Solving disputes
Good Morning Brothers and Sisters,
2 Samuel 16:1–4 (NASB95)
1 Now when David had passed a little beyond the summit, behold, Ziba the servant of Mephibosheth met him with a couple of saddled donkeys, and on them were two hundred loaves of bread, a hundred clusters of raisins, a hundred summer fruits, and a jug of wine. 2 The king said to Ziba, “Why do you have these?” And Ziba said, “The donkeys are for the king’s household to ride, and the bread and summer fruit for the young men to eat, and the wine, for whoever is faint in the wilderness to drink.” 3 Then the king said, “And where is your master’s son?” And Ziba said to the king, “Behold, he is staying in Jerusalem, for he said, ‘Today the house of Israel will restore the kingdom of my father to me.’ ” 4 So the king said to Ziba, “Behold, all that belongs to Mephibosheth is yours.” And Ziba said, “I prostrate myself; let me find favor in your sight, O my lord, the king!”
I consider this to be a confusing passage because it appears that Ziba tries to garner David’s favor through deceit. He claimed that Mephibosheth stayed behind in hope that he would be restored to the throne of his father. David took him at his word rewarding him with the land of Mephibosheth.
Turn back in your Bible to 2 Samuel 9 for a moment. Ziba was the one who named Mephibosheth as the surviving grandson of Saul. He was then assigned to take care of Mephibosheth and to be the manager of his estate. Mephibosheth received all of the land that had belonged to his grandfather, Saul. To this point, Ziba appears to be a true servant and a follower of David. He has been trustworthy to this point.
Suppose that his report of the statement of Mephibosheth was true regarding his hope for gaining the throne. Think about it. Absalom gained the throne through deception. I am certain that Mephibosheth saw through the deception that Absalom used. It is possible that he hoped the Saul sympathizers would overthrow Absalom and put him back on the throne. I feel that it is highly likely that Ziba was telling the truth. Ziba had it made working for Mephibosheth. He was living on the estate of the former king. I do not see him gaining anything by slandering his master. It would have been possible for David to have ordered the death of Mephibosheth and Ziba would have been out of a job. We also do not see Ziba trying to get Mephibosheth’s estate. David awarded the land to him without being asked.
Let’s fast forward for a moment and look at the later incident when David returns.
2 Samuel 19:24–30 (NASB95)
24 Then Mephibosheth the son of Saul came down to meet the king; and he had neither cared for his feet, nor trimmed his mustache, nor washed his clothes, from the day the king departed until the day he came home in peace. 25 It was when he came from Jerusalem to meet the king, that the king said to him, “Why did you not go with me, Mephibosheth?” 26 So he answered, “O my lord, the king, my servant deceived me; for your servant said, ‘I will saddle a donkey for myself that I may ride on it and go with the king,’ because your servant is lame. 27 “Moreover, he has slandered your servant to my lord the king; but my lord the king is like the angel of God, therefore do what is good in your sight. 28 “For all my father’s household was nothing but dead men before my lord the king; yet you set your servant among those who ate at your own table. What right do I have yet that I should complain anymore to the king?” 29 So the king said to him, “Why do you still speak of your affairs? I have decided, ‘You and Ziba shall divide the land.’ ” 30 Mephibosheth said to the king, “Let him even take it all, since my lord the king has come safely to his own house.”
Mephibosheth in this story appears to have been ditched by Ziba. His story is good to a point. With an estate the size of Saul’s, was Ziba the only servant that worked the land? Was the few donkeys that he took along with him the only donkey’s that were available for Mephibosheth to ride on? The last point is that David decided to divide the land between the two men. He changed his mind about awarding the entire estate to Ziba, and did not restore it to Mephibosheth. It is rather confusing. Someone here is not telling the truth. David did not waste time trying to get to the bottom of the problem. Later David conceded to have seven of Saul’s sons hanged and spares Mephibosheth in an agreement with the Gibeonites (2 Sam 21:1-8).
In the end, we do not know who was telling the truth. David solved the problem by equally splitting the land between the two men. There are times when we simply must recognize that we cannot get the right answer and to move on with life. In our society, therapists make a fortune at trying to get to the bottom of problems. They throw their patients into tremendous turmoil as they rake over the coals of the client’s lives. In the end, David’s approach may be better. Let God be the judge. Perhaps this passage would be similar to business partners who have a falling out and divide the company. Or it could be any relationship where two parties are opposing each other and each feel that they are right. Divorce comes immediately to mind, although I feel that the havoc wreaked by it is one of the penalties of sin. The brutal disagreements that take place often end up with divided assets. It doesn’t make the sin of divorce right, but it does offer an immediate solution to the problem. Life goes on; trying to get a right answer is not always possible. Getting to the bottom of the problem often is skewed by the one making the better argument, not necessarily the most truthful.
I am going to close here. If you have thoughts on this passage, write in.
Father, as we consider conflicting stories in the scriptures, draw each of us to the throne so that You are King in our lives.
In Him,
Joe Turner.