Deeper Commentary
2Sa 16:1 When David was a little past the top, behold, Ziba the
servant of Mephibosheth met him, with a couple of donkeys saddled, and on
them two hundred loaves of bread, one hundred clusters of raisins, one
hundred summer fruits and a skin of wine-
As noted on 2 Sam. 15, the circumstances David faced repeated incidents
throughout his earlier life, or the essence of them. He had earlier
unexpectedly encountered a gift of 200 loves of bread coming towards him in
the wilderness, from Abigail (1 Sam. 25:18). She may well have been with him
at this time too. Raisins and wine were also part of the present Abigail had
sent him. The situations were clearly controlled by God. David was being
comforted, as we are by perceiving these things, that situations never spin
totally out of Divine control. Even in our lowest moments there are
evidences that somehow God is involved, even if we cannot attach meaning to
event.
2Sa 16:2 The king said to Ziba, What do you mean by these? Ziba said, The
donkeys are for the king’s household to ride on; and the bread and summer
fruit for the young men to eat; and the wine, that such as are faint in
the wilderness may drink-
We will learn from 2 Sam. 19:26,27 that Ziba had deceived
Mephibosheth, who had desperately wanted to come to support David. It
could be that Ziba was going over to Absalom's side, and the present was
intended for him; whilst he abandonned his master Mephibosheth, who wanted
to support David. But encountering David and his sizeable party on the
road, Ziba changed his position and claimed the gift was for David, and
Mephibosheth was aiming to become king.
Psalm 23:5
"You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies" refers to
this time. Shimei and other "enemies" were aware of his path. The
reference is to the feasts prepared for him in the desert by Ziba (2 Sam.
16:2) and Barzillai (2 Sam. 17:27-29). But the phrase "prepare a table" is
that used of the preparation of the table of shewbread (Ex. 40:4), and it
is used in a religious sense in Is. 65:11; Ez. 23:41. Perhaps David held
some kind of religious ceremony whilst on the run, the equivalent to our
breaking of bread meeting. And his experience of the Lord's table
strengthened him with great encouragement, as we also can experience.
2Sa 16:3 The king said, Where is your master’s son? Ziba said to the king,
Behold, he is staying in Jerusalem; for he said, ‘Today the house of
Israel will restore me the kingdom of my father’-
A bit of reflection would have indicated the untruth of this; because
clearly Absalom was obsessed with becoming king, and would not want to
restore the house of Saul after all they had done to the house of David.
Further, Mephibosheth was from Benjamin, and it was the people of Judah,
especially those in Hebron, who wanted Absalom to rule over them. It was
he and not the reclusive cripple Mephibosheth who had stolen the hearts of
Israel.
2Sa 16:4 Then the king said to Ziba, Behold, all that pertains to
Mephibosheth is yours. Ziba said, I do obeisance. Let me find grace in your
sight, my lord, O king-
Although the news was fake, David didn't know that at the time. It
would have seemed that all the grace he had shown to the house of Saul was
in vain, and had not resulted in any loyalty but rather in an ill fated,
opportunistic attempt to grab power for himself. This fake news was surely
used by God to provoke in David a collapse mentality, which was intended
to make him cast himself further upon God's grace alone.
2Sa 16:5 When king David came to Bahurim, behold, a man of the family of
the house of Saul came out, whose name was Shimei the son of Gera. He came
out and cursed continually as he came-
Psalm 7 is relevant to this cursing. Ps. 7:1 describes it as "A
meditation by David, which he sang to Yahweh, concerning the words of Cush
the Benjamite". But
Cush may be another name for Shimei; or perhaps "the black one of
Benjamin" may be another term for Saul. But much in the Psalm is so
appropriate to Shimei's cursing of David as he fled from Absalom. But it
could equally refer to some supporter of Saul the Benjamite during David's
wilderness years. Most likely it could be that a Psalm composed in the
wilderness years was later rewritten by David with reference to Shimei's
abuse of him.
Psalm 109:17
2Sa 16:6 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-
Death by stoning was the punishment for adultery, and it was hard for
David to argue that this was inappropriate. He had been saved from that by
grace, but now it seemed that God was demanding that the death penalty be
carried out. David would have been beating himself up that he had not
responded to the grace shown him as he ought to have done.
David was marching through a valley with steep sides, from the top of
which Shimei could cast stones. Psalm 23 refers to this march, especially
Psalm 23:4 "Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death".
There was naturally the fear of an ambush, for David's location was
thereby clearly known to his enemies.
2Sa 16:7 Shimei said when he cursed, Be gone, be gone, you man of blood, and
base fellow!-
Shimei called David a "bloodthirsty man" (:7,8 s.w.). And the same words are used by God about David (1 Chron.
28:3). So we can wonder whether David was too quick in Ps. 5:6 to assume
that the 'man of blood' who was hated by God and was of course not him.
2Sa 16:8 Yahweh has returned on you all the blood of the house of Saul, in
whose place you have reigned! Yahweh has delivered the kingdom into the
hand of Absalom your son! Behold, you are caught by your own sinfulness,
because you are a man of blood!-
It was the blood of Uriah and the soldiers killed alongside him which
was being punished. But Shimei says that David had shed the blood of the
house of Saul. This was all a cruel mixture of truth and error. David
would likely have noted the reference to the house of Saul, and wrongly
corroborated it with Ziba's claim that in fact Absalom was planning to be
co-regent along with Mephibosheth.
2Sa 16:9 Then Abishai the son of Zeruiah said to the king, Why should this
dead dog curse my lord the king?-
This was how David had felt about himself (1 Sam. 24:14 cp. 2 Sam.
9:8; 16:9)
Please let me go over and take off his
head-
The Philistines in 1 Sam. 29:4 recalled how David had carried the
head of Goliath to Saul (1 Sam. 17:57). To carry the heads of a king's
enemies was a way to get the king's favour, as in Jud. 7:25; 2 Sam. 4:8;
16:9; 20:21; 2 Kings 10:6-8. Again we see the inspired, historical record
has consistency. It would have required a clever editor to insert this
theme of beheading to curry a leader's favour throughout the entire
Biblical record. But the histories were clearly written at different
times; a later hand would not have thought of all these realistic touches
to sprinkle so consistently throughout it. The internal harmony of the
Bible is to me the greatest indication that it is what it claims to be,
the Divinely inspired word of God, evidencing His editing throughout.
2Sa 16:10 The king said, What have I to do with you, you sons of Zeruiah?
Because he curses, and because Yahweh has said to him, ‘Curse David’, who
then shall say, ‘Why have you done so?’-
David assumes that “the Lord hath said unto [Shimei], Curse
David”; but later he orders Solomon to punish Shimei for doing this. So it
seems that David had a way of assuming God had spoken when it was more his
own assumption. It is another example of David's tendency to wildly over
interpret, which led him to a mistaken obsession about building the temple
and assuming Solomon to be his Messianic seed.
Or we could read this as an example of where Yahweh confirms an evil man in his evil way, telling him to do what he wants to do; just as the evil spirit from Yahweh confirmed Saul in his downwards path.
2Sa 16:11 David said to Abishai, and to all his servants, Behold, my son,
who came forth from my bowels, seeks my life. How much more this
Benjamite, now? Leave him alone, and let him curse; for Yahweh has invited
him-
David graciously overlooked Shimei's cursing, promising him that he
would not die because of it (2 Sam. 16:10,11; 19:23). But he didn't keep
up that level of grace to the end: he later asked Solomon to ensure that
Shimei was killed for that incident (1 Kings 2:8,9). And one wonders
whether it was Shimei’s words which so broke David’s heart that he later
wrote: “Because that he remembered not to shew mercy, but persecuted the
poor and needy man…as he loved cursing, so let it come unto him; as he
delighted not in blessing, so may it be far from him. He clothed himself
also with cursing as with a garment…” (Ps. 109:16-18).
2Sa 16:12 It may be that Yahweh will look on the wrong done to me, and
that Yahweh will repay me good for the cursing of me today-
Hannah's request in 1 Sam. 1:11 that God look upon her affliction and
answer it was heard, and she became an inspiration to her descendant
David; who often makes the same request, unashamed to be inspired by the
example of a woman (s.w. 2 Sam. 16:12; Ps. 9:13; 25:18 and so often in the
Psalms).
2Sa 16:13 So David and his men went by the way; and Shimei went along on
the hillside opposite him, and cursed as he went, threw stones at him, and
threw dust-
The language of cursing and dust recalls Gen. 3:19. That David's sin is
indeed an epitome of all our sins is proved by the way in which the record
of it is framed in the language of the fall. Adam is presented as David.
Gen. 2:8,17 = 2 Sam. 12:5; Gen. 2:17 = 2 Sam. 12:9; Gen. 6:2 = 2 Sam.
12:9; Gen. 3:17 = 2 Sam. 12:10; Gen. 3:7 = 2 Sam. 12:11; Gen. 3:8 = 2 Sam.
11:24; 12:12; Gen. 3:21 = 2 Sam. 12:13; Gen. 3:17 = 2 Sam. 16:11; Gen.
3:19 = 2 Sam. 16:13. It should also be noted that David/Bathsheba language
is used to describe Israel's spiritually fallen state (e.g. Ps. 38:7=Is.
1:6; Ps. 51:7=Is. 1:18; Ps. 65:2=Is. 40:15). David recognized this in Ps.
51:17, where he likens his own state to that of Zion, which also needed to
be revived by God's mercy. As David's sin is likened to the killing of a
lamb (2 Sam. 12:4), so the Jews killed Jesus. The troubles which therefore
came upon his kingdom have certain similarities with the events of
AD67-70. They were also repeated in the Nazi Holocaust, and
will yet be. Israel are yet to fully repent after the pattern of David.
2Sa 16:14 The king, and all the people who were with him, became weary;
and he refreshed himself there-
The day David fled Jerusalem is recorded in more detail than any day
in Biblical history. The tragedy of a good man having to suffer for his
sins is thereby underlined to us.
2Sa 16:15 Absalom, and all the people, the men of Israel, came to
Jerusalem, and Ahithophel with him-
Absalom entered Jerusalem the day David fled (2 Sam. 15:37; 17:1).
Ahithophel's advice to attack David immediately was undoubtedly the best
advice.
2Sa 16:16 It happened, when Hushai the Archite, David’s friend, had come
to Absalom, that Hushai said to Absalom, Long live the king! Long live the
king!-
Hushai doesn't define which king he has in mind. This raises the
question as to whether lying is always wrong, necessarily. Rahab's lies
and those of the Hebrew midwives at the exodus are rewarded as acts of
faith. But this is of course a slippery slope. But such open questions are
left for our reflection, underlining that spiritual life cannot be run by
laws but by principles. See on 2 Sam. 17:20.
2Sa 16:17 Absalom said to Hushai, Is this your kindness to your friend?
Why didn’t you go with your friend?-
There is a kind of parallel here with David probing Ittai as to
whether he wasn't in fact an agent of Absalom (2 Sam. 15:19).
2Sa 16:18 Hushai said to Absalom, No; but whoever Yahweh and this people,
and all the men of Israel have chosen, his will I be, and with him I will
stay-
This again (as noted on :16) is phrased ambiguously; for Hushai
believed that Yahweh and the true Israel of God had chosen David and not
Absalom.
2Sa 16:19 Again, whom should I serve? Shouldn’t I serve in the presence of
his son? As I have served in your father’s presence, so will I be in your
presence-
Hushai accepts that David has indeed lost the throne, for the time
being.
2Sa 16:20 Then Absalom said to Ahithophel, Give your counsel what we shall
do-
Ahithophel's counsel directly leads to the fulfilment of Nathan's
prophecy that a usurper would sleep with David's wives. Perhaps he based
his counsel about this upon Nathan's words. But probably those words of
Nathan had been privately stated to David and not generally known. So we
reflect how Ahithophel's advice and Absalom's acceptance of it was all of
their own genuine freewill. And yet it was to fulfil God's word of
punishment.
2Sa 16:21 Ahithophel said to Absalom, Go in to your father’s concubines,
that he has left to keep the house. Then all Israel will hear that you are
abhorred by your father. Then the hands of all who are with you will be
strong-
Ahithophel assumed that such behaviour would make David hate Absalom.
But he had not factored in David's deep spirituality and humility. For
this did not make David hate Absalom, and at his death, David was
heartbroken, despite having been reestablished as king. Further, I
suggested on 2 Sam. 15:16 that David left his concubines in Jerusalem
fully aware of what would happen according to Nathan's prophecy. But he
did not seek to stop that prophecy coming true; he humbled himself to
accept his sin and the judgment pronounced for it.
2Sa 16:22 So they spread Absalom a tent on the top of the house; and
Absalom went in to his father’s concubines in the sight of all Israel-
Walking upon the roof of his house connects with several passages
which associate the roof top with a place of idolatry: 2 Kings 23:12; Jer.
19:13; 32:29; Zeph. 1:5. It may be that David regularly worshipped the
idol of Bathsheba in his mind, upon the bed which he had on the house top.
David's sin with Bathsheba is therefore not such a momentary slip.
Significantly, it was in that very place where Absalom later lay with his
wives in retribution for what he had done (2 Sam. 16:22). From this we
could infer that David lay with Bathsheba in that same place on the roof
top. This is significant insofar as it shows how exactly the thought leads
to the action. David's thoughts in that spot were translated into that
very action, in precisely the same physical location.
2Sa 16:23 The counsel of Ahithophel, which he gave in those days, was as
if a man inquired at the oracle of God: so was all the counsel of
Ahithophel both with David and with Absalom-
Ahithophel was perhaps indeed inspired at times to speak God's words as a
prophet. But this didn't mean therefore that all he said was true. The
fact Absalom will now prefer Hushai's advice over Ahithophel's shows how
Absalom didn't respect God's word. He ignored the words of the man
accepted as an inspired prophet, and instead followed advice which was
designed to appeal to his pride.
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