2 Samuel 9:10
 2 Samuel 9:10 
New International Version (©2011)
You and your sons and your servants are to farm the land for him and bring in the crops, so that your master's grandson may be provided for. And Mephibosheth, grandson of your master, will always eat at my table." (Now Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants.)

New Living Translation (©2007)
You and your sons and servants are to farm the land for him to produce food for your master's household. But Mephibosheth, your master's grandson, will eat here at my table." (Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants.)

English Standard Version (©2001)
And you and your sons and your servants shall till the land for him and shall bring in the produce, that your master’s grandson may have bread to eat. But Mephibosheth your master’s grandson shall always eat at my table.” Now Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants.

New American Standard Bible (©1995)
"You and your sons and your servants shall cultivate the land for him, and you shall bring in the produce so that your master's grandson may have food; nevertheless Mephibosheth your master's grandson shall eat at my table regularly." Now Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants.

King James Bible (Cambridge Ed.)
Thou therefore, and thy sons, and thy servants, shall till the land for him, and thou shalt bring in the fruits, that thy master's son may have food to eat: but Mephibosheth thy master's son shall eat bread alway at my table. Now Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants.

Holman Christian Standard Bible (©2009)
You, your sons, and your servants are to work the ground for him, and you are to bring in the crops so your master's grandson will have food to eat. But Mephibosheth, your master's grandson, is always to eat at my table." Now Ziba had 15 sons and 20 servants.

International Standard Version (©2012)
You and your servants are to farm the land on his behalf and bring in the crops in order to provide for your master's grandson. Meanwhile, Mephibosheth, your master's grandson, will always have a place at my table." (Now Ziba had fifteen sons and 20 servants.)

NET Bible (©2006)
You will cultivate the land for him--you and your sons and your servants. You will bring its produce and it will be food for your master's grandson to eat. But Mephibosheth, your master's grandson, will be a regular guest at my table." (Now Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants.)

GOD'S WORD® Translation (©1995)
You, your sons, and your servants should farm the land for him and harvest [the crops] so that your master's family will have food to eat. However, your master's grandson Mephibosheth will always eat at my table." (Ziba had 15 sons and 20 servants.)

King James 2000 Bible (©2003)
You therefore, and your sons, and your servants, shall till the land for him, and you shall bring in the fruits, that your master's son may have food to eat: but Mephibosheth your master's son shall eat bread always at my table. Now Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants.

American King James Version
You therefore, and your sons, and your servants, shall till the land for him, and you shall bring in the fruits, that your master's son may have food to eat: but Mephibosheth your master's son shall eat bread always at my table. Now Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants.

American Standard Version
And thou shalt till the land for him, thou, and thy sons, and thy servants; and thou shalt bring in the fruits , that thy master's son may have bread to eat: but Mephibosheth thy master's son shall eat bread alway at my table. Now Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants.

Douay-Rheims Bible
Thou therefore and thy sons and thy servants shall till the land for him: and thou shalt bring in food for thy master's son, that he may be maintained: and Miphiboseth the son of thy master shall always eat bread at my table. And Siba had fifteen sons and twenty servants.

Darby Bible Translation
And thou, and thy sons, and thy servants, shall till the land for him, and thou shalt bring in the fruits, that thy master's son may have food to eat. And Mephibosheth thy master's son shall eat bread at my table continually. Now Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants.

English Revised Version
And thou shalt till the land for him, thou, and thy sons, and thy servants; and thou shalt bring in the fruits, that thy master's son may have bread to eat: but Mephibosheth thy master's son shall eat bread alway at my table. Now Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants.

Webster's Bible Translation
Thou therefore, and thy sons, and thy servants, shall till the land for him, and thou shalt bring in the fruits, that thy master's son may have food to eat: but Mephibosheth thy master's son shall eat bread always at my table. Now Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants.

World English Bible
You shall till the land for him, you, and your sons, and your servants; and you shall bring in [the fruits], that your master's son may have bread to eat: but Mephibosheth your master's son shall eat bread always at my table." Now Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants.

Young's Literal Translation
and thou hast served for him the land, thou and thy sons, and thy servants, and hast brought in, and there hath been to the son of thy lord bread, and he hath eaten it; and Mephibosheth son of thy lord doth eat continually bread at my table;' and Ziba hath fifteen sons and twenty servants.

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary

9:9-13 As David was a type of Christ, his Lord and Son, his Root and Offspring, let his kindness to Mephibosheth remind us of the kindness and love of God our Saviour to fallen man, to whom he was under no obligation, as David was to Jonathan. The Son of God seeks this lost and ruined race, who sought not after him. He comes to seek and to save them!


Pulpit Commentary

Verse 10. - That thy master's son may have food to eat. Instead of "son," Hebrew ben, some commentators prefer the reading of a few Greek versions, namely, "house," Hebrew, beth. But the difficulty which they seek to avoid arises only from extreme literalness of interpretation. Though Mephibosheth ate at the king's table, he would have a household to maintain - for he had a wife and son - and other expenses; and his having "food to eat" includes everything necessary, as does our prayer for "daily bread." He would live at Jerusalem as a nobleman and Ziba would cultivate his estates, paying, as is usual in the East, a fixed proportion of the value of the produce to his master. Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants (slaves). He had evidently thriven; for, beginning as a slave in Saul's household, he had now several wives and many slaves of his own, and had become a person of considerable importance. He would still remain so, though somewhat shorn both of wealth and dignity in becoming only Mephibosheth's farmer.


Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible

Thou therefore, thy sons, and thy servants,.... Which were many, and whose numbers are after given:

shall till the land for him; manure it, plough it, sow it, and reap it:

and thou shall bring in the fruits; the corn, and oil, and wine, the land produces:

that thy master's son may have food to eat; meaning either Micha, the son of Mephibosheth, since Mephibosheth seems to be distinguished from him, and opposed to him in the next clause: and who would stand in no need of food from any other quarter, being a guest at the king's table continually; or else Mephibosheth, who by this means would have a sufficiency for his son and servants, and in which Ziba's family and servants would have a share:

but Mephibosheth thy master's son shall eat always at my table; wherefore the land was to be tilled not for him personally, but for his family, and for what uses he should think fit to put the produce of it to:

now Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants: who were enough to cultivate a considerable quantity of land.


Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

10. Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants—The mention of his sons and the slaves in his house was to show that Mephibosheth would be honored with an equipage "as one of the king's sons."


2 Samuel 9:10 Parallel Commentaries

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David and Mephibosheth
9Then the king called to Ziba, Saul's servant, and said to him, I have given to your master's son all that pertained to Saul and to all his house. 10You therefore, and your sons, and your servants, shall till the land for him, and you shall bring in the fruits, that your master's son may have food to eat: but Mephibosheth your master's son shall eat bread always at my table. Now Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants. 11Then said Ziba to the king, According to all that my lord the king has commanded his servant, so shall your servant do. As for Mephibosheth, said the king, he shall eat at my table, as one of the king's sons. …

2 Samuel 9:7 "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."
2 Samuel 9:11 Then Ziba said to the king, "Your servant will do whatever my lord the king commands his servant to do." So Mephibosheth ate at David's table like one of the king's sons.
2 Samuel 16:3 The king then asked, "Where is your master's grandson?" Ziba said to him, "He is staying in Jerusalem, because he thinks, 'Today the Israelites will restore to me my grandfather's kingdom.'"
2 Samuel 19:28 All my grandfather's descendants deserved nothing but death from my lord the king, but you gave your servant a place among those who eat at your table. So what right do I have to make any more appeals to the king?"
2 Samuel 21:7 The king spared Mephibosheth son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, because of the oath before the LORD between David and Jonathan son of Saul.
1 Kings 2:7 "But show kindness to the sons of Barzillai of Gilead and let them be among those who eat at your table. They stood by me when I fled from your brother Absalom.
Jeremiah 52:34 Day by day the king of Babylon gave Jehoiachin a regular allowance as long as he lived, till the day of his death.

Alway Always Bread Continually Eat Fifteen Food Fruits Master's Mephibosheth Mephib'osheth Produce Servants Table Twenty Ziba


2 Samuel Chapter 9 Verse 10

Alphabetical: Now always and are at be bring crops cultivate eat farm fifteen food for grandson had have him in land master master's may Mephibosheth my nevertheless Now of produce provided regularly servants servants shall so sons table that the to twenty will You your Ziba

OT History: 2 Samuel 9:10 You shall till the land for him (2Sa iiSam 2 Sam ii sam) Christian Bible Study Resources, Dictionary, Concordance and Search Tools

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