King David and Shimei

All Bible readers know that there are many stories that describe human frailty that are truly sad. I think one of the saddest scenes in history was King David fleeing from his own son, Absalom. This promised to be the disaster of his life, “And David went up the ascent of the Mount of Olives, and wept as he went up, and his head was covered, and he went barefoot; and all the people that were with him each covered his head, and went up weeping. as they climbed.” 2 Saturday 15:30 The only hope that David seemed to have was his prayer that God would “turn the counsel of Ahithophel”, his main adviser, “into folly” because, as a conspirator, he would be Absalom’s main adviser.

Many of David’s friends joined him on the way, but he sent some back, including Hushai and the priests Zadok and Abiathar, in an apparent effort to counter the conspiracy and keep informed of Absalom’s movements as he advanced. with his small army. and the people. A little beyond the Mount of Olives, he was approached by a servant of Mephibosheth with a pair of donkeys laden with food, and so in his great and bitter misfortune he had some consolation and encouragement.

David had just reached Bahurim in his flight when there was “A man of the family went out of the house of Saul, whose name was Shimei son of Gera.” 2 Samuel 16:5. It is here that the scene of sympathy changed and instead of comforting the king and wishing him success in the end, this man walked down the side of the hill and cursed the king to his injury and disgrace. More than this, he threw stones at David and at the retention of his servants and followers; being himself in a safe place where the return of the stones would be difficult, and knowing that David was in a hurry.

Shimei, whose youth he promised to bring early,

Jealous of God and hatred of his king;

Wisely he refrained from costly sins,

And he never broke the Sabbath except for profit.

From the satire of Absalom and Ahithophel by John Dryden (1631-1700).

Shimei profaned David by calling him a devil, a murderer, and accused him of usurping Saul’s crown. To add insult to injury, he snapped at the king that Absalom’s turn against him was just retribution for his role in destroying the house of Saul. The LORD has repaid you for all the blood you spilled in the house of Saul, in whose place you have reigned. The LORD has given the kingdom to your son Absalom. You have come to ruin because you are a man of blood! ” 2 Samuel 16:8. We don’t know how long he continued to beat David and his friends.

Abishai proposed to go and kill Shimei, but David, being a kind man in his sadness and misfortune, as well as in his joy and prosperity, discouraged him and said instead: “Let him curse, because the LORD has commanded him.” 2 Samuel 16:11b. In David’s mind, if God sent this painful episode down the road, then he should submit, and then he turned to the hope of the situation and commented to his friends: “Perhaps the LORD will see my anguish and repay me well for the curse I receive today.” 2 Samuel 16:12.

David argued that his own son was after his life, and how much more could Shimei curse him and stone him and throw dust at him. In other words, he theologically perceived the whole predicament as a designating providence, and left the solution of the mystery of it to God. In his magnanimity, he spared Shimei when he returned victorious over his son Absalom. Submission to the will of God in misfortune, generous mercy to his enemies in victory, this was a kind and haughty-minded David, and we know that he would have forgiven Absalom, the arch-traitor, above all, given the chance.

But the weakest creature in the group of his enemies and pursuers this time was Shimei. His conduct was the very baseness of all cowardice and pettiness, throwing stones, throwing dust, cursing when he thought he himself was safe. But he became a pathetic, miserable, submissive human at David’s feet when David returned victorious from the bloody field of Ephraim.

So it is always with the coward and the enemy who will take advantage of our misfortunes and insult and hurt us, seeking to gain ascendancy over us. It must have been a well-known fact that God had deposed Saul and his house and exalted David to the throne and scepter of Israel. David had been exceptionally kind to Saul and his family, although Saul, during his lifetime, had sought every means that jealousy and envy could devise to destroy David. Even when Saul and Jonathan fell on the bloody heights of Gilboa, slain by their own hands, David gave vent, with the noblest generosity of spirit ever written, to the grievance and appreciation of his own heart. However, the descendants of Shimei and Saul, like Saul himself, still harbored the spirit of malice and vengeance toward “the man after God’s own heart.”

Jealousy and envy, littleness and cowardice in man are always blind to the purposes of God and human generosity cannot transform cowardice and jealousy into goodness and honor. These negative qualities of human nature are always at war with all that is good and high above them, and when misfortune or affliction befalls the objects of their envy or revenge, they are always ready to add insult to injury.

David had been kind to Shimei and his family. He forgave him for the evil perpetrated on Bahurim, but we suspect that Shimei would have repeated her despicable drama the next day, had she been given the chance. Shimei was the character personified that Shakespeare addressed when he said:

You are the hare of whom the proverb says,

Whose courage rips dead lions by the beard.

We learn that David’s miseries turned to joy, and the insults of his enemies fell on their own heads, because God was with him. He acted like Christ on this occasion and in fact in all this disgrace he seemed a type of Christ. Say what you will, Christ teaches the only remedy for the cure of evil and for the conquest of enmity and pettiness: forgive your enemies, do good to those who insult you, bless the cursors, and you will heap coals on them. heads of those who would insult you.

Under all circumstances we must love and forgive our enemies. But always be careful with them. David commanded his heir Solomon to punish Shimei (I Kings 2:8-9). Consequently, Solomon ordered Shimei to settle in Jerusalem, forbidding him on pain of death to leave the city (I Kings 2:36-38). However, three years later, Shimei traveled to Gath to bring back two of his runaway slaves; on his return, Solomon had him killed (I Kings 2: 39-46).

The Shimei of the world will throw stones, curse, and then run and hide. But we are more than conquerors through the One who loves us so much.