Mephibosheth (, also called Meribaal, , ''Mərīḇ-Baʻal''), or Miphibosheth, was the son of Jonathan—and, thus, a grandson of

Saul Saul (; , ; , ; ) was a monarch of ancient Israel and Judah and, according to the Hebrew Bible and Old Testament, the first king of the United Monarchy, a polity of uncertain historicity. His reign, traditionally placed in the late eleventh c ...

, the first king of the

United Monarchy The Kingdom of Israel (Hebrew: מַמְלֶכֶת יִשְׂרָאֵל‎, ''Mamleḵeṯ Yīśrāʾēl'') was an Israelite kingdom that may have existed in the Southern Levant. According to the Deuteronomistic history in the Hebrew Bible ...

of Israel and Judah. He is mentioned in the

Biblical The Bible is a collection of religious texts that are central to Christianity and Judaism, and esteemed in other Abrahamic religions such as Islam. The Bible is an anthology (a compilation of texts of a variety of forms) biblical languages ...

Books of Samuel The Book of Samuel () is a book in the Hebrew Bible, found as two books (1–2 Samuel) in the Old Testament. The book is part of the Deuteronomistic history, a series of books (Book of Joshua, Joshua, Book of Judges, Judges, Samuel, and Books of ...

and Chronicles.

Life

Mephibosheth was five years old when both his father and grandfather died at the Battle of Mount Gilboa. After the deaths of Saul and Jonathan, Mephibosheth's nurse took him and fled in panic. () In her haste, the child fell, or was dropped while fleeing. After that, he was unable to walk. After the accident, Mephibosheth was carried with the rest of his family beyond the Jordan to the mountains of Gilead, where he found refuge in the house of Makhir ben Ammiel, a powerful Gadite or Manassite headman at

Lo-debar Lo-debar () was a town in the Old Testament in Gilead not far from Mahanaim, north of the Jabbok river () in ancient Israel. It is mentioned in the Hebrew Bible as the home of Machir, a contemporary of David. (2 Samuel 9:4,5). Lo-debar was also c ...

, not far from Mahanaim, which during the reign of his uncle Ishbosheth was the headquarters of his family. Some years later, after his accession to the kingship of the

King David David (; , "beloved one") was a king of ancient Israel and Judah and the third king of the United Monarchy, according to the Hebrew Bible and Old Testament. The Tel Dan stele, an Aramaic-inscribed stone erected by a king of Aram-Damas ...

sought "someone of the house of Saul, to whom I may show the kindness of God" and Mephibosheth was brought to him by Ziba, Saul's servant. Old Testament scholar

Walter Brueggemann Walter Albert Brueggemann (March 11, 1933 – June 5, 2025) was an American Christian scholar and theologian who is widely considered an influential Old Testament scholar. His work often focused on the Hebrew prophetic tradition and the sociop ...

says the mention of Mephibosheth's disability may have been added to show that he was not a military or political threat to David.''The Moody Bible Commentary'', (Michael Rydelnik, Michael Vanlaningham, eds.) Moody Publishers, 2014
David restored Saul's inheritance to Mephibosheth and permitted him to live within his palace in

Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

. According to , and he had a son called Micah.

Name

He is called Mephibosheth, meaning "from the mouth of shame", in the

while the

Books of Chronicles The Book of Chronicles ( , "words of the days") is a book in the Hebrew Bible, found as two books (1–2 Chronicles) in the Christian Old Testament. Chronicles is the final book of the Hebrew Bible, concluding the third section of the Jewish Ta ...

( and ) call him ''Meribbaal''. Arnold Gottfried Betz and

David Noel Freedman David Noel Freedman (12 May 1922 – 8 April 2008) was an American biblical scholar, author, editor, archaeologist, and, after his conversion from Judaism, a Presbyterian minister. He was one of the first Americans to work on the Dead Sea Scroll ...

argue that ''Memphibaal'', a name preserved in the '' Lucianic recension'' may actually be the original name of Jonathan's son, while ''Meribbaal'' may originally refer to one of Saul's sons. There is some scholarly agreement that ''Mephibosheth'' replaced ''Meribbaal'' (or ''Memphibaal'') in order to conceal the

theophoric name A theophoric name (from Greek: , ''theophoros'', literally "bearing or carrying a god") embeds the word equivalent of 'god' or a god's name in a person's name, reflecting something about the character of the person so named in relation to that d ...

baal Baal (), or Baʻal, was a title and honorific meaning 'owner' or 'lord Lord is an appellation for a person or deity who has authority, control, or power (social and political), power over others, acting as a master, chief, or ruler. The ...

", a reference to a Canaanite deity, which became taboo.

Footnotes

References

* * {{Authority control 10th-century BCE Hebrew people House of Saul People from the Kingdom of Israel (united monarchy) Asian people whose existence is disputed People with paraplegia Royalty and nobility with disabilities