17 and a thousand men `are' with him from Benjamin, and Ziba servant of the house of Saul, and his fifteen sons and his twenty servants with him, and they have gone prosperously over the Jordan before the king.
And David hath passed on a little from the top, and lo, Ziba, servant of Mephibosheth -- to meet him, and a couple of asses saddled, and upon them two hundred loaves, and a hundred bunches of raisins, and a hundred `of' summer-fruit, and a bottle of wine. And the king saith unto Ziba, `What -- these to thee?' and Ziba saith, `The asses for the household of the king to ride on, and the bread and the summer-fruit for the young men to eat, and the wine for the wearied to drink in the wilderness.' And the king saith, `And where `is' the son of thy lord?' and Ziba saith unto the king, `Lo, he is abiding in Jerusalem, for he said, To-day do the house of Israel give back to me the kingdom of my father.' And the king saith to Ziba, `Lo, thine `are' all that Mephibosheth hath;' and Ziba saith, `I have bowed myself -- I find grace in thine eyes, my lord, O king.'
And he saith, `My lord, O king, my servant deceived me, for thy servant said, I saddle for me the ass, and ride on it, and go with the king, for thy servant `is' lame; and he uttereth slander against thy servant unto my lord the king, and my lord the king `is' as a messenger of God; and do thou that which is good in thine eyes,
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Matthew Henry Commentary » Commentary on 2 Samuel 19
Commentary on 2 Samuel 19 Matthew Henry Commentary
Chapter 19
We left David's army in triumph and yet David himself in tears: now here we have,
2Sa 19:1-8
Soon after the messengers had brought the news of the defeat and death of Absalom to the court of Mahanaim, Joab and his victorious army followed, to grace the king's triumphs and receive his further orders. Now here we are told,
2Sa 19:9-15
It is strange that David did not immediately upon the defeat and dispersion of Absalom's forces march with all expedition back to Jerusalem, to regain the possession of his capital city, while the rebels were in confusion and before they could rally again. What occasion was there to bring him back? Could not he himself go back with the victorious army he had with him in Gilead? He could, no doubt; but,
2Sa 19:16-23
Perhaps Jordan was never passed with so much solemnity, nor with so many remarkable occurrences, as it was now, since Israel passed it under Joshua. David, in his afflictive flight, remembered God particularly from the land of Jordan (Ps. 42:6), and now that land, more than any other, was graced with the glories of his return. David's soldiers furnished themselves with accommodations for their passage over this river, but, for his own family, a ferry-boat was sent on purpose, v. 18. A fleet of boats, say some; a bridge of boats was made, say others; the best convenience they had to serve him with. Two remarkable persons met him on the banks of Jordan, both of whom had abused him wretchedly when he was in his flight.
2Sa 19:24-30
The day of David's return was a day of bringing to remembrance, a day of account, in which what had passed in his flight was called over again; among other things, after the case of Shimei, that of Mephibosheth comes to be enquired into, and he himself brings it on.
2Sa 19:31-39
David had already graced the triumphs of his restoration with the generous remission of the injuries that had been done to him; we have him here gracing them with a no less generous reward of the kindnesses that had been shown to him. Barzillai, the Gileadite, who had a noble seat at Rogelim, not far from Mahanaim, was the man who, of all the nobility and gentry of that country, had been most kind to David in his distress. If Absalom had prevailed, it is likely he would have suffered for his loyalty; but now he and his shall be no losers by it. Here is,
2Sa 19:40-43
David came over Jordan attended and assisted only by the men of Judah; but when he had advanced as far as Gilgal, the first stage on this side Jordan, half the people of Israel (that is, of their elders and great men) had come to wait upon him, to kiss his hand, and congratulate him on his return, but found they came too late to witness the solemnity of his first entrance. This put them out of humour, and occasioned a quarrel between them and the men of Judah, which was a damp to the joy of the day, and the beginning of further mischief. Here is,