2 Samuel 9
1 David asked, “Is there anyone still left of the house of Saul to whom I can show kindness for Jonathan’s sake?”
David’s heart is on display here. In chapter 7 he asked what he could do for God, but in this chapter he is showing that he doesn’t only have a deep desire to please God but to take care of others. Out of his deep relationship with Jonathan (1 Samuel 20:14-15), he wants to make sure there aren’t people falling between the cracks of his new administration.
2 Now there was a servant of Saul’s household named Ziba. They summoned him to appear before David, and the king said to him, “Are you Ziba?”
“At your service,” he replied.
3 The king asked, “Is there no one still alive from the house of Saul to whom I can show God’s kindness?”
Ziba answered the king, “There is still a son of Jonathan; he is lame in both feet.”
4 “Where is he?” the king asked.
Ziba answered, “He is at the house of Makir son of Ammiel in Lo Debar.”
5 So King David had him brought from Lo Debar, from the house of Makir son of Ammiel.
In 2 Samuel 4:4 Mephibosheth was gathered up by a nurse as they ran from the royal palace. This is because of the barbaric practice of kings of that era: once a new king was set to take power, the outgoing king’s family was often slaughtered. So once they learned Saul died, the nurse ran off with Mephibosheth and in that flight the boy’s feet were somehow damaged. Ziba, a former servant of Saul, knows this. They are still in hiding.
But they don’t understand who they are dealing with. David is not like the other kings of surrounding nations. Because of God’s kindness (verse3) to him, David wants to extend that same love and grace to others. In this small moment of this passage, we see something very profound: scripture is showing us how we are to treat those around us.
6 When Mephibosheth son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, came to David, he bowed down to pay him honor.
David said, “Mephibosheth!”
“At your service,” he replied.
7 “Don’t be afraid,” David said to him, “for I will surely show you kindness for the sake of your father Jonathan. I will restore to you all the land that belonged to your grandfather Saul, and you will always eat at my table.”
8 Mephibosheth bowed down and said, “What is your servant, that you should notice a dead dog like me?”
Mephibosheth has reason to be afraid. When the king commands you to the royal residence, it is seldom a good thing. Mephibosheth, being formerly of the house of Saul, believes that David has summoned him for his own demise. Even in this moment, Mephibosheth shows David the honor the king demands.
David puts him at ease. Although not expressed in the wording of scripture, the boy was probably visibly shaken and fearful. But according to the covenant David made with Jonathan in 1 Samuel 20, the agreement of protection was not made only for Jonathan but for his descendents. The kindness he wants to extend to Mephibosheth is a rooted in kindness God has shown him, now extended to a person he doesn’t even know, from the house of a former king.
9 Then the king summoned Ziba, Saul’s steward, and said to him, “I have given your master’s grandson everything that belonged to Saul and his family. 10 You and your sons and your servants are to farm the land for him and bring in the crops, so that your master’s grandson may be provided for. And Mephibosheth, grandson of your master, will always eat at my table.” (Now Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants.)
This is a beautiful way that David will provide for Mephibosheth. Because of Ziba’s large family, a huge army of people will work for Mephibosheth’s benefit. Mephibosheth will always eat at the kings table, which means that he will always have a place of prestige in David’s kingdom.
11 Then Ziba said to the king, “Your servant will do whatever my lord the king commands his servant to do.” So Mephibosheth ate at David’s table like one of the king’s sons.
12 Mephibosheth had a young son named Mika, and all the members of Ziba’s household were servants of Mephibosheth. 13 And Mephibosheth lived in Jerusalem, because he always ate at the king’s table; he was lame in both feet.
Because David recognized what God had done for him, there is a marked change in David. He understands the importance of worshipping God in the right way. He understands that the deepest part of worship is relationship. He also understands that he must not hold onto this knowledge but pour it into the kingdom. What David did for Mephibosheth was unprecedented. Instead of wiping out the lineage he made a place for him, upheld his covenant to Jonathan and showed us what the end game is for our relationship: to share our light and love with others.
1 David asked, “Is there anyone still left of the house of Saul to whom I can show kindness for Jonathan’s sake?”
David’s heart is on display here. In chapter 7 he asked what he could do for God, but in this chapter he is showing that he doesn’t only have a deep desire to please God but to take care of others. Out of his deep relationship with Jonathan (1 Samuel 20:14-15), he wants to make sure there aren’t people falling between the cracks of his new administration.
2 Now there was a servant of Saul’s household named Ziba. They summoned him to appear before David, and the king said to him, “Are you Ziba?”
“At your service,” he replied.
3 The king asked, “Is there no one still alive from the house of Saul to whom I can show God’s kindness?”
Ziba answered the king, “There is still a son of Jonathan; he is lame in both feet.”
4 “Where is he?” the king asked.
Ziba answered, “He is at the house of Makir son of Ammiel in Lo Debar.”
5 So King David had him brought from Lo Debar, from the house of Makir son of Ammiel.
In 2 Samuel 4:4 Mephibosheth was gathered up by a nurse as they ran from the royal palace. This is because of the barbaric practice of kings of that era: once a new king was set to take power, the outgoing king’s family was often slaughtered. So once they learned Saul died, the nurse ran off with Mephibosheth and in that flight the boy’s feet were somehow damaged. Ziba, a former servant of Saul, knows this. They are still in hiding.
But they don’t understand who they are dealing with. David is not like the other kings of surrounding nations. Because of God’s kindness (verse3) to him, David wants to extend that same love and grace to others. In this small moment of this passage, we see something very profound: scripture is showing us how we are to treat those around us.
6 When Mephibosheth son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, came to David, he bowed down to pay him honor.
David said, “Mephibosheth!”
“At your service,” he replied.
7 “Don’t be afraid,” David said to him, “for I will surely show you kindness for the sake of your father Jonathan. I will restore to you all the land that belonged to your grandfather Saul, and you will always eat at my table.”
8 Mephibosheth bowed down and said, “What is your servant, that you should notice a dead dog like me?”
Mephibosheth has reason to be afraid. When the king commands you to the royal residence, it is seldom a good thing. Mephibosheth, being formerly of the house of Saul, believes that David has summoned him for his own demise. Even in this moment, Mephibosheth shows David the honor the king demands.
David puts him at ease. Although not expressed in the wording of scripture, the boy was probably visibly shaken and fearful. But according to the covenant David made with Jonathan in 1 Samuel 20, the agreement of protection was not made only for Jonathan but for his descendents. The kindness he wants to extend to Mephibosheth is a rooted in kindness God has shown him, now extended to a person he doesn’t even know, from the house of a former king.
9 Then the king summoned Ziba, Saul’s steward, and said to him, “I have given your master’s grandson everything that belonged to Saul and his family. 10 You and your sons and your servants are to farm the land for him and bring in the crops, so that your master’s grandson may be provided for. And Mephibosheth, grandson of your master, will always eat at my table.” (Now Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants.)
This is a beautiful way that David will provide for Mephibosheth. Because of Ziba’s large family, a huge army of people will work for Mephibosheth’s benefit. Mephibosheth will always eat at the kings table, which means that he will always have a place of prestige in David’s kingdom.
11 Then Ziba said to the king, “Your servant will do whatever my lord the king commands his servant to do.” So Mephibosheth ate at David’s table like one of the king’s sons.
12 Mephibosheth had a young son named Mika, and all the members of Ziba’s household were servants of Mephibosheth. 13 And Mephibosheth lived in Jerusalem, because he always ate at the king’s table; he was lame in both feet.
Because David recognized what God had done for him, there is a marked change in David. He understands the importance of worshipping God in the right way. He understands that the deepest part of worship is relationship. He also understands that he must not hold onto this knowledge but pour it into the kingdom. What David did for Mephibosheth was unprecedented. Instead of wiping out the lineage he made a place for him, upheld his covenant to Jonathan and showed us what the end game is for our relationship: to share our light and love with others.