The Lord is able to take evil and with it achieve good
2 Samuel 16:5-14
5 As King David approached Bahurim, a man from the same clan as Saul’s family came out from there. His name was Shimei son of Gera, and he cursed as he came out. 6 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. 7 As he cursed, Shimei said, ‘Get out, get out, you murderer, you scoundrel! 8 The Lord has repaid you for all the blood you shed in the household of Saul, in whose place you have reigned. The Lord has given the kingdom into the hands of your son Absalom. You have come to ruin because you are a murderer!’
9 Then Abishai son of Zeruiah said to the king, ‘Why should this dead dog curse my lord the king? Let me go over and cut off his head.’
10 But the king said, ‘What does this have to do with you, you sons of Zeruiah? If he is cursing because the Lord said to him, “Curse David,” who can ask, “Why do you do this?”’
11 David then said to Abishai and all his officials, ‘My son, my own flesh and blood, is trying to kill me. How much more, then, this Benjaminite! Leave him alone; let him curse, for the Lord has told him to. 12 It may be that the Lord will look upon my misery and restore to me his covenant blessing instead of his curse today.’
13 So David and his men continued along the road while Shimei was going along the hillside opposite him, cursing as he went and throwing stones at him and showering him with dirt. 14 The king and all the people with him arrived at their destination exhausted. And there he refreshed himself.
We are surrounded by sin every day in this world. We are sinful beings living in a broken world, engulfed in the temptations of evil. However, if we believe and love the word of the Lord and we have our hearts set on the Lord we will be able to ground ourselves and make ourselves aware of the light of God’s purposes within evil doings.
In this passage Shimei is hurling curses and rocks at King David claiming that God had said to curse and bring comments of hatred on to him (v 8). Shimei was a man of Saul’s house angered by the sight of David. He continues to curse David (v 13).
Shimei’s motivations and actions were wrong and he realizes this later. However, David knew the consequences of his wrong doings and in this situation could see the Lord’s purposes in using evil doings. The Lord is able to take evil and with it achieve good (Genesis 50:20 and Acts 2:23). David knew God’s heart and the consequences of his sin, so he knew that the act of Shimei cursing at him was from God’s purpose, not just Shimei’s hatred.
David’s reaction was something unexpected (v 11-12). He was able to be compassionate towards Shimei even as he was hurling rocks and insults. I wonder what my initial reaction in that situation would be. Even knowing God and the consequences of my sin I would be angered and want to act in a similar way to Abishai who wanted to cut off his head (v 9).
In our own lives as we are surrounded by evil doings, people cursing with insults and hatred. If we believe in God’s compassionate, merciful heart and sovereignty, we will be able to see God’s light through the evil. Firstly, we need to open our eyes to our own wrong doings and see what God is telling us to do about our sinful habits and then ground ourselves in our relationships with him. Then we will be able to see the light of God’s purposes shining within all, even some sinful wrong doings. And in doing so we should strive to react to situations like this passage that may occur in our lives as David did and not as Abishai.
Head: Reflect on the passage and think about the reaction that David had in this situation. How did he react to this situation knowing the consequences of his own sin?
Heart: Would you react the same way the David reacted in this situation?
Hands: What are practical habits that you can implement that will help you see the light of God’s purpose in your life
Prayer:
Dear Heavenly Father,
I’m sorry for my sinful habits, I pray that you may open my eyes to see the you working good through evil.
In Jesus Name Amen
A song to listen to: Cornerstone
Maria-Grace Iles
Living Church Creek Road