Now Mephibosheth had a young son whose name was Mica. All the members of Ziba’s household were Mephibosheth’s servants.

When Mephibosheth son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, came to David, he bowed low with his face toward the ground. ¹  David said, “Mephibosheth?” He replied, “Yes, at your service.” ² 

Mephibosheth was living in Jerusalem, ¹  for he was a regular guest at the king’s table. But both his feet were crippled.

The king said to Ziba, “Everything that was Mephibosheth’s now belongs to you.” Ziba replied, “I bow before you. May I find favor in your sight, my lord the king.”

When he came from Jerusalem to meet the king, the king asked him, “Why didn’t you go with me, Mephibosheth?”

Mephibosheth said to the king, “Let him have ¹  the whole thing! My lord the king has returned safely ²  to his house!”

Now Saul’s son Jonathan had a son who was crippled in both feet. He was five years old when the news about Saul and Jonathan arrived from Jezreel. His nurse picked him up and fled, but in her haste to get away, he fell and was injured. ¹  Mephibosheth was his name.

You will cultivate ¹  the land for him – you and your sons and your servants. You will bring its produce ²  and it will be ³  food for your master’s grandson to eat. ⁴  But Mephibosheth, your master’s grandson, will be a regular guest at my table.” (Now Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants.)

Ziba said to the king, “Your servant will do everything that my lord the king has instructed his servant to do.” So Mephibosheth was a regular guest ¹  at David’s table, ²  just as though he were one of the king’s sons.

When David had gone a short way beyond the summit, Ziba the servant of Mephibosheth was there to meet him. He had a couple of donkeys that were saddled, and on them were two hundred loaves of bread, a hundred raisin cakes, a hundred baskets of summer fruit, ¹  and a container of wine.

Now Mephibosheth, Saul’s grandson, ¹  came down to meet the king. From the day the king had left until the day he safely ²  returned, Mephibosheth ³  had not cared for his feet ⁴  nor trimmed ⁵  his mustache nor washed his clothes.

The king had mercy on Mephibosheth son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, in light of the Lord’s oath that had been taken between David and Jonathan son of Saul.

So the king took Armoni and Mephibosheth, the two sons of Aiah’s daughter Rizpah whom she had born to Saul, and the five sons of Saul’s daughter Merab ¹  whom she had born to Adriel the son of Barzillai the Meholathite.