Spying in the Bible 18 - c.1000 BC

David Keeps Keeping At It

Later, after fleeing, David sets up his own espionage campaign against his son to reclaim his throne. When he left Jerusalem, some priests had gone with him and taken the Ark of the Covenant. David told them to take it back and basically claim that their calling as priests took precedence over politics and that they were not going to be involved in who sat on the throne. In reality, that was just a cover story for their return because David tasked them to be informants and pass messages on to him (in 2 Samuel 15:25,27-29).

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....” 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.

When David and his loyal party had successfully made it out of Jerusalem and up a nearby mountain, Hushai, one of David’s advisors, met up with them. David told him to go back and pretend to be loyal to Absalom, while really being a mole in the usurpers government. He gave Hushai the names of the priests to contact to get the intelligence messages out. Hushai accepted the mission and infiltrated Absalom’s government as a mole (2 Samuel 15:32-37, 16:16-19).

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 them. Send them to me with anything you hear.” So Hushai, David’s confidant, arrived at Jerusalem as Absalom was entering the city....

Then Hushai the Arkite, David’s confidant, went to Absalom and said to him, “Long live the king! Long live the king!”

Absalom said to Hushai, “So this is the love you show your friend? If he’s your friend, why didn’t you go with him?”

Hushai said to Absalom, “No, the one chosen by the Lord, by these people, and by all the men of Israel—his I will be, and I will remain with him. Furthermore, whom should I serve? Should I not serve the son? Just as I served your father, so I will serve you.”

Once Absalom arrived in Jerusalem, he asked his most trusted advisor Ahithophel what he should do. He followed the advice he received and slept with all of David’s concubines to show that he had taken his father’s place and that he had no respect for his father. Then, Absalom asked Ahithophel how to kill David, and he responded by advising to do it quickly and get it over with. Hushai, David’s mole, convinced Absalom to follow a different plan and amass an army to go after David, since David was so well protected. However, Hushai really recommended this because it would take longer and give his spy network enough time to get the word to David and have him retreat to safety. Absalom chose Hushai’s advice and when Ahithophel saw his advice was not taken, he went home and hanged himself (2 Samuel 17:1-2,7-8,11-12,14).

Ahithophel said to Absalom, “I would choose twelve thousand men and set out tonight in pursuit of David. I would attack him while he is weary and weak. I would strike him with terror, and then all the people with him will flee....”

Hushai replied to Absalom, “The advice Ahithophel has given is not good this time. You know your father and his men; they are fighters, and as fierce as a wild bear robbed of her cubs. Besides, your father is an experienced fighter; he will not spend the night with the troops....

“So I advise you: Let all Israel, from Dan to Beersheba—as numerous as the sand on the seashore—be gathered to you, with you yourself leading them into battle. Then we will attack him wherever he may be found, and we will fall on him as dew settles on the ground. Neither he nor any of his men will be left alive....”

Absalom and all the men of Israel said, “The advice of Hushai the Arkite is better than that of Ahithophel.” For the Lord had determined to frustrate the good advice of Ahithophel in order to bring disaster on Absalom.