1 Kings 2:44

1Ki 2:44 The king said moreover to Shimei, Thou knowest all the wickedness which thine heart is privy to, that thou didst to David my father: therefore the LORD shall return thy wickedness upon thine own head;

Ver. 44. Thou knowest all the wickedness.] To know other things is science: but to know ourselves is conscience. This is the reflection of the soul upon itself. "Our transgressions are with us, and as for our iniquities, we know them." Quid tibi prodest non habere conscium, habenti couscientiam?

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.

For though thou wouldest deny, yet thine own conscience would accuse thee for reviling and doing wrong to my father, 2 Sam 16:5.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

44. Thou knowest] The Hebrew inserts the pronoun emphatically. It was needless for Solomon to recall the wrong with which Shimei’s own conscience would upbraid him.

the Lord shall return] The Hebrew says ‘the Lord hath returned.’ The punishment is so sure that the king speaks of it as already inflicted. He is but the Lord’s agent, and the doom of Shimei is counted as executed. This appears the best way of understanding the grammar, as there is no preceding verb from which this should derive the signification of an imperfect.

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.

And King Solomon shall be blessed,.... With a long and peaceable reign, and large dominions, notwithstanding all the attempts to make him unhappy:

and the throne of David shall be established before the Lord for ever; the kingdom of David over Judah for a long time, in his natural line; and the kingdom of Israel, spiritual Israel, for ever in his son the Messiah; and that in the presence of the Lord, he observing, ordering, and succeeding all things to that purpose.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Thou knowest all the wickedness which thine heart is privy to; for which thy own conscience accuseth thee, and there is no need of other witnesses.

Shall return, Heb. hath returned, which seems most proper. God hath punished thee for thy former wickedness, by suffering thee to fall into further crimes, and expose thyself to thy deserved death.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

44. The king said moreover to Shimei — It is to be noticed respecting all these four enemies of the king that their last offence was but the immediate occasion, not the sole cause, of their sudden ruin. It was previous guilt, contracted by former crimes or disloyalty, that now returned upon them, and by further aggravation made them ripe for destruction.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

The king said, moreover Heb. And the king said Thou knowest all the wickedness which thine heart is privy to Heb. knoweth that thou didst to David my father Solomon brings a threefold charge against Shimei. He has violated a solemn oath, "by the life of Jehovah," and so has "profaned the name of his God". (Lev_19:12) He has broken his parole and set at naught the king"s commandment. He has defied and blasphemed the Lord"s anointed. He must die therefore the Lord shall return "hath returned," or "returns." LXX ajntapedwke, aor. The king regards himself as merely the instrument and dispenser of the Divine Justice. According to him, it is God, not spite, demands and has brought about Shimei"s execution thy wickedness upon thine own head Every Jew, taught to expect that "every transgression and disobedience" would receive its "just recompense of reward" in this life present would see in Shimei"s almost unaccountable infatuation the finger of God. To them he would seem delivered up to destruction.

HOMILETICS.

Vers. 44-46.

The End of the Transgressor.

Such was the end of Shimei violent, sanguinary, shameful. Old man as he is, he may not die in peace: his hoar hairs must be crimsoned with his blood. What does this teach? what its message to Christian men? It is twofold. It speaks

(1) OF THE SIN,

(2) OF THE RETRIBUTION.

I It teaches

(1) The sin of treason. He had offered insult and defiance to his lawful king. Rebellion against constituted authority can only be justified by intolerable tyranny and outrage. He who

dares to wield The regicidal steel

must answer to Him by whom kings govern. We are to "honour the king," to "be subject to the higher powers." "They that resist shall receive to themselves damnation," as did this rebel Benjamite.

2. The sin of blasphemy. "A grievous curse." Aimed at the king, it reached the King of kings. It was not only destructive of authority; not only an affront offered to the majesty of law; it was an indirect blow at the Majesty of Heaven. Men cannot "speak evil of dignities" without sin. Those who "curse God" will "die". (Job_2:9) How little do men make ofblasphemy! But Shimei had to pay for it with his life.

3. The sin of perjury. It was this in the strict sense of the word. He broke through his oath. Though he said, "the Lord liveth," he swore falsely. He thus profaned the awful incommunicable name, and incurred the Divine. (Zec_5:4) Perjuries are plentiful in our days, our police courts being witness. (Some kiss the thumb, and not the book.) "The Lord will not hold him guiltless," etc.

4. The sin of disobedience. The king had adjured him, had "protested," had said "know for certain," etc.; and even if the Kidron were mentioned arbitrarily, still it served to test his obedience. The prohibition, therefore, could not have been plainer. He disregarded it, and died. "Fool," does any one say? Stay! The great King has said, "The soul that sinneth, it shall die." He has solemnly testified what will be the doom of disobedience, and yet how often have we crossed our Kidron the bound of His law have gone after our own lusts and pleasures, and it is only because He is God and not man, only because

the heart of the Eternal Is most wonderfully kind,

that we have not died.

5. The sin and folly of presumption. Whatever may have led Shimei to go after his slaves, it was certainly presumption brought him back. He would hardly have returned had he not counted on forgiveness. No doubt he had persuaded himself either that Solomon would never know, or that, if he did, he would be magnanimous. "Allowance will be made for me," he had said; "my return will disarm suspicion and ensure clemency." But the sword of Benaiah soon undeceived him. And such will be the end death, shame, everlasting contempt of those who presume on the mercy of God. How many say, "God is so good, He will never be hard upon us," etc. But is God true? Can He deny Himself? Even Solomon could not go back from his word; and can the Holy One? Alas, if despair has slain its thousands, presumption has slain its ten thousands. It is a significant fact that since the invention of the safety lamp there have been more accidents in mines than there were before.

II As to the RETRIBUTION, we are reminded,

1. That curses commonly come home to roost. The "grievous curse" of Shimei did not hurt David. But it was his own destruction. The poisoned arrow missed its mark, but it recoiled on the archer. The engineer is hoist by his own petard. A curse rests on those who curse the king. (cf. Ecc_10:20)

2. That respite does not mean release. When David "sware" to him, Shimei thought himself safe. Surely the bitterness of death was past. We would die in his nest. We often mistake God"s forbearance for forgetfulness. He is long suffering, and men ask, "Where is the promise of His coming?" Because "He does not settle His accounts once a week" (Goethe) the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil. But the day of retribution comes as a thief, as the flood, as the sword, as the snare.

3. That if we die, it is our own fault. Shimei had his life in his own hands. It rested with him. alone whether he lived or died. He should live, if he would but live at Jerusalem. But he chose death. Men cause their own destruction. God has no pleasure in their death. "Thou hast destroyed thyself.

4. That warnings are commonly lost on the wicked. "How could Shimei be so infatuated?" we ask. What, have we not seen his infatuation paralleled? Have we never seen repeated warnings repeatedly neglected? Yes, souls, sins, warnings, results, are the same in all ages.

5. That when God reckons, He reckons for all. The sword avenged the sin of eight years before. And in the Great Assize, everything both cup of cold water and idle word will receive its just recompense of reward.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Thine heart - For which thine own conscience accuseth thee, and there is no need of other witnesses. The Lord - God hath punished thee for thy former wickedness, by suffering thee to expose thyself to thy deserved death.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.