2 Samuel 19:24
in 2 Samuel 19Then Mephibosheth, Saul’s grandson, went down to meet the king. He had not cared for his feet or trimmed his mustache or washed his clothes from the day the king had left until the day he returned safely.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And Mephibosheth the son of Saul came down to meet the king; and he had neither dressed his feet, nor trimmed his beard, nor washed his clothes, from the day the king departed until the day he came home in peace.
KJV
And Mephibosheth the son of Saul came down to meet the king, and had neither dressed his feet, nor trimmed his beard, nor washed his clothes, from the day the king departed until the day he came again in peace.
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This verse in 2 Samuel 19
Commentary
6 notes on this verseNeither dressed his feet - He had given the fullest proof of his sincere attachment to David and his cause; and by what he had done, amply refuted the calumnies of his servant Ziba.
This site's exposition
had neither dressed his feet, nor trimmed his beard
on 2 Samuel 19:24-25
Mephibosheth's unwashed feet, untrimmed beard and unwashed clothes since the day the king departed are a mourner's signs worn the whole length of David's exile, offered as evidence before he speaks a word in his own defense. Clarke reads the details as refuting Ziba's earlier report at 16:1-4 without David needing to ask a single question. David's first question still assumes Ziba's account was true, asking why Mephibosheth stayed behind rather than why he had mourned so long.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
), and as a proof of the sincerity of his joy in the king's return, we are here told what a true mourner he was for the king's banishment. During that melancholy time, when one of the greatest glories of Israel had departed, Mephibosheth continued in a very melancholy state.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — leading-punctuation+unbalanced-parens
And Mephibosheth the son of Saul came down to meet the king,....
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
Besides dyeing it black or red colors, which, however, is the exception, and not the rule in the East, there are various modes of trimming it: they train it into a massy, bushy form, swelling and round; or they terminate it like a pyramid, in a sharp point. Whatever the mode, it is always trimmed with the greatest care; and they usually carry a small comb for the purpose.
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
Beard - The “moustache,” the beard of the upper lip. The fact related in this verse tends to clear Mephibosheth from the suspicion of unfaithfulness to David.
The words behind it
25 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וּמְפִבֹ֙שֶׁת֙ | umefivoshet | and Mephibosheth | H4648 → | 18 times |
| בֶּן־ | ben- | [the] son of | H1121 → | 4930 times |
| שָׁא֔וּל | shaul | Saul | H7586 → | 402 times |
| יָרַ֖ד | yarad | he went down | H3381 → | 381 times |
| לִקְרַ֣את | likrat | to meet | H7122 → | 139 times |
| הַמֶּ֑לֶךְ | hamelekh | the king | H4428 → | 2525 times |
| וְלֹא־ | velo'- | and not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| עָשָׂ֨ה | ʾasah | he had done | H6213 → | 2628 times |
| רַגְלָ֜יו | raglav | feet his | H7272 → | 247 times |
| וְלֹא־ | velo'- | and not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| עָשָׂ֣ה | ʾasah | he had done | H6213 → | 2628 times |
| שְׂפָמ֗וֹ | sefamo | moustache his | H8222 → | |
| וְאֶת־ | veet | and <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| בְּגָדָיו֙ | begadav | clothes his | H899 → | 217 times |
| לֹ֣א | lo' | not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| כִבֵּ֔ס | khibes | he had washed | H3526 → | |
| לְמִן־ | lemin- | <to> from | H4480 → | 1188 times |
| הַיּוֹם֙ | haiyom | the day | H3117 → | 2304 times |
| לֶ֣כֶת | lekhet | went | H1980 → | 1546 times |
| הַמֶּ֔לֶךְ | hamelekh | the king | H4428 → | 2525 times |
| עַד־ | ʾad- | until | H5704 → | 1261 times |
| הַיּ֖וֹם | haiyom | the day | H3117 → | 2304 times |
| אֲשֶׁר־ | ʾasher- | when | H834 → | 5497 times |
| בָּ֥א | ba' | he came | H935 → | 2568 times |
| בְשָׁלֽוֹם׃ | veshalom | in peace | H7965 → | 236 times |
וּמְפִבֹ֙שֶׁת֙and Mephibosheth
umefivoshetH4648 →18 times
בֶּן־[the] son of
ben-H1121 →4930 times
שָׁא֔וּלSaul
shaulH7586 →402 times
יָרַ֖דhe went down
yaradH3381 →381 times
לִקְרַ֣אתto meet
likratH7122 →139 times
הַמֶּ֑לֶךְthe king
hamelekhH4428 →2525 times
וְלֹא־and not
velo'-H3808 →5168 times
עָשָׂ֨הhe had done
ʾasahH6213 →2628 times
רַגְלָ֜יוfeet his
raglavH7272 →247 times
וְלֹא־and not
velo'-H3808 →5168 times
עָשָׂ֣הhe had done
ʾasahH6213 →2628 times
שְׂפָמ֗וֹmoustache his
sefamoH8222 →
וְאֶת־and <obj.>
veetH853 →10935 times
בְּגָדָיו֙clothes his
begadavH899 →217 times
לֹ֣אnot
lo'H3808 →5168 times
כִבֵּ֔סhe had washed
khibesH3526 →
לְמִן־<to> from
lemin-H4480 →1188 times
הַיּוֹם֙the day
haiyomH3117 →2304 times
לֶ֣כֶתwent
lekhetH1980 →1546 times
הַמֶּ֔לֶךְthe king
hamelekhH4428 →2525 times
עַד־until
ʾad-H5704 →1261 times
הַיּ֖וֹםthe day
haiyomH3117 →2304 times
אֲשֶׁר־when
ʾasher-H834 →5497 times
בָּ֥אhe came
ba'H935 →2568 times
בְשָׁלֽוֹם׃in peace
veshalomH7965 →236 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Romans 12:15Rejoice with those who rejoice; weep with those who weep.
it leads to
- 1 Corinthians 12:26
If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Hebrews 13:3
Remember those in prison as if you were bound with them, and those who are mistreated as if you were suffering with them.
- Psalms 35:13–14
Yet when they were ill, I put on sackcloth; I humbled myself with fasting, but my prayers returned unanswered.
- John 11:33–36
When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come with her also weeping, He was deeply moved in spirit and troubled.
- Job 30:25
Have I not wept for those in trouble? Has my soul not grieved for the needy?
- 1 Corinthians 12:26
Through
Hebrews 13:3Remember those in prison as if you were bound with them, and those who are mistreated as if you were suffering with them.
it leads to
- Matthew 25:36
I was naked and you clothed Me, I was sick and you looked after Me, I was in prison and you visited Me.’
- Hebrews 10:34
You sympathized with those in prison and joyfully accepted the confiscation of your property, knowing that you yourselves had a better and permanent possession.
- Romans 12:15
Rejoice with those who rejoice; weep with those who weep.
- Matthew 25:36
About 2 Samuel
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; Jamieson, Fausset and Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.