Verse 6
‘ And Mephibosheth, the son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, came to David, and fell on his face, and did obeisance. And David said, “Mephibosheth.” And he answered, “Behold, your servant!”
If Ziba and Machir had been filled with trepidation Mephibosheth must have been literally terrified. In a king’s language ‘the kindness of God’ could have a number of meanings, not least of which was ominous in that it could be a euphemism for coming death. Whatever he had been told he probably could not bring himself to believe any other than that this summons was bad news. Note the emphasis on the fact that he was the son of Jonathan, who was the son of Saul. That in itself could be sufficient to guarantee his demise. Note also the slow, deliberate build up of the narrative. The tension would also be building up for the hearer when the story was read out. He would know what usually happened to the children of former dynasties. It is not surprising that Mephibosheth flung himself on his face before David.
On the other hand the writer also wants us to know that this was the one that David was seeking, a true Saulide of Jonathan’s house, to whom David was about to show great kindness ‘for Jonathan’s sake’.
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