I have always considered Mephibosheth to be a somewhat spineless, snivelling, grovelling, servile creature, very willing to use his disabilities as an excuse for inaction. However I have decided to review his character in the light of the 2022 convention where he is presented as being an inspirational pursuer of peace.
In brief, the story goes that in wanting to honour an offspring of Saul (I would have thought that his wife Michal would have been a better starting point!), David sought, discovered and extended great kindness to this son of Jonathan (not to be confused with an uncle of the same name). This particular Mephibosheth was a cripple, lame in both feet due to a childhood accident. David provided him with a home, as much food as he could eat and restored to him his father’s estate along with the services of a personal attendant, Ziba.
In time, Absalom did his thing, David fled and Ziba appeared with generous supplies, whereas Mephibosheth was conspicuous by his absence. Surely, someone so unexpectedly well-treated would want to display loyalty in return. Ziba’s explanation was that he had stayed in Jerusalem just in case David was defeated and that the royal lineage would return to the House of Saul. With the failure of the conspiracy David began his return to Jerusalem from across the river. On reaching the Jordan, many had rushed and hurried there to escort him home – including Mephibosheth. David rightly asked ‘Why did you not go with me, Mephibosheth?’ Clearly David felt that he was capable of the journey. The answer provided was that he had been tricked and slandered by Ziba, whose loyalty to David had been rewarded with the bestowal of Mephibosheth’s estate. Did David then reverse this earlier decision? No. He split the inheritance between them. And did Mephibosheth object? This is where his putative peace-pursuing qualities came to the fore. He meekly accepted the situation and showed gratitude to the king.
Nevertheless, there is so much in this account that the author leaves to the imagination, so many questions unanswered.
Was there some truth in Ziba’s statement? Did Mephibosheth secretly hope for the throne? Perhaps his disability had prevented him from travelling with Ziba and David. Or was it just an excuse? We know that it most certainly did not prevent him getting to the Jordan to meet the now undisputed monarch. Why was the king so willing to accept Ziba’s account at face value? Admittedly he was on the run so verification was unlikely to be a priority, but even so! Mephibosheth claimed to have been tricked. Was he genuinely tricked or was he a naïve, gullible, easily led sort of chap? We are told that he did not care for his feet, clothes and garments whilst the king was away. This suggests that he really was mourning the absence of the king. And upon meeting his lord he makes a rather obsequious speech in his defence to which David responds in an irritated manner ‘Why keep on speaking like this?’ Was David irritated at himself for not having checked the facts or irritated with Mephibosheth for being spineless? Was Mephibosheth a pursuer of peace or had he been hedging his bets? Why did David not return his whole inheritance upon hearing his justification? Was it fair for Ziba to be rewarded with half an inheritance if he was genuinely guilty of slander? Perhaps both men were culpable in being economical with the truth!
The answer is that we may never know. We are tantalised with the bare bones of a story into which we can delve and wonder. Mephibosheth did deal with situation in a peaceful manner, whether through choice or by force of circumstances – he was in a hole and decided to stop digging. Herein lies an indisputable lesson for us, irrespective of the answers.
As instructed by Paul in his first epistle to the Corinthians, it is better to be wronged and defrauded than to take legal action against our brothers to gain some material advantage or to correct an injustice (1 Corinthians 6:7). At Romans 12:17 he instructs us to return evil for evil to no one. Similarly at 1 Thessalonians 5:15 - ‘see that no one renders injury for injury’. Peter goes even further in his first letter. At 3:9 he tells us to not only not pay back injury, but additionally, to bestow a blessing. The model is, of course, our Lord who did not go insulting and threatening in response to such treatment (2:23). And he was absolutely innocent at that! When we are slandered and insulted by those of Satan’s world, it is easier to shrug it off, turn the other cheek, walk away. We do not expect anything better. That is not to say that it is wrong to make use of the various authorities set up to provide protection against the unscrupulous. We do not have to be victims and martyrs. But what if that defamation and misrepresentation comes from within the congregation, even perhaps from among the body of elders? As spiritual people we are expected to handle the matter according to the law of the Bible. We should never be tempted to air our dirty linen in public view of this world, expecting its legal system to resolve matters that should never have arisen at all. Let us handle our differences in a spirit of love and pursue peace within the congregation. If we can’t, what sort of a witness is that? It is already a defeat for us (1 Corinthians 6:1-8). Please note that I am not referring to criminal acts, transgressions against the law of the land. If any of our brothers do go along this road, they must be held accountable to the superior authorities that Jehovah allows to exist. We must not shield them.
Whatever we take from this account we must be firmly convinced that Jehovah sees all injustice, he truly knows every heart (1 Kings 8:39) and we have faith that He will resolve all injustice in his own due time. Vengeance is mine, says Jehovah. I will repay. In the meantime we keep the peace, remain loyal to Jehovah, and never retaliate against those who would disturb our peace.
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