Shimei ( ''Šīmʿī'') is the name of a number of persons referenced in the
Hebrew Bible
The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;["Tanach"](_blank)
''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary''. Hebrew: ''Tān ...
and
Rabbinical literature
Rabbinic literature, in its broadest sense, is the entire spectrum of rabbinic writings throughout Jewish history. However, the term often refers specifically to literature from the Talmudic era, as opposed to medieval and modern rabbinic writ ...
.
*The second son of
Gershon
According to the Torah, Gershon ( he, גֵּרְשׁוֹן ''Gērǝšôn'') was the eldest of the sons of Levi, and the patriarchal founder of the Gershonites, one of the four main divisions among the Levites in biblical times. The Gershonites wer ...
and grandson of
Levi
Levi (; ) was, according to the Book of Genesis, the third of the six sons of Jacob and Leah (Jacob's third son), and the founder of the Israelite Tribe of Levi (the Levites, including the Kohanim) and the great-grandfather of Aaron, Moses and M ...
(; ; ). The family of the Shimeites, as a branch of the
tribe of Levi
According to the Bible, the Tribe of Levi is one of the tribes of Israel, traditionally descended from Levi, son of Jacob. The descendants of Aaron, who was the first ''kohen gadol'' (high priest) of Israel, were designated as the priestly class, ...
, is mentioned in ; ("Shimei" in verse 9 could be a scribal error); and in
Zechariah 12:13. In the New Testament the name occurs in , spelled Semei in the
King James Version
The King James Version (KJV), also the King James Bible (KJB) and the Authorized Version, is an Bible translations into English, English translation of the Christian Bible for the Church of England, which was commissioned in 1604 and publis ...
.
*A Benjamite of
Bahurim
Bahurim (etymology uncertainMcKenzie, John, ''Dictionary of the Bible'', Simon & Schuster, 1995, p77) was a village mentioned in the Hebrew Bible east of Jerusalem, on the road to the Jordan valley, close to the Mount of Olives. Biblical references ...
, son of
Gera
Gera is a city in the German state of Thuringia. With around 93,000 inhabitants, it is the third-largest city in Thuringia after Erfurt and Jena as well as the easternmost city of the ''Thüringer Städtekette'', an almost straight string of cit ...
, "a man of the family of the house of
Saul
Saul (; he, , ; , ; ) was, according to the Hebrew Bible, the first monarch of the United Kingdom of Israel. His reign, traditionally placed in the late 11th century BCE, supposedly marked the transition of Israel and Judah from a scattered tri ...
" (; ). He is mentioned as one of
David
David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...
's tormentors during his flight before
Absalom
Absalom ( he, ''ʾAḇšālōm'', "father of peace") was the third son of David, King of Israel with Maacah, daughter of Talmai, King of Geshur.
2 Samuel 14:25 describes him as the handsomest man in the kingdom. Absalom eventually rebelled ag ...
, and as imploring and winning David's forgiveness when the latter returned. David, however, in his dying charge to
Solomon
Solomon (; , ),, ; ar, سُلَيْمَان, ', , ; el, Σολομών, ; la, Salomon also called Jedidiah (Hebrew language, Hebrew: , Modern Hebrew, Modern: , Tiberian Hebrew, Tiberian: ''Yăḏīḏăyāh'', "beloved of Yahweh, Yah"), ...
, bade him avenge the insult (). Jewish scribes say that Solomon's teacher was Shimei (son of Gera), and while he lived, he prevented Solomon from marrying foreign wives. The Talmud says at Ber. 8a: "For as long as Shimei the son of Gera was alive Solomon did not marry the daughter of Pharaoh" (see also Midrash Tehillim to Ps. 3:1). Solomon's execution of Shimei was his first descent into sin.
[Public Domain Hirsch, Emil G.; Price, Ira Maurice; Bacher, Wilhelm; Seligsohn, M.; Montgomery, Mary W.; toy, Crawford Howell (1901–1906). "Solomon". In Singer, Isidore; et al. (eds.). The Jewish Encyclopedia. 11. New York: Funk & Wagnalls. pp. 436–448.]
*A brother of David, called also Shammah, Shimeah, and Shimea (; ; )
*A friend of King David mentioned in
*Son of Elah, one of Solomon's
prefect
Prefect (from the Latin ''praefectus'', substantive adjectival form of ''praeficere'': "put in front", meaning in charge) is a magisterial title of varying definition, but essentially refers to the leader of an administrative area.
A prefect's ...
s, over the district of Benjamin ()
*A grandson of
Jeconiah
Jeconiah ( he, יְכָנְיָה ''Yəḵonəyā'' , meaning " Yah has established"; el, Ιεχονιας; la, Iechonias, Jechonias), also known as Coniah and as Jehoiachin ( he, יְהוֹיָכִין ''Yəhōyāḵīn'' ; la, Ioachin, Joac ...
and brother of
Zerubbabel
According to the biblical narrative, Zerubbabel, ; la, Zorobabel; Akkadian: 𒆰𒆍𒀭𒊏𒆠 ''Zērubābili'' was a governor of the Achaemenid Empire's province Yehud Medinata and the grandson of Jeconiah, penultimate king of Judah. Zerubbab ...
()
*A grandson of
Simeon
Simeon () is a given name, from the Hebrew (Biblical ''Šimʿon'', Tiberian ''Šimʿôn''), usually transliterated as Shimon. In Greek it is written Συμεών, hence the Latinized spelling Symeon.
Meaning
The name is derived from Simeon, so ...
, who is described as the father of sixteen sons and six daughters, and whose clan dwelt in
Judea
Judea or Judaea ( or ; from he, יהודה, Hebrew language#Modern Hebrew, Standard ''Yəhūda'', Tiberian vocalization, Tiberian ''Yehūḏā''; el, Ἰουδαία, ; la, Iūdaea) is an ancient, historic, Biblical Hebrew, contemporaneous L ...
()
*A
Reuben
Reuben or Reuven is a Biblical male first name from Hebrew רְאוּבֵן (Re'uven), meaning "behold, a son". In the Bible, Reuben was the firstborn son of Jacob.
Variants include Rúben in European Portuguese; Rubens in Brazilian Portugue ...
ite ()
*Levites (; )
*A Benjamite chief who had nine sons (, R. V.; comp. ib. v. 13)
*"The
Ramathite
Ramathite was the designation given to Shimei, the manager of David
David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawit ...
," one of David's officers ()
*A Levite and other Israelites whom
Ezra
Ezra (; he, עֶזְרָא, '; fl. 480–440 BCE), also called Ezra the Scribe (, ') and Ezra the Priest in the Book of Ezra, was a Jewish scribe (''sofer'') and priest (''kohen''). In Greco-Latin Ezra is called Esdras ( grc-gre, Ἔσδρας ...
required to put away their foreign wives ()
*Grandfather of
Mordecai
Mordecai (; also Mordechai; , IPA: ) is one of the main personalities in the Book of Esther in the Hebrew Bible. He is described as being the son of Jair, of the tribe of Benjamin. He was promoted to Vizier after Haman was killed.
Biblical acco ...
().
Family tree
References
*{{JewishEncyclopedia, url=http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp?letter=S&artid=631, article=Shimei
Biblical murder victims
Male murder victims
Book of Exodus people
Tribe of Levi
Tribe of Reuben
Tribe of Simeon
House of Saul