The king said, “Where is your master’s son?” Ziba said to the king, “Behold, he is staying in Jerusalem; for he said, ‘Today the house of Israel will restore me the kingdom of my father.’ ”
Parallel Translations
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The king said, “Where is your master’s son?” Ziba said to the king, “Behold, he is staying in Jerusalem; for he said, ‘Today the house of Israel will restore me the kingdom of my father.’ ”
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And the king said, And where is thy master’s son? And Ziba said unto the king, Behold, he abideth at Jerusalem: for he said, To day shall the house of Israel restore me the kingdom of my father.
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And the king said: 'And where is thy master's son?' And Ziba said unto the king: 'Behold, he abideth at Jerusalem; for he said: To-day will the house of Israel restore me the kingdom of my father.'
Cross-references (12)
Passages linked to 2 Samuel 16:3 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- 2 Samuel 9:9-10 Then the king called to Ziba, Saul’s servant, and said to him, “All that belonged to Saul and to all his house I have given to your master’s son. Till the land for him, you, your sons, and your servants. Bring in the harvest, that your master’s son may have bread to eat; but Mephibosheth your master’s son will always eat bread at my table.” Now Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants.
- Exodus 20:16 “You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.
- 2 Samuel 19:24-30 Mephibosheth the son of Saul came down to meet the king; and he had neither groomed his feet, nor trimmed his beard, nor washed his clothes, from the day the king departed until the day he came home in peace. When he had come to Jerusalem to meet the king, the king said to him, “Why didn’t you go with me, Mephibosheth?” He answered, “My lord, O king, my servant deceived me. For your servant said, ‘I will saddle a donkey for myself, that I may ride on it and go with the king,’ because your servant is lame. He has slandered your servant to my lord the king, but my lord the king is as an angel of God. Therefore do what is good in your eyes. For all my father’s house were but dead men before my lord the king; yet you set your servant among those who ate at your own table. What right therefore have I yet that I should cry any more to the king?” The king said to him, “Why do you speak any more of your matters? I say, you and Ziba divide the land.” Mephibosheth said to the king, “Yes, let him take all, because my lord the king has come in peace to his own house.”
- Psalms 15:3 he who doesn’t slander with his tongue, nor does evil to his friend, nor casts slurs against his fellow man;
- Psalms 88:18 You have put lover and friend far from me, and my friends into darkness.
- Psalms 101:5 I will silence whoever secretly slanders his neighbor. I won’t tolerate one who is arrogant and conceited.
- Proverbs 1:19 So are the ways of everyone who is greedy for gain. It takes away the life of its owners.
- Proverbs 21:28 A false witness will perish. A man who listens speaks to eternity.
- Micah 7:5 Don’t trust in a neighbor. Don’t put confidence in a friend. With the woman lying in your embrace, be careful of the words of your mouth!
- 1 Timothy 6:9-10 But those who are determined to be rich fall into a temptation, a snare, and many foolish and harmful lusts, such as drown men in ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some have been led astray from the faith in their greed, and have pierced themselves through with many sorrows.
- Jude 1:11 Woe to them! For they went in the way of Cain, and ran riotously in the error of Balaam for hire, and perished in Korah’s rebellion.
- Deuteronomy 19:18-19 and the judges shall make diligent inquisition; and behold, if the witness is a false witness, and has testified falsely against his brother, then you shall do to him as he had thought to do to his brother. So you shall remove the evil from among you.
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this verse (13 sources)
Historical commentary, presented as a primary source — not an endorsement.
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John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain 2Sa 16:3 And the king said, And where [is]…
2Sa 16:3 And the king said, And where [is] thy master’s son? And Ziba said unto the king, Behold, he abideth at Jerusalem: for he said, To day shall the house of Israel restore me the kingdom of my father.
Ver. 3. For he said, Today shall the house of Israel.] A shameless and senseless slander, uttered by a false and faithless informer, who would, in all likelihood, have been as ready to murder his master, if the king had pleased, as now he was to deceive him. See Eze 22:9. Plato commendeth that law of the Lydians, that punisheth slanderers like as they did murderers.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain Which though it might seem a very unlikely thing,…
Which though it might seem a very unlikely thing, yet such vain expectations do often get into the minds of men; nor was it impossible, that when David’s family was thus divided, and one part engaged against another, they might destroy themselves by mutual wounds; and the people being tired out with civil wars, might restore the kingdom to the family of Saul their old master, whereof this was the top branch. And this was a time of general defection of many whom the king had greatly obliged, witness Ahithophel. And Mephibosheth’s absence made the calumny more probable.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain And the king said, and where is thy master's…
And the king said, and where is thy master's son?.... The son of Saul, who was Ziba's master, meaning Mephibosheth:
and Ziba said unto the king, behold, he abideth at Jerusalem; as there was reason for it, since he was lame of both his feet, Sa2 9:13, though he could have rode upon an ass, and followed the king, as he proposed to do; but his servant deceived him, and carried off the asses to serve a purpose for himself, see Sa2 19:26,
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for he said, today shall the house of Israel restore unto me the kingdom of my father; his father Saul; which was far from his thoughts; and a most wicked suggestion of his servant to blacken his character, and get his estate from him; nor was there the least probability of the kingdom coming to him, but all the reverse; for let it go how it would with David, Absalom, and not Mephibosheth, stood fair for the kingdom.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain Verse 3. To-day shall the house of Israel] What…
Verse 3. To-day shall the house of Israel] What a base wretch was Ziba! and how unfounded was this accusation against the peaceable, loyal and innocent Mephibosheth!
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain 2Sa 16:3-4. He said, To-day shall the house of…
2Sa 16:3-4. He said, To-day shall the house of Israel restore me, &c. — This was a fiction, but not badly contrived; for the family of David being so divided, and one part enraged against another, it was possible they might destroy one another by mutual wounds; and the people, being tired out by civil wars, might think of restoring the kingdom to the family of Saul their former sovereign, of which family Mephibosheth was the principal branch. Then said the king, Behold, thine are all that pertained to Mephibosheth — A rash sentence, and unrighteous, to condemn a man unheard upon the single testimony of his accuser and servant. But David’s mind was both clouded by his trouble, and biased by Ziba’s great and seasonable kindness. And he thought, probably, Ziba would not dare accuse his master, except on good grounds, of so great a crime as that of being a traitor, which, if false, might be so easily disproved. Ziba said, that I may find grace in thy sight, my lord, O king — Thus he hypocritically pretends to value the king’s favour more than the gift he had bestowed upon him.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain Thy master’s son - Meaning Saul’s grandson 2Sa 9:6.…
Thy master’s son - Meaning Saul’s grandson 2Sa 9:6. David asks the question, evidently hurt at the apparent ingratitude of Mephibosheth. It is impossible to say whether Mephibosheth was quite guiltless or not. If Ps. 116 was composed by David, and after the quelling of Absalom’s rebellion, 2Sa 16:11 may contain David’s confession of his present hasty judgment 2Sa 16:4 in the matter.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain Father: a very improbable story, as the son of…
Father: a very improbable story, as the son of Jonathan was lame, and all Israel had declared for Absalom. (Menochius)
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain To-day shall the house of Israel restore me the…
To-day shall the house of Israel restore me the kingdom of my father--Such a hope might not unnaturally arise at this period of civil distraction, that the family of David would destroy themselves by their mutual broils, and the people reinstate the old dynasty. There was an air of plausibility in Ziba's story. Many, on whom the king had conferred favors, were now deserting him. No wonder, therefore, that in the excitement of momentary feeling, believing, on the report of a slanderer, Mephibosheth to be among the number, he pronounced a rash and unrighteous judgment by which a great injury was inflicted on the character and interests of a devoted friend.
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain 3. Restore me the kingdom of my father —…
3. Restore me the kingdom of my father — This was a base slander of Ziba’s own devising, designed by him to secure the favour of the king, and the possessions of Mephibosheth. Compare 2Sa_19:24-30.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 3. thy master’s son] Mephibosheth is called the son,…
3. thy master’s son] Mephibosheth is called the son, i.e. grandson, of Ziba’s lord Saul in ch. 2Sa_9:9. David was hurt by Mephibosheth’s apparent ingratitude.
for he said, To day, &c.] That Ziba was calumniating Mephibosheth is sufficiently obvious. How could Mephibosheth, an insignificant cripple, who had never claimed the crown, or taken any part in politics, expect to be made king, even in the confusion of parties which might ensue upon Absalom’s rebellion? Ziba’s story was an audacious fiction, invented in the hope of getting a grant of the estate which he was cultivating for Mephibosheth’s benefit, and in spite of its improbability, it passed muster in the haste and confusion of the moment.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain Thy master"s son; that is, the son of Jonathan,…
Thy master"s son; that is, the son of Jonathan, or even of Saul, as the word "son" is used very indefinitely in Hebrew. Mephibesheth held the property as their representative. Today shall the house, etc. Ziba"s slander was absurd. Mephibosheth was likely to meet with no kind treatment from Absalom; but perhaps he was a visionary, and David may have thought that he was holding back for any chance that might turn up. But upon this slander David acts with blamable impetuosity, and, indignant that the son of his old friend should so desert him, he gives Ziba all his lands. The grant would be valid only if David"s cause prevailed, and Ziba so far deserves credit in that he attached himself to a ruined man; but his motive was not love to David, but selfish calculation.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 your master's grandson
your master's grandson
"Mephibosheth, your master's grandson"
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grandson
the son of one's son or daughter
Look
Here this word is used to draw someone's attention to what is said next. AT: "Listen"
house of Israel
This refers to the people of Israel. AT: "the people of Israel" (See: Metonymy)
will restore my father's kingdom to me
Having a descendant of Saul being allowed to rule is spoken of as the kingdom being restored to their family. AT: "will allow me to rule the kingdom that my grandfather ruled" (See: Metaphor)
Mephibosheth
See how you translated this man's name in 2 Samuel 4:4.
I bow in humility to you
Ziba is not literally bowing before the king when he is speaking here. This means that he will serve the king with the same amount of humility he would be showing if he were literally bowing before him. AT: "I will humbly serve you" (See: Metaphor)
Let me find favor in your eyes
The phrase "find favor" means to be approved of by someone. Also, "eyes" is a metonym for sight, and sight represents judgment or evaluation. AT: "I want you to be pleased with me" or "I desire you for to be pleased with me" (See: Idiom and Metonymy and Metaphor)
translationWords
king
lord
Jerusalem
house
Israel
restore
kingdom
bow
humble
favor
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 16:3-4 Ziba was lying to David for his own…
16:3-4 Ziba was lying to David for his own gain; Mephibosheth later set the record straight (19:24-30).
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.