23 Now when Ahithophel saw that his advice had not been [u]followed, he saddled his donkey and set out and went to his home, to his city, and [v]set his house in order, and hanged himself; so he died and was buried in his father’s grave.
24 Then David came to Mahanaim. And Absalom crossed the Jordan, he and all the men of Israel with him. 25 Absalom put Amasa [w]in command of the army in place of Joab. Now Amasa was the son of a man whose name was [x]Ithra the Israelite, who [y]had relations with Abigail the daughter of Nahash, sister of Zeruiah, Joab’s mother. 26 And Israel and Absalom camped in the land of Gilead.
27 Now when David had come to Mahanaim, Shobi the son of Nahash from Rabbah of the sons of Ammon, Machir the son of Ammiel from Lo-debar, and Barzillai the Gileadite from Rogelim, 28 brought beds, basins, pottery, wheat, barley, flour, roasted grain, beans, lentils, roasted seeds, 29 honey, curds, sheep, and cheese of the herd, for David and the people who were with him, to eat. For they said, “The people are hungry and exhausted and thirsty in the wilderness.”
On Absalom’s side, things already seem to be on shaky ground. His top advisor is so distraught that he ends things. Perhaps he knew that Absalom’s inner ranks had been infiltrated, but whatever the case, he saw no hope in continuing on with Absalom.
Then we have Amasa, who was the illegitimate son of Joab’s aunt, who is put in charge of Absalom’s army. While God is fond of using the underdog, and the unimpressive, without Him, the odds are stacked against you.
On David’s side, even a foreigner (Ammonite) comes to bring food and beds for those who followed the king in his exile. When things seem to be looking bad, turn to God, and look for His hand. You will find Him in unexpected ways and unexpected places.
But you will only find God’s salvation if you are looking for Him in the first place. It won’t happen by accident, you must be intentional to seek His face and draw near to Him (“and He will draw near to you…”).