The Sunday News
Itai Chapunza
2 Samuel 9:6-7
When Mephibosheth son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, came to David, he bowed down to pay him honour. David said, “Mephibosheth!” “Your servant,” he replied. “Don’t be afraid,” David said to him, “for I will surely show you kindness for the sake of your father Jonathan.
I will restore to you all the land that belonged to your grandfather Saul, and you will always eat at my table.” Today, it is very easy to maintain a relationship with a friend. The technology makes it unbelievably easy.
Distance is not a hindrance because no matter where the friend is, they are just a flight away. You can speak easily to them in seconds through social media platforms.
The amazing part is that, even though our generation has all these things to aid our communication, we seem to be finding it harder than previous generations to have lasting relationships with our friends. Our parents could go for years without seeing a childhood friend yet continue to call them a friend.
The friendship that David and Jonathan had became a source of aid to Mephibosheth long after his father had died. David says to him, “I’m showing you kindness for the sake of your father Jonathan.” No other reason, only that Jonathan was his friend, David was a good friend of Jonathan.
I like to think that David was moved by the love he had for his friend. A friend fathers your children even when you are unable to do it yourself. He says “I will restore to you all the land that belonged to your grandfather Saul,” land speaks of inheritance. Normally an inheritance of children is bestowed on them by the father.
When the father is no more and he did not get the opportunity to transfer the inheritance to his children, the friend is in the best position to do so. A friend knows your heart, so he knows what to give to which child. A friend should know your heart.
Because friends discuss things, a friend knows what inheritance you would want given to each child specifically. Land also speaks of wealth transfer. If the land is an inheritance, then it is transference of wealth. The land could have properties on it, the land could have had wells and minerals, the land could have been in strategic places of influence.
Land was a significant wealth transfer. Let’s not forget, Saul was a king, so if David says I’m giving you the land that belonged to your grandfather, this was a lot of land. Land fit for a king. Now Jonathan’s son starts his life from a vantage point.
He does not have to build from scratch, but where his father had reached, he would use that as his take off point. Because of the friendship of Jonathan and David, Mephibosheth now had land that was of king class.
David says to Mephibosheth “and you will always eat at my table”. Eating at the table of David speaks of many things. It means fellowship. The king had given his friends’ son the right to be fathered by him.
A father provides for his family. If one sits at the table of the king, it means the king is providing for you. Mephibosheth was no longer an orphan because his father had died. He was now the son of King David.
He had opened the door to be mentored by the king and most importantly the king was saying Mephibosheth was now the responsibility of David. When you sit at a man’s table, he is saying he will be your teacher. What he knows will be transferred to you. You become a son to him.
All this simply because his father was a good friend to David. Your friend should be a place of refuge for your family when you are unable to take care of them. Instantly Mephibosheth became very wealthy simply because his father knew how to maintain relationships.
1 Samuel 19:1-2
But Jonathan was very fond of David and warned him, “My father Saul is looking for a chance to kill you. Be on your guard tomorrow morning; go into hiding and stay there. Jonathan protected David from his father who was king at the time.
A friend must protect you from all enemies even those that may be very close to him. Jonathan could see that his father’s anger towards David was not right and he protected David through information.
When people plot against you, your friend should stand guard and protect you. You must have an assurance of your friend’s word. You must trust him. This trust is only build over time. Jonathan could have easily given David away to be killed by his father, but instead he protected David and even pleaded with his father not to kill David. A friend is a shield of protection.
1 Samuel 19:4
Jonathan spoke well of David to Saul his father and said to him, “Let not the king do wrong to his servant David; he has not wronged you, and what he has done has benefited you greatly.
A friend is a good representative. When it is clear that everyone is against you, a true friend stands their ground and speaks well of you. Saul was hunting David like an animal.
During all this, Jonathan spoke well of David to Saul. To help you understand the risk Jonathan was taking you must understand his father Saul. Saul was the most powerful man in Israel at the time, whatever he ordered was done without question. Saul also hated David extremely.
Now imagine siding with the most wanted man in a nation in an argument with the king. You could easily pay for that with your life.
Proverbs 18:24
A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.
A friend will always be there even in times of great trail. Generally because of social media, most of us know a lot of people.
But in all these people, it is important to have true friends that will always stick close to you. Work on being a better friend yourself, after all it may benefit you in the long run.
Facebook — Itai Chapunza
