We first met Ziba in 2 Samuel 9:2 when David asked whether there were any survivors of the family of his late best friend, Jonathan the son of King Saul. Ziba informed him that Jonathan had one son, named Mephibosheth, who was living in exile in Lo Debar. Mephibosheth was taken to Lo Debar when the Philistines defeated the Israelites in a major battle on Mount Gilboa, killing King Saul and his sons Jonathan, Abinadab, and Malki-Shua. Realizing that Jonathan's son Mephibosheth was now the heir-apparent and that the Philistines would like to kill him as well, Mephibosheth's nurse grabbed the young child up to flee with him, dropping him and causing him a lifelong injury that rendered him lame in both feet. Years passed between the time Mephibosheth received his crippling injury and the time when David became king over all Israel, but by that time David was in a position to reward Jonathan's loyalty to him by bringing Jonathan's son to live like a prince of the royal household. David granted Mephibosheth all the land that had once belonged to King Saul, although David would have been within his rights to have kept the property that belonged to the king who had been his mortal enemy.
As we look at our text today it's important to keep in mind that David granted Mephibosheth all the property rights of King Saul and that he commanded Ziba and his sons and his servants to live on and work the land for Mephibosheth since Mephibosheth was not physically able to work the land himself. Upon receiving these orders, Ziba replied, "Your servant will do whatever the lord my king commands his servant to do." (2 Samuel 9:11a)
As we pick up our study today at the beginning of Chapter 16 we find David, his family, his large band of bodyguards and their families, and his advisors and officials and their families in the wilderness. They have had to vacate Jerusalem to protect the city from falling to Absalom and his men. Ziba takes this opportunity to tell a hurtful lie to David under the guise of rendering him assistance. He tells a lie that slanders and hurts his master Mephibosheth. His only motivation appears to be selfish ambition.
"When David had gone a short distance beyond the summit, there was Ziba, the steward of Mephibosheth, waiting to meet him. He had a string of donkeys saddled and loaded with two hundred loaves of bread, a hundred cakes of raisins, a hundred cakes of figs and a skin of wine." (2 Samuel 16:1) Ziba has gone to a great deal of trouble and expense to quickly gather up and bring these items to refresh David and those with him. On the surface it looks like the act of an unselfish, loyal supporter. "The king asked Ziba, 'Why have you brought these?' Ziba answered, 'The donkeys are for the king's household to ride on, the bread and the fruit are for the men to eat, and the wine is to refresh those who become exhausted in the wilderness.'" (2 Samuel 16:2) David and those with him must have welcomed these supplies. They welcomed them not only for the refreshment it gave them but also for the encouragement Ziba's gift gave them. Here is another person, they suppose, who is on their side.
But Ziba isn't on anyone's side but his own. When David asks him where Mephibosheth---the grandson of Saul---is, Ziba betrays Mephibosheth in order to prosper himself. "The king then asked, 'Where is your master's grandson?' Ziba said to him, 'He is staying in Jerusalem, because he thinks, 'Today the Israelites will restore to me my grandfather's kingdom.'" (2 Samuel 16:3)
Why does Ziba tell such a lie? I think he is not content to keep managing Mephibosheth's estate for him; he wants to own Mephibosheth's estate. He may feel he is entitled to it more than Mephibosheth is, since he and his sons and his servants have done the work of making the land produce crops. He has probably justified this attitude to himself by saying, "What did Mephibosheth ever do to earn or deserve such great land holdings? He was hiding away in Lo Debar and would never have amounted to anything if David had not called for him and granted him King Saul's family property. Mephibosheth has never lifted a finger in the management of his estate. My sons and I and our servants have worked six days a week for years making his land profitable while he sits at the king's table as if he is one of the king's sons. If anyone deserves this land, it's me, not Mephibosheth! What use has Mephibosheth ever been to anyone?" But Mephibosheth can't help it that he's handicapped. And whether or not Ziba thinks Mephibosheth deserves the land, this is not his decision to make. David gifted the land to Mephibosheth and that's who it belongs to. Ziba has no right to it and the only way he can get it is to deceive David into thinking Mephibosheth has turned against him, so he claims, "My master wouldn't come with me to render aid to you and your people. He remained in Jerusalem where he thinks the supporters of the house of Saul are going to take advantage of the situation with Absalom and demand that, instead of Absalom, the people crown Mephibosheth king instead. He sees the unrest in the kingdom as a good opportunity to seize the throne!"
David believes Ziba. I think if he had not been under such emotional duress he would not have fallen for such a lie. But having so many people turn against him in favor of Absalom has made him suspicious of almost everyone. He is discouraged by how many have turned against him and in this discouraged state it's easy for him to believe that the grandson of his former enemy has turned against him too. Most men in Mephibosheth's position would attempt exactly what Ziba claims Mephibosheth is attempting; there's nothing unusual about this type of political intrigue in ancient kingdoms. But such behavior would be unusual for Mephibosheth who is loyal to the man who called him out of obscurity and restored his land and his dignity to him. If David had had time to think about this, and if he had not been experiencing so much sorrow and worry, and if he had been in a position to investigate what's going on in Jerusalem at the moment, he would not have made the mistake he now makes. "Then the king said to Ziba, 'All that belonged to Mephibosheth is now yours.' 'I humbly bow,' Ziba said. 'May I find favor in your eyes, my lord the king.'" (2 Samuel 16:4)
Ziba's feigned humility is sickening. His respectful attitude toward David is just a façade he's erected to hide the greed in his heart. He ought to be ashamed for deceiving the king and for slandering the good name of a man loyal to the king but, even when he's confronted with his lie later on, he will not be ashamed of it. He will stick to his story even when Mephibosheth presents his side of the story, which is that he wanted to saddle up and ride out with David but Ziba prevented him from doing so. David will end up dividing the land between Ziba and Mephibosheth, perhaps because he is unable to determine who he thinks is telling the truth or perhaps due to the shame of having spoken unwisely and bearing some of the blame for the predicament.
I think the lesson to be taken away from today's study is that we must be extra careful about the decisions we make when we're under duress. David is deeply discouraged and he makes a hasty decision he would not have made under other circumstances. Heartbroken that his own son and a number of his own subjects have betrayed him, David allowed himself to be overcome by the attitude that, "Everyone is against me! I can't trust the people I thought I could trust. I have been really good to my children, to my advisors and officials, and to all the subjects of my kingdom. But a lot of them are repaying my goodness with evil. Even Mephibosheth, who I have treated like my own son, is taking this opportunity to betray me."
Things are not always as they seem! It seems as if Mephibosheth has betrayed him, based on his absence during David's flight from Jerusalem and based on Ziba's words. But if David had taken the time to talk to the Lord before making a rash decision regarding the land, the Lord would have warned him not to take Ziba's words and Mephibosheth's absence at face value. The devil likes to kick people when they're already down and that's what he's doing to David: kicking him while he's down in the hopes that David will sin against the Lord. Lest we become too critical of David, it helps us to consider that all of us have probably done what he does in our text today: he makes a decision while he is too hungry, angry, lonely, or tired to think clearly. Have you ever heard of the principle known as "HALT"? The principle of HALT is that we should not make any decisions while we are feeling hungry, angry, lonely, or tired. David is feeling all four of these emotions at once. He is feeling all sorts of other emotions in addition to those. This causes him to fall into the trap of making an unwise decision. Have you ever said or done anything you wouldn't have said or done if you hadn't been experiencing unpleasant physical or emotional circumstances? I know I have, which is why I can't be very critical of David for making a mistake. The best thing we can do is learn from what we've studied today and learn from our own mistakes. Making a mistake is never pleasant but what would be even worse is not learning from it and repeating that same mistake over and over again.
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