Mystery Bible Passages – HolyWord.com

The Mission When I heard about the mission I was nervous at first, but now I was anxious to get started. We were dressed in dark clothes, faces painted black. There was a small crescent moon out. It would be difficult to find our way but that was the idea. If we could barely see, then no one would see us. We each had a map with distances and locations clearly marked in case the fog rolled in, but for now, the torches of the distant city were visible. The commander reviewed the hand signals, we double-checked our supplies; a knife and rope, a hook and some wood. We didn't need any food as our mission had to be completed before dawn. We were off, heading up the hill to the left of the city. It was slightly higher than the city, offering us a view helping us get the real distances in our minds. On the way, we caught up with a scout giving us direction to the decent point and we followed the ridge. At this point, it was too far out to be noticed by any city guards. This was a new development. Our intelligence had reported the guards would not change for another 4 hours. Something had changed. It set us back an hour to learn how the new guard operated. We covered a lot of ground quickly until it was time to descend into the valley. There were guards patrolling up and down the valley and not too many places to hide so this would be a tricky part. We started counting how many paces each guard would take and at what parts they would turn so that we could time the crossing. Just as we thought we had the timing figured out, there was a change in the guard. For the crossing, it was quieter if we did it separately. There was a large rock and a clump of trees about halfway through the valley. One of us would proceed to that halfway point, wait for the guard to pass and then continue. The commander went first while I watched. The Valley Crossing The Commander waited for the guard to pass and then slowly crept down to the valley's edge. On the next pass, he stealthfully moved to the clump of trees and hid behind the large rock while I moved down to the valley edge. When the guard passed I could feel my heart pounding, holding my breath, and feeling paralyzed to move. I didn't move but could see the commander continue across the valley, safely to the other side, near the wall of the city. I had done this 100 times in training, but when faced with the real thing, and real danger, I froze. Fortunately, in training, they also covered this scenario. Re-group my thoughts, remember the mission, and those who were counting on me. That helped. On the guard's next pass I counted his paces until he was out of range to hear my footsteps and I briskly made it to the clump of trees. On the next pass, I made it across the valley to the wall. No one was there. I knew the Commander would keep going no matter what. The only instructions I had were to follow the wall on the north side. The rest was secret, even to me, so that if I was captured I could not give the plans away. The Wall The wall was huge! It was well fortified. An armed legion would have difficulty scaling it in broad daylight without any resistance. The North gate was closed. It was doubly gated. No person or tool would get through those bars. There was no way in here. I continued along the north wall until I reached the northeast corner and heard a whisper to approach. It was another one of our scouts who must have been sent earlier. He whispered, "Along the east there, do you see that well down there?" I nodded yes. He then pointed to the Commander crawling toward it. "Get to the well, hurry!" The East Gate I could see there were guards by a large Eastern Gate, one stationed above the gate, another in the valley circling the whole city, and another one patrolling the east wall. The one patrolling the east wall was about to reach the southern end and turn around so I had seconds to react before he was facing this direction. Instead of crawling I decided to crouch and run as quickly as possible down the hill. Before he turned, I dropped into a crawl. I had made up some lost time on the Commander. He was now peering over a rock wall in the side of the hill, gauging the next move. When I caught up, through hand signals, he gave me the update of the guards' movements. Our target was not the East Gate, but the well. There was one guard patrolling back and forth from the well to the East Gate, occasionally stopping to talk to the other guards, hard to predict his movement, but the Commander thought it was a good opportunity to get closer at a normal crawl. We covered half the distance when the guard turned and came back to the well and sat down next to a campfire. He was not facing us, but we were within hearing range so we employed a silent crawl. Even if someone were staring directly at us, it would be difficult to detect any movement, that is how slow it was. The trade-off was time and we didn't have an unlimited amount of time. The Well When we made it to within 10 feet of the well we stopped. The guard was now cooking some food. We had no choice but to wait. As the smell of the food spread, a couple of other guards came over and sat down to eat. It ended up being a couple of hours before they finished and scattered back to their posts. The remaining guard on duty picked up some trash and headed back to the gate. Before I could think, the Commander was already in motion, at the well, and jumped in. I approached, slid over the edge and was surprised to see a staircase leading down into a spring. Going down a flight of stone stairs, we came to a spring used to supply the city. We could not see as much as hearing the water. The stairs ended into water. The Commander looked up. We could no longer see the top of the well or the glint of the outside fire so it was safe to take a look. I knew what he meant by his hand signal to the eyes. The Spring I brought out a small waterproof pouch that had charred cloth and a small lighting kit. I lit a small torch from my kit so we could get a quick glimpse around. There was one tunnel running eastward under the city. We brought a few extra torches in our packs but there were also some torches along the tunnel. We moved in further and lit one. It was very bright compared to the pitch darkness, giving me a fear of being seen. We moved in further just to be sure. The Commander motioned for me to stay here while he moved ahead. We were both waists high in the water. When he made it as far as he could see, he motioned for me to extinguish the light and follow. At this point there was only one tunnel, so we could feel our way ahead. I kept an ember and stored it in my pack in case we needed to quickly re-light. We followed the tunnel to a junction. There were only two choices so we decided to split up and scout both to cover more ground. I went left. The Tunnels The water in the left tunnel grew more shallow until there was a dry path with a channel along the side carrying the water. Once on the dry path, I could move faster. I would stop every so often to listen but only heard complete silence. so I brought out the ember and lit a small torch to increase my speed. A few minutes later I encountered a dead-end and had to turn back. When I returned to the juncture, the Commander was not there yet. There was only one option in his direction so I followed it. I was starting to get very cold and wondered if the tunnels would go on endlessly when I reached a small room, more like a cave. There was a lit torch and in the ceiling a vertical shaft. I looked up and could see the Commander trying to ascend, intentionally wedged between the cracks. At one point he took out a piece of wood and tied his rope to it. Then he wedged the rope between two cracks and put all his weight on it. The rope dropped down to me so I could follow. When I reached him, I gave him my rope and he continued up the next ascent. We both knew the clock was ticking and if we didn't finish by dawn we would be sitting ducks in the light, so he gave me some brief orders. "Our mission from here is to get the East gate opened. One of us will have to light a signal in the south of the city to let the King know to send in his men. The other must find a way to open the gate. Good Luck." I nodded and he ascended. When he reached the top he lowered the rope for me to follow but by the time I reached the top he was gone. I was now in a larger tunnel by the sound of the echo. I could also see a little as the light from the moon was shining some into the tunnel. It was not much, but compared to absolute darkness it was a welcome change.I carefully exited the tunnel and looked around. By the position of the moon, we had about an hour left to complete the mission. It took me a few minutes to get my bearings. I looked at the stars for direction and recognized two large buildings to identify my position in the middle of the city. I had to head south-east. I encountered more guards on patrol so I had to stop., wait for them to pass, but I had no time to wait and see if they were coming back, I moved along as stealthfully as I could but with purpose. Another guard. This time, on the east wall, but he was not moving. I had to swing around him south. Then another, the same thing. I ended up at the south wall, near the signal point, but there was no way up the wall here to light a signal, so I followed the wall north to the east gate. There were fewer guards in this section and I was soon able to get a good sight of the gate. The East Gate It was a single gate. One guard near the top. No one else was around. I also noticed that to get to the upper wall, one had to walk up the stairs to the side of the gate. That one guard was blocking us from opening the gate and getting to the signal point. I moved closer while trying to think of a plan. The commander almost scared me to death when he scurried over to my side, no longer in black clothes and his face washed clean. "I will distract the guard. Take this." as he handed me a flask of oil. "Open the gate just enough for someone to crawl under, no more". He ran toward the gate laughing like a drunk while I moved in the darkness toward the gatehouse. Inside there were several levers. It took me a moment to figure out which was the locking mechanism and which was the lifting mechanism. I realized what the oil was for and poured it over the gears, hopefully reducing the friction and noise. I could hear the commander talking to the guard, pretending to be a drunk. "Don't do that!" the guard yelled as the commander walked on the edge of the wall and hopped over some crenellations in the wall. "Stop or you will get yourself killed!" The Commander wondered further way from the gate and continued to anger the guard. "If you don't stop I will have to arrest you!" When they were far enough away, I started to lift the gate. It wasn't totally silent so I cringed as it moved. I could hear the guard still yelling at the commander, not noticing, so I kept it moving and stopped when I judged a person could roll under. It was just in time as the Commander ran off from the guard, like a drink, toward the south. I left the gate room. I saw the guard raise his arm in anger at the drunk and start to walk back toward the gate. He took a glance at the gate, it still looked closed, and he went back to his post. Several minutes later I could see 3 torches lit on the south wall. That was the signal for the King to send his men. Quicker than expected I saw some comrades in black, roll under the gate and into the darkness of the city, then a few more. The Commander came back along the wall pretending to be the drunk again. As the guard approached him, more comrades came through the gate until a handful became an endless sea of men. The great walled city was captured, victory! Conclusion King David's plan had worked. Jerusalem, the unpenetrable walled city was his. Joab, for his leadership in the mission up the water shaft, was rewarded by being appointed David's commander in chief. Note: This article is based upon real Biblical Events events but from the perspective of a fictional character from one possible viewpoint. It helps me to relate to Scripture when I can imagine myself there. I hope it helps you! 1 Chronicles Chapter 11. Jerusalem Captured. 4 Then David and all Israel went to Jerusalem, that is, Jebus, where the inhabitants of the land were called Jebusites. 5 The inhabitants of Jebus said to David, “You shall not enter here.” David nevertheless captured the fortress of Zion, which is the City of David. 6 David said, “Whoever strikes the Jebusites first shall be made chief and captain.” Joab, the son of Zeruiah, was the first to attack; and so he became chief. 7 David took up residence in the fortress, which therefore was called the City of David. 8 He built up the city on all sides, from the Millo all the way around, while Joab restored the rest of the city. 9 David became ever more powerful, for the LORD of hosts was with him. 2 Samuel 5:6-127 David nevertheless captured the fortress of Zion, which is the City of David. 8 On that day David said: “All who wish to strike at the Jebusites must attack through the water shaft." Read More in This CategoryGift Ideas: Wristbands - Visit Our Online StoreTo Read a Quiet Passage - Click Here Scripture texts in this work are taken from the New American Bible, revised edition © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Washington, D.C. and are used by permission of the copyright owner. All Rights Reserved. No part of the New American Bible may be reproduced in any form without permission in writing from the copyright owner.