In our previous chapter we studied many of the military victories of David. The events of our current chapter likely took place after some or all of those victories because we find Mephibosheth, the son of David's late friend Jonathan, is a grown man now. The last time he was mentioned he was only five years old on the day his father Jonathan and his grandfather King Saul were killed in battle.
Jonathan did everything possible to protect David from the murderous King Saul, even though this meant taking David's side instead of taking his own father's side. In return for his friendship toward David, Jonathan asked that David would "not ever cut off your kindness from my family---not even when the Lord has cut off every one of David's enemies from the face of the earth". (1 Samuel 20:15) David made a covenant with Jonathan at that time and now, a number of years later, he is in a position to fulfill it.
"David asked, 'Is there anyone still left of the house of Saul to whom I can show kindness for Jonathan's sake?' 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. 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.'" (2 Samuel 9:1-3) You'll recall that Mephibosheth suffered a debilitating injury on the day Saul and his three oldest sons died in a battle against the Philistines. Mephibosheth's nurse was running away with the five-year-old child because she feared the Philistines would slaughter the whole family of Saul. She fell while carrying him and he was rendered unable to walk from then on. The Bible doesn't describe Mephibosheth's exact injury but it's generally believed it was either a spinal injury or that the smaller bones of his lower legs were broken so badly that they couldn't heal in an era when surgical repair was not possible.
It makes sense that David would not be aware that Jonathan had a son. Mephibosheth was only five years old when Jonathan died, which means he was born during the years David lived in exile. Since the day Mephibosheth's nurse fled Saul's capital city with him, he has been living in a frontier region called Lo Debar in the household of a man named Makir, as we'll soon learn. David has never met or even heard of Mephibosheth until now.
It's interesting to note that when asked if anyone related to Saul is still alive, Ziba doesn't simply say, "Jonathan has a surviving son." Instead Ziba adds, "He is lame in both feet." In my head his reply comes across like this: "Yes, there is one close relative of Saul remaining. It is the son of Jonathan, but he is lame in both feet." I can't help wondering if Ziba thinks Mephibosheth will be of little use to David because of his disability. I feel like Ziba doesn't still expect David to send for Mephibosheth once he learns this information.
The reason I think this is because, in the second half of our chapter tomorrow, it's clear that Mephibosheth considers himself of no use to David. I believe that's because so many people have looked down on him or felt sorry for him. Mephibosheth may be the grandson of the first king of Israel, and he may be the son of one of Israel's greatest army generals and the man who was once the heir-apparent to the throne, but his inability to walk has made people pity him and think of him as less than a man. We've already talked previously about his disability being the probable reason he was never considered a candidate for the throne, although he'd have had a strong familial claim to it. But instead we found Saul's general, Abner, declaring Ish-Bosheth king---a man who could walk but who was very weak of character and unsuited for the role of king. Ish-Bosheth may not even have been a son of Saul's chief wife but the son of a concubine, meaning Mephibosheth had a stronger claim to the throne as the son of Jonathan who was formerly considered the crown prince of Israel. Upon Jonathan's death, Mephibosheth became his successor, but at no time has anyone thought him capable of assuming a position of power due to his disability.
Learning that Mephibosheth is unable to walk doesn't deter David from sending for him. I think it makes no difference to David. It's not as if he sends for Mephibosheth so he can lead a company of soldiers into battle; he sends for him to honor the memory of Jonathan and to keep his promise to him. "'Where is he?' the king asked. Ziba answered, 'He is at the house of Makir son of Ammiel in Lo Debar.' So King David had him brought from Lo Debar, from the house of Makir son of Ammiel." (2 Samuel 9:4-5) David would have shown kindness to the memory of Jonathan even if Mephibosheth's disability had been a devastating brain injury that rendered him incapable of even understanding who David is. David would still have done whatever he could to provide for Jonathan's son and to make sure he got the best of care. He's not sending for Mephibosheth so Mephibosheth can do something for him. He wants to do something for Mephibosheth. Mephibosheth, as we will see, is crippled more in spirit than in body. But David's kindness toward him will change how he sees himself.
This reflects a heart like the Lord's. He called for us even when we were incapable of doing anything for him. What use were we to Him when we were lost in our sins---crippled by our sins? The Lord called for us because He wanted to do something for us. In doing something for us, He changed us for the better. In tomorrow's passage we'll see that when David helps Mephibosheth, he changes him for the better. David's actions reflect a heart like the Lord's because he loves and helps someone who, at this time, doesn't know or love David and is incapable of helping David. In this same way, the Lord called us out of darkness into light in a time when we didn't know Him, didn't love Him, and were of no use to Him. As the Apostle Paul phrased it in Romans 5:8, "But God demonstrates His love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us." The Lord called us while we were still sinners. Then He transformed our lives. David calls for Mephibosheth while he is still crippled in spirit. Then he transforms his life.
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