And it came to pass after forty years, that Absalom said unto the king, I pray thee, let me go and pay my vow, which I have vowed unto the LORD, in Hebron. For thy servant vowed a vow while I abode at Geshur in Syria, saying, If the LORD shall bring me again indeed to Jerusalem, then will I serve the LORD. (2 Samuel 15:7-8)

The vow that Absalom vowed was that he would replace David as king of Israel. He had spent 40 years preparing for the day when he would take over and his conspiracy would be played out. It says in 2 Samuel 15:6 that “Absalom stole the hearts of the men of Israel.” Basically, what Absalom did was deceive the people into believing that he cared about them more than David did, that he was the best man to be their king.

In order to avoid physical combat, David fled Jerusalem and left Absalom in charge of the nation.. “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” (2 Samuel 15:30).

During his ministry, Jesus went up mount Olivet, also known as the mount of Olives, to teach his disciples. The mount of Olives afforded a spectacular view of the desert of Judea to the east and Jerusalem to the west. After his resurrection, Jesus’ disciples met with him on the mount called Olivet and asked him, “Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel?” (Acts 1:6). The earthly kingdom that David established never came to fruition as was expected. Although Solomon, David’s successor, enjoyed prosperity and peace, there was never a time after David’s reign when Israel was not threatened by foreign domination.

Just before his ascension, Jesus said, “It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power” (Act 1:7). It is expected that one day Jesus will return to earth and establish the kingdom that David was not able to. Even though David was returned to power, his influence over the people was destroyed when Absalom stole their hearts and became their temporary king (2 Samuel 15:6, 37).