2 Samuel 19:22, 23
“David replied, ‘What do you and I have in common, you sons of Zeruiah? This day you have become my adversaries! Should anyone be put to death in Israel today? Do I not know that today I am king over Israel?’ So the king said to Shimei, ‘You shall not die.’ And the king promised him on oath.”
In her tender age of two, my little girl knows she can’t win against his big brother. She quietly resigns when he’s first to take hold of a toy, moves aside when he’s first to choose a disc to play, and looks from behind when he’s first to ask for the iPad. There’s no way she could outran and overpower him. But she can outsmart him. Like a predator on the lookout, she waits for her brother to let down his defense -- his pee break for example -- and before he can even realize it, she already had the grab. Kjaran even wakes up earlier than everyone or hurriedly finishes her meal to have that priority number. She’s so funny, witty and amusing. I just don’t know if it’s because of her genes or gender, haha :>
From approximately 976 to 972 BC, David and his men were outcasts because of Absalom. I could say it’s the second lowest point of David’s life, the first being his sins to Uriah. Physically, he had zero comforts and the psalm even mentioned him gravely ill in bed, and emotionally, his son betrayed him and soon died in the hands of his trusted men. But he took it all in. As we all would when our past guilts haunt us. He fully surrendered to God’s justice. But not the Zeruiah’s. In their hearts, Joab and Abishai kept a list of the insults they heard and the inconvenience they suffered from their enemies. And so when they had the chance, even if it’s against the king’s wishes, they took Absalom’s life. When they had their power back, at the sight of the Shimei, regardless if his posture was repentance, death was their verdict. David rebuked them for these. First, God has already avenged their cause. Shall they repay vindication with further vengeance? It’s but an insult to God’s finished work. Second, God has been merciful in forgiving David of his sins. Shall he not be first to forgive others? Third, God has granted them favor and be restored back to the people. Shall they instill terror to the welcome party? These brothers were rebuked for thinking that reinstatement meant power back for pay back. David wanted them to see that they’re merely favored to be back to give back.
When I was growing up, I hated my dad and my uncles for lording over the family’s television set, watching their favorite basketball or boxing matches. I vowed to myself that when I’m old enough, I’d buy my own set, lock it in my room and have the time of my life. It never happened, haha! But the attitude lingered. Bitter brags of ‘Wait til I’m better, or prettier, or smarter than all of you’ were quite beyond a handful. Praise God He knows better than answer those vain hopes. His purpose in lifting us from people’s insults and deep pits is not so we could get even or push them down. Isn’t freedom and favor enough? Isn’t gratitude the best payback?
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