Mike Bickle discusses God's provision during David's flight from Jerusalem amidst Absalom's rebellion, emphasizing the duality of adversity and blessings in David's life. Despite facing divine discipline and familial betrayal, David remains hopeful, believing in God's ability to provide and protect. The sermon highlights the importance of trusting God in difficult times, as seen through David's reliance on prayer and the support he received from unexpected allies. Bickle draws parallels between David's experiences and the challenges faced by the church today, encouraging believers to seek God's guidance and provision in their own trials.

We're in session 27, and then we have one more session, 28, and that's the whole course. And we're only going to make it to 2 Samuel 20, because that's the actual end of the story in 2 Samuel. The chapters after that are like an appendix to the, you know, to the story of David. But the actual storyline ends in chapter 20. But let's give a little review of the last session. What had happened is that some, chapter 15, verse 13, some messengers came running to David with this urgency. They've come from Hebron, where Absalom, his son, his rebellious son, declared himself to be king. And this messenger breaks in and says, David, David, the hearts of all of Israel, they're joining the conspiracy with Absalom, your rebellious son. Verse 14, so David said to all the servants in his household, his family members and servants, let's arise. We've got to get out of here right now, because if we're still in the city, I know my son Absalom, he'll destroy the city to get to us. So David, thinking of the welfare of others, as well as himself, he goes, let's escape now and then we'll see what the Lord will do with us later. Paragraph B, the story of David leaving Jerusalem and then returning to Jerusalem, chapter 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, it's what we're looking at tonight and a little bit last week. It's the most dangerous season in David's life, I mean his 40 year reign. Now the blessing, I mean the thing that I want you to note, as I said last session, is that there was adversity, trouble, but there were also blessings. Though even though David is under a season of divine discipline, he is to believe God for blessings. And we can apply this in our life in whatever season we are, but as the body of Christ is approaching that time frame, and the generation when the Lord returns, these lessons from the conflict of the life of David, the man after God's own heart, the man who God said he responds the way I want my people to respond. Though these lessons apply throughout all of church history, they will have a very significant application in that final generation that the Lord returns. We see in these chapters, these 8 chapters, still review from last week, the fulfillment of God's discipline as pronounced by the prophet Nathan. Remember when the Lord spoke to him and he said in chapter 12, verse 10, the sword will never depart from your house. Now David has 25 more years before he dies and meets the Lord. And it's not like the sword was in his house every minute every day, but just, David never knew when it would emerge, conflict and violence coming out of his family is what that means. The sword not departing from your house meant violence from within your house, even one to another. That was the particular application. Now you might look at this and say, you mean if I stumbled at immorality like David did, I'm going to have the sword touch my life for the rest of my life? Well no, that's not the application of this. Because remember, in Luke chapter 12, verse 48, Jesus said to the one that's given much, much is required. And there's not a very many people in redemptive history that have been given the assignment and the stewardship that David was given. I mean here he is, the anointed king over the covenant nation to be the family line that would give birth to the Messiah that would bring the Millennial Kingdom. I mean David had a unique role and he had a unique requirement from the Lord. Because obedience for him was so important, I mean from the Lord to him, David, obedience is very important. I have to keep you on a very short leash in this because of who you are and the purposes I've entrusted to you and through you. Paragraph D, now we know that the Lord loves the people. I mean whom the Lord loves, the people the Lord loves, He corrects them because He delights in them. The enemy wants to tell us that God's correction is rejection like it happens many times in earthly family situations but it's not true. God says I'm only correcting you because I delight in you because I believe in your future. I want you to bring you into greater unity with my heart. Paragraph D, again I just want to say this again, there's a combination of sorrow and blessing and David kept that within his vision. I mean occasionally he lost hold of that for a moment but as a rule he laid hold of that reality he was believing God for goodness even in a season where the Lord was correcting him because of his sin against the Lord. So we want to continue to believe the Lord in difficult times whether it's a season of discipline or demonic attack, either one sometimes those overlap together. We want to believe God for breakthrough in many areas of our life. I like the quote from C.S. Lewis, he said, God whispers to us in our pleasures, He speaks to us in our conscience and He shouts to us in His pain. Pain is His megaphone to arouse a deaf world and when there's pain whether the pain is caused by men's sin or the rage of darkness of Satan attacking or the discipline of the Lord, when pain touches a person's life they begin to look up to God for an answer and they begin to search out and dialogue with Him for a greater breakthrough, a greater clarity, a greater provision and that's what C.S. Lewis was talking about. Paragraph E, now in Absalom's Rebellion the various responses, I mean this eight chapters in the life of David that we have here from chapter 13 to 20, 2 Samuel, eight chapters, there are various responses. There's a number, I mean David has the most number of good responses but he had a few bad ones as well. But other men and women had good responses as well. So this is an eight chapter kind of picture of the good responses and the bad responses in a time of intense conflict. There are many complex dynamics that will happen in the generation that the Lord returns. Jesus said in that hour many will be offended. We're coming to an hour where there will be more offended people, highly sensitive, easily offended people in the nations of the earth at many levels than any time in history. There will be many people, more people betraying one another than any other time in history. And so when we look at this passage of Scripture we can learn from the various responses, the bad ones to stay away from and the good ones to embrace. Because history is headed for an hour of far more betrayal and offense than what David had and David had a lot of it in his court and in his political and family dynamics in that season of his life. Let's jump into the story here. Paragraph two, we're starting in chapter 17, Ahithophel, now that's a name you want to learn. You don't need to learn all these names that show up in 2 Samuel as priorities, but Ahithophel is one you want to know. Say Ahithophel. Okay, I think you got it. He was David's number one counselor, royal counselor, the most respected man of wisdom in the nation. Very close friends to David. And all the nation trusted his insight. Well, a great tragedy happened. Ahithophel, as we learned in the last session, joined the conspiracy. He joined David's son Absalom against David. This was a devastating piece of information to David in chapter 15. Well Ahithophel, this wise, very insightful man said to Absalom, here's the plan. He goes, tonight, let me get 12,000 of the soldiers of the army and I'll attack David tonight. Now, David was still in the area of Jerusalem. David was just, because Hebron, Ahithophel and Absalom, they've come up from Hebron quickly and they're there and David's still in the area of Jerusalem. And Ahithophel says, tonight, 12,000 soldiers to David and his family members and a few of his servants. He goes, and what we'll do, he's weary right now, he's weak, means he didn't have a lot of reinforcements. We can make him afraid. All the people that were with him, his bodyguard, they'll flee and with 12,000 soldiers, even his bodyguard will flee. And he said, we'll have really a reduction of violence. We'll only kill him. He's the only one that needs to die and the revolution will be over. The conspiracy will be settled. Verse 4, the saying, the plan, pleased Absalom and all the elders of Israel that are sitting around the court, the king's, I mean Absalom's court. So the idea is, let's get overwhelming odds, overwhelming numbers and destroy David and overpower his bodyguard. But we've got to do it tonight, is what Ahithophel is saying. Because if there's any delay at all, I mean every hour matters, David will leave the city and he's crafty out there and I mean he ran from Saul for 6 or 7 years with 3,000 soldiers chasing him all through the wilderness and Saul could never get him. He goes, we've got to get him tonight when he's weary, when he doesn't have any reinforcements, when he has no mobilized army. Now the thing that is the most unsettling at all is verse 4, the saying, pleased Absalom and the elders. I mean consider what's being said here. The man after God's own heart, the anointed of the Lord, the plan, let's kill him. Your father Absalom, the most anointed leader in Israel's history, let's kill him. And Absalom is great, like Absalom. Do you understand what you just said? The elders of Israel, oh let's get him. Wait, we're not talking about a king of, just among kings, we're talking about the anointed of the Lord, David. And it shows the cold heartedness of where their conscience was at this time. Top of page 2. So Absalom asked Hushai, the second most well-known counselor. Now remember Hushai, he went to David back in chapter 15, we looked at it last week, and he said, hey David, I'm with you. What can I do to help you? Because David was praying on the Mount of Olives, and the Mount of Olives is only a couple hundred yards from where David lives, or where David lived in the city of David in Jerusalem. And David prays, oh God, I pray this crisis of Ahithophel joining my son, that's bad. Ahithophel's too smart. Please turn the counsel of Ahithophel into foolishness. Make something go bad. And David's worshiping the Lord on the Mount of Olives in chapter 15, and Hushai comes right to him while he's worshiping. Hi David, he goes, I'm with you. And David says to Hushai, he goes, rather than traveling with me out to the wilderness, why don't you go back into the king's court with Absalom and be on my side and be a spy. Because if there's any man that's going to spoil the counsel of Ahithophel, it's you. Because you'll hear from the Lord as well. So Hushai, he went back in. I mean, it's pretty dangerous, because if they find out you're playing a double game, I mean, they'll kill you right on the spot. You don't take lightly playing a double agent in a king's court in a conspiracy, in an hour of a conspiracy against the previous king. So Absalom, he says to Hushai, verse 5, because he's there, he came and joined Absalom, if you remember from chapter 15 and 16, he says, Hushai, let us hear what you say. I mean, Ahithophel has brilliant insight and we like it, do you got anything different? Well, verse 7, Hushai says exactly the opposite of Ahithophel. Very clever though, he says, undoubtedly, very carefully, humbly, well the advice of the most wise man in Israel is this time not as good as it usually is. Because Ahithophel is there, he's probably not very happy with this counter plan, because none of them know that Hushai is being a double agent here. Because what Hushai is really going to describe, he goes, Ahithophel has underestimated how easy it is going, how easy it's going to be to go get David. So what Hushai is really going to do here, as we're reading this, he's going to give Absalom a plan that gives David time, Hushai is buying time for David. Because David, if he was attacked that night with 12,000 men, he would have got killed from a natural point of view. But Hushai, he wants to create a delay so David can get out of town. He says, verse 8, Absalom, you know your father, and you know his mighty men, his bodyguards around him, they're mighty, they're valiant soldiers. I mean the 30 mighty men of David, they're there. Of course it's, you know, David had 600 in his bodyguard that were committed to him, 600 men that had just recently joined him, but 600 to 12,000, I mean the odds are greatly in Absalom's favor. He goes, your father, and his men, they're mighty, and you know, don't underestimate your father, he's a man of war. He's not going to camp out with the people where you can surround him like Ahithophel said and just kill him. He goes, are you kidding? He goes, your father, he's already hidden somewhere, this is the craftiest warrior in Israel's history. He goes, he escaped Saul for years, no one's ever captured David, no one ever did, ever did anyone ever capture David. He goes, Absalom, are you sure? You've heard the war stories about your dad, do you think he's just sitting there around a campfire? The mighty man David? Absalom's going, well, yeah, I mean, and Hushai's really building it up because the truth is David was weary, and he didn't have much support around him at that time. He says, verse 9, surely, he's hidden by now, and what's going to happen? You're going to go after him, Absalom, and David's going to set an ambush on your guys, it's going to backfire, then the rumor's going to be spread, there's a slaughter, the Lord's with David, there's a big slaughter. He goes, then your whole army's going to scatter because none of them are very courageous, not in front of David. Everyone knows, verse 10, all of Israel knows the war stories, everybody knows the exploits of your father, he's mighty, and so are those 30 mighty men that are still with him. So Absalom, hmm, he thought about it for a while, paragraph C, he says, here's what I would do, this is Hushai still talking, rather than 12,000 right now, let's gather all of Israel, let's get 100,000, not 12, I mean, let's get all of Israel, the entire army, let's overwhelm him. Now again, Hushai's just buying time for David, he's just, you know, just kind of spinning the yarn, so to speak. He goes, get everyone, all the army from Dan to Beersheba. And Dan is to Beersheba, Dan's up in the far north and Beersheba's in the south, and that's a phrase in Israel, from the north to the south is what that means. Get the whole nation involved, all the army, like the multitude of the sand by the sea. And one more thing, Absalom, instead of Ahithophel leading 12,000 men, like he suggested, why don't you lead 100,000, or whatever the number would be. You lead it. Boy, Absalom, well, you could be the next David-like war hero. Boy, he's flattering, Absalom. I could go into battle. Well, the problem is, Absalom, you've never had a job, and you've never been to war. So, yeah, you imagine you could lead the army in the battle and to get the glory of a victory for the nation. Boy, this is really getting to Absalom. He's buying it. Yeah, 100,000 soldiers, again, that's probably the number's bigger than that. I'm the war hero, verse 14, Absalom said, Hushai's advice is better. Ahithophel goes, oh, because Ahithophel knew if David got any delay, Absalom would be overcome eventually. Ahithophel said, no, this is bad. But look at verse 14, for the Lord purposed to defeat the good plan of Ahithophel. Ahithophel's plan was good in the fact it was a good war plan David would have lost in the natural. But the Lord purposed to defeat the good council, or that good military plan of Ahithophel to the intent that he would bring disaster on Absalom. Because Hushai's plan involved a much delay, I mean, to get the whole army from the north to the south, that would take weeks or months to get all that going. Paragraph D, God was working sovereignly, behind the scenes, overriding the effective plans of Ahithophel. Now remember in chapter 15, verse 31, I've already said it, but David prayed the prayer, Lord, cause the plans of Ahithophel to be seen as foolishness. It says make them foolish, in other words, make them appear as foolish to Absalom and the council. And the idea is that we can pray that God would cause confusion and to thwart or disrupt the council of the enemies against the purposes of God. That's an important biblical prayer. And I believe that's a prayer that the end time church is going to employ. I believe that this situation, again, it's valid all through church history, but I believe that even the enemies, the powerful leaders that emerge in the earth, the Lord knows how to turn their council into foolishness and to defeat it. Proverbs 21, this is what Solomon wrote, David's son. And David's son Solomon, the next generation, writes this, I mean, my guess is he might have been thinking about this situation. I'm sure he heard the stories many times. Solomon was still a younger man at this time. The king's heart is in the hand of the Lord. The Lord can turn the heart even of the evil king. He can turn the heart and make an evil king take hold of a plan that will ruin him and his evil designs and his empire. Job chapter 5, God frustrates the devices of the crafty men. And it's not only the kings of the earth, crafty people, even that would set their heart to bring harm to the purpose of God in your life. The Lord says, I'll frustrate the crafty plans of man for the benefit of my people. That's a truth we can rejoice in even as the darkness gets darker in the nations. We know that God can override the plans of man. Paragraph E, verse 15, well, Hushai, after Absalom the king, the new king, the rebel king, after he agrees and says, Hushai, I'm doing it your way, Hushai goes over a couple doors down or wherever to Zadok and Abathar, the two priests that are still there. David told those two priests, stay there in Absalom's court. I mean, you're the priest of Israel. Just stay there. The two main guys, don't leave. And they're going, David, we're with you. No, stay there. Because remember, those are the two guys that brought the Ark of the Covenant to David in the last session. And, you know, hey, we've got the Ark, and David says, bring the Ark back and stay there and lead the singers and the musicians and the tabernacle. Keep it going. Keep all those things going. Stay in your place. Verse 15, Hushai said to these two priests, the two top priests, Zadok and Abathar, he says, this is what Ahithophel advised Absalom thus and so, and this is what I told Absalom thus and so. And so he gives the whole story to these two priests. Verse 16, now Hushai says, now, go tell, go get the word to David. So these two priests, both of their sons, each of them had a son, they were going to bring the secret information to David, this kind of insider information from Absalom's court. Verse 16, he goes, go tell David quickly. But tell David, because David's only a couple hundred yards away, maybe a little bit further, but not very far. Tell him he needs to leave tonight, tonight he needs to leave, because what if Absalom kind of an hour later changes his mind and comes after David with 12,000 men, he goes, he's agreed with my plan, but he might not stick with it through the night. You better leave tonight. Don't spend the night in the area. But speedily, go that 20 miles to the Jordan River and cross over, it's a 20 mile walk and it's probably late at night by now. So David, his wives, his children, his household, they walk all night long, 20 miles through the night to the Jordan River because they believe what Hushai says and they escape. And David, it says, verse 22, and all the people they crossed over the Jordan River, that's a 20 mile walk at night, late at night. But by morning light, every one of David's company had crossed over the Jordan River. I mean that's a little bit dangerous to cross a river with children at night. Top of page 3, verse 23, well when Ahithophel saw that Absalom didn't take his advice, he went home very calculated, thought it through, look at the end of verse 23, he set his house in order and he hung himself. He killed himself. Now some commentators say, well he was just so humiliated because somebody said he was wrong. I don't think that's exactly what happened. I believe he knew because he's a smart man. He said, if David buys time and gets out of town, he'll mobilize an army. And Absalom doesn't know how to match wits in war strategy with David. It's either get David tonight when he's weary and alone and tired, late at night, or it's not going to work. And that means the plan's going to go backfire. Absalom's going to lose this. Ahithophel will be tried for treason, publicly humiliated and executed publicly. He goes, I'm sure this is what's going to happen. Well, Ahithophel was right. David did win. And Absalom's army was defeated just like he could foresee just because he had that spirit of wisdom on him. Paragraph G, verse 24. Well, David had gone the 20 miles to the east to the Jordan River. And after he got to the Jordan River, verse 24, he went up to Mahanaim. Mahanaim is a city about 25 miles up. So David went 20 miles to the east to the Jordan River. Then when he crossed the river, you know, that night, that very long fateful night, everybody made it through the river. Nobody was hurt in the river because, again, it's a very dangerous crossing in that kind of context. They probably rested in the morning undoubtedly. And then they marched 25 miles straight north to Mahanaim. And that became David's new capital city up there, his base of operations. I'd rather say it that way. But at the same time that David's marching up 25 miles, remember he's got his children, he's got his wives with him, he's got his servants with him. So they're not moving really fast. Absalom has got an army with him. And Absalom, that next day, I'm assuming it's the next day, he goes the 20 miles to the Jordan River. He goes, I know where David's going. But somehow, I mean, they understood, I guess there's ways that that would become clear and obvious after David's whole group walked in that way. Absalom, he goes that 20 miles. He crosses the Jordan River. And now he's got to go up north to Mahanaim to fight David up north. And that's what he's going to do in just a moment we're going to look at. Verse 25, a new move, a surprising move. Absalom made Amasa captain. Now Joab was the captain of the army of Israel, but of course Joab's with David. So they think Joab is invalid now as the commander in chief of the army, or the top general maybe is the better way to say it. Now what's interesting is Amasa and Joab and Absalom are all first cousins. I mean there's eight first cousins, brothers or first cousins, all in this drama as we looked at in the session last week. Eight of them. And they're killing each other. Three of the cousins were killed by one of the cousins. First cousins. I mean think about the sisters and the wives of David and how they interacted when one of their sons killed one of the other sons. I mean just the intensity of David's home. Paragraph H, verse 27. Now it happened as David had arrived at Mahanaim, again that's 25 miles up to the north. So they've gone 20 miles to the Jordan River the first night, then 20 miles, then 5 miles the next day straight north. And they land in this new, it's a prominent city in the northern part of Israel. These three wealthy men, they find David in the city. And what an incredible blessing. They come to him and they say, we want to provide for you. We realize you don't have any food or housing or supplies. And David says, I don't. They say, well the Lord has stirred us up. I'm adding that part in. Because I'm sure it was the Lord. And Shobai was one. Makar is the other. And Berzillai, that's the one I want you to really lay hold of, I mean get a hold of your mind. Berzillai, he shows up again. These very, very noble men. These three men. Verse 28, and you read in your Bible, because I edited it down and shortened it for the handout. But I mean the list goes on and on. I mean they brought all kinds of food and drink. And I mean they supplied the whole of David's, not just his family, but the small and growing army. Now Berzillai was a very wealthy man. And these others were people of great means as well. And they said, we're going to help you. Now here's the message. That even in a time of difficulty, against all odds. I mean all the momentum at this minute was with Absalom. I mean the whole nation thought Absalom was definitely, I mean he was the one to decide with in the natural. All the momentum in the nation was with Absalom. But God, even when things are against all odds. But then to complicate it, David was under the divine discipline of the Lord. Because God told him, it's from your own household. It was this very circumstance that the prophet Nathan told him about. From your own household adversity will rise up and violence. But God is still giving supernatural provision to David. And again, this is a picture of when the greatest trouble in history emerges in the nations. Their will against all odds. David didn't have any idea where the provision would come from. And yet he is fully supplied in terms of food and covering and wine and drink, etc. Verse 29, for David and the people who were with him. They brought this for David and the people who were with him to eat. For they, these three men said, it entered the minds of these three men. Hey, David's people are going to be weary and hungry. God knows how to stir up people to supply the needs of other people that are in God's purpose in a time of need. And there will be occasions in your life where you'll be the one making provision for another. And another time you'll be the one receiving provision. But this is how God runs His kingdom. He whispers in the hearts. I mean, I think it's very, what a glorious story. Verse 29, that they said, these three men, David's people are hungry. Let's do something about it. Let's use our enormous wealth and let's, I mean, it was a lot. I mean, David had 600 soldiers with him. I mean, that's a lot of meals every day. Plus David's entire household. Roman number 3, chapter 18. The drama goes on now. God's been helping David all the way through chapter 17. But in chapter 18, God gives David victory over the rebel army. God removes the rebel leader, Absalom. We know this is the chapter he dies. Paragraph B. So David is in Mahanaim. He's up in that city up in the north. That's his base of operations. What David does in chapter 18, verse 1 and 2, he mobilizes his army. It says that he puts captains over thousands. That means more leaders. Now men are coming from all around. Because there's a pro-David people all through the land of Israel. There's anti-David people, but there's pro-David people. And so they're hearing the report and they're gathering to him at Mahanaim. I'm just sure there were great reunions. This leader and that general would come and David would say, Oh, I didn't know if you'd come. Of course I'd come, David. I'm loyal to the end. And David has an army big enough now where he has to have captains over thousands. We don't know how many thousands, but some thousands. And so David's army is getting mobilized. Because this was the very thing Ahithophel knew would happen if David had free time. I mean if David delayed and had time, he knew that the men would rally to him and he would mobilize them. Of course Ahithophel has now hung himself. So he doesn't see it, but this is the very thing that he feared. Paragraph C. So as all the captains of thousands and captains of hundreds, you know it's quite a group there. And this Brazili, this wealthy man, they're supplying the money for him. To feed him. I mean this is just extravagant and beyond measure. I mean this is supernatural provision plus, plus, plus. Because David doesn't have access to the government finances. David doesn't, he's not using the government budget now to supply the army because he didn't have access to it. So God has raised up a way where there was no way. Verse 5, chapter 18, very surprising. The king, David, commanded the three main leaders and all the captains, deal gently with Absalom. And they're going, excuse me? This rebel son who wants to kill you, he's planning? To execute you when he catches you? And he's killing all of us if he gets a chance? Deal gently with him. Like what are you talking about? He's our arch enemy David. He is as much an enemy against you as Saul was in your youth. But all the people heard David give the orders. Now he uses this term, which is a very, which is a David term. It's a David concept. He goes, deal gently. Now the reason David wanted to deal gently, because he says, he's still my son. He's a rebel, but he is my beloved son. But number two, God had dealt gently with David when he committed adultery and murder. God dealt gently with him. God dealt gently with him in the days of Saul. Psalm 18. David says, here he is, you know, right when he becomes king at Hebron, he's 30 years old. Saul has just died. He wrote Psalm 18 right after Saul died. He goes, your gentleness has made me great. In other words, because you didn't wipe me out, God, because David came up short a couple big times, even in those early days in his 20s. He goes, God, you were gentle with me. And because you were gentle with me, you gave me a new beginning, and a new beginning, and a new beginning, so I could go on to respond to you in a way that you would esteem as great. You allowed the greatness of your purpose to happen because you didn't wipe me out. You were gentle with me. I don't have it in the notes, but Psalm 130 is one of my favorite David passages. Psalm 130, verse 4 and 5, David said, if you would mark iniquities, if you would measure iniquities, God, who would stand? But with you, there's forgiveness, so we get a new day tomorrow, and a new day the next day, and we can go on to fear the Lord. Psalm 130. And that's that David's, he's going, be gentle. God has always been gentle with me. Now, I mean, David's under a severe discipline, but it's nothing like what David deserved. Now, this story of David's gentleness towards his son, it has some spiritual meaning to us as well, although there's a dark side to David's inordinate relationship with his son. I mean, there's a negative side to David's emotion in this, but there's a very positive dimension as well. Beloved, there's no one like the greater David who deals gently with his enemies, with those who do not deserve his goodness. He deals gently. And when God deals gently with us, it gives us, when we see it, confidence to receive more of it, confidence to receive more. David had more confidence to receive God's gentleness instead of throwing himself into some kind of legalistic mindset. He goes, God, I'll receive your gentleness. But David not only had confidence to receive it, he had gratitude to give it to others. Paragraph D, well, the decisive battle comes. In the woods of Ephraim, that's right near the city where David is, up north. In a wooded area, David goes right to the wooded area. He chooses the place to battle. And one of the reasons I believe he chose the wooded area, because Absalom's army was far larger. I mean, it could have been, you know, 100,000 plus. Who knows? It was the army of Israel from the north to the south. But if David divided his army up into three groups, put them in the woods, it causes Absalom's army to be all scattered and non-focused. They're not consolidated on one point of attack. And so, David, this is a brilliant military strategy. He goes into the woods. And Absalom's going, man, I'm not really good at this woods warfare. I mean, it's very rough terrain. Very difficult to navigate through. That's why David chose it. Well, the battle occurred that day. And it says there was a great slaughter. 20,000 of Absalom's soldiers were killed that day. 20,000. Here's the point. Not only is God defeating the rebel army, but this is a huge national crisis. 20,000 sons and husbands in one day, taken out of the life of a nation. This is a huge national crisis that Absalom has caused by the conspiracy in raising up against him. Turn to page 4. So Absalom, in the midst of the battle, I mean, he's in this wooded, thick brush in the woods of Ephraim. Absalom's not a warrior. I mean, he probably saw a few war movies. That's as close as he got to it. I mean, he heard war stories at the dinner table. But he's never been to war. Not that it's ever recorded in the Bible. So Absalom, verse 9, he's riding on a mule in the thick woods of Ephraim. Probably a little bit lost, because he's by himself, actually. So he is lost. Kind of trying to figure out what's going on. And look at verse 9. The mule goes under a thick bough of an oak tree. A terebinth tree is an oak tree. And, of course, Absalom was famous for his beautiful and long hair. Back in chapter 14, he was known in the nation for his remarkable hair. Well, his hair gets caught in the oak tree. I mean, it's heavy brush. And the mule continues to go on. So he's hanging, suspended in midair, because his hair is so tangled in, because he probably went in at a pace fast enough where he got tangled in the donkey, kept moving. None of his soldiers are around him to free him. He can't get free, because he had a significant entanglement there. Verse 14. Joab, one of Joab's men came and said, Joab, you're not going to believe it. A couple hundred yards over there, I was just there. I couldn't believe it. Absalom is hanging with his hair stuck in a tree. He can't get free. Just as where? He goes, here, I'll show you. Just a couple hundred yards away. Again, I'm making up the couple hundred yards away thing. So they, verse 14. Joab goes to his cousin, his first cousin Absalom. And they grew up together. And he thrust three spears through his heart. Now David said, don't hurt Absalom. Joab says, Joab's Joab. He's done this a number of times. I'm sure when Absalom's up there, and Joab comes, he goes, this is bad. Because Absalom's soldiers were not anywhere in sight. Then, verse 17, they took his body and they desecrated it. They threw it in a pit and they stoned him. I mean, with huge stones. And the idea is, they're obeying the law of Moses. They're stoning a cursed, rebellious son. Instead of bringing him back to Israel for a royal funeral that he would have imagined for himself, he is stoned outside of the land of Israel. He's out of the official territory of Israel, stoned as a cursed son with a desecrated body. So they came back, paragraph F, and they told David. And David was deeply moved. And he grieved and he wept. He's crying, oh my son Absalom, my son Absalom. And he has grief that's beyond measure. And we're going to find out in the next chapter that that grief, I mean, there's a legitimate expression of the grief, but it became an inordinate grief. It got a hold of him in a way that was beyond what it should have. We'll look at that in the next chapter. But here, I just want to end real quickly with Psalm 3. We're out of time here, so I'll just kind of mention it to you fast and you can read it on your own. Psalm 3 was written when David was fleeing from Absalom. That's what it says. And I believe Psalm 3 is one of the great prayers when you're in trouble, when the enemy is coming after you. Not just physical violence, but any kind of an attack of the enemy, whether directly a spiritual attack or the enemy stirring up people to attack you. Psalm 3 is a classic. I mean, it's a King David Psalm in crisis. And I believe Psalm 3 will be an important prayer that will be used by the church in the end times as the difficulty mounts, as the Antichrist, the far worse enemy than Saul and evil men rise up. Psalm 3 will become a very important Psalm. David says, verse 1, paragraph B, Lord, how many, how they have increased. Lord, how they have increased to trouble me. The number of people, he's talking about Absalom's forces. Many are rising up against me. They were rising up against David and the conspiracy throughout the entire nation. Now, you don't need a whole national conspiracy to use this verse. The many may be a small many, but it will really affect you. And here's what they said. They passed a rumor around, verse 2. Here's what they said about David. They said, David is sinned, and therefore the favor of God has lifted from his life. That was the rumor spreading around the nation that fueled up the conspiracy. Many will say, there's no help. God's not with David anymore like in the days of old. God's favor is lifted. God's angry. God's punishing. David is on his own. It was a total lie, but that's what the enemy, that's what the rumor. I mean, remember, the rumors are from the people of God in the land of Israel. I mean, the land of Israel, they are the people of God. Paragraph C, verse 3. But you, Lord, you're my shield. You're my source of protection. You're my glory. One day he says to the Lord, you're my glory. Here he is again, Absalom's pursuing him. He's saying, Lord, you're my source of the one I pour my affection and adoration. I'm not offended at you. Lord, this is intense. My own family's against me. The nation's against me. But Lord, you've done nothing but treat me with gentleness. You're my glory. I'm not angry at you. I'm not questioning you. You've done good to me. You've given me far less than what I would have deserved. You're the one who lifts up my head. This is the phrase you want to use with God. What David meant by you lift my head up, you restore me back to the dignity of my office as king. You restore all that was taken away by the enemy. You lift my head. In other words, you give me the position, the dignity, the friends, the relationships. Restore what was lost. That's what that phrase means. And I cried to the Lord. Now, this is an important one. Verse 5. I lay down and slept. I awoke. The Lord sustained me. This is talking, this has a reference not only but to that fateful night. Remember, when Hushai came and sent the word, you better leave tonight. David traveled through the night. And then the next day. And he says, but Lord, you sustained me. I could sleep in peace because I know that you are thwarting the purposes of the enemy against me. And you're sustaining me like you did on that fateful night. And that's why I can lie down and rest. Verse 6. I'll not be afraid of ten thousands. Well, Absalom came with tens of thousands that surrounded David's army. Up in the woods of Ephraim. We just read it. They're all around me. Verse 7. Rise, O God. David used prayer as his weapon. He said, God, I ask you to release the activity of the Holy Spirit, the provision of God. Break in and cause my enemy to stumble. Look what he says. I'll end with this. David says this in the past tense. Before it's even happened, he declares it because of the level of confidence. He goes, you've already struck my enemies. It's as good as done. I know the battles aren't all done. But I know who is my source and my shield. I know who my source of protection is. So I know it's as good as done. And I know I will be restored in Jerusalem. And that's the confidence that David has even in a time of difficulty. Even more intense a time of difficulty and divine discipline. Amen. Let me pray over you. Father, we just ask you. God, that you would encourage us. You would instruct us. Through this picture you've given us. Of how David reacted and responded and what he saw about you. Lord, I ask that you would give us courage in difficulty to have the confidence that David had. And we thank you in Jesus' name. Amen.