Rei
“Friendly”
Summary
Rei was one of David's officers who remained loyal to him and refused to join Adonijah's attempted usurpation of the throne.
☩Loyalty to David
Rei is mentioned only in 1 Kings 1:8, where he is listed among those who did not join Adonijah's conspiracy to seize the throne before David's death. He appears alongside Shimei, Zadok the priest, Benaiah, Nathan the prophet, and David's mighty men (the Gibborim) as remaining faithful to the aging king. While Joab the commander and Abiathar the priest supported Adonijah, these loyal supporters stood with David and ensured that Solomon would succeed to the throne as David intended.
☩Uncertain Identity
The identity of Rei remains uncertain. Some scholars have suggested he may be the same as Ira the Jairite, who served as David's priest or counselor. Ewald proposed that Rei might be David's brother Raddai under a variant form of the name. Josephus omitted Rei entirely from his account, instead making Shimei "David's friend," possibly reading the Hebrew differently. If Rei belongs in the text, he was likely an officer of the royal guard whose faithfulness in the succession crisis earned him mention in sacred history.
Related Verses1 mention
1 Kings· 1 verse
References
- 1.John McClintock and James Strong, "Rei," in Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature, vol. VIII (Harper & Brothers, 1867–1887).
- 2.James Orr (ed.), "Rei," in International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, vol. IV (Howard-Severance Company, 1915).
- 3.George Morrish, "Rei," in Morrish's Concise Bible Dictionary (George Morrish, 1898).