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widely ramified, appears from the circumstance, that, immediately on its outbreak, he
could send "spies throughout all the tribes," to ascertain and influence the feelings of
the people generally, and to bid his adherents, on a preconcerted signal, gather around
him.
More than that, it seems likely that Ahithophel, one of David's privy councilors, and
deemed the ablest of his advisers, had, from the first, been in the secret, and, if so,
probably directed the conspiracy. This would explain the strange coincidence of
Ahithophel's absence from Jerusalem at the time of the outbreak, and his presence at
his native Giloh, not far from Hebron (Joshua 15:51). Nor is it likely that a man like
Ahithophel would so readily have obeyed the summons of Absalom if he had been
until then a stranger to his plans, and had not had good reason to expect success. And,
indeed, if his advice had been followed, the result would have answered his
anticipations.
The place chosen for the rising was Hebron, both on account of the facilities it offered
for retreat in case of failure, and as the city where formerly (in the case of David) a
new royalty had been instituted; perhaps also as the birthplace of Absalom, and, as has
been suggested, because the transference of the royal residence to Jerusalem may have
left dissatisfaction in Hebron. Absalom obtained the king's permission to go thither, on
pretense of paying a vow made at Geshur. It was a clever device for entrapping two
hundred influential persons from Jerusalem to invite them to accompany him, on
pretext of taking part in the sacrificial feast. Arrived at Hebron, the mask was thrown
off, and the conspiracy rapidly assumed most formidable proportions. Tidings of what
had passed speedily reached Jerusalem. It was a wise measure on the part of the king to
resolve on immediate flight from Jerusalem, not only to avoid being shut up in the city,
and to prevent a massacre in its streets, but to give his adherents the opportunity of
gathering around him. Indeed, in the hour of danger, the king seemed, for a brief space,
his old self again. We can quite understand how, in David's peculiar state of mind,
trials in which he recognized the dealings of God would rouse him to energy, while the
even tenor of affairs left him listless. No weakness now - outward or inward! Prudence,
determination, and courage in action; but, above all, a constant acknowledgment of
God, self-humiliation, and a continuous reference of all to Him, marked his every step.
In regard to this, we may here notice the progress of David's spiritual experience,
marking how every act in this drama finds expression in the Book of Psalms. As
Abraham perpetuated his progress through the land by rearing an altar unto Jehovah in
every place where he sojourned, so David has chronicled every phase in his inner and
outer life by a Psalm - a waymark and an altar for lone pilgrims in all ages. First, we
turn to Psalms 41 and 45 -the former in which the designation Jehovah, the latter in
which that of Elohim, prevails,^14 - which become more full of meaning if (with
Professor Delitzsch) we infer from them, that during the four years Absalom's plot was
ripening, the king was partially incapacitated by some illness. These two Psalms, then,
(^)