II Samuel 17:24 Then David came to Mahanaim. And Absalom passed over Jordan, he and all the men of Israel with him.
It is amazing how lonely one can feel even in crowded places. For instance, if you go to the metropolis of New York City, there are people everywhere, yet so many of them are trapped in their own little world, lonely and facing their problems alone. Sometimes loneliness is more a frame of mind than it is a matter of location.
In Genesis 32, we read the story of Jacob who had been on his own his entire life. He was a trickster, schemer, and conniver. He did not see God nor his need of God, and now in Genesis 32 his back is against the wall as he is about to be confronted by his brother Esau whom he had deceived and cheated.
Genesis 32:2 says, “And when Jacob saw them [the angels of God who met him], he said, This is God’s host: and he called the name of that place Mahanaim.” The word “mahanaim” means “double camp” or “two camps.” On that occasion Jacob realized that his was not the only camp. Even though he had not always been aware of it, there was another camp, the camp of God, and God graciously sent His angels to minister to undeserving Jacob.
Centuries later, there was another man who was being threatened by his own family. That was King David. He had lost his favor, his kingdom, and his son Absalom who was against him. As he retreated away from the capitol there were those who had vengeance in their hearts for past wrongs or perceived wrongs that David had done. We see the treachery, cursing, and vengeance of people who came out to take advantage of David’s weakness as he retreated.
David was like a hunted animal. It was almost like it had been at the beginning of his life when he fled Saul, but now he was fleeing his own son, Absalom.
In II Samuel 17, we find a parallel to Jacob’s story where Jacob found the double camp, the angels of God who ministered to him. Verse 24 says, “Then David came to Mahanaim. And Absalom passed over Jordan, he and all the men of Israel with him.”
Absalom was hot on David’s heels, but centuries after Jacob had found Mahanaim, David came to this same place. I wonder if the significance of that place occurred to David on that occasion as he was on the run and was much stressed and distressed, lonely and deserted. I wonder if he thought of the parallel between his own story and that of his forefather, Jacob, from many centuries before.
Verse 27 says, “And it came to pass, when David was come to Mahanaim, that Shobi…and Machir…and Barzillai…brought beds, and basins, and earthen vessels, and wheat, and barley, and flour… and honey, and butter, and sheep…for David, and for the people who were with him, to eat: for they said, The people is hungry, and weary, and thirsty, in the wilderness.”
Here was an occasion where these men were not straight from heaven, not angels in that sense, but were messengers of God. They were sent from God, and, like Jacob, I suppose that David realized that he was not alone.
Can I tell you something today? You are not alone. Sometimes our loneliness is not something that, humanly speaking, we deserve. On other occasions, our loneliness, trouble, and stress are the result of our own doing. In some sense David’s troubles were his own doing because of his sin with Bathsheba. But regardless of why you face loneliness, you are not alone. There is an amazing parallel between the stories of Jacob and Esau and David and Absalom. In both cases, God ministered to the one who was lonely and running for his life.
Friend, acknowledge God in your life, whether you are on the run or things are prosperous, whether you are the king of the world or a king deposed. Do not ignore the presence of God in your life and do not forget that regardless of who you are and where you are, you are not alone. Today, there is a double camp. There is a world that you can see and there is the world that you cannot.