Do your ears ever itch? Paul predicted in the last days that people would have itching ears and would listen to preachers who told them what they wanted to hear. Whose words do we trust? Does God speak to you through someone? What is God saying?
In the ancient world, as in our day, political leaders had advisors. If their counselors were wise, and the kings heeded their counsel, good things happened. But what if the leader listens to the wrong people? Bad things happen. David had many advisors. Two of them gave counsel to Absalom who had usurped his father’s throne.
Ahithophel aligned himself with Absalom. His advice was to declare all-out war on David, sleeping with his concubines and pursuing him while he was weak and weary. Hushai entered Absalom’s presence under false pretenses. He was on David’s side but pretended to be loyal to Absalom. He thwarted Ahithophel’s counsel, telling him to wait to attack David until he had all the armies of Judah with him. When Absalom followed Hushai’s advice, David’s life was spared, and his kingdom was restored.
We are not kings, but we all need friends who will tell us the truth. Sooner or later, we need wise counsel. Listen for the voice of the Lord through those who counsel you. Do their words agree with God’s word, or do they tell us what they think we want to hear?
