2 Sam. 16:5-135And 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. 6And he cast stones at David, and at all the servants of king David: and all the people and all the mighty men were on his right hand and on his left. 7And thus said Shimei when he cursed, Come out, come out, thou bloody man, and thou man of Belial: 8The Lord hath returned upon thee all the blood of the house of Saul, in whose stead thou hast reigned; and the Lord hath delivered the kingdom into the hand of Absalom thy son: and, behold, thou art taken in thy mischief, because thou art a bloody man. 9Then said Abishai the son of Zeruiah unto the king, Why should this dead dog curse my lord the king? let me go over, I pray thee, and take off his head. 10And the king said, What have I to do with you, ye sons of Zeruiah? so let him curse, because the Lord hath said unto him, Curse David. Who shall then say, Wherefore hast thou done so? 11And David said to Abishai, and to all his servants, Behold, my son, which came forth of my bowels, seeketh my life: how much more now may this Benjamite do it? let him alone, and let him curse; for the Lord hath bidden him. 12It may be that the Lord will look on mine affliction, and that the Lord will requite me good for his cursing this day. 13And as David and his men went by the way, Shimei went along on the hill's side over against him, and cursed as he went, and threw stones at him, and cast dust. (2 Samuel 16:5‑13).
NO doubt some of my readers are familiar with the incident given to us in the above portion of Scripture, yet many more, I am sure, have never even read it.
There are many needful and beautiful lessons we may learn from this incident, but let us first look briefly at what is recorded.
Shimei was an enemy of David and when David was an outcast from his home, because of his wicked son Absalom, Shimei took the opportunity to show how much he hated him. David and his men went by the way, and Shimei cursed as he went, and threw stones at him and dust. He called him bad names and cursed him. But no matter what Shimei said about David, David took it all quietly and from the hand of God. He accepted it as the cup the Lord had seen fit to give him, and he would drink it up.
In all this we see a wonderful picture of the Lord Jesus. He was hated, despised and rejected but there was no call for judgment on His enemies, but He prayed for them. They sought to take His life but they could not, till His time came. That is, the time He had to go to the cross where He would atone for sin—where He would die in our place. Then He gave Himself up because He knew the great need and allowed man to do what he wanted. He allowed man to show out all the hatred that was in his heart. He not only bore it patiently but prayed to the Father to forgive them for they knew not what they were doing.
In all this He is manifested not only as a Saviour to us, but the perfect example for the believer’s walk. Can you say you know that blessed One as your Saviour? If so, then take Him as your pattern and seek through His grace to follow His steps. “When He was reviled, He reviled not again; when He suffered, He threatened not, but committed Himself to Him that judgeth righteously.” (1 Peter 2:2323Who, when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not; but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously: (1 Peter 2:23).)
ML 02/25/1917