Mr. Mephibosheth

David asked, “Is there anyone still left of the house of Saul to whom I can show kindness for Jonathan’s sake?”

Now there was a servant of Saul’s household named Ziba. They called him to appear before David, and the king said to him, “Are you Ziba?”

“Your servant,” he replied.

The king asked, “Is there no-one still left of the house of Saul to whom I can show God’s kindness?”

Ziba answered the king, “There is still a son of Jonathan; he is crippled in both feet.”

“Where is he?” the king asked. Ziba answered, “He is at the house of Makir son of Ammiel in Lo Debar.”

So King David had him brought from Lo Debar, from the house of Makir son of Ammiel.

When Mephibosheth son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, came to David, he bowed down to pay him honor. David said, “Mephibosheth!” “Your servant,” he replied.

“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.”

Mephibosheth bowed down and said, “What is your servant, that you should notice a dead dog like me?”

Then the king summoned Ziba, Saul’s servant, and said to him, “I have given your master’s grandson everything that belonged to Saul and his family. 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.)

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.

Mephibosheth had a young son named Mica, and all the members of Ziba’s household were servants of Mephibosheth. And Mephibosheth lived in Jerusalem, because he always ate at the king’s table, and he was crippled in both feet.

2 Samuel 9:1-13

Second Samuel 9 deals with a man named Mephibosheth, who was shown kindness by King David. There are two Mephibosheths mentioned in the Bible: one was a son of Saul through his concubine Rizpah; the other is this man, the son of Jonathan and grandson of Saul.

What does the name Mephibosheth mean? In Hebrew the word “bosheth” means “shame.” We may think it is a terrible thing to name someone with that word “bosheth,” but even before this Mephibosheth we find a son of Saul named Ish-Bosheth. “Ish” in Hebrew means “man,” bosheth means “shame,” so Ish-Bosheth means “man of shame.”

What, then, does Mephibosheth mean? In my view, it means big shame. Both Mephibosheths represent sinners. Mephibosheth the son of Jonathan represents all sinners who are redeemed, while Mephibosheth son of Saul represents all sinners who are unredeemed and therefore condemned to eternal punishment. That is why we must give special attention to this chapter because it speaks of the redemption of God’s people, using the illustration of Jonathan’s son Mephibosheth.

Deserving only Death

The first point is that Mephibosheth deserved death. Mephibosheth’s grandfather Saul was an unregenerate who refused to obey God’s command completely and sought his own glory instead. Because Saul rejected God’s word, God rejected him from being the king of Israel. Seeking a man after his own heart, God sent Samuel to David to appoint him king of all Israel. When this happened, the Holy Spirit left Saul and was replaced by an an evil spirit who tormented Saul, giving him an unsound mind so that he began to pursue David to destroy him.

In the battle against the Philistines in the Valley of Jezreel, Saul was mortally wounded and subsequently committed suicide. His sons, including Jonathan, also died on that day. In my view Jonathan is a very pathetic character because he knew God’s purpose, yet he did not leave his God-abandoned father Saul and join with David, the king after God’s own heart. Oh, how terrible was the end of Jonathan, who put the love for his father above the love for God and his sovereign plan!

However, Saul’s son Ish-Bosheth, the “man of shame,” was not killed on Mount Gilboa with his father and brothers. He began to rule Israel in place of Saul, under the protection and leadership of Saul’s general, Abner. We are told that the war between the house of David and the house of Saul continued for a number of years. But God’s decree and plan stood, and the house of Saul gradually grew weaker and weaker while David grew stronger and stronger. In due course and in God’s providence, both Abner and Ish-bosheth were killed, and the head of King Ish-Bosheth was cut off. God was with David and gave him victory over all his enemies. David became king of all Israel.

After David had ascended the throne, it would have been proper and just for him to kill all the descendants of his rival Saul, as kings normally did in those days. As a direct descendant of Saul, Mephibosheth son of Jonathan knew and acknowledged that he was liable to being killed. He said as much to King David in 2 Samuel 19:28: “All my grandfather’s descendants deserved nothing but death from my lord the king.”

Just as Mephibosheth deserved death at the hands of King David, so also we deserved death at the hands of God. By nature we are sinners, children of wrath. The name which best describes us is Mephibosheth, which means “big shame.” Of course, we go about pretending that we are wonderful. We take great pride in our tribe, our race, our color, our creed, our house, our education, our power, our position, and our children. But before the eyes of God we are Mephibosheths, people of great shame. We are rebels, descendants of God’s enemies and at enmity ourselves with God. The biblical teaching is that we deserve nothing but death-eternal death-from the hands of God.

David Remembers the Covenant

But David had made a covenant with Jonathan, and after his ascension to the throne, he wanted to honor it. After being established by God as the undisputed king of Israel, David expressed his desire to show kindness to any descendant of Saul-his mortal enemy-who was still alive. We find this amazing language in 2 Samuel 9, verse 1, where David asked, “Is there anyone still left of the house of Saul to whom I can show kindness for Jonathan’s sake?” and verse 3, “Is there no one still left of the house of Saul to whom I can show God’s kindness?”

This is what the gospel is all about. The wrath of God is revealed against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men. But then God sends out his great gospel invitation to us, and we are saved. We read about this in John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have everlasting life.”

David’s call to Mephibosheth went forth in view of a preexisting covenant which he had made with Jonathan, as we read in 1 Samuel 20. In verses 14-15 Jonathan said to David, “But show me unfailing kindness like that of the Lord as long as I live, so that I may not be killed, and do not ever cut off your kindness from my family-not even when the Lord has cut off every one of David’s enemies from the face of the earth.” David agreed to this covenant, and so three times in 2 Samuel 9 we find David, now the undisputed king, speaking about showing kindness and covenant mercy even to his enemies.

That is the great theme of this chapter: God’s covenant mercy shown to the Mephibosheths, the enemies of God. God shows his kindness, grace, and unfailing mercy, not to well-deserving, or ill-deserving people, but to the hell-deserving enemies of God.

Notice, it was David, the king, who took the initiative to show mercy to his enemies. This is what God does for us also. God himself takes the initiative to save us. I hope we will give up the erroneous conception that we initiate our search for God. By our very nature we are rebels and sinners who hate God from the moment we are born. Why would we seek a holy God? In fact, the heart’s desire of sinful man is to take a grenade and throw it at the very face of God to destroy him, if possible. It is to such people God shows mercy, and it was to such people that King David also wanted to show kindness. He is the seeking shepherd.

So David took the initiative to look for Saul’s descendants. But the kindness he wanted to show this rebel existed outside of him as a preexisting covenant of mercy and grace made with Jonathan. In the same way, God shows us kindness on the basis, not of anything good in us, but on the basis of an everlasting covenant.

We must also note that David desired to show kindness. We do not want to speak about justice before King David or before his Son, King Jesus, our Lord. Justice brings us death. Justice means the wrath of God poured out upon the guilty. David wanted to show covenant mercy that gives life in place of death brought about by justice.

The Gracious Invitation of the Great King

So King David sent out his invitation: “Is there anyone still left of the house of Saul to whom I can show kindness? Is there no one still left of the house of Saul to whom I can show God’s kindness?” That invitation is still going out even this day wherever the gospel is preached. It is the invitation of the great King, who does not want to show justice but kindness to his enemies. What is the invitation? “Come unto me; I will give you rest.”

Who is this invitation for? All the descendants of Saul-in other words, all the sinful enemies of God. Jesus said to such people, “Come unto me, all who are weary and heavy-laden; I will give you rest.” But the truth is, not all the descendants of Saul came when they received this invitation. Saul did have several descendants. Many had already been destroyed, but some had gone into hiding and were spared. However, most of these people did not believe in David’s gracious invitation. I am sure that they thought that if they showed up, they would be destroyed. To them this invitation was just a clever ploy to bring about the destruction of all the remaining descendants of Saul. Only one man, Mephibosheth, responded and was brought before King David.

This illustrates the way sinners are brought into God’s kingdom through the gospel. The gospel message includes a general call, for didn’t Jesus say, “Whosoever believes on him should not perish”? But then there is also a particular call, which is what we call the effectual call. Those people who receive God’s effectual call will come to him. These people’s minds are alert, for they know they are listening to the very voice of God. Such people will hold on to the gospel invitation, believe it, and come. And when these people come to their great King, he will give them rest.

Jesus said, “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him” (John 6:44) and “All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away” (John 6:37). Thus, Mephibosheth was brought before David so that he might receive covenant mercy from David.

Description of Mephibosheth

Who, then, was this Mephibosheth, who represents all who are elect sinners? The first thing we have already noted is that his name means “big shame.” This is the name of every sinner: Big Shame. You may be the most powerful man in the country, yet you are a big shame because you are a sinner. Oh, you may try to cover it up with all glory that pertains to your office. You may fly all over on private planes. You may spend millions of dollars. You may do many things. But you are still big shame. No matter how you package yourself, God sees you as Big Shame.

Second, Mephibosheth was a cripple. In 2 Samuel 4 we read that Mephibosheth was five years of age when he heard the news that his father, grandfather, and uncles were killed. The nurse took him and ran, but as she ran, she dropped Mephibosheth and he was crippled in both feet. This, of course, is speaking about the truth that every sinner is without strength, without moral ability to do what God wants us to do. Oh, that we would put away all our pretension and self-righteousness! The truth is, we are sinners and can do nothing that will please God. This moral inability is a result of the fall of Adam. We became morally crippled due to the fall of Adam so that now we are by nature dead in trespasses and sins.

In Romans 5 we read about the great Fall and resultant universal sinfulness of man. In verse 12 we read, “Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all men because all sinned.” In Romans 5:18 we read, “Consequently, just as the result of one trespass was condemnation for all men. . .” One trespass resulted in condemnation for all men. We have been crippled by a fall and now are morally able only to sin.

Next, we read that Mephibosheth was poor. He had nothing. He was living off of somebody else: Makir, the son of Ammiel.

Next, we learn that Mephibosheth was a fugitive who ran from justice and lived away from people in the remote town of Lo Debar, ten miles southeast of the Sea of Galilee. It is a desert place with no pasture. When David called him, Mephibosheth was living like the prodigal son in a far country.

Next, we must understand that, as Saul’s descendant, Mephibosheth was a natural enemy of David. We earlier said that he confessed he knew he deserved only death at the hands of David.

Finally, we must note that Mephibosheth was, in essence a forgotten man. In fact, David’s men had to do research to find out whether any of the descendants of Jonathan existed. He had been forgotten by all.

The king’s officers brought Mephibosheth to King David. Just picture in your mind the psychological condition of this cripple. He was fearful and apprehensive, knowing what had happened to Abner, his grandfather’s general. Additionally, he knew what had recently happened to his uncle, Ish-Bosheth. Two of Ish-Bosheth’s servants, Recab and Baanah, had stabbed Ish-Bosheth in the stomach, cut off his head, and took it to David. I am sure that Mephibosheth was afraid that at any moment his own head would be cut off as well. So when he came to David, he came trembling, fell to the ground, and paid David homage.

Fear Not!

The third point is David’s reaction when Mephibosheth approached him. “Fear not!” David told him. This great king, whose claim to the throne was undisputed and who had all authority, spoke kindly to the trembling, guilt-ridden, hell-deserving Mephibosheth. Mephibosheth did not come to argue with David whether or not he deserved to be killed. He knew he did; that is why he was so fearful. But the king said to him, “Don’t be afraid, Mephibosheth.”

That is what God says to every sinner who is convicted of his sin, cut to the heart, and knows that he is a lost sinner. Such a person knows that God would be just in sending him to hell. But all of a sudden, the king from the throne calls to the poor sinner: “Mephibosheth, fear not!” What gracious words of consolation, comfort, and salvation!

Yes, Mephibosheth was fearful and trembling. After all, he was sure his head was about to be cut off. But instead of a stern judge, he found a merciful, compassionate, gracious king telling him not to fear. “Stop fearing,” David was saying. “There is a covenant, you know, and it is a covenant of mercy. I have determined to show kindness to you because of the covenant I made with your father Jonathan.”

Just as David invited Mephibosheth to come to him, so Jesus Christ invites us to come to him. He has promised to show us kindness, and he cannot lie. Perhaps you have heard his invitation many times. Have you come to him, honored him, prostrated yourself before him, and paid him homage? There are some who will not come. Such people treat him with utter contempt. But those who come to him will sing, “Mercy there was great and grace was free; pardon there was multiplied to me. There my burdened soul found liberty, at Calvary.”

“Fear not, Mephibosheth!” That is what God speaks to all his elect people. “You are chosen, Mephibosheth, in Christ before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in him. You are chosen in Christ before the foundation of the world to be adopted by God into his family. In Christ, Mephibosheth, there is redemption. PGM In Christ, Mephibosheth, there is forgiveness. In Christ, Mephibosheth, there is justification and adoption. In Christ there is every spiritual blessing in heavenly places for the Mephibosheths of the world. This is my plan and purpose. Yes, Mephibosheth, you are a son of Adam, a rebel, an enemy of God, one who only deserves eternal death. But I have determined to show kindness-unfailing kindness-to you. You will not die, but live, because I myself will spare you.”

In verse 7 we read that David gave back to Mephibosheth all the land that had belonged to Saul . Then he invited Mephibosheth to always eat at his table. What a glorious picture this is of our own salvation in Christ!

God Spares Mephibosheth

We read about Mephibosheth again in 2 Samuel 21. Later in David’s reign there was a famine in Israel. For three long years David and his people prayed and sought the Lord, and finally the answer came: This famine had occurred because Saul, in his unholy zeal, had destroyed the Gibeonites, who were a protected group within Israel. David called for the Gibeonite leaders and asked them, “What should we do? How can we make it right so that God will forgive our sins and rain will come?” They answered, “Give us seven male descendants of Saul, whom we will kill and publicly expose.”

In verse 6 we read, “So the king said, ‘I will give them to you.'” But then we read in verse 7, “The king spared Mephibosheth son of Jonathan.” King David found seven other male descendants of Saul, including the other Mephibosheth. He handed them over to the Gibeonites, who killed them and exposed them. Finally, the rain began to come back and we read in verse 14, “After that, God answered prayers in behalf of the land.” But, notice, the king spared Mephibosheth son of Jonathan.

God’s Mercy to Mephibosheths

I hope we can understand one thing: We all deserve death, but God spares us. “Live!” he says to us. “Fear not! I will show you unfailing kindness, not justice.” When a king says, “Fear not,” he means what he says. He is declaring, “Yes, I know you are enemies, but I will protect you. I will spare you. You shall never experience justice.” Praise God for his mercy shown to undeserving sinners!

We read God’s mercy in Ephesians 2. The chapter begins by stating how sinners are dead in trespasses and sins, and in verse 3 we read, “All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of God’s wrath.” But then we read something wonderful: “But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ.” God comes in the midst of dead people and he says, “Live!” and they live. He gives them eternal life.

Not only that, God also restores our inheritance. All that the canker worms destroyed will be restored. The Bible says we are heirs of God, joint heirs with Christ, and all things are ours in Christ. Like Mephibosheth, we were paupers-poor, forgotten, hiding, hungry, and thirsty. But in Christ everything is restored to us.

We read about this restoration in 1 Corinthians 3:21-23: “So, then, no more boasting about men! All things are yours, whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or the present or the future-all are yours, and you are of Christ, and Christ is of God.” In 2 Corinthians 8:9 we read, “For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich.” And in Philippians 4:19 we read, “And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.”

Not only that, God gives us dignity. What does the name Mephibosheth mean? Big shame. But now God gives us dignity. Remember the story of the prodigal son? He went to a far country and soon found himself perishing-he was hungry, thirsty, and despised. When he came to himself, he said, “I will arise and go back to my father’s house.” When he got there, he confessed and said, “I am not worthy to be called your son. Make me a hired servant.” But what did his father say? “No, you are my son.” Then he told the servants, “Give him a bath. Give him clothing. Give him shoes. Give him rings. Let us celebrate. Let’s have music and a feast. My son was lost, but now he is found.”

Yes, we were Mephibosheths-lost, miserable wretches with no dignity. But God receives us and gives us great dignity-the dignity of being sons. By God’s determination we are not slaves, not enemies, not servants, but sons of God.

The Blessing of Mephibosheth

In 2 Samuel 9:11 we read, “So Mephibosheth ate at David’s table like one of the king’s sons.” He was treated as one of the royal princes, in other words. What dignity God gives to the Mephibosheths of the world, to treat them as a king’s son. We are adopted by the Great King of the universe into his own family. What dignity! What relationship! What position!

Do you want esteem? I counsel you to abandon all your worldly ideas of self-esteem so that you may receive God’s esteem of you, which he gives gratis. In 1 John 3:1 we read, “How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!” Big Shame is now a royal prince. We have great dignity through our great salvation.

Not only that, like Mephibosheth, God says that we are going to eat with him at his table always. That idea is repeated four times in this chapter, in verses 7, 10, 11, and 13. This eternal communion is the highest blessing God can give to a creature. He is not saying we will come once in a while to eat, but will eat at God’s table like a son always. In God’s presence there is fullness of joy and at his right hand pleasures forevermore. This is everlasting, unending bliss! This is God’s grand purpose for salvation. Man was cast out from Paradise, but now, through the cross, he is brought near to God again. Having been justified by faith, we have peace with God, and we have access to his presence by this grace.

No longer are we assigned to the crumbs falling down from the table. We are not dogs or beggars looking for garbage. In Luke 16:21 we read about a poor man: “At his gate was laid a beggar named Lazarus, covered with sores and longing to eat what fell from the rich man’s table.” He wanted the crumbs, but we are not told he got any. This was Mephibosheth’s condition, and it was our position also. He was thrown outside and had nothing, like the prodigal son who wanted to eat the carob pods of the pigs but no one gave them to him. We were looking for a crumb to fall from the table, hoping that someone would sweep it up and will throw it outside onto the dung heap so that we could eat it.

But like Mephibosheth, our destiny is to eat at the table of the great King. We find God’s plan for us in Luke 22:29-30, where Jesus says, “And I confer on you a kingdom, just as my Father conferred one on me, so that you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom and sit on thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.” You see, we are no longer begging or thrown out at the gate, waiting for a crumb. That was our destiny before, but things are changed. We have been adopted into the family of God, and now we are in the palace of the King, as royal princes, always eating the sumptuous feast at the King’s table with the King.

Jesus Christ, our King and Sovereign Lord, has all authority in heaven and on earth. Through him we are brought into God’s presence to commune with him eternally. Paul speaks about this in Ephesians 2:6: “And God raised us up with Christ and seated us up with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus.”

Finally, where do we live? In some cave in Lo Debar, hiding out from the king? No. In verse 13 we read told that Mephibosheth lived in Jerusalem. He went from the cave of hiding to the palace of the king in Jerusalem. No longer an enemy, no longer a fugitive, no longer poor, no longer full of shame, no longer subject to death, no longer hungry, no longer a slave, Mephibosheth now lived in Jerusalem with the king, as a royal prince, with many other princes that God in Christ redeemed by the covenant of mercy. He lived a life of righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit. This is rest that Jesus promised in Matthew 11:28: “Come to me . . . . and I will give you rest.”

The gospel invitation has gone out. Jesus himself says, “Come unto me, I will give you rest.” He says it to people of all times and places, and will continue to do so until he comes again. He said it to us, drawing us to himself. And when we came, we were given eternal life. Now we are forgiven, justified, and sanctified. We are adopted into God’s family as sons of God-heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ. All things are ours through our Lord Jesus Christ. These are the blessings God gives to the Mephibosheths.

What happened to the other Mephibosheth? We find out in 2 Samuel 21:7-9. This Mephibosheth, who was a son of Saul through Rizpah, was handed over to the Gibeonites, who killed him along with the other descendants of Saul.. This Mephibosheth represents every unbeliever who refuses to accept God’s gracious invitation and come to him. Oh, such people always have excuses.

The Great Kindness of God

In John 3:36 we read, “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on him.” We who are Mephibosheths have been spared from eternal death because God did not spare his own Son. The wrath of God was poured out upon his own Son, the wrath that was due to us, because God is just. He must be just in order to justify the ungodly.

How shall we respond to this great gospel message? We will either believe in Jesus Christ and be saved, or we will refuse to believe in him and experience God’s wrath ourselves. What is the confession of a believer? In Galatians 2:20 we read, “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God who loved me and gave himself for me.” Luther said people go to hell because they cannot use possessive pronouns. Oh, we may agree that God loves sinners and that God accepts sinners. But that is not what Paul says. “He loved me and gave himself for me in Jesus Christ.” No one will be saved without confessing “Jesus is Lord.”

If we have experienced God’s salvation, what can we say in response to this great kindness on God’s part? We can only worship God in great humility. The Bible says we are saved “to the praise of his glorious grace.” We must say goodbye to every arrogant attitude about ourselves, and join with Paul in saying, “I am chief of sinners.” Only then will we say, “Thank you, Lord, for saving my soul; thank you, Lord, for making me whole; thank you, Lord, for giving to me thy great salvation so rich and free!” Then we will join Mephibosheth and fall prostrate before our God. We sing his praises and live for his glory alone.

Notice the response of Mephibosheth to the great kindness shown to him by King David. I hope we will learn from his response and emulate him. In 2 Samuel 9:8 we read: “What is your servant, that you should notice a dead dog like me?” This is what David himself said about himself in 1 Samuel 24:14. In Psalm 8:4 the psalmist asks God, “What is man that you are mindful of him, the son of man that you care for him?” In other words, “Why do you even notice us, God? We are nothings, dead dogs.” In the Middle East in those days a dog was seen as a scavenger, an unclean animal, a carrier of disease, a garbage disposal. Dog was a term of extreme contempt, derision, and humiliation. Paul uses this term to refer to the Judaizers, the heretics, in Philippians 2:3. John uses the word dog in Revelation 22:15 to refer to to sinners who will be outside the city of God.

Notice, Mephibosheth calls himself, not just a dog, but a dead dog. That demonstrates serious humility in response to God’s grace and mercy. “Who am I, that you should notice a dead dog?” We were dead dogs, but God, because of his covenant kindness, great love, and rich mercy, made us alive with him and seated us with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, adopted us as sons, justified and sanctified us. He is for us, he is with us, and he gave us his Holy Spirit to be upon us.

I urge you to put away all prideful self-esteem and, from now on, enjoy the esteem of God. In the eyes of God we are royal princes, destined to enjoy everlasting salvation.

Finally, in Isaiah 62:2-4 God tells us something that is very helpful to our self-esteem. There we read, “You will be called by a new name that the mouth of the Lord will bestow. You will be a crown of splendor in the Lord’s hand, a royal diadem in the hand of your God. No longer they will call you Deserted or name your land Desolate. But you will be called Hephzibah, and your land Beulah; for the Lord will take delight in you, and your land will be married.” Big Shame is given a new name: We are God’s delight.

Have You Come to Him?

The Son of God, the Son of David, the only Sovereign of the universe desires to show kindness to his enemies, including us. He has sent out a call: “Come unto me; I will give you rest. Come unto me, as you are, in total consciousness of your inadequacy and sinfulness.” The only qualification Jesus requires is that you come to him as a sinner. So he tells us, “Do not hide out in Lo Debar. Come unto me; I will give you rest.”

What should we do? We should come to him, humble before him, and confess him to be Lord. Then, let me tell you, he will surely declare to you, “Fear not! I will surely show you covenant kindness. I will give you eternal life. I will restore to you riches everlasting. You will eat with me always as a royal prince. You will live in the heavenly Jerusalem with me forever and ever.” This is blessing.

If you are hiding out, even if you have heard the call many times and never came, I urge you to come today and trust in him. He tells you, “Fear not,” and you can trust him, for God cannot lie. He is not man that he should lie. “It is grace that taught my heart to fear and grace my fears relieved.” He will remove your fear and give you life. He will give you dignity and oppose all your enemies. He will spare you because he did not spare his own Son.

If you have already trusted in Christ and are saved, I say to you: Enjoy! Enjoy this great salvation. Rest in the wonderful knowledge that no enemy can conquer the new Jerusalem where God’s throne is.

May God help us to pay attention to his word and trust in his Son Jesus Christ, that we may be saved. Amen.