The Meaning of 2 Samuel 16:4 Explained

2 Samuel 16:4

KJV: Then said the king to Ziba, Behold, thine are all that pertained unto Mephibosheth. And Ziba said, I humbly beseech thee that I may find grace in thy sight, my lord, O king.

YLT: And the king saith to Ziba, 'Lo, thine are all that Mephibosheth hath;' and Ziba saith, 'I have bowed myself -- I find grace in thine eyes, my lord, O king.'

Darby: And the king said to Ziba, Behold, thine are all that pertained to Mephibosheth. And Ziba said, I humbly bow myself: may I find favour in thy sight, my lord, O king.

ASV: Then said the king to Ziba, Behold, thine is all that pertaineth unto Mephibosheth. And Ziba said, I do obeisance; let me find favor in thy sight, my lord, O king.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

Then said  the king  to Ziba,  Behold, thine [are] all that [pertained] unto Mephibosheth.  And Ziba  said,  I humbly  beseech thee [that] I may find  grace  in thy sight,  my lord,  O king. 

What does 2 Samuel 16:4 Mean?

Context Summary

2 Samuel 16:1-12 - A Day That Revealed Character
There may have been some truth in Ziba's statement, but we should balance it with 2 Samuel 19:24. Shimei vented the spleen of the house of Saul. He probably referred to the recent execution of the sons of Rizpah, and perhaps suggested that David had been guilty of all the disaster that had befallen Saul's house from the day of Gilboa. When men curse us, whether we deserve it or not, let us look past them to the permissive will of God. "Let him curse; for the Lord hath bidden him!"
When, through the treachery of Judas, the bitter cup came to the lips of our Lord, he said, "It is the cup that my Father hath given me to drink." Pain and sorrow, treachery and hard speeches, may be devised against us by the malignity of an Ahithophel, a Shimei, or a Judas; but by the time these have passed, through the permissive will of God, we may receive them as the strokes of His chastening rod, that we may partake of His holiness. We are not the sport of chance or human caprice. God deals with us as with sons. [source]

Chapter Summary: 2 Samuel 16

1  Ziba, by presents and false suggestions, obtains his master's inheritance
5  At Bahurim, Shimei curses David
9  David with patience abstains, and restrains others, from revenge
15  Hushai insinuates himself into Absalom's counsel
20  Ahithophel's counsel

What do the individual words in 2 Samuel 16:4 mean?

So said the king to Ziba Here [is] yours all that [belongs] to Mephibosheth And said Ziba I humbly bow before you [that] I may find favor in your sight my lord king
וַיֹּ֤אמֶר הַמֶּ֙לֶךְ֙ לְצִבָ֔א הִנֵּ֣ה לְךָ֔ כֹּ֖ל אֲשֶׁ֣ר לִמְפִי־ בֹ֑שֶׁת וַיֹּ֤אמֶר צִיבָא֙ הִֽשְׁתַּחֲוֵ֔יתִי אֶמְצָא־ חֵ֥ן בְּעֵינֶ֖יךָ אֲדֹנִ֥י הַמֶּֽלֶךְ

וַיֹּ֤אמֶר  So  said 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: אָמַר 
Sense: to say, speak, utter.
הַמֶּ֙לֶךְ֙  the  king 
Parse: Article, Noun, masculine singular
Root: מֶלֶךְ 
Sense: king.
לְצִבָ֔א  to  Ziba 
Parse: Preposition-l, Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: צִיבָא  
Sense: a servant of Saul whom David made steward of Jonathan’s son Mephibosheth.
הִנֵּ֣ה  Here  [is] 
Parse: Interjection
Root: הִנֵּה  
Sense: behold, lo, see, if.
לְךָ֔  yours 
Parse: Preposition, second person masculine singular
אֲשֶׁ֣ר  that  [belongs] 
Parse: Pronoun, relative
Root: אֲשֶׁר 
Sense: (relative part.).
בֹ֑שֶׁת  Mephibosheth 
Parse: Preposition, Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: מְפִיבֹשֶׁת 
Sense: grandson of Saul and son of Rizpah the daughter of Aiah, Saul’s concubine; he and his brother Armoni were among the 7 victims surrendered by David to the Gibeonites to avert a famine.
וַיֹּ֤אמֶר  And  said 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: אָמַר 
Sense: to say, speak, utter.
צִיבָא֙  Ziba 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: צִיבָא  
Sense: a servant of Saul whom David made steward of Jonathan’s son Mephibosheth.
הִֽשְׁתַּחֲוֵ֔יתִי  I  humbly  bow  before  you 
Parse: Verb, Hitpael, Perfect, first person common singular
Root: שָׁחָה  
Sense: to bow down.
אֶמְצָא־  [that]  I  may  find 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect Cohortative if contextual, first person common singular
Root: מָצָא  
Sense: to find, attain to.
חֵ֥ן  favor 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: חֵן  
Sense: favour, grace, charm.
בְּעֵינֶ֖יךָ  in  your  sight 
Parse: Preposition-b, Noun, cdc, second person masculine singular
Root: עֹונָה 
Sense: eye.
אֲדֹנִ֥י  my  lord 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct, first person common singular
Root: אָדֹון  
Sense: firm, strong, lord, master.
הַמֶּֽלֶךְ  king 
Parse: Article, Noun, masculine singular
Root: מֶלֶךְ 
Sense: king.