2 Samuel 19:30 - Printer Friendly

ESV: And Mephibosheth said to the king, "Oh, let him take it all, since my lord the king has come safely home."

NIV: Mephibosheth said to the king, "Let him take everything, now that my lord the king has returned home safely."

NASB: And Mephibosheth said to the king, 'Let him even take it all, since my lord the king has come safely to his own house.'

CSB: Mephibosheth said to the king, "Instead, since my lord the king has come to his palace safely, let Ziba take it all!"

NLT: Give him all of it,' Mephibosheth said. 'I am content just to have you safely back again, my lord the king!'

KJV: And Mephibosheth said unto the king, Yea, let him take all, forasmuch as my lord the king is come again in peace unto his own house.

NKJV: Then Mephibosheth said to the king, “Rather, let him take it all, inasmuch as my lord the king has come back in peace to his own house.”

Second Samuel 19:24–30 contains a bittersweet reunion. David had made Jonathan's son Mephibosheth a courtier and given him Saul's estate under Ziba's management (2 Samuel 9). While David fled Absalom, Ziba claimed Mephibosheth wanted the crown restored to Saul's house. David gave Ziba Mephibosheth's land (2 Samuel 16:1–4). Now, Mephibosheth meets David, claiming that Ziba refused to help him follow David and, with his lame feet, he couldn't travel on his own. David splits the difference and returns half of the land, but Mephibosheth is just happy David is back.

David comes home after a tragic and costly rebellion. His son Absalom is dead, and rebel fighters have fled back home (2 Samuel 18). David falls into self-indulgent grief until Joab reminds him of his soldiers' honor. On the journey back to the Jordan, David reconciles with Shimei, Mephibosheth, and the elders of Judah, and blesses Barzillai. The elders of the northern tribes arrive and argue with Judah over who loves the king more—the king they tried to kill. The first chance they get, the men from Israel leave and try to start another rebellion (2 Samuel 20:1–2).

David's son, Absalom, manipulated the elders of the tribes, convincing them that he would make a better king than David (2 Samuel 15—17). During the one-day civil war, Joab killed Absalom, against David's orders (2 Samuel 18). David falls into a very public expression of mourning until Joab tells him to honor his living servants, not his dead, traitorous son. On the way to Jerusalem, David tries to forgive his enemies. The elders of Israel claim to welcome him back. But after squabbling with the elders from Judah, they join a new rebellion (2 Samuel 10:1–2).

Second Samuel continues the story of David, who will become king over Judah. The other tribes of Israel are resistant, eventually sparking a civil war. David wins and makes Jerusalem his capital. Early success is followed by moral failure and controversy in David's house. The book of 1 Kings will begin by detailing David's decline and death.

Accessed 4/18/2026 6:52:52 AM