September 18, 2011
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By Shimei Cursed, By Jordan Refreshed (II Samuel 16:5-14)
II Samuel 16:5 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. 6 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. 7 And Shimei said as he cursed, “Get out, get out, you man of blood, you worthless man! 8 The LORD has avenged on 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 evil is on you, for you are a man of blood.”
9 Then Abishai the son of Zeruiah said to the king, “Why should this dead dog curse my lord the king? Let me go over and take off his head.” 10 But the king said, “What have I to do with you, you sons of Zeruiah? If he is cursing because the LORD has said to him, ‘Curse David,’ who then shall say, ‘Why have you done so?’” 11 And David said to Abishai and to all his servants, “Behold, my own son seeks my life; how much more now may this Benjaminite! Leave him alone, and let him curse, for the LORD has told him to. 12 It may be that the LORD will look on the wrong done to me, and that the LORD will repay me with good for his cursing today.” 13 So David and his men went on the road, while Shimei went along on the hillside opposite him and cursed as he went and threw stones at him and flung dust. 14 And the king, and all the people who were with him, arrived weary at the Jordan. And there he refreshed himself.* * *
By Shimei Cursed, By Jordan RefreshedDeliver me, deliver me from evil schemes
The power of death encompasses meThe pangs of Sheol lay hold of me
O, LORD my God, deal with me bountifully~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
At Jordan rest, be at peace
Be quiet, await the ParacleteFrom your fleshly labor cease
Be still, be silent, anxieties releaseArise, do good, from all evil depart
He shall descend to strengthen thine heartNothing from Christ's love can separate
God's help will appear never too lateTo the thicket, lift your eyes and see
The Lamb of God who died for theeYour name is sealed on His heart
Lovingkindness shall never departThough men may curse and may abuse
Nothing can God's cords of love looseLet Jesus' truth be your buckler and shield
To devilish lies never heed nor yieldTo God's sure promises, look and appeal
Who can break the eternal Spirit's seal?All tribulations inspected by His arm
Not one intended for your harmMy child, every wave and every flame
By your Father's sovereign love ordainedSatan's weapons intended to steal, destroy
All decreed at God's inscrutable employBeside each tear God deems to appoint
Flows His Holy oil to fill and anointFaith's testing coming through the fire
For the glory of the Jesus, the SanctifierSorrowing under the foolish and unjust
To the just Judge yourself fully entrustDo not fear anything that is frightening
Repay not evil for evil, nor reviling for revilingVengeance is the Lord's, He will repay
Wait on Him until Judgment DayLook to the Savior shining upon the mount
Your enemies forgive, their sins do not countSeek the wisdom pure and peaceable,
Gentle, sincere, kind and mercifulRecompense Shimei's stones and cursings
With a cup of cold water for his thirstingsMan's carnal wrath obscures God's glorious light
Sink into Christ's holiness, in His truth delightYour anxious heart be directed into Christ's undying savor
In fiery trial, patiently wait to taste His refreshing favorBe ever diligent, for the devil prowls to sow
Let not a bitter root of unforgiveness growBe overcome with goodness, not with rage
Divine sustenance for your pilgrimageHumbly speaking truth in love, be fully assured
In hope of God's glory, unashamed and secureIn the LORD continually delight, be patient, do not fret
Will He Who upheld from the womb ever tire or forget?In the midst of your tribulation, firmly stand
See your Advocate at your Father's right handWhether men curse or whether they bless
Your identity is found in Christ's righteousnessOn your affliction the Lord does look
Abide with Him, be refreshed at His brookCelestial stream from the rock of flint
In darkest pestilence, a glimmer, a glintThe Beloved unknown in the quake, wind or fire
But in a whisper, "My bride, the King's desire."Come barren, thirsty, weary child
Drink of Christ, behold His smileExtend your arms to God, lift up your soul
Grace and glory will fill your cup and overflowIn hottest fire, in highest tide
You remain the apple of His eyeThrough every poison dart and arrow
His eye remains on you, o dear sparrowIn the valley of death's shadow, do not fear
Deeper knowledge of Christ comes through suff'ring and tearsRest in the LORD and patiently wait
From anger cease and wrath forsakeBe not afraid, go where Providence calls
He will never leave you, nor let you fallYou know His name, trust in Him alone
He will satisfy, His salvation He will showIn your weakness, let His right hand uphold
He is your Shepherd, you are in His foldDwell with Him amidst the ruthless
Come and eat of His daily faithfulnessLiving stone, carried upon His breast
Here in Baca's valley receive His strengthHid with Christ in the secret place
Covenant mercies will never forsakeCovered with His feathers there
Cast on Him each worry, ev'ry careOn eagle's wings He will surely bear
Deliver you from the fowler's snareTrust in Him, on Christ never fail to rely
Draw near to your God, and He will draw nighCall upon Jesus in time of need
He will never break the bruised reedEat His bread, drink His cup
Behold His beauty, be lifted upThough enemies growl and surround
Sing to the LORD, let your praises aboundThough an army encamps all around
By grace press on, and grace will aboundBy His blood, approach the throne of grace
There you will feel His strong embraceWait for the Beloved's hand on the latch
From His hand no one can ever snatchThough by Shimei you be cursed
Come to Jordan and be refreshed
Psalm 110:7
He will drink from the brook by the way;
therefore he will lift up his head."...whatever poison Satan produces, God turns it into medicine for His elect."
~ John Calvin ~I Peter 2:18 Servants, be subject to your masters with all respect, not only to the good and gentle but also to the unjust. 19 For this is a gracious thing, when, mindful of God, one endures sorrows while suffering unjustly. 20 For what credit is it if, when you sin and are beaten for it, you endure? But if when you do good and suffer for it you endure, this is a gracious thing in the sight of God. 21 For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps. 22 He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth. 23 When he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly.
Romans 12:14 Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. 15 Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. 16 Live in harmony with one another. Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly. Never be conceited. 17 Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. 18 If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. 19 Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” 20 To the contrary, “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.” 21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
Acts 7:59 And as they were stoning Stephen, he called out, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” 60 And falling to his knees he cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” And when he had said this, he fell asleep.
Related:I Peter, Romans 12
Reflections on 9/11: "You have heard that it was said... But I say to you..."
"And they cast him out." (John 9) ~ Providence is not surprised
Learning to run without fear
Kingdom-Obsessed People don't keep looking in the rear view mirror at past hurts, # 5
Bible Reading-Isaiah: When We Think the LORD Has Forsaken and Forgotten Us
The Often Unwanted but Necessary Gift: The Gift of the Broken Heart
All things (even bad things) work together for good...
Lent I.–Suffering and Glory
Our Twisted View of God
The art of life is the art of avoiding pain?
The story of Job: bad luck, God's sovereign will or ?
some reflections about prayer
Bible Reading: II Corinthians 1-Blessings out of buffetings (Alan Redpath)
God's sovereign grace & care in Genesis (the story of Joseph)
Lenten Reflections: "Come near to me, please." (Genesis 45)
Whitefield's prayers: more reminders of God's sovereign grace & care
Are you a Jonah?
Letter 11 on assurance and fighting for joy (the Lord is at hand! - Philippians 4)
Letter 15 on assurance and fighting for joy (Joy is a gift of God, more than a feeling)
Letter 16 on assurance and fighting for joy (our prayers, His wise denials and joy)
Shall we not drink the cup the Father has given us? (Letter 53 on assurance & fighting for joy)
In the multitude of your anxieties, may His comforts delight your soul: Letter 60 on assurance & joy
In the multitude of our anxieties, the Lord's comforts alone delight our souls
What is your attitude toward trials and sufferings? ~ Whitefield's Journals
year end reflections, # 1: "end of the year ... in the midst of heartache" | Letter 97 on joy
year end reflections, # 2: rejoicing in "The Often Unwanted but Necessary Gift" | Letter 98 on joy
disappointment ~ appointment | letter 119 on assurance & fighting for joy
disaster's hidden call
O, this cross! ~ We are but vesselsScripture quotations are taken from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. Copyright ©2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Photo credit: Camera crusade through the Holy Land, C. Scribner's Sons, New York 1912 found at http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Jordan_river_1912.jpg by Dwight Lathrop Elmendorf - Public Domain.
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Comments (2)
My, this is just beautiful! If we would only follow the behavior of David at this point! And God is faithful, who refreshed David and his men afterward.
I know that you are not looking for compliments, but your gift is so amazing! Each couplet is a mirror of something in God's word - and all tied in to the theme of the post! I rejoice with you!
Picking out one thing to take from this post, I'll remember this last from Peter:
but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly.
Thanks for this...
@quest4god@revelife - Thanks, Norm. I really enjoyed writing this in so many senses, and was truly blessed and continue to be blessed by it (including being convicted and rebuked). As I looked at that II Samuel 16 passage a few days ago, I didn't remember that portion about being refreshed, and that was what really took hold of me.
As soon as we look to the Scripture, we're set right as to how we should be holy as God is holy, otherwise, we will be wandering sheep, each going to our own way.
Most all of this is gleaned from the Scripture, with little rephrasings/tweakings. As we were traveling a lot over the past few days, I had time to keep reflecting on it and looking back again and again into the Scripture. I was going to say to you that I began writing it on Friday, which was literally true. But then I was going to say the previous Friday (when I was blessed to awaken with Psalm 37:3a in my head: "Trust in the LORD, and do good," and then a few weeks ago when faced with a challenge to forgive, but really it's the culmination of something I've been "writing" over the past few years (or, rather, what God's Spirit has been writing on my heart), beginning when I could see the LORD carrying and sustaining me through some really difficult circumstances several years back, but then was enabled to forgive and love through His grace. Once again, I'm in great need, and am seeking that refreshing God alone can provide, asking for another filling/baptism of His Spirit to work in me what I cannot do on my own.
Jesus' example in I Peter 2 is one of those Scriptures I continue to go back to over and over again; it's set me right so often and provided me so much comfort – along with the words in the following chapter: you are Sarah's daughters if you "do not fear what is frightening," a passage I'd heard John Piper speak on in person a few years ago.