2 Samuel 9:7 So David said to him, “Do not fear, for I will surely show you kindness for Jonathan your father’s sake, and will restore to you all the land of Saul your grandfather; and you shall eat bread at my table continually.” [NKJV]
2 Samuel is the work of [probably] more than one prophet speaking for God to a culture dominated by the struggle for power, senseless violence, emotional rebellion and constant conflict. That environment and the gruesome deaths of Saul and Jonathan are events that usher in this interchange between David and Jonathan’s son Mephibosheth. I have struggled in earlier chapters of this book to see past the harsh realities it records to the connections that make 2 Samuel 9 a meaningful path to the New Testament and Christ. I understand Mephibosheth‘s caution. He knows only the fear he’s endured and it wasn’t good. Sometimes reading the Old Testament feels like endurance is the only connection because applications for finding faith in daily life are hard to come by.
This week as I gave my husband my synopsis of 2 Samuel 9 he asked me an important question: where’s Jesus? I couldn’t give an answer but I wanted one. David’s words, “for I will surely show you kindness for the sake of your father” probably seemed too good to be true to Mephibosheth but they sound very much like the words Jesus would speak. I found this commentary by Pastor David Guzik. [click to read]. Mephibosheth knew his security and safety were dependent on his need for the grace only the king could extend to him. Guzik finished his commentary with this.. “We are Mephibosheth…”
We are like Mephibosheth. We are dependent on recognizing our need for the grace of Jesus speaking those same words to us that David spoke “for I will surely show you kindness for the sake of your father.” Recognizing need is where I found Jesus in 2 Samuel 9 this week.
Read and Ponder - Faith in Daily Life 