2 Samuel 9: ☧ Contends for Us, Keeps Faith w/ Merib-baal

Rev. Duncan McLellan, pastor of St. Paul Lutheran Church in Ankeny, Iowa, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study 2 Samuel 9.

“And David said to him, ‘Do not fear, for I will show you kindness for the sake of your father Jonathan, and I will restore to you all the land of Saul your father, and you shall eat at my table always.’” David’s mercy towards Mephibosheth is a beautiful image of God’s mercy to us in Christ. 2 Samuel 9 says that David wants to show him the “kindness [ˈħɛsɛð] of God.” Just as David gives mercy and blessing to Saul’s grandson for the sake of his fathers, so David had received mercy and blessing from God for the sake of his fathers Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. On our own, we are weak and undeserving Mephibosheth. But in Christ, who was raised up by the Father’s power to give Israel the riches of heaven’s kingdom, we are Merib-baal, because it is the LORD Himself who contends for us.