Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of 1 Kings 2:37
For it shall be, [that] on the day thou goest out, and passest over the brook Kidron, thou shalt know for certain that thou shalt surely die: thy blood shall be upon thine own head.
37. passest over the brook Kidron ] This brook, being between Jerusalem and the Mount of Olives, on that side of Jerusalem where Shimei would go if he wanted to return to Bahurim. Solomon takes the distance in this direction as a measure of bounds within which he must keep himself on every side. For in going afterwards to Gath he of course did not cross the brook Kidron.
thou shalt know ] The Hebrew often uses a future for an imperative. Here it is better to render ‘ Know for certain’ &c. It is so rendered in 1Ki 2:42.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Verse 37. Thy blood shall be upon thine own head.] Thou knowest what to expect; if thou disobey my orders thou shalt certainly be slain, and then thou shalt be considered as a self-murderer; thou alone shalt be answerable for thy own death. Solomon knew that Shimei was a seditious man, and he chose to keep him under his own eye; for such a man at large, in favourable circumstances, might do much evil. His bitter revilings of David were a sufficient proof.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
The brook Kidron; a brook nigh unto Jerusalem, of which see 2Sa 15:23; 2Ki 23:4; which he particularly names, because that was the way to Bahurim, his former and settled habitation: but this is not to be understood exclusively to other ways and places; for the restraint was general, that he should
not go forth thence any whither, 1Ki 2:36, to wit, as far any other way as Cedron was: which also appears from the following history; for when he went to Gath, he went not over Cedron, (which lay eastward from the city,) but westward, as Gath lay.
Thy blood shall be upon thine own head; the blame and guilt of thy blood shall lie upon thyself only.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
For it shall be, [that] on the day thou goest out,…. Out of the city of Jerusalem: and passest over the brook Kidron: which is particularly mentioned, because this lay in his way to Bahurim, his native place; he must cross that to go to it, see 2Sa 15:23; and where it might reasonably be supposed he would some time or another be inclined to go, through business, or a desire to see it again:
thou shalt know for certain that thou shall surely die: it may be depended on as what will be most certainly the case; no reprieve nor pardon will be granted:
thy blood shall be on thine own head; fair warning being given, he could blame none but himself, should he be guilty and suffer.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
37. The brook Kidron This way was probably specified because any attempt of Shimei to escape would be quite likely to lead him first in the direction of his home, which lay beyond the Kidron.
Thy blood upon thine own head A common expression to denote the punishment of death. Compare marginal reference.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
“ For on the day you got out, and pass over the brook Kidron, know you for certain that you will surely die. Your blood will be on your own head.”
And he was warned that on the day that he left Jerusalem he ‘would surely die’. He could thus be in no doubt of the situation. As Solomon warned him, if he did so ‘his blood would be on his own head’. He was especially warned against crossing the Wadi Kidron, which would mean that he was going in the direction of Benjaminite territory.
1Ki 2:38
‘ And Shimei said to the king, “The saying is good. As my lord the king has said, so will your servant do.” And Shimei dwelt in Jerusalem many days.’
There was nothing unreasonable about this in view of Shimei’s reputation as a curser of the house of David, as he himself acknowledged. He might well have been relieved that he was being treated so mildly. And he agreed that as the king’s servant he would do what the king commanded. Thus he dwelt in Jerusalem many days, no doubt being well provisioned by his family from his own lands. ‘The saying is good’ was an official acceptance of the covenant being made with him.
1Ki 2:39
‘ And it came about at the end of three years, that two of the servants of Shimei ran away to Achish, son of Maacah, king of Gath. And they told Shimei, saying, “Look now, your servants are in Gath.” ’
But then after about three years news was brought to him that two of his bondsmen had run away to Achish, the king of Gath, no doubt seeking refugee status as David had before them. But unlike David they did not have six hundred mercenaries at their command. Thus they were vulnerable to extradition. It was common practise for a grandson to be given the same name as his grandfather, and this Aachish was probably the grandson of the one known to David, Maacah being a common name in Philistia, especially among royalty.
A number of examples are known of the extradition of bondsmen who had fled to another country, although not usually if they had fled back to their own homeland. The Ugaritic texts tell of a charioteer of the king of Ugarit who had absconded to Alalakh, for whom the king requested extradition. Israel were, however, according to the Law of Moses, to refuse to extradite bondslaves who had fled to Israel, no doubt on the grounds that Israel had themselves been bondslaves in Egypt (Deu 23:15-16).
1Ki 2:40
‘ And Shimei arose, and saddled his ass, and went to Gath to Achish, to seek his servants, and Shimei went, and brought his servants from Gath.’
To be fair to Shimei he probably felt that it would require all his authority as head of his family (and possibly his clan) in order to influence Aachish, and he no doubt took a sweetener with him. So he saddled his ass and set off himself for Gath in order to get back his bondservants, possibly thinking that as he did not intend to go near Benajaminite territory his action would be acceptable. Time can easily dim the seriousness of a requirement and he had been living in Jerusalem without harassment for three years. He may well have hoped that his absence would not be noted. And once he had obtained the return of his bondservants he no doubt felt that he had been justified. But his action was very foolish given the seriousness of his position.
1Ki 2:41
‘ And it was told Solomon that Shimei had gone from Jerusalem to Gath, and was come again.’
Meanwhile Solomon learned (possibly through his intelligence system) that Shimei had left Jerusalem, had visited Gath, and had then returned. We can immediately understand what effect that news would have on Solomon. A known and influential troublemaker had gone to visit the king of a country which in the past had only caused trouble for Israel. It was a recipe for disaster.
1Ki 2:42
‘ And the king sent and called for Shimei, and said to him, “Did I not adjure you by YHWH, and protest to you, saying, ‘Know for certain, that on the day that you got out, and walk abroad anywhere, you will surely die?’ and you said to me, ‘The saying that I have heard is good.’ ”
Consequently king Solomon called for Shimei and reminded him of how he had adjured him in the name of YHWH not to leave Jerusalem, and had declared that if he did so he would surely die. And furthermore that Shimei had consented to this requirement as ‘good’, a formal way of accepting a covenant.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
1Ki 2:37 For it shall be, [that] on the day thou goest out, and passest over the brook Kidron, thou shalt know for certain that thou shalt surely die: thy blood shall be upon thine own head.
Ver. 37. And passest over the brook Kidron. ] The black brook, the town ditch: this was between Jerusalem and Bahurim, Shimei’s inheritance. He might do much hurt among his Benjamites; and is therefore kept from them. We must also set bounds to our affections, and threaten them if extravagant.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
on the day. Same as Gen 2:17. Here several days must have elapsed.
shalt surely die. Figure of speech Polyptoton. App-6. Hebrew “a dying thou shalt die”, as in Gen 2:17.
thine own head = thyself, “head” being put by Fig, Synecdoche (of the Part) for the whole person. App-6. See note on 1Ki 2:9.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
over the: 1Ki 15:13, 2Sa 15:23, 2Ki 23:6, 2Ch 29:16, Jer 31:40, Joh 18:1, Cedron
thy blood: 1Ki 2:31, 1Ki 2:33, Lev 20:9, Jos 2:19, 2Sa 1:16, Eze 18:13
Reciprocal: Gen 2:17 – surely 2Sa 19:23 – Thou shalt Eze 33:4 – his blood
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
1Ki 2:37. In the day thou passest over the brook Kidron, &c. Which Solomon mentions, because it was in the way to Bahurim, where Shimeis former and settled habitation was, as appears by comparing 2Sa 15:23, with 1Ki 16:5. But Solomons meaning was, and so, no doubt, was understood by Shimei, that if he went out of Jerusalem any way, to a greater distance than Kidron was from thence, he should die for it; for when he went to Gath, after his servants, he went not over Kidron, but the direct contrary way, that city lying westward of Jerusalem, as Kidron did eastward. Thy blood shall be upon thine own head The blame and guilt of thy blood shall lie upon thyself only. In other words, his death should be owing to himself only, as the condition of his holding his life was known to him and accepted by him, as appears from the next verse.