Nougat 4

After yesterdays breaking news, I felt the need to focus on the names that comprise today’s Holy Nougat as I’m convinced that they carry a message for us.

“And the king said unto him, Where is he? And Ziba said unto the king, Behold, he is in the house of Machir, the son of Ammiel, in Lo-debar. Then king David sent, and fetched him out of the house of Machir, the son of Ammiel, from Lo-debar.” ‭‭2 Samuel‬ ‭9‬:‭4‬-‭5‬ ‭KJV‬‬

Here is the amplified nougat with the name meanings …

In response to King David’s (beloved, uncle) question, Ziba (meaning strength or fight) the servant revealed the secret whereabouts of Mephibosheth (from the mouth of shame). Mephibosheth the prince, son of David’s beloved friend Jonathan (gift of God), was ensconced at Machir’s (selling, knowing) house in Lo-debar (no pasture, no communication or word), and Machir was Ammiel’s (people of God) son.

Interestingly, King David’s name is not mentioned in the nougat, only his title. So we will reread the nougat’s message using the title only.

The people of God, despite knowing they were God’s gift, were cut off with no communication because of the shame of their experience. But the fight was not gone. And the king (ruler) was willing to fight for the life of the one whose shame left him bereft as a sheep without a pasture.

Stretching it?

Perhaps

But that string of meanings in two verses really set me thinking about the premise that the Bible is coded with messages for us all.

When looking at the original texts (see Strongs Concordance), it is immediately clear that the sentences are not written for English grammar or sentence structure. Hence one is left to infer the meaning from the flow of words. It is not so far fetched to deduce what I did using the name meanings. For the truth is, that is what happened from the first garden to the Cross Garden.

At Eden, Adam and Eve’s actions crippled us all, casting shame upon us; cutting us off from ordinary daily communication with God, our ruler, and king. And God sent The Anointed One to Fight for us, the children of God’s people. It was a fight that lasted up to Gethsemane and Calvary (a barren pasture, filled with trees void of growth and of life). It would seem that the people of God, now the people of shame were to remain crippled by their sin and the sin of their fore parents.

But as much as Mephibosheth found favor with the king; so too do we. For our story doesn’t end in death. Right there in the garden of Death, new life emerged – the Anointed One returned and proved to be The Resurrected, Eternal One! His victory over Death opens possibilities for you and me. We know that now, and we can walk in it.

May we like Ziba fight for those still stuck in Lo-debar with our prayers, knowing that the battle is already won; we’re no longer ensconced in the pasture of death, communication is restored and we will sit at the king’s table!

Hallelujah

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May all we seek be found in Christ