He pelted David and all the king’s officials with stones, though all the troops and the special guard were on David’s right and left. As he cursed, Shimei said, “Get out, get out, you murderer, you scoundrel! - 2 Samuel 16:6-7

Today’s Scripture Reading (August 12, 2019): 2 Samuel 16

“Sticks and stones may break my bones, but names will never hurt me.” It is an old adage that encourages the child not to react physically to verbal taunts. Over the past couple of centuries, the adage has appeared in a few forms, but the original structure would seem to repeat the word break in both phrases of the saying. “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never break me.”

The adage has been embraced by pacifists and Christians ever since it appeared in the writings of our culture. But the reality is that the adage is simply not true. We should not respond violently to any kind of provocation, but we also should not minimize the pain that is produced by our words. Words hurt, and the pain just might be more long-lasting and pervasive than the scratches and wounds produced by “sticks and stones.”

Shimei may not have known of the adage, but he wasn’t taking any chances. His response to David was to injure him in every way possible; he threw stones and issued his curses directed at the hurting king as the king passed him. As a supporter of Saul, Shimei had never been a fan of Saul. But he had likely been silent. But now that David was in trouble any reservation to let the king know what he thought had been removed. He probably thought that with David on the run, now it would be safe to let the deposed king know precisely how he felt.

There will always be people who will hold their complaints until someone is suffering adversity. The moment when we need encouragement the most is often the moment when people choose to pile on, complaining about both those things that are true and they disagree with, and those things that are untrue. You don’t have to be a king to experience this kind of treatment. These are moments that happen to all of us. Charles Spurgeon remarks on this passage with these words; “It is very hard to bear a cowardly attack. One is very apt to reply and use hard words to one who takes advantage of your position and deals you the coward’s blow. Only the coward strikes a man when he is down.”    

Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: Psalm 63