When king David came to Bahurim, behold, a man of the family of Saul’s house came out, whose name was Shimei, the son of Gera. He came out and cursed as he came.
Parallel Translations
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When king David came to Bahurim, behold, a man of the family of Saul’s house came out, whose name was Shimei, the son of Gera. He came out and cursed as he came.
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And when king David came to Bahurim, behold, thence came out a man of the family of the house of Saul, whose name was Shimei, the son of Gera: he came forth, and cursed still as he came.
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And when king David came to Bahurim, behold, there came out thence a man of the family of the house of Saul, whose name was Shimei, the son of Gera; he came out, and kept on cursing as he came.
Cross-references (15)
Passages linked to 2 Samuel 16:5 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- 2 Samuel 3:16 Her husband went with her, weeping as he went, and followed her to Bahurim. Then Abner said to him, “Go! Return!” and he returned.
- Exodus 22:28 “You shall not blaspheme God, nor curse a ruler of your people.
- 1 Samuel 17:43 The Philistine said to David, “Am I a dog, that you come to me with sticks?” The Philistine cursed David by his gods.
- 1 Kings 2:8-9 “Behold, there is with you Shimei the son of Gera, the Benjamite, of Bahurim, who cursed me with a grievous curse in the day when I went to Mahanaim; but he came down to meet me at the Jordan, and I swore to him by Yahweh, saying, ‘I will not put you to death with the sword.’ Now therefore don’t hold him guiltless, for you are a wise man; and you will know what you ought to do to him, and you shall bring his gray head down to Sheol with blood.”
- 2 Samuel 17:18 But a boy saw them, and told Absalom. Then they both went away quickly, and came to the house of a man in Bahurim, who had a well in his court; and they went down there.
- 1 Kings 2:36-46 The king sent and called for Shimei, and said to him, “Build yourself a house in Jerusalem, and live there, and don’t go anywhere else. For on the day you go out and pass over the brook Kidron, know for certain that you will surely die. Your blood will be on your own head.” Shimei said to the king, “What you say is good. As my lord the king has said, so will your servant do.” Shimei lived in Jerusalem many days. At the end of three years, two of Shimei’s slaves ran away to Achish, son of Maacah, king of Gath. They told Shimei, saying, “Behold, your slaves are in Gath.” Shimei arose, saddled his donkey, and went to Gath to Achish, to seek his slaves; and Shimei went, and brought his slaves from Gath. Solomon was told that Shimei had gone from Jerusalem to Gath, and had come again. The king sent and called for Shimei, and said to him, “Didn’t I adjure you by Yahweh, and warn you, saying, ‘Know for certain, that on the day you go out, and walk anywhere else, you shall surely die?’ You said to me, ‘The saying that I have heard is good.’ Why then have you not kept the oath of Yahweh, and the commandment that I have instructed you with?” The king said moreover to Shimei, “You know in your heart all the wickedness that you did to David my father. Therefore Yahweh will return your wickedness on your own head. But king Solomon will be blessed, and David’s throne will be established before Yahweh forever.” So the king commanded Benaiah the son of Jehoiada; and he went out, and fell on him, so that he died. The kingdom was established in the hand of Solomon.
- 2 Samuel 19:16-23 Shimei the son of Gera, the Benjamite, who was of Bahurim, hurried and came down with the men of Judah to meet king David. There were a thousand men of Benjamin with him, and Ziba the servant of Saul’s house, and his fifteen sons and his twenty servants with him; and they went through the Jordan in the presence of the king. A ferry boat went to bring over the king’s household, and to do what he thought good. Shimei the son of Gera fell down before the king, when he had come over the Jordan. He said to the king, “Don’t let my lord impute iniquity to me, or remember that which your servant did perversely the day that my lord the king went out of Jerusalem, that the king should take it to his heart. For your servant knows that I have sinned. Therefore behold, I have come today as the first of all the house of Joseph to go down to meet my lord the king.” But Abishai the son of Zeruiah answered, “Shouldn’t Shimei be put to death for this, because he cursed Yahweh’s anointed?” David said, “What have I to do with you, you sons of Zeruiah, that you should be adversaries to me today? Shall any man be put to death today in Israel? For don’t I know that I am king over Israel today?” The king said to Shimei, “You will not die.” The king swore to him.
- Psalms 69:26 For they persecute him whom you have wounded. They tell of the sorrow of those whom you have hurt.
- Psalms 109:16-19 because he didn’t remember to show kindness, but persecuted the poor and needy man, the broken in heart, to kill them. Yes, he loved cursing, and it came to him. He didn’t delight in blessing, and it was far from him. He clothed himself also with cursing as with his garment. It came into his inward parts like water, like oil into his bones. Let it be to him as the clothing with which he covers himself, for the belt that is always around him.
- Psalms 109:28 They may curse, but you bless. When they arise, they will be shamed, but your servant shall rejoice.
- Proverbs 26:2 Like a fluttering sparrow, like a darting swallow, so the undeserved curse doesn’t come to rest.
- Ecclesiastes 10:20 Don’t curse the king, no, not in your thoughts; and don’t curse the rich in your bedroom: for a bird of the sky may carry your voice, and that which has wings may tell the matter.
- Isaiah 8:21 They will pass through it, very distressed and hungry. It will happen that when they are hungry, they will worry, and curse by their king and by their God. They will turn their faces upward,
- Matthew 5:11-12 “Blessed are you when people reproach you, persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven. For that is how they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
- 2 Samuel 16:14 The king, and all the people who were with him, came weary; and he refreshed himself there.
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Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain Which was a city in the tribe of Benjamin.
Which was a city in the tribe of Benjamin.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain 2Sa 16:5 And when king David came to Bahurim,…
2Sa 16:5 And when king David came to Bahurim, behold, thence came out a man of the family of the house of Saul, whose name [was] Shimei, the son of Gera: he came forth, and cursed still as he came.
Ver. 5. And when king David came to Bahurim.] Which was not far from Jerusalem. There is no small cruelty in picking out a time for mischief: that word would scarce wound at one season, that killeth at another. It is the murder of the tongue to insult upon those whom God hath humbled, and to draw blood from that back which is yet blue from the hand of the Almighty.
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He came forth and cursed still as he came.] This was blasphemy in the second table; and it justly befell David, for his causing the name of God to be blasphemed by the heathen. {2Sa 12:14}
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain Bahurim; a city in Benjamin, 2Sa 3:16; 19:16; i.e.…
Bahurim; a city in Benjamin, 2Sa 3:16; 19:16; i.e. to the territory of it, for to the city he came not till 2Sa 16:14.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Matthew Henry 1710 · Public Domain We here find how David bore Shimei's curses much…
We here find how David bore Shimei's curses much better than he had borne Ziba's flatteries. By the latter he was brought to pass a wrong judgment on another, by the former to pass a right judgment on himself. The world's smiles are more dangerous than its frowns. Observe here,
I. How insolent and furious Shimei was, and how his malice took occasion from David's present distress to be so much the more outrageous. David, in his flight, had come to Bahurim, a city of Benjamin in or near which this Shimei lived, who, being of the house of Saul (with the fall of which all his hopes of preferment fell), had an implacable enmity to David, unjustly looking upon him as the ruin of Saul and his family only because, by the divine appointment, he succeeded Saul. While David was in prosperity and power, Shimei hated him as much as he did now, but he durst not then say anything against him. God knows what is in the hearts of those that are disaffected to him and his government, but earthly princes do not. Now he came forth, and cursed David with all the bad words and wishes he could invent, Sa2 16:5. Observe,
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1. Why he took this opportunity to give vent to his malice. (1.) Because now he thought he might do it safely; yet, if David had thought proper to resent the provocation, it would have cost Shimei his life. (2.) Because now it would be most grievous to David, would add affliction to his grief, and pour vinegar into his wounds. He complains of those as most barbarous who talk to the grief of those whom God has wounded, Psa 69:26. So Shimei did, loading him with curses whom no generous eye could look upon without compassion. (3.) Because now he thought that Providence justified his reproaches, and that David's present afflictions proved him to be as bad a man as he was willing to represent him. Job's friends condemned him upon this false principle. Those that are under the rebukes of a gracious God must not think it strange if these bring upon them the reproaches of evil men. If once it be said, God hath forsaken him, presently it follows, Persecute and take him, Psa 71:11. But it is the character of a base spirit thus to trample upon those that are down, and insult over them.
2. How his malice was expressed. See, (1.) What this wretched man did: He cast stones at David (Sa2 16:6), as if his king had been a dog, or the worst of criminals, whom all Israel must stone with stones till he die. Perhaps he kept at such a distance that the stones he threw could not reach David, nor any of his attendants, yet he showed what he would have done if it had been in his power. He cast dust (Sa2 16:13), which, probably, would blow into his own eyes, like the curses he threw, which, being causeless, would return upon his own head. Thus, while his malice made him odious, the impotency of it made him ridiculous and contemptible. Those that fight against God cannot hurt him, though they hate him. If thou sinnest, what doest thou against him? Job 35:6. It was an aggravation of his wickedness that David was attended with his mighty men on his right hand and on his left, so that he was not in so forlorn a condition as he thought (persecuted but not forsaken), and that he continued to do it, and did it the more passionately, for David's bearing it patiently. (2.) What he said. With the stones he shot his arrows, even bitter words (Sa2 16:7, Sa2 16:8), in contempt of that law, Thou shalt not curse the gods, Exo 22:28. David was a man of honour and conscience, and in great reputation for every thing that was just and good; what could this foul mouth say against him? Why, truly, what was done long since to the house of Saul was the only thing which he could recollect, and with this he upbraided David because it was the thing that he himself was a loser by. See how apt we are to judge of men and their character by what they are to us, and to conclude that those are certainly evil men that have ever so justly been, or that we ever so unjustly think have been, instruments of evil to us. So partial are we to ourselves that no rule can be more fallacious than this. No man could be more innocent of the blood of the house of Saul than David was. Once and again he spared Saul's life, while Saul sought his. When Saul and his sons were slain by the Philistines, David and his men were many miles off; and, when they heard it, they lamented it. From the murder of Abner and Ish-bosheth he had sufficiently cleared himself; and yet all the blood of the house of Saul must be laid at his door. Innocency is no fence against malice and falsehood; nor are we to think it strange if we be charged with that from which we have been most careful to keep ourselves. It is well for us that men are not to be our judges, but he whose judgment is according to truth. The blood of the house of Saul is here most unjustly charged upon David, [1.] As that which gave him his character, and denominated him a bloody man and a man of Belial, Sa2 16:7. And, if a man of blood, no doubt a man of Belial, that is, a child of the devil, who is called Belial (Co2 6:15), and who was a murderer from the beginning. Bloody men are the worst of men. [2.] As that which brought the present trouble upon him: "Now that thou art dethroned, and driven out to the wilderness, the Lord has returned upon thee the blood of the house of Saul." See how forward malicious men are to press God's judgments into the service of their own passion and revenge. If any who have, as they think, wronged them, should come into trouble, the injury done to them must be made the cause of the trouble. But we must take heed lest we wrong God by making his providence thus to patronise our foolish and unjust resentments. As the wrath of man works not the righteousness of God, so the righteousness of God serves not the wrath of man. [3.] As that which would now be his utter ruin; for he endeavours to make him despair of ever recovering his throne again. Now they said, There is no help for him in God (Psa 3:2), the Lord hath delivered the kingdom into the hand of Absalom (not Mephibosheth - the house of Saul never dreamed of making him king, as Ziba suggested), and thou art taken in thy mischief, that is, "the mischief that will be thy destruction, and all because thou art a bloody man." Thus Shimei cursed.
II. See how patient and submissive David was under this abuse. The sons of Zeruiah, Abishai particularly, were forward to maintain David's honour with their swords; they resented the affront keenly, as well they might: Why should this dead dog be suffered to curse the king? Sa2 16:9. If David will but give them leave, they will put these lying cursing lips to silence, and take off his head; for his throwing stones at the king was an overt act, which abundantly proved that he compassed and imagined his death. But the king would by no means suffer it: What have I to do with you? So let him curse. Thus Christ rebuked the disciples, who, in zeal for his honour, would have commanded fire from heaven on the town that affronted him, Luk 9:55. Let us see with what considerations David quieted himself. 1. The chief thing that silenced him was that he had deserved this affliction. This is not mentioned indeed; for a man may truly repent, and yet needs not, upon all occasions, proclaim his penitent reflections. Shimei unjustly upbraided him with the blood of Saul: from that his conscience acquitted him, but, at the same time, it charged him with the blood of Uriah. "The reproach is too true" (thinks David), "though false as he means it." Note, A humble tender spirit will turn reproaches into reproofs, and so get good by them, instead of being provoked by them. 2. He observes the hand of God in it: The Lord hath said unto him, Curse David (Sa2 16:10), and again, So let him curse, for the Lord hath bidden him, Sa2 16:11. As it was Shimei's sin, it was not from God, but from the devil and his own wicked heart, nor did God's hand in it excuse or extenuate it, much less justify it, any more than it did the sin of those who put Christ to death, Act 2:23, Act 4:28. But, as it was David's affliction, it was from the Lord, one of the evils which he raised up against him. David looked above the instrument of his trouble to the supreme director, as Job, when the plunderers had stripped him, acknowledged, The Lord hath taken away. Nothing more proper to quiet a gracious soul under affliction than an eye to the hand of God in it. I opened not my mouth, because thou didst it. The scourge of the tongue is God's rod. 3. He quiets himself under the less affliction with the consideration of the greater (Sa2 16:11): My son seeks my life, much more may this Benjamite. Note, Tribulation works patience in those that are sanctified. The more we bear the better able we should be to bear still more; what tries our patience should improve it. The more we are inured to trouble the less we should be surprised at it, and not think it strange. Marvel not that enemies are injurious, when even friends are unkind; nor that friends are unkind, when even children are undutiful. 4. He comforts himself with hopes that God would, in some way or other, bring good to him out of his affliction, would balance the trouble itself, and recompense his patience under it: "The Lord will requite me good for his cursing. If God bid Shimei grieve me, it is that he himself may the more sensibly comfort me; surely he has mercy in store for me, which he is preparing me for by this trial." We may depend upon God as our pay-master, not only for our services, but for our sufferings. Let them curse, but bless thou. David, at length, is housed at Bahurim (Sa2 16:14), where he meets with refreshment, and is hidden from this strife of tongues.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible (1708–1710) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain And when King David came to Bahurim,.... The Targum…
And when King David came to Bahurim,.... The Targum is, Alemath, perhaps the same that is said to be a city of the Levites, given unto them out of the tribe of Benjamin, Ch1 6:60 for the man next described, who was of this place, was a Benjaminite, Sa2 19:16; See Gill on Sa2 3:16; David was not yet come to the city itself, but into the neighbourhood of it, the fields adjacent to it: and
behold, thence came out a man of the family of Saul; a descendant of a branch of his family, who had entertained a private grudge and secret enmity against David, to whom he imputed the fall of the family of Saul:
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whose name was Shimei, the son of Gera: which might be a name common in the tribe of Benjamin, one of Benjamin's sons being named Gera, Gen 46:21. Some say (s) he was the same with Nebat, the father of Jeroboam; but he was of the tribe of Ephraim, this of Benjamin:
he came forth, and cursed still as he came; he came out of Bahurim, of which place he was, and all the way he came continued cursing David, until he came near unto him.
(s) Hieron. Trad. Helb. in 2. Reg. fol. 79. B.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain Verse 5. David came to Bahurim] This place lay…
Verse 5. David came to Bahurim] This place lay northward of Jerusalem, in the tribe of Benjamin. It is called Almon, Jos 21:18; and Alemeth, 1Ch 6:60. Bahurim signifies youths, and Almuth youth; so the names are of the same import.
Cursed still as he came.] Used imprecations and execrations.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain 2Sa 16:5-6. When David came to Bahurim — The…
2Sa 16:5-6. When David came to Bahurim — The next village in his way to the wilderness; that is, when he came to the territory of it, for he did not reach the place itself till afterward, as is mentioned 2Sa 16:14. Thence came out a man, and cursed still as he came — Out of an inveterate hatred to David; whom he looked upon as the great enemy of the family of Saul, to which he belonged. And he cast stones, &c. — To show his contempt of David and his servants. All his mighty men were on his right hand and on his left — This is observed to show the prodigious madness of the man. He could not hurt David, who was so strongly guarded; but he might have been immediately killed himself.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain Bahurim - See 2Sa 3:16 note. It seems to…
Bahurim - See 2Sa 3:16 note. It seems to have lain off the road, on a ridge 2Sa 16:13, separated from it by a narrow ravine, so that Shimei was out of easy reach though within hearing, and within a stone’s throw 2Sa 16:6, 2Sa 16:9.
Shimei, the son of Gera - In the title to Ps. 7 he is apparently called “Cush the Benjamite.” On Gera, see Jdg 3:15 note.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain Bahurim, a fortress of Benjamin, about an hour’s walk…
Bahurim, a fortress of Benjamin, about an hour’s walk east of Bethania. (Adrichomius xxviii.) --- It signifies, "chosen youths;" and it is called Almut, or Almon, "youth," 1 Paralipomenon vi. 60, &c. Hither Phaltiel conducted Michol, chap. iii. 16. (Calmet)
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain SHIMEI CURSES DAVID. (Sa2 16:5-19)
SHIMEI CURSES DAVID. (Sa2 16:5-19)
when king David came to Bahurim--a city of Benjamin (Sa2 3:16; Sa2 19:16). It is, however, only the confines of the district that are here meant.
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Shimei, . . . a man of the family of Saul--The misfortune of his family, and the occupation by David of what they considered their rightful possessions, afforded a natural, if not a justifiable cause for this ebullition of rude insults and violence. He upbraided David as an ambitious usurper, and charged him, as one whose misdeeds had recoiled upon his own head, to surrender a throne to which he was not entitled. His language was that of a man incensed by the wrongs that he conceived had been done to his house. David was guiltless of the crime of which Shimei accused him; but his conscience reminded him of other flagrant iniquities; and he, therefore, regarded the cursing of this man as a chastisement from heaven. His answer to Abishai's proposal evinced the spirit of deep and humble resignation--the spirit of a man who watched the course of Providence, and acknowledged Shimei as the instrument of God's chastening hand. One thing is remarkable, that he acted more independently of the sons of Zeruiah in this season of great distress than he could often muster courage to do in the days of his prosperity and power.
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain SHIMEI’S CURSING, 2Sa_16:5-14.
SHIMEI’S CURSING, 2Sa_16:5-14.
5. Bahurim — See note on 2Sa_3:16.
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Of the family of the house of Saul — And therefore, doubtless, affected with the same bitter animosity towards David which was felt by Saul, and which seems to have been felt by all Saul’s distant relatives. Compare 2Sa_21:1-9.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 5–14. David cursed by Shimei
5–14. David cursed by Shimei
5. Bahurim] See note on ch. 2Sa_3:16.
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Shimei] See ch. 2Sa_19:16-23; 1Ki_2:8-9. His connexion with the clan of Saul accounts for the virulence of his hatred.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain (5) Bahurim.—See Note on 2Sa_3:16.
(5) Bahurim.—See Note on 2Sa_3:16.
Of the family of the house of Saul.—That is, “of the family,” in the larger sense of tribe. Many of the Benjamites naturally felt aggrieved when the royal house passed away from their tribe; and, although under restraint while David’s government was strong, were ever ready to show their opposition and hatred when opportunity offered, as now with Shimei, and a little later with Sheba, the son of Bichri (2Sa_20:1-2).
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain Bahurim. The exact site of this place is unknown.…
Bahurim. The exact site of this place is unknown. (see note on 2Sa_3:16) Lieut. Conder, following a Jewish tradition, identifies it with Almit, a village about four miles northeast of Jerusalem. If so it lay, not on the direct road to the fords, but on a side route. A man of the family of the house of Saul. The words do not mean that he was a near relative of Saul, but that he was a member of the mishpachah, the larger division of the tribe of Benjamin, to which the house of Saul, a much smaller subdivision of the family, belonged. (see note on 2Sa_14:7) But he was a strong partisan, and so fanatical as to care little for his life, if only he could annoy the usurper. For besides "all the people," David had with him "the mighty men," a few of whom could easily have punished him.
Vers. 5-13. (BAHURIM.)
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The reviling of Shimei.
References: (2Sa_19:16; 1Ki_2:8, 1Ki_2:9, 1Ki_2:36-46) On pursuing his flight until he reached the Benjamite village of Bahurim, (2Sa_3:6) David was encountered by another man connected with the house of Saul, who, instead of bringing flatteries and presents, flung "grievous curses" and stones; and (from a safe distance) gave vent to the long repressed rage which, in common with other partisans of the fallen dynasty, he felt on account of David"s exaltation (ver. 8). "Along the ridge he ran, throwing stones, as if for the adulterer"s punishment, or when he came to a patch of dust on the dried hillside, taking up and scattering it over the royal party below, with the elaborate curses of which only Eastern partisans are fully masters curses which David never forgot, and of which, according to Jewish tradition, every letter was significant" (Stanley). Abishai returned reviling for reviling, and wished to take instant vengeance. But David said, "Let him a one," etc.; presenting an instructive contrast to both. "He strikes the same string of nobleness as before." We have here
I AN INSTANCE OF RAILING ACCUSATION. "Out, out of the kingdom, thou man of blood," etc.! The language and conduct of Shimei were:
1. Cruel. He rails against David in the day of his calamity, and has "no pity.
2. Cowardly. Fear had kept him silent all these years; but "he that smiled on David on his throne curseth him in his flight" (Hall). Seeing that he is not pursued, he is encouraged to continue his imprecations, and becomes more furious (ver. 13).
1. Malicious; imbued with personal hatred. "The ungodly are always selfish. They judge of others, not by the laws of impartial justice, but by the standard of self-interest. David was called a usurper, a man of Belial, a murderer; and why? Because he had made himself the slave of lust, and had cruelly slain the noble Uriah? No; because he had been elevated by God to
2. the throne of Israel, and had thus marred the prospects of the ambitious Shimei" (C. Bradley).
3. Unfounded and unjust. "Every word of Shimei was a slander." His accusations of wickedness in general, and of "the blood of the house of Saul" in particular, (2Sa_4:11 2Sa_21:6) are the offspring of a wicked heart. "Shimei curses and stones at David, and barks like a live dog, though Abishai calls him a dead one. The only unjust act that ever David had done against the house of Saul he had newly done; that was, giving Mephibosheth"s land; and here a man of the house of Saul is soon upon him" (Lightfoot).
1. Misinterpretive. (Ver. 8.) Whilst recognizing the judgment of God, he makes a wrong application of it. "We may here learn how falsely and wickedly men sometimes wrest the providence of God, to justify their unjust surmises and gratify their malignant passions" (Lindsay).
2. Criminal. He is guilty of high treason and blasphemy, and might justly suffer the penalty of the Law (Exo_22:28; 2Sa_19:21; 1Ki_21:13) and if David had put him to death at the time, he would not have been condemned for injustice.
3. Provocative of wrath. Surely no man might more reasonably feel resentment than David; no man was ever more strongly incited to inflict punishment; and nothing but "a spirit of meekness" could have restrained him. It is not improbable that Psalm 109. records "the very words of Shimei, and the curses which he threw out against David, and which, as they could not but make a deep impression on his memory, he here repeats and then condemns. They are directly contrary to that temper and disposition shown by David in the other parts of the psalm; and they run all along in the singular number, whereas David speaks of his enemies in the plural" (C. Peters, "Sermons:" 1776; see. (1Sa_22:18, 19 26:13-25; Expositor, 2:325)
O God of my praise, be not silent! For a wicked mouth and a deceitful mouth have they opened against me; They have spoken against me with a lying tongue," etc. (Psa_109:1-5)
And they have requited me with evil for good, And with hatred for my love (saying): Set thou a wicked man over him, And let an adversary stand at his right hand; When he is judged, let him go forth guilty, And let his prayer become sin," etc. (Psa_109:6-19)
This will be the reward of mine adversaries from Jehovah, And of those who speak evil against my soul. But thou, O Jehovah Lord, deal with me for thy Name"s sake; Because thy loving kindness is good, deliver thou me! They curse, but thou blessest; They arise and are ashamed, and thy servant is glad, etc. (Psa_109:20-31)
II AN EXAMPLE OF PATIENCE AND FORBEARANCE. "Let him curse," etc. (vers. 10-12). The manner in which David endured it was:
1. Uncomplaining. He does not retaliate; does not even vindicate himself; but is silent (1Sa_10:26, 1Sa_10:27; Isa_53:5; Luk_23:9) "When Shimei railed on him, he held his peace, and, though he had many armed men about him, yet did he not retort aught savouring of revenge, yea, repelled with the high courage of a patient spirit the instigation of the son of Gera. He went, therefore, as one dumb and humbled to the dust; he went as one mute and not moved at all .... Consider not what is rendered by others, keep thou thy place, preserve thou the simplicity and purity of thine own heart. Answer thou not the angry man according to his anger, nor the unwise man according to his indiscretion; one fault quickly provoketh another. If thou strikest two flints together, cloth not fire break forth?" (Ambrose, "De Officiis").
2. Repressive of resentment, not only in himself, but also in others. "Answer him not". (Isa_36:21 Isa_37:3, Isa_37:4)
3. Self-accusing. Although guiltless of the crimes imputed to him, he feels himself guilty of others not less heinous. "Conscience in that hour had her own tale to tell, of the Almighty Disposer of events, who speaks to us by the reproaches of men as well as by his own blessings. Had he not merited from God, if not from men, whatever disaster could befall the murderer of Uriah? David feels within him that destitution of the Divine presence of which the absence of the ark is but an outward type" (R. Williams).
Pure from the blood of Saul in vain, He dares not to the charge reply; Uriah"s doth the charge maintain, Uriah"s cloth against him cry.
Let Shimei curse: the rod he bears For sins which mercy had forgiven; And in the wrongs of men reveres The awful righteousness of Heaven. (C. Wesley. )
4. Reverential; looking devoutly (as others did not) beyond Shimei to the All-seeing, All-holy, and Almighty One, by whom he was permitted to be an instrument of retribution, and even employed as such, although not thereby exonerated from guilt. (2Sa_19:18-20) "Abishai looked only to the stone (as it were), an instrument; but David looked higher, to the hand that was the supreme caster, and chastiser of him, as all the godly (Gen_1:20; Job_1:21) which is the ground of their patience under sufferings (Guild). His vision of the supreme Judge fills him with holy awe and lowly penitence; his conscious offences against God make him reluctant to punish offences against himself; his dependence upon mercy disposes him to show mercy (Mat_5:44 Mat_6:14, Mat_6:15; Rom_12:19-21)
1. Submissive; humbly accepting the chastisement of God; and deeming this to be his proper business now, rather than seeking to execute justice on another. (Mic_7:9) "Behold, here am I, let him do to me as seemeth good to him". (2Sa_15:26) "The ways of Providence interlace, not only in capacity, but in retribution; one thing is set over against another. Yet the payment comes, not in the manner nor at the time we might expect, it seems not in the connection we think due; but it comes, like doom. Call Absalom thankless, Shimei brutal, etc. All these things read half a riddle, unless we own that God, in whose counsels these are all as instruments in the hand of a man of war, is just. He gave us wine, let us take also the gall from his hands. If it is not due to us now, nor for this, it was for something else at some other time.
2. Palliative. "Behold, my son seeketh my life," etc. (ver. 11). He makes light of present wrongs by comparing them with other and greater. "It is the advantage of great crosses that they swallow up the less.
3. Hopeful. "It may be that Jehovah will look upon my guilt tears," etc. (ver. 12). "This consciousness of guilt also excited the assurance that the Lord would look upon his sin. When God looks upon the guilt of a humble sinner he will also, as a just and merciful God, avert the evil and change the suffering into a blessing. David founded upon this the hope that the Lord would repay him with good for the curses with which Shimei pursued him" (Keil). "Ziba"s gifts did more harm than Shimei"s curses; for those betrayed him into an act of injustice, but these proved his patience" (T. Fuller). They also had the effect of making him more humble, pure, prayerful, and filling him with new confidence and joy in God. (Psa_109:30, Psa_109:31) "A curse is like a cloud, it passes." "All things work together for good," etc.
"Lord, I adore thy righteous will; Through every instrument of ill My Father"s goodness see; Accept the complicated wrong Of Shimei"s hand and Shimei"s tongue As kind rebukes from thee. (C. Wesley. )
REMARKS.
1. The best of men have been maligned; of the Son of God himself it wassaid, "He hath a devil." Can we expect to escape insult and provocation?
2. The maledictions of the wicked can do us no harm unless we sufferourselves to imbibe their spirit. "No man is ever really hurt by any one but himself" (Chrysostom).
3. When reviled of men, instead of considering how little we have deservedtheir displeasure, we should rather consider how much we have deserved the displeasure of God.
4. We should also consider how little, in comparison with God, do weendure at their hands!
5. "Bless, and curse not". (Pro_25:21, 22 16:32)
6. Imitate "the meekness and gentleness of Christ". (2Co_10:1)
7. So what is meant for evil will turn to good. D.
HOMILIES BY G. WOOD Vers. 5-13.
Shimei"s curses.
There are peculiar bitterness and moral peril in troubles which spring from, or are mingled with, human malevolence. Such was David"s affliction at this time. Absalom"s unnatural conduct, Ahitbophel"s faithlessness, and Shimei"s cursing rendered his misfortunes much harder to bear than similar misfortunes coming from the ordinary vicissitudes of human life.
I SHIMEI"S CURSING. A striking picture here: David, in the midst of his people and servants, including his famous "Ironsides," marching along the ravine; and from a town on the heights, this fierce Benjamite rushing forth, cursing and throwing stones as he comes; and then moving along the ridge which overlooked the line of march, keeping pace with the king and his company, vomiting forth his rage in bitter taunts and reproaches, and casting down stones and dust; his fury increased by the calmness with which those below marched on, heedless of his impotent rage. It was an outburst of feelings long pent up which dared not express themselves until David seemed to have fallen from his throne beyond recovery. Shimei was a relative of Saul, and chose to regard David as the author of that king"s downfall, and of the humiliation of his house, and chargeable with all the bloodshed that had accompanied these changes. And now, in his view, the Divine retribution has at length visited David for his usurpation of the throne, and the "bloody" measures by which he had reached it; and he triumphs over the fallen monarch with bitter resentment and scorn, and unmeasured invective, unsoftened by the spectacle of humiliation and grief which presented itself to his view. In his passion, like most angry people, he is not scrupulous in adherence to the truth. David was not guilty of wantonly shedding blood to reach the throne; he had spared Saul again and again when he might have slain him; and he had punished with death one who professed to have killed him, and others who had treacherously murdered his son. Nor was it nearer the truth to call David a "man of Belial" (a worthless, wicked man). But Shimei cursed the more freely because that was the only way by which he could vent his malice: he was powerless to do anything else. Yet he showed some courage, or at least recklessness, in so freely reviling one who, though fallen, was surrounded by brave warriors, any one of whom could so easily have effectually silenced him (as Abishai desired to do), if permitted by their king. Violent anger is, however, often as regardless of prudence as of truth. Its courage is as that of a maniac.
II DAVID"S MEEK ENDURANCE OF IT. He doubtless felt it to be annoying and humiliating to be thus bespattered in the presence of his friends, and trampled on so savagely by so contemptible a foe. To be falsely charged with crimes he had carefully avoided was no small addition to his already too heavy affliction. A very natural and justifiable resentment would prompt him to permit the swift punishment that Abishai begged to be allowed to inflict. But he restrained such feelings, and meekly endured the insults heaped upon him. His words reveal the secret of his meekness
1. He recognized the infliction as from God. With the freedom which the sacred writers employ when speaking even of human wickedness as it fulfils Divine purposes, he declares that God had bidden Shimei to curse him (ver. 10), and no one must forbid him. Besides his general faith in God as universal and rightful Ruler, just and good, the memory of his own ill desert doubtless aided him, and the conviction that God was chastising him for his sins. Contrition prompted and nourished submission. He no longer saw in Shimei the cruel and vindictive slanderer, but the rod in the hand of his righteous yet merciful God. To his tormentor he would not have submitted, but to his heavenly Guide and Friend he could and would. And evermore the best remedy for impatience and resentment under afflictions and provocations is the recognition of our Father in heaven as ordering and appointing all; and the exercise towards him of confidence and love, humility and self-surrender. Thus Job discerned, behind and above Sabeans and Chaldeans, lightnings and tempest; and would have discerned behind and above Satan, if he could have known him as his accuser and the prompter and mediate cause of his calamities, the Lord; and therefore could say, "The Lord gave," etc.. (Job_1:21) Thus also One who wasgreater than Job or David could say, "The cup which my Father hath given me, shall I not drink it?". (Joh_18:11)
2. The thought of the greater trouble of his son"s conduct helped toreconcile him to the lesser trouble of Shimei"s. (Ver. 11.) What was chiefly burdening and paining his heart is shown in these words. The ravings of "this Benjamite" was a small matter in comparison.
3. The hope that God would regard him with pity soothed him. (Ver. 12.) He felt that he was in a condition fitted to awaken the Divine compassion, and hoped it would be exercised towards him. In like manner, we may yet more confidently be assured that be who chastises pities us, as a father the children he is correcting. (Psa_103:13)
4. He trusted that God would render him good in place of the evil he was suffering. (Ver. 12.) Not that he thought he deserved it, or that his sufferings gave him a claim on God for it; but, confiding in the mercy which had pardoned him, he could hope for it. Shimei might curse, but if God would bless, (Psa_109:28) all would be well. So may we be sure that all that God appoints us to endure from men or from circumstances and events, he will cause to issue in a thousandfold more of blessing, if we trust and serve him, and resign ourselves to his will (see further in homily. (2Sa_15:25, 2Sa_15:26)
In conclusion:
1. In Shimei we see an example to be carefully avoided. Let any who permit themselves outbursts of passionate anger and railing, see here what a repulsive spectacle they present to others, and how sad a spectacle to him whom they call their Master. Let all give heed to St. Paul"s injunctions in Eph_4:31, 32
2. In David"s meek endurance we see an example to be closely imitated; yea, by Christians exceeded. For we have a still better Example, corresponding to a higher Law than David knew (see 1Pe_2:23; Mat_5:44, Mat_5:45; G.W. (1Pe_3:9)
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain Shimei the son of Gera; he came forth, and…
2Sa_16:5-13
Shimei the son of Gera; he came forth, and cursed still as he came.
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The forbearance of David towards Shimei
I. The provocation David received.
1. The most irritating by which the patience of man was ever tried. The reason why God was pleased to allow this insult to be added to the other trials of David, is obvious. He wished to teach him how low his iniquities had sunk him, and to show him that the cup of the Divine indignation against him was not even yet exhausted. It tells us that the servant of God must expect to meet with insults and provocations from his fellow-sinners. We are not dwelling among angels, but among men. We are living in a fallen world, in a world that has renounced the authority of the God of peace, and thrown itself under the dominion of the prince of discord. It would be madness, then, to think of passing through it, as though it were a world of love.
2. The conduct of Shimei was cruel also, as well as irritating. The condition of David at this period appeared calculated to disarm by its misery the most inveterate of his enemies. We are ready to suppose in the hour of affliction that every heart must feel for us, and that the malice of our bitterest enemies must now for a season be changed into pity. But experience proves that the most afflicted are generally the most persecuted. Their calamities leave their adversaries nothing to hope from their favour, and little perhaps to dread from their displeasure.
3. The provocation which David received was also undeserved. It here was indeed blood which cried from the ground for vengeance on his head, but he had never injured Shimei; and as for his having been guilty of the death of Saul, and his family, no charge could be more unjust. But the ungodly are always selfish. They judge of others, not by the laws of impartial justice, but by the standard of self-interest.
II. But let us turn from the cruel and irritating conduct of this disappointed Israelite, and consider the forbearance which David manifested.
1. He received the provocation of Shimei with meek silence. He heard his accusations, and he knew them to be false; but he answered him not a word. There are indeed cases in which it becomes absolutely necessary to vindicate our characters at any risk from the calumnies of the ungodly; but these occasions do not often occur. When our enemies are much incensed against us, it will generally be found that to reply to their aspersions serves only to increase their violence, and perhaps to give them an advantage over us. Silence under provocation is safety. To govern our lips is, in most instances, to govern our hearts.
2. But there may be silence where there is no meekness. No angry word may proceed from the lips, while the deadliest revenge is cherished in the heart. It is necessary therefore that we should observe, further, that David forgave the provocation of Shimei. His friends around him were incensed to the utmost, and were eager to vindicate the honour of their insulted monarch with their swords. Would the conduct of David have been either unlawful, or sinful, if he had commanded his attendants to take immediate vengeance on Shimei? It might not have been unlawful, for the laws of Judaea would undoubtedly have condemned the traitor, and the power of carrying them into execution was vested in Davids hands; but laws were not designed by God to gratify vindictive passions. It is as sinful to seek revenge by the arm of the law as to seek it by the violence of our own arm. Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.
Conclusion.
1. A review of this history, as far as we have considered it, is calculated to leave impressed on us a conviction of the power of true religion; its power, not only to touch the fears and hopes of the soul but the mighty power which it exercises over the dispositions, the temper, the heart.
2. This history reminds us also of the dignity which a meek and forgiving spirit imparts. The Bible tells us that it is the glory of a man to pass over a transgression, and it gives us in this chapter a confirmation of the saying. Here, then, is a lesson for those who are striving to raise themselves to honour. You wish to be highly esteemed among men, and, in order to procure their respect, you imagine that no real or supposed insult must pass unnoticed, and that you must commence a struggle for superiority in rank and consequence. Is, then, the object of your wishes to be attained by such means as these? Impossible. Cease from the foolish attempt. Go and sit at the feet of David, and let him teach you that the readiest, the surest, the safest way to exalt yourselves is to lie low and be humble, to be meek and lowly in heart, to triumph over the pride and folly which have hitherto been leading you captive. (C. Bradley, M. A.)
Meekness under provocation
The fruit of the Spirit, said St. Paul, writing to the Galatians, is long-suffering. Long-suffering patience is one of the rarest of virtues, because it is so easy to be impatient. There is a story told of the great Athenian Pericles, which gives us a good lesson in patience. Hardly anything ever put Pericles out of temper. There was a man who railed at him throughout a whole day in the market-place before all the people, and this although Pericles was a magistrate. Pericles, however, took no notice, but went on hearing and dealing with the various cases brought before him until night fell. Then he set out for home, walking slowly. The man followed him all the way, uttering hard, untrue, and cruel words all the time. When Pericles arrived at his house it was quite dark, so, calling his servant, he ordered him to get a torch and light his defamer home.
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary 1892 · Public Domain 2Sa_16:5. “Bahurim.” (See note on 2Sa_3:16).
CRITICAL AND EXPOSITORY NOTES.—
2Sa_16:5. “Bahurim.” (See note on 2Sa_3:16).
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2Sa_16:6. “On his right hand,” etc. i.e., “On the right and left of the king.” (Keil).
2Sa_16:7. “Come out,” etc., or “Away, away” “Thou bloody man.” “He may possibly have attributed to David the murder of Ishbosheth and Abner.” (Keil.) “Other, less probably, think also of Saul and Jonathan, and even of Uriah.” (Erdmann.)
2Sa_16:8. “The Lord,” etc. “Shimei is so far devout and religious that he ascribes the present state of things wholly to Jehovah, but he ignores Samuel’s sentence of rejection (1 Samuel 15) and otherwise shows a bad spirit.” (Translator of Lange’s Commentary). “Taken in thy mischief,” rather “thou art in thy misfortune.”
2Sa_16:10. “What have I?” etc. Lit., “What to me and you?” i.e., what feelings and desires have we in common. It is evident that Joab also desired to put Shimei to death. “The Lord hath said,” etc. “By allowing him to do so. Since nothing happens against, or without the will of Him.” (Wordsworth.) In the East they make use of bold figures, much less common among us, although not altogether unknown. They speak of the mediate cause without saying it is the mediate cause, and use the very expression which denotes the immediate cause. We should regard Shimei as an instrument in the hands of Providence. In the East they go a far greater length. There God has done and commanded all that men do contrary to His commandments.” (Jamieson.)
2Sa_16:12. “Affliction.” Some translate this word into “eye,” and understand David to refer to his tears; but the correct translation appears to be “iniquity,” on which Erdmann remarks, “God’s looking upon his iniquity” can then only be a gracious and merciful looking.
2Sa_16:14. “Weary.” Ayephim. Most scholars regard this as the name of a place since, if it is rendered weary, there is no mention of the place referred to by the word there. Jamieson, however, remarks that the absence of the particle of motion favours the English version. There is no other mention of a place of this name but that, as Kiel remarks, applies to many other places whose existence is never called in question.
2Sa_16:15. “Men of Israel.” “Very significant: The old malcontents, 2Sa_2:8-9. (Thenius).
MAIN HOMILETICS OF THE PARAGRAPH.—2Sa_16:5-19
SHIMEI CURSING DAVID
I. The day of adversity is the day when we may look for insult from the mean-spirited. We hear nothing of Shimei in the day of David’s prosperity, although the deeds for which he upbraided him had been done long before. A truly noble man will reprove another from a sense of duty, and will do it without considering what the consequences to himself may be. There are also many men who, although they will not risk their own safety by rebuking the real or supposed faults of those who have power to punish them for so doing, have too much humanity in them to do so when their respective positions are reversed. But, alas for our human nature! there are those also who, like the cur, which only barks when he thinks the object of his dislike has no means of defence, gladly avail themselves of another’s misfortune to charge him with all manner of iniquity. Although David, as it appears from the narrative, had even now the means of avenging himself, it is quite evident from what took place afterwards that Shimei would not have acted as he did if he had not felt tolerably secure.
II. The manner and circumstances in which an accusation is made, and the spirit in which it is borne, will often help us to decide as to its truth or falsehood. If we knew nothing of David before this event, as we know nothing of Shimei, we should conclude that he did not deserve the character here given to him. Great as his fall had been on the one great transgression of his life, the charges brought against him by Shimei were false—he was not a blood-thirsty tyrant who had risen to power by injustice and cruelty. But where there is manifest cowardice, we may safely conclude—without any other proof—that there is falsehood. The more meekly, too, an accusation is borne, the less likely is it to be true, Such a spirit as David here displays never goes hand in hand with such selfish ambition as Shimei here lays to his charge, and the accuser here is as surely condemned out of his own mouth, and by his own conduct, as the accused man justifies himself by his humble words and by his patient forbearance.
OUTLINES AND SUGGESTIVE COMMENTS
2Sa_16:5. There is no small cruelty in the picking out of a time for mischief; that word would scarce gall at one season, which at another killeth. The same shaft flying with the wind pierces deep, which against it can hardly find strength to stick upright. The valour and justice of children condemn it for injuriously cowardly, to strike their adversary when he is once down. It is the murder of the tongue to insult upon those whom God hath bumbled, and to draw blood of that back which is yet blue from the hand of the Almighty.—Bp. Hall.
Was not David rightly punished by Shimei’s railing, for his hearkening so readily to Ziba’s flattering? Was not he justly spoiled of his honours, who had so unjustly spoiled Mephibosheth of his good?—Trapp.
2Sa_16:11. Even while David laments the rebellion of his son, he gains by it, and makes that the argument of his patience, which was the exercise of it; “Behold my son, which came forth of my bowels, seeketh my life; how much more now may this Benjamite do it?” The wickedness of an Absalom may rob his father of comfort, but shall help to add to his father’s goodness. It is the advantage of great crosses, that they swallow up the less. One man’s sin cannot be excused by another’s, the lesser by the greater. If Absalom be a traitor, Shimei may not curse and rebel; but the passion conceived from the indignity of a stranger, may be abated by the harder measure of our own; if we can therefore suffer, because we have suffered, we have profited by our affliction. A weak heart faints with every addition of succeeding trouble; the strong recollects itself, and is grown so skilful, that it bears off one mischief with another.—Bp. Hall.
2Sa_16:12. According to His usual dealing with His poor afflicted. Howsoever, if He bring not down His will to theirs, He will bring up their will to His, which will make infinite amends for all their patience.—Trapp.
We may here learn how falsely and wickedly men sometimes wrest the providence of God, to justify their unjust surmises, and gratify their malevolent passions. Many who are themselves living without God in the world, have, at the same time, no scruple in speaking of the calamities which befal others, as Divine judgments … Job’s friends condemned him on this false principle, and our Lord censures a similar rash judgment which some in His day had formed of certain others, in consequence of their extraordinary sufferings.—Lindsay.
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary (gen. ed. Joseph S. Exell; Funk & Wagnalls, c. 1892) — public domain (pre-1929). A full-Bible homiletical/sermon-outline anthology covering 65 of 66 books (2 John is absent from the source module). Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 Translate the name of this city the same as…
Bahurim
Translate the name of this city the same as you did in 2 Samuel 3:16.
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Shimei ... Gera
These are the names of men. (See: How to Translate Names)
in spite of
"even though there was"
bodyguards
These are men who protect an important person.
translationWords
clan
Saul (OT)
name
curse
stone
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 16:5 Bahurim was in the territory of Benjamin east…
16:5 Bahurim was in the territory of Benjamin east of the Mount of Olives on the way to the Jordan River. It is likely that many people from Benjamin, Saul’s tribe, harbored lingering resentment against David’s rule. In the case of Shimei, his loyalty to Saul was even stronger because he was from the same clan in the tribe of Benjamin.
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.