2 Samuel 15:10
But Absalom sent spies throughout all the tribes of Israel, saying, As soon as ye hear the sound of the trumpet, then ye shall say, Absalom reigneth in Hebron. But Absalom sent spies throughout all the tribes of Israel, saying, As soon as ye hear the sound of the trumpet, then ye shall say, Absalom reigneth in Hebron.
The verse marks the outbreak of a revolt that was already fully prepared, coming only after Absalom had first turned the minds of the people to himself. He did this by an attractive manner and feigned kindness that won their affection and confidence. Having thus prepared the ground, he then secretly sent picked men throughout all the tribes to arrange the uprising, instructing them that as soon as the sound of the trumpet was heard they were to proclaim that Absalom reigns in Hebron.
He hid his treason under a cloak of religious devotion, claiming that while in exile in Geshur in Syria he had vowed to serve the Lord if brought back to Jerusalem, and that the vow must now be paid in Hebron. David, in fond trust, blessed him and dismissed him to go. He went to Hebron with two hundred invited men from Jerusalem who went in their simplicity and knew nothing of the plot, their loyalty to the son drawing them unwittingly into rebellion against the father.
On arriving in Hebron he summoned Ahithophel, David's famed counselor whose wisdom was trusted as an oracle, and Ahithophel's support made Absalom's cause appear certain of success and drew many influential men from all parts of the land to him. Then, as the trumpet of revolt sounded, his spies and followers spread through the country the tidings that Absalom had been made king, and many of the people gathered to him in rebellion against David. Ambition had led him into intrigue and crime, so that to gain the kingdom he would even have taken his father's life. The rebellion fulfilled the predicted consequences of David's sin, bringing David distress, flight, and humiliation, while leading Absalom himself to pursue his father and ending in his own defeat and death.