Then said Ziba unto the king, according to all the king hath
commanded his servant, so shall thy servant do
Till the land, and bring the fruits of it to Mephibosheth, for the support of his family; he promised very fair, had he been as faithful to his trust:
as for Mephibosheth, [said the king], he shall eat at my table, as one
of the king's sons;
which is repeated, for the confirmation of it, and to show that he should be treated with equal respect, and fare as the king's sons themselves did; though the clause "said the king" is not in the original text, and the words are thought by Abarbinel and others to be the words of Ziba continued; who promised to do what the king had ordered, though Mephibosheth had eaten at his table, as one of the king's sons, and needed not anything, and needed not to eat at the king's table; and if it was his pleasure, he would maintain him out of this estate like the son of a king; but the phrase "my table" seems to be too arrogant for Ziba to say, and rather fits the mouth of David the king.