Mephibosheth: Villain or Victim

Scripture: 2 Samuel 9, 16, 19

Sermon: Mephibosheth: Villain or Victim

Topics: Advent, forgiveness, Mephibosheth, mercy, deception

Preached: December 2, 2012 pm

Rev. Mike Abma

PREAMBLE

We are now in the season of Advent.

In this season we ponder the coming of Christ into the world.

We consider this king, in the lineage of David.

It is to David that we will go this evening.

Why was he such a celebrated king?

Why did Israel long for a new David to appear?

And why is Jesus David’s greater son?

These will be some of the questions behind our readings this evening.

Tonight we will follow a story – David’s relationship with a person called Mephibosheth.

It is a story that I thought I knew, but in rereading it, discovered that I really did not know it.

It perhaps is a story you also know, or perhaps are clueless about.

Either way, we will read through its 3 chapters.

We will start in 2 Samuel 9.

2 Samuel begins with David trying to solidify his rule.

The backers of Saul’s family fought for years against David’s rule.

But now, finally, David is king of a united Israel.

Jerusalem is his new capital.

It is finally when David has some stability, some security in his rule and reign that we have this story of Mephibosheth.

Each passage could be the basis of a sermon, so I am not going to comment on each passage.

I am simply going to read all three, and give you the context of each.

PART ONE DAVID’S KINDNESS TO MEPHIBOSHETH

2 SAMUEL 9: 1-13

9David asked, ‘Is there still anyone left of the house of Saul to whom I may show kindness for Jonathan’s sake?’

²Now there was a servant of the house of Saul whose name was Ziba, and he was summoned to David.

The king said to him, ‘Are you Ziba?’

And he said, ‘At your service!’

³The king said, ‘Is there anyone remaining of the house of Saul to whom I may show the kindness of God?’

Ziba said to the king, ‘There remains a son of Jonathan; he is crippled in his feet.’

⁴The king said to him, ‘Where is he?’

Ziba said to the king, ‘He is in the house of Machir son of Ammiel, at Lo-debar.’

⁵Then King David sent and brought him from the house of Machir son of Ammiel, at Lo-debar. ⁶Mephibosheth^* son of Jonathan son of Saul came to David, and fell on his face and did obeisance.

David said, ‘Mephibosheth!’^*

He answered, ‘I am your servant.’

⁷David said to him, ‘Do not be afraid, for I will show you kindness for the sake of your father Jonathan; I will restore to you all the land of your grandfather Saul, and you yourself shall eat at my table always.’

⁸He did obeisance and said, ‘What is your servant, that you should look upon a dead dog such as I am?’

9 Then the king summoned Saul’s servant Ziba, and said to him, ‘All that belonged to Saul and to all his house I have given to your master’s grandson. ¹⁰You and your sons and your servants shall till the land for him, and shall bring in the produce, so that your master’s grandson may have food to eat; but your master’s grandson Mephibosheth^* shall always eat at my table.’

Now Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants.

¹¹Then Ziba said to the king, ‘According to all that my lord the king commands his servant, so your servant will do.’

Mephibosheth^* ate at David’s^* table, like one of the king’s sons. ¹²Mephibosheth^* had a young son whose name was Mica. And all who lived in Ziba’s house became Mephibosheth’s^* servants. ¹³Mephibosheth^* lived in Jerusalem, for he always ate at the king’s table. Now he was lame in both his feet.

This is the Word of the Lord

Thanks be to God

David’s Kindness to Mephibosheth

Let me simply let this wonderful story sink in for a moment.

Now we will jump ahead a number of years, perhaps even decades.

David is older.

The Bathsheba scandal has occurred.

David’s life has been filled with family trouble.

And now his family trouble has reached a crisis level.

His son Absalom went to Hebron and had himself crowned as king,

a direct challenge and rival to his father.

David was in Jerusalem at the time and realized that if he stayed there, he probably would be killed.

So he rushes to flee the city, not altogether sure who was for him and who was against him.

It is while fleeing Jerusalem that David meets someone.

Listen:

PART TWO: 2 SAMUEL 16:1-4

16When David had passed a little beyond the summit, Ziba the servant of Mephibosheth^* met him, with a couple of donkeys saddled, carrying two hundred loaves of bread, one hundred bunches of raisins, one hundred of summer fruits, and one skin of wine.

²The king said to Ziba, ‘Why have you brought these?’

Ziba answered, ‘The donkeys are for the king’s household to ride, the bread and summer fruit for the young men to eat, and the wine is for those to drink who faint in the wilderness.’

³The king said, ‘And where is your master’s [Jonathon’s] son?’

Ziba said to the king, ‘He remains in Jerusalem; for he said, “Today the house of Israel will give me back my grandfather’s kingdom.”

’⁴Then the king said to Ziba, ‘All that belonged to Mephibosheth^* is now yours.’

Ziba said, ‘I do obeisance; let me find favour in your sight, my lord the king.’

This is the Word of the Lord

Thanks be to God

Suddenly the picture is getting more complicated.

Mephibosheth appears to be an ungrateful traitor.

But we have one more reading.

This is a short time later.

Where last time David was fleeing for his life from Jerusalem,

now David is returning.

Absalom is dead. The rebellion has been quashed.

And David is at the Jordan river on his way to Jerusalem.

PART THREE

2 SAMUEL 19: 24-30

DAVID AND MEPHIBOSHETH MEET

24 Mephibosheth^* grandson of Saul came down to meet the king; he had not taken care of his feet, or trimmed his beard, or washed his clothes, from the day the king left until the day he came back in safety. ²⁵When he came from Jerusalem to meet the king, the king said to him, ‘Why did you not go with me, Mephibosheth?

^*26He answered, ‘My lord, O king, my servant deceived me; for your servant said to him, “Saddle a donkey for me,^* so that I may ride on it and go with the king.” For your servant is lame. ²⁷He has slandered your servant to my lord the king. But my lord the king is like the angel of God; do therefore what seems good to you. ²⁸For all my father’s house were doomed to death before my lord the king; but you set your servant among those who eat at your table. What further right have I, then, to appeal to the king?’

²⁹The king said to him, ‘Why speak any more of your affairs? I have decided: you and Ziba shall divide the land.’

³⁰Mephibosheth^* said to the king, ‘Let him take it all, since my lord the king has arrived home safely.’

This is the Word of the Lord

Thanks be to God

THE QUALITY OF MERCY

Now things are complicated aren’t they.

Who is telling the truth?

Is Ziba, the servant of Jonathon,

the steward of Mephibosheth’s property,

telling the truth – that Mephibosheth is an ungrateful villainous traitor,

or is Mephibosheth, the lame grandson of Saul,

telling the truth — that Ziba abandoned him in Jerusalem, told lies about him, and that he was the victim.

So what was Mephibosheth? A villain or a victim?

And what was Ziba? A loyal follower of David, or a liar?

Who is telling the truth?

Who deserves David’s good will?

Let me tell you why I am preaching this sermon.

Frederick Beuchner has a delightful book called Peculiar Treasures: A Biblical Who’s Who.

That book has an entry for Mephibosheth.

That entry clearly portrays Ziba, the servant, as the sly one who lies, and Mephibosheth as the helpless disabled victim.

And I assumed that this is what the text said – until I read it again, and again, and again.

The truth is, it is not clear. Not at all.

Jewish scholars differ on it.

Christian commentators differ on it.

What everyone agrees on is that the theme of deception runs all through 2 Samuel.

Those who act as a friend, turn out to be an enemy.

And those who act like an enemy, turn out to be a friend.

Nothing is quite what it appears to be in this book –

perhaps not Ziba’s ready support and supplies for a fleeing David;

perhaps not Mephibosheth’s long toenails, long beard, and smelly clothes

on David’s return.

The story itself leaves things fully open-ended.

Here is what I think is the most amazing thing about this story.

David does not seem to care who is telling the truth.

There is no investigation.

There is no interrogation.

There is no tribunal.

There is nothing.

David says, “Why speak any more of this?”

And then he does something rather spectacular.

He accepts both men back into his camp,

back into his city,

back into his trust.

His mercy grants each of these men half of the property.

Part of us will say, “Hey wait a minute.

One of these guys does not deserve this!

One of these guys is a lying traitor.”

That is true.

But that is the quality of mercy, isn’t it?

The wonder of mercy is not that it is given to the deserving.

The wonder of mercy is that it is given to the undeserving.

LINCOLN

Not having grown up in this country, I have always been rather curious as to why there is such a deep affection for Abraham Lincoln in this country.

Seemingly, regardless of who you are,

regardless of your political perspective,

Lincoln is an admired leader and President.

Why is that?

Could it be his inclination toward mercy?

As President, Lincoln had the power to pardon offenses.

Every biographer agrees that he exercised this power as often as he could.

When General Hooker sent the President an envelope containing the names of 55 different soldiers who had deserted their post – and therefore were guilty of treason punishable by death – Lincoln did not even open the envelope or look at the names. He merely wrote “Pardoned” on the envelope and returned it to General Hooker.

His inclination toward mercy troubled his own cabinet members.

Gideon Wells, his Secretary of the Navy, confided that the President is always disposed to mitigate punishment.

Edward Bates, his attorney General, commented that Lincoln was “unfit to be entrusted with the pardoning power.”

But isn’t it this very inclination toward mercy that has made Lincoln the beloved President that he is?

CONCLUSION

I try to listen to the way people speak and think in our world today.

I listen for the things people say “Amen” to,

and for the things people say are wrong with our world

and what the diagnosis is to correct our world.

For so many, the answer seems to be a more thorough-going meritocracy.

Meritocracy – I know that is a mouthful,

but the pervading thought in a meritocracy

is that only the deserving merit help or aid or mercy.

So, for example,

only financial aid for deserving students,

only help for the deserving poor,

only generosity towards a deserving charity,

only mercy to a deserving model citizen.

Such a world makes eminent sense.

We only get what we deserve.

But this is not the kingdom that Jesus,

the Son of David,

came to bring.

What is it that Jesus brought to this earth?

He brought mercy.

Jesus is God’s mercy among us.

Jesus is God’s pardoning power made flesh and blood.

From his radiant center of truth and grace,

Jesus reaches toward us

in all our need,

whether deserving or undeserving,

whether our lives have been overflowing with virtue,

or whether our lives have been overflowing with flaws,

Jesus reaches toward us in his mercy

and gives us a new start.

Jesus takes the envelope filled with all our shortcomings,

and whether that envelope is filled to overflowing

Or whether it is relatively thin,

Jesus writes Pardoned on that envelope.

Not only that, but he welcomes us into his camp,

He invites us into his city

and trusts us to live according to his kingdom.

His mercy changes everything.

Once we were a people that had not received mercy.

Now we are a people that has received mercy.

And as mercy receivers, we are called to be mirrors of God’s mercy

in this world

Offering love and mercy to those we know love us,

but also, and more importantly,

offering love and mercy to those

who have

all the potential of turning on us,

all the potential of disappointing us

all the potential of deceiving us.

Every time we offer love and mercy

in those risky places

to those risky people

the gospel is made real

and the kingdom…the kingdom of the Son of David comes one step closer.

Amen