๐ 2 Samuel 9 : ๐ David the King, Who Sought Out the House of Saul, Not Just Jonathan
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๐ What was chapter 8 about?
Last time, chapter 8 ➔ recorded how the LORD gave David victory wherever he went.
- As David won battles in every direction of the land of Canaan, his fame grew,
- and the chapter shows the blessing the LORD God promised in chapter 7 being fulfilled.
๐ 2 Samuel 9 : ๐ David the King, Who Sought Out the House of Saul, Not Just Jonathan
๐ David searches for those left of Saul's house, not only Jonathan's people
In verse 1 ➔ David looks for anyone left of the house of Saul.
- What matters here is that he seeks the house of Saul, not just the house of Jonathan! (๐)
- Saul had tried so hard to kill David, yet David looks for someone left of Saul's house.
- This verse shows David's true character.
- Of course, the text does record that he shows kindness for Jonathan's sake.
๐ The Family Tree of Saul's House
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[Family Tree of King Saul]
1. Children of Saul and Ahinoam
- Eldest son Jonathan: father of Mephibosheth (killed in the battle at Mount Gilboa)
- Grandson Mephibosheth: Jonathan's son. He became lame in both feet as a child, and later was invited to David's table.
- Great-grandson Micah: Mephibosheth's son
- Grandson Mephibosheth: Jonathan's son. He became lame in both feet as a child, and later was invited to David's table.
- Second son Abinadab & third son Malki-shua: killed at Mount Gilboa together with Jonathan
- Fourth son Ish-bosheth (Eshbaal): became the interim king of Israel after Saul died, but was assassinated
- Elder daughter Merab: was almost married to David, but Saul broke his promise and gave her to another man
- Younger daughter Michal: David's first wife
2. Children of Saul and his concubine Rizpah
- Son Armoni
- Son Mephibosheth: shares the name with Jonathan's son
๐ David keeps his promise to Jonathan
Jonathan's words: When the LORD has cut off every one of David's enemies from the face of the earth, do not ever cut off your kindness from my house. (1 Samuel 20:15)
1. David finds a servant of Saul's house, who tells him that Jonathan has a son, and that he is lame in his feet.
- The last verse: Mephibosheth always ate at the king's table, lived in Jerusalem, and was lame in both feet.
2. David gave Jonathan's son everything that belonged to Saul's house, and yet…
- Along with Saul's land, Ziba, who had been Saul's servant, together with his fifteen sons and twenty servants, came to serve Mephibosheth.
๐ Where Mephibosheth was staying ➡️ the house of Machir son of Ammiel, at Lo-debar (verse 4)
The house of Machir was in Gilead, according to Scripture ๐ ➔ (the people of Gilead were the ones who recovered Saul's body)
- The descendants of Machir son of Manasseh went to Gilead and took it. (Numbers 32:39)
- Moses gave Gilead to Machir son of Manasseh, and he lived there. (Numbers 32:40)
- Machir, the firstborn of Manasseh, the father of Gilead, received Gilead and Bashan because he was a man of war. (Joshua 17:1)
๐ Mephibosheth was five years old when Saul died. His nurse picked him up and fled, but he fell and became lame. (2 Samuel 4:4)
➔ The place his nurse fled to may well have been Gilead. (๐)
✔️ Scripture introduces Machir as a great warrior's household.
✔️ That Machir is named first in the casting of lots for the tribe of Manasseh in Joshua 17:1 means he was a great family, since the most prominent person is recorded first. (A family prominent enough to protect Manasseh on Saul's behalf.)
๐ Picturing the Meeting of David's Wife Michal and Her Nephew Mephibosheth
What would this meeting have weighed on Michal's heart?
It is hard to gauge.
At the battle of Gilboa, Michal lost her father Saul and her brother Jonathan all at once, and went through the tragedy of her family's downfall. She was brought to the City of David by David and lived there as queen, but she mocked David when he brought up the ark of the covenant, and so drew his anger.
Then one day, what would she have felt on seeing, in the face of the young man at the king's table who was lame in his feet, the image of her brother Jonathan?
- His movements were not normal; he was lame in both feet…
I think there was more sorrow than joy in meeting her nephew, and it must have been a heartbreaking scene.
Closing Thoughts
๐ The Bible's record is truly remarkable
- It records precisely that Mephibosheth was brought from (the house of Machir son of Ammiel, at Lo-debar)!
- And the record of what this man Machir did was already written down beforehand!
๐ The AIs that nitpicked and then realized the record has no problem
Haha, the two AIs in the contest picked at the "house of Machir," saying it was only an inference…
And then they admitted that, apart from the Machir I had posted, there is no other Machir…
- They acknowledge that the Machir–Gilead connection is a solid treasure of this chapter.
✔️ Because what I posted, though an inference, was proof resting on three records that make it certain.
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