Ch. 2 Samuel 16:1-4. David met by Ziba with a present

1. the top of the hill] See note on ch. 2 Samuel 15:32.

two hundred loaves of bread, &c.] Compare Abigail’s present (1 Samuel 25:18). Ziba was shrewd enough to foresee the result of the rebellion, and wished to secure the king’s favour.

an hundred of summer fruits] Probably cakes of dried figs (so the Vulg.) or dates (so the Sept.). Cp. Amos 8:1.

a bottle of wine] A skin, holding a considerable quantity.

2. the wilderness] See note on ch. 2 Samuel 15:23.

3. thy master’s son] Mephibosheth is called the son, i.e. grandson, of Ziba’s lord Saul in ch. 2 Samuel 9:9. David was hurt by Mephibosheth’s apparent ingratitude.

for he said, To day, &c.] That Ziba was calumniating Mephibosheth is sufficiently obvious. How could Mephibosheth, an insignificant cripple, who had never claimed the crown, or taken any part in politics, expect to be made king, even in the confusion of parties which might ensue upon Absalom’s rebellion? Ziba’s story was an audacious fiction, invented in the hope of getting a grant of the estate which he was cultivating for Mephibosheth’s benefit, and in spite of its improbability, it passed muster in the haste and confusion of the moment.

4. Behold, thine are all, &c.] David was rash and hasty in thus treating his grant to Mephibosheth as forfeited by treason without a word of inquiry. This unreflecting impetuosity was a marked fault of his character. Cp. 1 Samuel 25:13 ff.

I humbly beseech thee, &c.] Rather, I bow myself down:—equivalent to our “I lay myself at thy feet,” an Oriental expression of gratitude:—let me find favour in thine eyes, my lord, O king. Cp. 1 Samuel 1:18.

5–14. David cursed by Shimei

5. Bahurim] See note on ch. 2 Samuel 3:16.

Shimei] See ch. 2 Samuel 19:16-23; 1 Kings 2:8-9. His connexion with the clan of Saul accounts for the virulence of his hatred.

6. And he cast stones, &c.] The scene is described with an exactness which bespeaks an eye-witness. The road apparently was parallel to a ridge—the “rib” or “side of the hill,” 2 Samuel 16:13—and separated from it by a deep but narrow ravine—“let me go over,” 2 Samuel 16:9—so that Shimei was out of easy reach, though within a stone’s throw of David and his party.

and all the people, &c.] This enhanced the impudent audacity of Shimei’s behaviour.

7. Come out, come out] Out! out! from the land and from thy kingdom into exile.

thou bloody man] Thou man of blood, thou murderer. Shimei seems to have supplied Cromwell’s army with the terms of its resolution “to call Charles Stuart, that man of blood, to account for the blood he has shed and the mischief he has done to the utmost against the Lord’s cause and people in this poor nation.” Green’s Short History, p. 552.

thou man of Belial] Thou wicked man. See note on 1 Samuel 1:16.

8. all the blood of the house of Saul] Shimei probably refers to the deaths of Saul and his sons at Gilboa, of Abner and Ish-bosheth by treacherous murder, charging David with the guilt of crimes which he had repudiated and punished: possibly also he regarded the execution of Saul’s sons (ch. 2 Samuel 21:1-9), which in all probability had taken place before this time, as a judicial murder. Shimei would not intend to refer to Uriah, though David would feel that it was for his death that the curse was not undeserved.

behold, thou art taken to thy mischief] Rather, behold, thou art in thy calamity. To is the original reading of 1611; in of ordinary editions first appeared in the edition of 1629. To thy mischief = to thy hurt, a free paraphrase of the Vulg. premunt te mala tua.

9. Then said Abishai] Consistently with his character on the former occasion when he wished to slay Saul (1 Samuel 26:8), and on the later occasion, when he was for refusing Shimei’s suit for pardon (ch. 2 Samuel 19:21). His fiery zeal reminds us of the Sons of Thunder (Luke 9:54), and David’s answer recalls Christ’s answer to Peter (John 18:10-11).

this dead dog] See ch. 2 Samuel 9:8, 2 Samuel 3:8, and notes there.

10. What have I to do with you] ‘What have we in common? leave me alone.’ The phrase is used to repel an unwelcome suggestion, and repudiate participation in the thoughts and feelings of another. Cp. ch. 2 Samuel 19:22; John 2:4.

ye sons of Zeruiah] Joab probably seconded Abishai’s request. For David’s abhorrence of his nephews’ ferocity, see ch. 2 Samuel 3:39.

so let him curse, &c.] This is the rendering of the traditional reading (Qrî). The written text (Kthîbh) may be rendered, when he curseth, and when the Lord, &c., who then shall say, &c.: or, for he curseth because the Lord, &c.

11. this Benjamite] Who has some plausible ground for spite against a king who has succeeded to the honours once held by his family.

the Lord hath bidden him] David recognises Shimei as the divinely appointed instrument for his chastisement, and therefore he can say, “the Lord hath bidden him.” But Shimei’s cursing was on his part sinful, and God commands no man to sin. God makes use of the evil passions of men to work out His purposes, but those evil passions are not thereby excused or justified. See for example, Genesis 45:5; Acts 2:23. Since He is the Author and Cause of all things, and in a certain sense nothing can be done without His Will, He is sometimes said to do what He permits to be done, to command what He does not forbid. See note on 1 Samuel 26:19 : and 2 Samuel 24:1.

12. mine affliction] This reading is supported by the Sept. and Vulg. and is probably right. Cp. Psalm 25:18. The Qrî has mine eye, which is explained to mean my grief, but the expression is unparalleled. The Kthîbh gives mine iniquity, meaning, ‘perhaps the Lord will look graciously upon my guilt and pardon it,’ but this does not suit the following clause so well.

will requite me good] Cp. Psalm 109:26-28.

for his cursing] The E. V. follows the Qrî. The Kthîbh has my cursing, i.e. the curse invoked upon me.

13. on the hill’s side] See note on 2 Samuel 16:6.

14. came weary] There is no place mentioned to which there at the end of the verse can refer. It is clear from ch. 2 Samuel 17:18, that the halting-place was not Bahurim, but some place beyond it. We must suppose that the name of the place has fallen out of the text, or that the word for weary should be taken as a proper name to Ayêphîm. No such place is known, but it would be an appropriate name for a caravansary or resting-place for travellers.

15–19. Absalom’s entrance into Jerusalem. Hushai’s offer of his services

15. And Absalom, &c.] The narrative of Absalom’s proceedings is continued from ch. 2 Samuel 15:12; 2 Samuel 15:37. He seems to have entered Jerusalem soon after David left it, perhaps about noon on the same day.

the men of Israel] The term Israel is constantly applied to Absalom’s followers in this narrative. It is used in a general sense, and not to signify the northern tribes as distinguished from Judah, for the strength of the insurrection, originally at any rate, lay in the south. See note on ch. 2 Samuel 15:10. Those who remained faithful to David are never called the men of Judah, but simply the people (ch. 2 Samuel 15:17; 2 Samuel 15:23-24; 2 Samuel 15:30; 2 Samuel 16, 17, 18, 19).

16. God save the king] Or, Long live the king: lit. Let the king live: vivat Rex. See note on 1 Samuel 10:24.

20–23. Ahithophel’s counsel

21. And Ahithophel said, &c.] Ahithophel advised Absalom to make a decisive assumption of royal authority by publicly taking possession of the royal harem. This act was a claim of heirship and succession[101], and was not regarded with abhorrence by the Israelites, whose feelings on such matters were blunted by the practice of polygamy. See note on ch. 2 Samuel 3:7. Its object was to make the breach between Absalom and his father irreparable, and to strengthen the resolution of his followers, by proving that the rebellion was not to end in his securing a pardon from his father and leaving them to their fate, but that he was determined to run all risks.

[101] A similar custom existed among the heathen Saxons. See Green’s Making of England, p. 246.

22. upon the top of the house] The fact that the very roof on which David was walking when he secretly conceived his great sin was the public scene of its punishment, and the nature of the punishment, corresponding to the nature of the sin, as Nathan had foretold, make this retribution signally striking. See ch. 2 Samuel 12:11-12; and cp. 2 Kings 9:25-26.

23. had inquired at the oracle of God] Lit. had inquired of the word of God = had inquired of God, which was done by means of the Urim and Thummim in the breastplate upon the High-priest’s ephod. Cp. 1 Samuel 10:22.