David and Mephibosheth
1David asked, ‘Is there anyone still left of the house of Saul to whom I can show kindness for Jonathan’s sake?’
2Now 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.
3The 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.’
4‘Where is he?’ the king asked.
Ziba answered, ‘He is at the house of Makir son of Ammiel in Lo Debar.’
5So King David had him brought from Lo Debar, from the house of Makir son of Ammiel.
6When Mephibosheth son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, came to David, he bowed down to pay him honour.
David said, ‘Mephibosheth!’
‘At your service,’ he replied.
7‘Don’t be afraid,’ David said to him, ‘for I will surely show you kindness for the sake of your father Jonathan. I will restore to you all the land that belonged to your grandfather Saul, and you will always eat at my table.’
8Mephibosheth bowed down and said, ‘What is your servant, that you should notice a dead dog like me?’
9Then the king summoned Ziba, Saul’s steward, and said to him, ‘I have given your master’s grandson everything that belonged to Saul and his family. 10You and your sons and your servants are to farm the land for him and bring in the crops, so that your master’s grandson may be provided for. And Mephibosheth, grandson of your master, will always eat at my table.’ (Now Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants.)
11Then Ziba said to the king, ‘Your servant will do whatever my lord the king commands his servant to do.’ So Mephibosheth ate at David’s9:11 Septuagint; Hebrew my table like one of the king’s sons.
12Mephibosheth had a young son named Mika, and all the members of Ziba’s household were servants of Mephibosheth. 13And Mephibosheth lived in Jerusalem, because he always ate at the king’s table; he was lame in both feet.
David viser særlig godhed imod Mefiboshet
1En dag kom David til at tænke på, om der mon stadig var nogle tilbage af Sauls efterkommere, som han kunne vise godhed mod, sådan som han havde lovet Jonatan. 2Der var en mand ved navn Ziba, der engang havde været en af Sauls betroede tjenere. Ham sendte David bud efter.
„Er du Ziba?” spurgte han.
„Ja,” svarede manden.
3Kongen fortsatte: „Er der ikke nogen tilbage af Sauls efterkommere, som jeg kan vise godhed og derved indfri et løfte, jeg har givet for Guds ansigt?”
„Jo, det er der,” svarede Ziba, „der er en søn af Jonatan, men han er lam i benene.”
4„Hvor bor han?” spurgte kongen.
„Han bor i Lodebar hos Makir, Ammiels søn.”
5-6Så sendte kong David bud efter Mefiboshet, Jonatans søn, Sauls barnebarn. Mefiboshet frygtede det værste, og da han kom ind til David, bøjede han sig underdanigt for kongen. 7Men David sagde beroligende:
„Vær ikke bange! Jeg vil behandle dig godt på grund af din far Jonatan. Du skal få al Sauls ejendom tilbage og bo her i paladset!”
8Da bøjede Mefiboshet sig endnu en gang for kongen og udbrød: „Skulle kongen virkelig vise en sådan godhed imod en død hund som mig?”
9Kongen tilkaldte nu Sauls tjener, Ziba. „Jeg har givet din herres barnebarn familiens ejendom tilbage,” forklarede han. 10-11„Det bliver din opgave at bestyre ejendommen og sørge for, at dine sønner og tjenere opdyrker jorden, så den giver udbytte og føde til hans familie. Men Mefiboshet skal fremover bo her i paladset.”
Ziba, der havde 15 sønner og 20 tjenere, svarede: „Jeg skal sørge for at efterkomme kongens ønske.” Og fra da af spiste Mefiboshet regelmæssigt sammen med kong David, og han blev behandlet som Davids egne sønner. 12Mefiboshet havde selv en lille søn, der hed Mika.
Zibas husstand kom altså til at bestyre Mefiboshets ejendom, 13mens Mefiboshet, der jo var lam i benene, flyttede til Jerusalem og tog ophold i kongens palads.
