2 Samuel 9:1-4

4. David's Kindness to the House of Saul, 2 Samuel 9:1-13.

David Seeks Saul's Heirs. 2 Samuel 9:1-4

And David said, Is there yet any that is left of the house of Saul, that I may show him kindness for Jonathan's sake?
2 And there was of the house of Saul a servant whose name was Ziba. And when they had called him unto David, the king said unto him, Art thou Ziba? And he said, Thy servant is he.

3 And the king said, Is there not yet any of the house of Saul, that I may show the kindness of God unto him? and Ziba said unto the king, Jonathan hath yet a son, which is lame on his feet.

4 And the king said unto him, Where is he? And Ziba said unto the king, Behold, he is in the house of Machir, the son of Ammiel, in Lo-debar.

1.

Why was David interested in survivors of Saul's house?

2 Samuel 9:1 Quite often a king would seek out survivors of his predecessor's royal house in order that he might put all of them to death. David's motive was quite different as he made inquiry about any survivors of Saul's house. David knew that Saul's sonsJonathan, Malchi-shua, and Abinadabwere all slain in the battle on Mount Gilboa. Ish-bosheth's head had been brought to him by his assassins, and this was the fourth member of Saul's house to die. David had made a covenant with Jonathan that he would show kindness to any of his house; and so when he was settled in his kingdom, he made inquiry about any survivors. David would probably have spared not only descendants of Jonathan but any other of the house of Saul, for he had made essentially the same covenant with Saul when they parted after David spared Saul's life the first time (1 Samuel 24:21-22).

2.

Who was Ziba? 2 Samuel 9:2

Ziba was a former servant of Saul's who knew about the existence of Jonathan's son, Mephibosheth. The word Ziba is apparently from Semitic stem of a word meaning branch or twig. Since he was Saul's servant, it is reasonable to suppose that he was from the tribe of Benjamin. He had been left behind when Saul went to battle, but had kept a record of the activities of the family.

3.

What had caused the boy's lameness? 2 Samuel 9:3

The nurse, taking care of the five-year-old boy, had dropped him while fleeing from the invading Philistines. This was made clear in 2 Samuel 4:4, but it does not indicate that she was actually carrying him in her arms or on her back. She may have lost her hold on his hand as they were fleeing from the mountains, causing the lad to fall and become permanently injured. The exact nature of the injury is not given, but when David returned from his successful suppression of Absalom's revolt, Mephibosheth said that he had not gone with David because he could not walk. He also said that he had not dressed his feet all the time David was gone (2 Samuel 19:24). Such a circumstance would indicate that his feet had open sores.

4.

Who was Machir? 2 Samuel 9:4

Machir was a former friend of Saul. Mephibosheth had been living in his house. Machir was the son of Ammiel, a resident in the area of Lo-debar. We gather from this fact that Mephibosheth was in his house and from a reference in 2 Samuel 17:27, that he was a man of wealth and prominence. The home was beyond the Jordan, and probably not very far from the Mahanain.