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The meat of the word, part 12

One of the least understood types and shadows of the Old Testament is about Absalom. Absalom was a son of King David. When he overthrew David, he became the type of Caiaphas who overthrew Jesus Christ, the son of David.

I first discovered this, not because it was preached from the pulpits during my early years in the church, but by reading Peter’s words in Acts 1:16-20,

¹⁶ “Brethren, the Scripture had to be fulfilled, which the Holy Spirit foretold by the mouth of David concerning Judas, who became a guide to those who arrested Jesus. ¹⁷ For he was counted among us and received his share in this ministry.” ¹⁹ (Now this man acquired a field with the price of his wickedness, and falling headlong, he burst open in the middle and all his intestines gushed out… ²⁰ For it is written in the book of Psalms [Psalm 69:25], “Let his homestead be made desolate, and let no one dwell in it”; and [Psalm 109:8] “Let another man take his office.”

The two psalms that Peter quoted were references to Ahithophel, David’s friend who betrayed him. Peter understood that Ahithophel was a prophetic type of Judas, who betrayed Jesus. His point, of course, was to show that someone ought to replace Judas. In doing so, Peter revealed a much bigger picture. Not only did Jesus represent David in the Old Testament story, but Judas also represented Ahithophel. By extension, too, Caiaphas represented Absalom, the leader of the conspiracy against David.

Understanding this prophetic connection is one of the most important keys to understanding the idea of antichrist. Absalom was an anti-David in his day. A thousand years later, the temple leaders were anti-Jesus. Both were antichrists, because both usurped the throne of the one that God had called and anointed (christened) to rule in His throne.

Absalom the Usurper

2 Samuel 15-18 tells us the story how Absalom the usurper became an anti-David. In brief, he disagreed with David’s policies and thus stole the hearts of the people (2 Samuel 15:6). He was soon crowned king in Hebron while David was king in Jerusalem (2 Samuel 15:10). Moreover, Absalom sent for Ahithophel, David’s counselor and friend. Ahithophel joined the conspiracy, but later hanged himself (2 Samuel 17:23).

Ahithophel’s betrayal was the cause of great heartbreak for David. He spoke of his friend many times thereafter in the Psalms, as, for example, in Psalm 55:12-14,

¹² For it is not an enemy who reproaches me, then could I bear it; nor is it one who hates me who has exalted himself against me, then I could hide myself from him. ¹³ But it is you, a man my equal, my companion and my familiar friend. ¹⁴ We who had sweet fellowship together, walked in the house of God in the throng.

This entire conspiracy of Absalom against David with the help of David’s friend Ahithophel was a major prophetic type of the New Testament story and the conflict between Jesus and the temple leaders.

David = Jesus

Absalom = Caiaphas and the chief priests

Ahithophel = Judas

Hebron, City of Friends

The Absalom conspiracy began in Hebron, which comes from the Hebrew word chebar, “association,” and chabar, “fellowship, friendship.” In other words, the conspiracy came from the City of Friends. And so Jesus prophetically called Judas “friend” in Matthew 26:49, 50 when He was betrayed with a kiss.

⁴⁹ Immediately Judas went to Jesus and said, “Hail, Rabbi!” and kissed Him. 50 And Jesus said to him, “Friend, do what you have come for.” Then they came and laid hands on Jesus and seized Him.

Again we read in Luke 22:47, 48,

⁴⁷ While He was still speaking, behold, a crowd came, and the one called Judas, one of the twelve, was preceding them; and he approached Jesus to kiss Him. ⁴⁸ But Jesus said to Him, “Judas, are you betraying the Son of Man with a kiss?”

We know also that the old name of Hebron was Kiriath-arba (Joshua 15:54). This was the hometown of Judas Iscariot, because “Iscariot” is the Greek form of Ish-Keriath, “man from Keriath,” i.e., one from Keriath-arba.

Judas Hangs Himself

Shortly after betraying Jesus, Judas hanged himself. Matthew 27:3, 4, 5 says,

³ Then when Judas, who had betrayed Him, saw that He had been condemned, he felt remorse and returned the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders, ⁴ saying, “I have sinned by betraying innocent blood.” But they said, “What is that to us? See to that yourself!” ⁵ And he threw the pieces of silver into the temple sanctuary and departed; and he went away and hanged himself.

It appears that Judas thought that by betraying Jesus, he could force Him to undertake a miraculous escape, thereby proving that He was indeed the Messiah. However, his plan backfired, because he failed to understand that it was in the divine plan for Jesus to die for the sin of the world. Again, when Judas hanged himself, he apparently botched this as well. It looks like the rope broke, and he fell some distance upon the rocks so that “all his intestines gushed out” (Acts 1:19).

When Judas told the chief priests, “I have sinned by betraying innocent blood,” he was actually testifying of the truth to them so that they might stop the execution. However, they refused to accept his testimony, and this is why Judas hanged himself.

Ahithophel had already set the pattern for Judas a thousand years earlier.

When David was overthrown, he left Jerusalem without a fight and made a sacrifice on the top [rosh, “summit, head, or skull”] of the Mount of Olives. We read in 2 Samuel 15:30-32 KJV,

³⁰ And David went up by the ascent of Mount Olivet, and wept as he went up, and had his head covered, and he went barefoot; and all the people that was with him covered every man his head, and they went up, weeping as they went up. ³¹ And one told David, saying, “Ahithophel is among the conspirators with Absalom.” And David said, “O Lord, I pray thee, turn the counsel of Ahithophel into foolishness.” ³² And it came to pass that when David was come to the top [rosh, “summit”] of the mount, where he worshiped God, behold, Hushai the Archite came to meet him with his coat rent, and earth upon his head.

Jesus was led to the same location, where He too made a sacrifice on the Mount of Olives. This fulfilled the Old Testament type with the final Sacrifice for the sin of the world. He was crucified “outside the gate” (Hebrews 13:12) and “outside the camp” (Hebrews 13:13), and by law this meant 2,000 cubits outside the city walls. That was the summit of the Mount of Olives, where also the ashes of the red heifer were also kept. Those ashes had to be kept “outside the camp” (Numbers 19:3), where they could be accessed by those who were ceremonially unclean.

So the place where David sacrificed when being overthrown by Absalom is the same place where Jesus made His final Sacrifice when His throne was usurped by the chief priests.

Ahithophel gave counsel to Absalom that he ought to pursue David to prevent his escape. However, Hushai, who secretly was working for David’s interests, counseled otherwise (2 Samuel 17:7). Absalom followed Hushai’s advice and allowed David to escape. We read in 2 Samuel 17:14,

¹⁴ Then Absalom and all the men of Israel said, “The counsel of Hushai the Archite is better than the counsel of Ahithophel.” For the Lord had ordained to thwart the good counsel of Ahithophel, so that the Lord might bring calamity on Absalom.

As a result, Ahithophel realized the truth that David would win ultimately. 2 Samuel 17:23 says,

²³ Now when Ahithophel saw that his counsel was not followed, he saddled his donkey and arose and went to his home, to his city, and set his house in order and strangled himself [by hanging]; thus he died and was buried in the grave of his father.

Ahithophel thus set the precedent for Judas a thousand years later.

David’s Return

David remained in exile for an unknown period of time. This exile is a type of Christ’s ascension to heaven where He must remain until the second coming. David’s return to the throne in Jerusalem, then, is a type of the second coming of Christ, in which He will reclaim His throne.

When David returned, there was a final battle against the army of Absalom. Absalom fled, but his long hair got tangled in the branch of a tree. (His hair was his source of pride, so prophetically speaking, Absalom’s pride was his downfall.) 2 Samuel 18:14, 15 says,

¹⁴ Then Joab said, “I will not waste time here with you.” So he took three spears in his hand and thrust them through the heart of Absalom while he was yet alive in the midst of the oak. ¹⁵ And ten young men who carried Joab’s armor gathered around and struck Absalom and killed him.

This prophesies of the second coming of Christ, wherein those Jewish leaders who usurped both the throne and the birthright of Jesus will receive judgment. Though Christian Zionists seem to think that the Jews will rule the earth under Jesus (“David”) and that they will establish a Jewish kingdom, the death of Absalom proves otherwise. Christ has no intention of promoting the usurpers to high positions in His government. It will be the Kingdom of Jesus Christ and His followers.

When we know the prophetic story of Absalom, the usurper, we can see that he is the classic type of antichrist. This conflict between Christ and antichrist is foundational to the understanding of the entire New Testament narrative. It also explains Jesus’ parable of the usurping vineyard keepers in Matthew 21, where Jesus puts words in their mouths in verse 38, “This is the heir; come, let us kill him and seize his inheritance.” This clearly shows that the religious leaders of Judaism were and are still the “antichrist” of the New Testament.

Absalom knowingly usurped the throne from David, knowing full well who his father was. In fact, it was because Absalom KNEW his father that he directed his revolt against him. Thus, in the fulfillment of this prophetic type, the chief priests also knew who Jesus was—and because of this they usurped His throne.

It was NOT a case of mistaken identity. It was a case where they recognized who He was, but they disagreed with Him and coveted His throne for themselves. They wanted a messiah who would deliver them from the bondage of Rome. What they got was a Messiah who would deliver them from the bondage of sin. This did not fit their idea of a messiah, and they knew that they would lose their jobs if the people declared Him to be the Messiah. So they crucified him, not realizing that they were fulfilling the Scriptures even in this.

The disciples understood these events perfectly. Peter quoted from the Psalms to indicate that Judas—who had assisted the chief priests—needed to be replaced.