from his grandfather at Geshur in Syria:

and fifty men to run before him;
which added to his pomp and magnificence; and such great personages in later time have had; Nero the Roman emperor never went on a journey with less than a thousand calashes or chariots, and a great number of men that ran before him {c}: and this was tacitly setting himself up for king, at least preparing for it, as Adonijah afterwards did in the same way and manner, ( 1 Kings 1:5 ) .

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FOOTNOTES:

F3 Suetonius in Vit. Neron. c. 30. Vid. Senecae, Ep. 87. & 123.

2 Samuel 15:1 In-Context

1 As time went on, Absalom took to riding in a horse-drawn chariot, with fifty men running in front of him.

2 Early each morning he would take up his post beside the road at the city gate. When anyone showed up with a case to bring to the king for a decision, Absalom would call him over and say, "Where do you hail from?" And the answer would come, "Your servant is from one of the tribes of Israel."

3 Then Absalom would say, "Look, you've got a strong case; but the king isn't going to listen to you."

4 Then he'd say, "Why doesn't someone make me a judge for this country? Anybody with a case could bring it to me and I'd settle things fair and square."

5 Whenever someone would treat him with special honor, he'd shrug it off and treat him like an equal, making him feel important.