"And David said unto him (Mephibosheth), Fear not: for I will surely shew thee kindness for Jonathan thy father's sake, and will restore thee all the land of Saul thy father; and thou shalt eat bread at my table continually. And he bowed himself, and said, What is thy servant, that thou shouldest look upon such a dead dog as I am?" (2 Sam. 9:7-8).
David was experiencing the mighty hand of God giving him victory after victory over his enemies. During this time David was so overcome with the goodness and mercy of God that he wanted to show his gratefulness by extending mercy and kindness to someone else. David found Mephibosheth, who was the most seemingly and unlikely person to receive of his goodness, and showered him with blessings. When Mephibosheth was five years old, Saul and Jonathan his father were killed in battle. In those days when a king would die and a new dynasty came into power, the remaing male members of the the royal family were hunted and killed to elimanate a potential rival to the throne. When Mephiboseth's nurse heard of the death of Saul and Jonathan she fled with the child in haste and accidentally dropped him. The fall crippled him for life. Because of his connection to Saul, he lived in virtual isolation and was unable to claim any of his father's inheritance. There didn't seem to be much hope for Mephibosheth until David was moved to show the kindness and goodness of the Lord. Mephibosheth was not seeking for David mercy or had anything to really offer him, but by grace David sought him and brought to sit at the Kings table. The mercy that Mephibosheth experienced is a beautiful picture of the grace and mercy that believers receive when they trust Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and savior. Paul the Apostle wrote, "And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins; Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others. But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus. For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast" (Eph. 2:1-9). When we were alienated from God because of our sin, lost and without hope, the love and mercy of God found a way to redeem our souls. Jesus went to the cross where the wrath of God was poured out on him in our place that we might be reconciled to God to sit at his table in heaven with Jesus for all eternity. Thank God and praise him for the abundant grace and everlasting mercies we receive through faith in the atoning death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
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