2 Samuel 9:4

4 And the king said to him, Where is he? And Ziba said to the king, He is in the house of Machir, the son of Ammiel, in Lo-debar.

2 Samuel 9:4 Meaning and Commentary

2 Samuel 9:4

And the king said unto him, where is he?
&c.] In what part of the land, city, or town, does he dwell?

and Ziba said unto the king, behold, he [is] in the house of Machir,
the son of Ammiel;
a descendant of Machir, the son of Manasseh, to whom the land of Gilead was given, which lay on the other side Jordan:

in Lodebar;
a place in that country, perhaps the same with Debir in ( Joshua 13:26 ) . Here it may be his mother's relations lived, and here he might dwell in obscurity, and lie hid from the knowledge of David; who, it might be feared by his friends, would have dispatched him, had he known where he was. Some take it to be an appellative, and render it, as Abarbinel observes, "without anything"; as if he was so poor that he had not anything to support himself with. No mention as yet is made of his name, perhaps because the historian had given it before, ( 2 Samuel 4:4 ) .

2 Samuel 9:4 In-Context

2 Now there was of Saul's people a servant named Ziba, and they sent him to David; and the king said to him, Are you Ziba? And he said, I am.

3 And the king said, Is there anyone of Saul's family still living, to whom I may be a friend in God's name? And Ziba said, There is a son of Jonathan, whose feet are damaged.

4 And the king said to him, Where is he? And Ziba said to the king, He is in the house of Machir, the son of Ammiel, in Lo-debar.

5 Then King David sent, and had him taken from Lo-debar, from the house of Machir, the son of Ammiel.

6 And Mephibosheth, the son of Jonathan, came to David, and falling down on his face, gave him honour. And David said, Mephibosheth. And answering he said, Your servant is here.