2 Samuel 16:5

SHIMEI CURSED DAVID; THROWING STONES AT HIM

"When King David came to Bahurim, there came out a man of the family of the house of Saul, whose name was Shimei, the son of Gera; and as he came, he cursed continually. And he threw 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. And Shimei said as he cursed, "Begone, begone, you man of blood, you worthless fellow! The Lord has avenged upon you all the blood of the house of Saul, in whose place you have reigned; and the Lord has given the kingdom into the hand of your son Absalom. See, your ruin is upon you; for you are a man of blood."

"When King David came to Bahurim" (2 Samuel 16:5). "This tiny highway village some distance east of Mount Olivet is the place where Phalti turned back from following Michal as she was returned to David (2 Samuel 3:15-16), where Shimei's cursing of David occurred, and where the sons of the priests (Jonathan and Ahimaaz) were hidden in a well (2 Samuel 17:18) during their mission of carrying information to David."[7]

"There came out a man ... of the house of Saul, whose name was Shimei" (2 Samuel 16:5). Cook identified this character as "Cush the Benjamite,"[8] the person who is mentioned in the superscription of Psalms 7.

"Begone, you man of blood" (2 Samuel 16:7). "This expression `man of blood' was applied to David by God Himself (1 Chronicles 22:8); and here, Shimei who probably knew what the Lord said, casts the same words into David's teeth."[9]

H. P. Smith's paraphrase of Shimei's words here is: "Get thee gone, get thee gone, vile and cruel man! Yahweh has brought back upon thee all the blood of the house of Saul."[10]

"The blood of the house of Saul" (2 Samuel 16:8). Shimei's sentiments were probably the same as that of many other people in the tribe of Benjamin. They no doubt blamed David for the death of Saul and his sons on Mount Gilboa (1 Samuel 31:1-6), Abner (2 Samuel 3:22-39), Ishbosheth (2 Samuel 4:5-12), and particularly, "The seven descendants of Saul whom David handed over to the Gibeonites (2 Samuel 21:1-14)."[11]

SHIMEI FOLLOWED DAVID'S COMPANY; CURSING HIM

David continued on his way to the fords of the Jordan River, with Shimei following him for some distance, cursing all the way. Shimei maintained some distance away from the company, throwing stones from hillsides.