unto him, Wherefore wenteſt not thcu with me &, Mephiboſheth ? SES d So it is ſuppoſed, That Mephiboſheth, though he went to mett the King, wanted either Courage, or fir Gpportunity to 1peak to the King till he came to Jerujalem, becauie of the great Multi- rudes that Addreſſed themſelves ro the King by the way. Though it might more reaſonably be thought, that he could not go from Jeruſalem to meet the King, as others did, becauſe he wanted con- veniencies for his Journey ; For Z:ba had gotten a'l his Lands and Goods, Chap; 16. 4. and it is not likely that he, who would net provide him an Aſs to ride on, or to accompany the King at his
departure, would now be haſty to furniſh him with one ro meet che King, to whom he knew he would complain of him, But tie 3D4 Words
Chap. XIX.
* I Sam. -
II: 33.
* i Kings 2: 37, 46.
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f
Chap, X1X. Yn SS 41 M
Words may ſeem to be better rendred thus, when he went ( for ſo the Hebrew Veib ſignifies, Ruth 3. 7. Jonah 1.3.) from ( which Prepoſition is oft underſtood ) Feruſalem. For there he was, Chap. 16. 3. and having continued there, as probably he did, (be- cauſe he wanted an Aſs to convey him elſe-where, and knew not where to be with more ſafety ) he could not properly nor truely be ſaid to have come thither to meet the King. e As Juſtice and Gratitude obliged thee to do.
26. And he anfwered, My Lord, O King, my ſer- vant deecived me f ; for thy ſervant ſaid, 1 will ſaddle me an aſs, that I may ride thereon, and go to the King, becauſe thy ſervant is lame: : |
f By carrying away the Aſs which I bid him ſaddle for me. * Chap. 27 And * he hath flandered thy ſervant unto my 16. 3. lord the King ; but my lord the King is as an angel of
God pg: do therefore what is good in thine eyes. 's To diſtinguiſh between true Reports and Calumnies ; Sec on Chap. 14. 20.
- + Heb. 28 For all'sf my fathers houſe, were but + dead
"ee Yf men before my lord the King h: yer * didft thou ſer *Chia 9.7- thy ſervant among them that did cat at thine own
table: what right therefore have I yet ro cry any
more untothe King 7?
h i.e. Before thy Tribunzl: we were all at thy Mercy; not my Eſtate only ( which thou haſt now- granted to Ziba ) but my Life alſo was in thy Power, if thou hadiſt dealrc with Rigour, and as Earthly Kings uſe to do with their Predeceſſors and Enemies Children; For otherwiſe by the Law of God Sau! himſelf had not deſerved to die by David's hands, as David himſelf confefled : Much leſs his Children, who were not to dye for their Father's Sins, Deut« 24. 16. But Mephiboſbeth ſpeaks like a Courtier, and Ike an Orator, aggravating Matters againſt himſelf, that he might ſeem to juſtifie rhe King's Sentence, and to ſubmit to it; and ſo inſinuate himſelf intothe King's favour. # To wit, for the Vindi- cation of mine Honour, and the Reſtitution of my Eſtate.
29 And the King faid unto him, Why ſpeakeſt thou any more of thy matters & ? I have ſaid /, Thou and
Ziba divide the Land .
k For as Ziba was preſent, ſo doubtleſs he was not ſilent, bur ſaid and did what he could to make good his former Charge ; wh ich muſt needs occaſion many Words before the King, And the King was not now atleiſure for long Debates, and therefore makes an end of the Matter. 1 To wit, within my ſelf; I have contidered the Matter as far as now I can, and upon the whole am come to this Reſolution, whercin I expett that thou and he do both ac- quieſce.. Or, 1 do now ſay, T pronounce this Sentence in the Caule. -» The meaning is either, 1. The Land ſhall be divided between thee and him, as it was by my firſt Order, Chap: 9. 10. He and his Sons managing it, and ſupporting themſelves out of ir, as they did before, and giving the reſt of the Profits thereof to thee. And to this the following words may well enough be accomodated ; Yea, ler him take all; To wit, to his own ſole uſe, Or, 2. The Right and Profits of the Land thall beequally divided between you. It ſeems a very raſh and harſh Sentence, and very unbecoming Dv:a's Wiſdom, and Juſtice, and Gratitude to Jonathan ; and Z:ba ſeems to have deſerved Death for falſly accuſing his Maſter of Treaſon, wather than a Recompence. But the whole Tranſattion of the Matter is not here ſet down» Poſſibly Z:ba might bring plauſible Pretences to juſtifie his Accuſation ; and it might be pretended, That Mephiboſbeth negle&ed the trimming and dreſſing himſelf only in Policy, and that for a ſeaſon, cill David and his Family had de- ſtroyed one another by their civil Wars, and giving him a fit op- portunity to take the Crown. So that David might really be at a Joſs what to determine. And Ziba had given proof of his AffeCGions to David by an A& of Kindneſs which could not be without ha- zard to himſelf, Chap. 16. 1, 2» which Mephiboſheth had not done And poſlibly, this was only a preſent Setence, and David reſolved to examine things more throughly when he had more leiſure, and then to make a more full and final Determination of the Buſineſs ; which alſo he might do, though it be not here Recorded. For we muſt not think, that nothing was done and ſaid abour ſuch things, but what is mentioned in Scripture. Beſides, Ziba being a powerful Man, and the Crown not yet firmly fixed upon the King's head, David might think fit to ſuſpend his final Sentence till a more convenient ſeaſon, and not now to provoke him too much by taking away all his Eſtate from him at once, but to proceed a- gainſt him by degrees: Howſoever, this 1s certain, we cannot paſs a rightJudgement upon this Afftion of David's, unleſs we un- derſtood all the Circumſtances of it, which we cannot pretend to doe.
20 And Mephiboſheth ſaid unto the King, Yea, let him take all, foraſmuch as my lord the King is come again in peace unto his own houſe ».
n I am contented to loſe all, being fully ſatisfied with the hap- pineſs of ſeeing my dear and dread Sovereign reſtored to his Crown, and Truth and Peace returned to his Kingdom,