David never expected to find himself in the wilderness again after becoming king but in yesterday's text he had to make the difficult but necessary decision to vacate the city of Jerusalem due to the threat of siege and invasion by his son Absalom and Absalom's followers. In order to protect the city and its citizens, he had to get away from it. In order to protect his own family members, along with his bodyguards and top officials and all of their family members, he had to get them away from Jerusalem. Yesterday we found him being the last person to leave Jerusalem. I believe it broke his heart to leave but it was for everyone's good at the time, including his own.
"The whole countryside wept aloud as the people passed by. The king also crossed the Kidron Valley, and all the people moved on toward the wilderness." (2 Samuel 15:23) David was informed by a messenger earlier in Chapter 15 that Absalom had been declared king at Hebron and that the hearts of the people were with Absalom. Verse 23 makes it clear that the hearts of all the people are not with Absalom. People are standing by the roadside weeping as they witness the king traveling from Jerusalem to the wilderness. When David wrote Psalm 3 in regard to the treachery of Absalom and his followers, he said, "Lord, how many are my foes! How many rise up against me!" It's true that many have rejected him in favor of Absalom, but I believe the majority of the nation's citizens are still behind David. His supporters are not outnumbered by any means, in my opinion. But even if no one had stood with David, he would still have the Lord---a fact with which he encouraged himself in Psalm 3 by saying things like, "But You, Lord, are a shield around me," and, "I call out to the Lord, and He answers me," and, "The Lord sustains me," and, "From the Lord comes deliverance."
Zadok and Abiathar, who are co-high priests at this time, along with the Levites, are in support of David. They come out of the city, bringing the Ark of the Covenant along with them. "Zadok was there too, and all the Levites who were with him were carrying the ark of the covenant of God. They set down the ark of God, and Abiathar offered sacrifices until all the people had finished leaving the city. Then the king said to Zadok, 'Take the ark of God back into the city. If I find favor in the Lord's eyes, He will bring me back and let me see it and His dwelling place again. But if He says, 'I am not pleased with you,' then I am ready; let Him do to me whatever seems good to Him.'" (2 Samuel 15:24-26) The priests likely feel that the ark will have a protective effect on David and the company with him. But no doubt David remembers a story of the days of the prophet Samuel, when the ark was taken into battle by Phineas and Hophni, the sons of the late high priest Eli, and the ark was captured by the Philistines. He feels the ark is safer in its place in Jerusalem than in the wilderness with him. He trusts the Lord to do what is best for him and for Israel but he doesn't know whether what the Lord considers best is deposing him as king or restoring him as king. If the Lord wants to restore him to the throne, he will see the ark again when he is able to return to Jerusalem. If the Lord does not want to restore him to the throne, he may never enter the gates of Jerusalem again. He is willing to accept and be obedient to the Lord's decision in this matter.
David has another reason for sending the ark and its keepers back inside the city. He needs some loyal informants there. "The king also said to Zadok the priest, 'Do you understand? Go back to the city with my blessing. Take your son Ahimaaz with you, and also Abiathar's son Jonathan. You and Abiathar return with your two sons. I will wait at the fords in the wilderness until word comes from you to inform me.' So Zadok and Abiathar took the ark of God back to Jerusalem and stayed there." (2 Samuel 15:27-29)
"But David continued up the Mount of Olives, weeping as he went; his head was covered and he was barefoot. All the people with him covered their heads too and were weeping as they went up. Now David had been told, 'Ahithophel is among the conspirators with Absalom. So David prayed, 'Lord, turn Ahithophel's counsel to foolishness.'" (2 Samuel 15:30-31) Ahithophel was previously one of David's top advisors which indicates his advice was usually very wise and to be taken seriously. Since David knows Ahithophel's counsel can usually be trusted, he prays for the Lord to make it untrustworthy. He asks the Lord to cause Ahithophel to give Absalom unwise advice. The Lord will answer that prayer later in the book.
"When David arrived at the summit, where people used to worship God, Hushai the Arkite was there to meet him, his robe torn and dust on his head. David said to him, 'If you go with me, you will be a burden to me. But if you return to the city and say to Absalom, 'Your Majesty, I will be your servant; I was your father's servant in the past, but now I will be your servant,' then you can help me by frustrating Ahithophel's advice. Won't the priests Zadok and Abiathar be there with you? Tell them anything you hear in the king's palace. Their two sons, Ahimaaz son of Zadok and Jonathan son of Abiathar, are there with him. Send them to me with anything you hear.' So Hushai, David's confidant, arrived at Jerusalem as Absalom was entering the city." (2 Samuel 15:32-37) Ahithophel is a formidable enemy due to his shrewd perception and cunning advice. We must assume his advice was previously godly, or at least that it was not contrary to the laws of God, or else David would not have employed him as a counselor. Now he fears Ahithophel will guide Absalom in a way that makes him victorious in his bid to become king over all Israel. David prays to the Lord for help, worships the Lord at the summit of the mountain, then asks a favor of one of his trusted confidants. Hushai is to go back to Jerusalem and pretend to be a supporter of Absalom so he can spy on him. He is to relate to the priests and their sons any plans he hears Absalom and Ahithophel hatching.
There's nothing wrong with David asking for some human assistance in addition to asking for the Lord's assistance. This doesn't mean he doesn't trust the Lord; it means he's using the common sense the Lord gave him. It would be foolish to reject the help of any supporters who are in a position to sneak information to him from the palace. The Lord blessed David with some trustworthy friends---friends who are willing and able to assist David during these dark days---and David is wise to allow these godly men to help him. Trustworthy friends are a blessing from the Lord! The Lord does not intend for us to go through life without the help of those who can encourage us in the faith. He places good people in our lives for a reason and He places us in other people's lives for a reason: so we can lift each other up when we are down. Solomon, King David's son, said this very thing in Ecclesiastes 4:9-10 when he observed, "Two are better than one, because they have a better return for their labor: If either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up." The Lord wants us to lift up others when they are down and He wants others to lift us up when we are down. David understands this and wisely chooses to let his friends help him when he needs help. When he has opportunity to do so, he helps his friends when they need it too.
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