After David had been king for a while and had settled in
securely, he evidently remembered the covenant that he had made with Jonathan.
So, he inquired whether there were any surviving relatives or descendants of
Saul remaining. Wonderfully, there was one of Saul's grandsons, Mephibosheth
(Jonathan's son), who was still alive. We were introduced to him back in II
Samuel 4:4. Remember, he was crippled at age 5 on the same day that his father
had died in battle.
Now, David desired to "show
the kindness of God unto him" (II Samuel 9:3). But, Mephibosheth was
doubtlessly somewhat afraid of what David might have had in mind for him (II
Samuel 9:6 & 7). He had nothing to fear though. David gave him all that had
belonged to his grandfather, King Saul, and he gave him a place at his own
royal table. Neither Mephibosheth's family name nor his lameness hindered David
from caring for him or from showing him kindness and generosity.
There is a remarkable correlation between Mephibosheth's plight
and ours. Before God showered His saving grace upon us we were the offspring of
a defeated king, Satan. We were helpless and weak. We were powerless and at
God's mercy. And yet, for no reason other than His own good nature and
character, and in keeping with a promise that he had made to our ancestor
Abraham, God reached down to us and exalted us to sit at His table beside His
only begotten Son, Jesus. It is a story of compassion and generosity. It is a
story about how God has taken the initiative in bringing us to a place of royal
fellowship; a place to which we could never have attained by our own attempts,
no matter how noble or diligent.
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