Kindness

15 David reigned over all Israel, doing what was just and right for all his people. 16 Joab son of Zeruiah was over the army; Jehoshaphat son of Ahilud was recorder; 17 Zadok son of Ahitub and Ahimelek son of Abiathar were priests; Seraiah was secretary; 18 Benaiah son of Jehoiada was over the Kerethites and Pelethites; and David’s sons were priests.

David and Mephibosheth

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

2 Now 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.

3 The 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.”

5 So King David had him brought from Lo Debar, from the house of Makir son of Ammiel.

6 When Mephibosheth son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, came to David, he bowed down to pay him honor.

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.”

8 Mephibosheth bowed down and said, “What is your servant, that you should notice a dead dog like me?”

9 Then 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. 10 You 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.)

11 Then Ziba said to the king, “Your servant will do whatever my lord the king commands his servant to do.” So Mephibosheth ate at David’s table like one of the king’s sons.

12 Mephibosheth had a young son named Mika, and all the members of Ziba’s household were servants of Mephibosheth. 13 And Mephibosheth lived in Jerusalem, because he always ate at the king’s table; he was lame in both feet.

Social psychologist Nour Kteily has said, “Many people strip each other of humanity with a shocking lack of self-awareness. . . . Dehumanization silences empathy” (Jamil Zaki, The War for Kindness).

David could have destroyed all of Saul’s family after becoming the king over Israel. But he didn’t.

It’s remarkable that David chose to act with grace instead of malice. As he tried to do “what was just and right for all his people,” David honored his friendship with Jonathan and showed mercy to the house of Saul.

Through a servant of Saul’s household, David learned that Mephibosheth, a son of Jonathan, had survived and that he was lame in both feet.

Showing kindness to Mephibo­sheth must have turned some heads among David’s subjects. People were likely shocked when David restored all of Saul’s land to Mephibosheth and invited him to eat at the king’s table.

In this way David went beyond the boundaries of friendship with Jonathan’s son. Despite his disability and his tarnished pedigree, Mephibosheth was included “as one of the king’s sons.” David showed kindness that went beyond tolerance. David knew what dehumanization had done to him, and he aimed to live God’s way instead.

Lord, prompt me to show kindness to everyone and to do what is right in all my relationships. Remind me of my own need for your grace, and help me show your love to others. Amen.