2 Samuel 4:4: And Jonathan, Saul’s son, had a son that was lame of his feet. He was five years old when the tidings came of Saul and Jonathan out of Jezreel, and his nurse took him up, and fled: and it came to pass, as she made haste to flee, that he fell, and became lame. And his name was Mephibosheth.
The story of Mephibosheth happened during a change of administration, when David came to power after Saul had been killed in battle. Mephibosheth was also Saul’s grandson through Jonathan. David and Jonathan were the very best of friends, and because of the brotherly love that existed between them, they made a covenant together, that Jonathan’s family would be preserved and protected when David took the throne (1 Samuel 20:14-17).
But Mephibosheth was lame, having been dropped by his nurse at the age of five when she ran off with him after hearing the news of Saul and Jonathan’s death in battle. The nurse feared that David would set about killing off the remaining family of Saul so that there would be no threat of the crown and throne being taken away from him. This woman who got in such a hurry and caused a child to fall and become lame is similar to the first woman in the Bible. It was Eve who got in a hurry and ran ahead of God’s plan, resulting in the fall of man and our being born crippled in sin.
But David was not looking to exterminate any threats to the crown and throne, for he had a confidence that it was God who had brought him to the throne and that God would keep him on the throne. David remembered his covenant with Jonathan and enquired after the welfare of any surviving members of Saul’s family, for he wanted to show grace (kindness) to the house of Saul (2 Samuel 9:3).
Mephibosheth however had been safely hidden away, and his true identity kept a secret from everybody. Mephibosheth was not looking for David, but David was looking for him. This reminds us of God Himself who remembered His unconditional covenant of love to us and reached down the hand of grace to pull us out from a world of obscurity that our true identity might be made known. Grace came forth from the throne of David, even as the grace of God came to us from Heaven.
The whereabouts of Mephibosheth at that time was in Lodebar (2 Samuel 9:5), far away from the presence of the King. “Lodebar” means “pastureless” in Hebrew, and was a small town in Gilead, the surrounding area of which was largely barren, and lacking in fruit and water. It was from such a place that Mephibosheth was brought to stand before the King.
Being the son of a prince, Mephibosheth originally lived in the palace before his nurse ran off with him. But now, he was being brought back to the place where he originally belonged. Furthermore, his being a cripple meant that he could not get himself back to his original estate, so it would take the King to search for him and take him back to the place he originally came from.
As with Mephibosheth, so too were we living in a barren world of sin far from the presence of God. Sin had crippled us so that we could not stand for Truth, and our lives were lacking the water of the Word that produces spiritual fruit. But God came down to us, when we could not go to where He was, and brought us back into His presence, back into fellowship with Him.
When Mephibosheth came into the presence of David, the king addressed him by name (2 Samuel 9:6), and told him not to fear (2 Samuel 9:7). David then rehearsed to him the covenant that he had made with Jonathan and of his intent to keep that covenant. David was bringing back to Mephibosheth’s remembrance that he was of royal blood and that he would no longer have to go back to his former life in Lodebar.
Despite all of David’s goodness, Mephibosheth still saw himself as some lowdown dog (2 Samuel 9:8). Mephibosheth needed his old way of thinking to be broken in order to realize his royal position and conduct himself accordingly. The story of Mephibosheth is one of restoration, from the day that he left the kingdom until the day that he returned. And for us it is the same. Ours is a story of restoration too, that we came from God and that we are going back to God. The message of the hour was sent to locate us and loose us from all fear and bondage, to break our spiritual amnesia in order that we might know who we are in Christ… sons and daughters of God. A royal bloodline!
The story ends with Mephibosheth restored back to the kingdom and seated at the royal dining table as one of David’s sons (2 Samuel 9:11). Not only was he seated at the royal table, but he was dressed like all of David’s sons too. His crippled condition was no longer visible, for his legs and feet were positioned under the table, whilst a napkin covered his lap. And after supper, Mephibosheth could go from the table and explore the palace, reacquainting himself with all its glory like in former times.
We too are the sons and daughters of God regardless of how lowdown and insignificant we see ourselves as. And we have been invited to the banqueting table to feast on the richness of God’s Word whilst robed with same Holy Spirit that all of God’s other children have and sharing the same position in Christ that they have too. It is God’s grace that covers our crippled spots so that we can come to His table with joy and thanksgiving in our hearts for all that He has done for us, and we can explore the wonders of His Kingdom, and rejoice again, just like we did before the foundation of the world (Job 38:7).