2 Samuel 19:28

28 For my grandfather's entire family deserves death from my lord the king, but you set your servant among those who eat at your table.[a] So what further right do I have to keep on making appeals to the king?"

2 Samuel 19:28 Meaning and Commentary

2 Samuel 19:28

For all [of] my, father's house were but dead men before my
lord the king
Or "men of death" F13; worthy of death, not on account of Saul's persecution, for which his family did not deserve to suffer; rather for the attempt of Ishbosheth to get the kingdom from him, which might be deemed treason, and so the family was tainted for it; though the sense may be only this, that their lives lay at his mercy, and that if he had dealt with rigour and severity towards them, as was usual for princes to do towards the family of their predecessors, who had any claim to the kingdom, put them to death, this would have been their case:

yet didst thou set thy servant among them that eat at thine own table;
which was showing him great kindness, and doing him great honour:

what right therefore have I yet to cry any more unto the king?
to ask any favour of him, or make any complaint to him.


FOOTNOTES:

F13 (twm yvna) "viris mortis", Montanus.

2 Samuel 19:28 In-Context

26 "My lord the king," he replied, "my servant [Ziba] betrayed me. Actually your servant said: 'I'll saddle the donkey for myself so that I may ride it and go with the king'-for your servant is lame.
27 Ziba slandered your servant to my lord the king. But my lord the king is like the Angel of God, so do whatever you think best.
28 For my grandfather's entire family deserves death from my lord the king, but you set your servant among those who eat at your table. So what further right do I have to keep on making appeals to the king?"
29 The king said to him, "Why keep on speaking about [these] matters of yours? I hereby declare: you and Ziba are to divide the land."
30 Mephibosheth said to the king, "Instead, since my lord the king has come to his palace safely, let Ziba take it all!"

Footnotes 1

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