Thanksgiving at the King’s Table

by Wesley Strackbein

What thanks we ought to have to dine at the King’s Table.

Each November in America, we gather in the warmth of our homes to feast and enjoy fellowship around the family table, remembering how God gave the Pilgrims of Plymouth a blessed harvest in 1621, following a year of death and hardship in a new, untamed land.

Their gift of a “table in the wilderness” (Ps. 78:19) is inspiring and remarkable, and yet it follows in line with a gripping picture, found over and over in again in Scripture, of God’s kind benevolence, graciously bestowed to unworthy people who have nothing to offer in return.¹ Through noble types of Christ, such as David and Boaz, and through the regal example of the King of Kings Himself, we find poignant scenes of care for the needy and helpless, as they are welcomed to the table to sup.

What’s heartening to consider is that the King’s Table, as represented by Christ and those who serve as types of Him, is not chiefly concerned with projecting power and welcoming the high and mighty, as was so often done through grand banquet feasts held by the kings and emperors of old.² It is, instead, characterized by personal warmth and empathetic care for those caught in dire straits. It is marked by a compassionate effort to redeem them. Rather than a gaudy showcase for boastful reveling, it stands out as a haven of hope and thoughtful intimacy where the needs of nourishment, for the weary, are fully met.

Realizing this should fill our hearts with gratitude. Even as Jesus “gave thanks” at the Last Supper as He broke bread and gave the cup to His undeserving disciples (Matt. 26:27), we should humbly give thanks that, by His grace, we can have an unmerited place at His table through His broken body and shed blood.

Lame Mephibosheth: The Cripple Who Dined with the King

Looking to the biblical record, we find a moving scene during King David’s reign of him making his royal table a place of refuge for the weak.

The backstory is one of tragedy, as three sons of King Saul — Jonathan, Abinidab, and Malchishua — were slain by the Philistines during a fierce battle on Mount Gilboa, with Saul taking his own life after he was sorely wounded (1 Sam. 31:1-4). When the nurse to Jonathan’s five-year-old son, Mephibosheth, learned of her master’s death, she fled with the boy, and in their haste to run, Mephibosheth fell and became a life-long cripple (2 Sam. 4:4).

Despite his shameful condition, Mephibosheth found a place of hope when David, after becoming king, welcomed this lame son of Jonathan to regularly dine with him.

Then king David sent, and fetched him out of the house of Machir, the son of Ammiel, from Lodebar. Now when Mephibosheth, the son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, was come unto David, he fell on his face, and did reverence. And David said, ‘Mephibosheth.’ And he answered, ‘Behold thy servant!’ And David said unto him, ‘Fear not: for I will surely shew thee kindness for Jonathan thy father’s sake, and will restore thee all the land of Saul thy father; and thou shalt eat bread at my table continually.’ And he bowed himself, and said, ‘What is thy servant, that thou shouldest look upon such a dead dog as I am?’ . . . So Mephibosheth dwelt in Jerusalem: for he did eat continually at the king’s table; and was lame on both his feet. (2 Sam. 9:5-8, 13)

What a beautiful picture of compassion this is! This orphaned cripple boy had nothing to offer King David in his pathetic state, and he had done nothing before becoming lame to deserve his attention. Yet, out of respect for his father, Jonathan, David invited Mephibosheth to his royal table.

The parallels to our own rescue from helplessness are obvious. Dr. Henry Morris writes, “Mephibosheth . . . can be considered a type of the helpless sinner, saved by grace, and raised from his condition to sup at the table of king.”³

Ruth and Boaz: A Widowed Outsider and Her Noble Redeemer

Another poignant example of provisional care, in the midst of upheaval and uncertainty, can be found in David’s ancestry.

The story is a dramatic one that was doubtless known to David and is precious to this day. It occurred during the time of the Judges, when Ruth, a Moabitess widow, followed her Israelite mother-in-law Naomi, also widowed, across the Jordan River from Moab to the older woman’s native town of Bethlehem (Ruth 1).

The two women were virtually destitute when Ruth went out to gather ears of corn left by the reapers during harvest (Ruth 2:2). As God would have it, she ended up gleaning in a field belonging to Boaz, who was a relative of Naomi’s deceased husband and who is described in Scripture as “a mighty man of wealth” (Ruth 2:1).

While not a king, Boaz was clearly a man of stature who commanded respect by all in Bethlehem who knew him, and yet he was a man of deep compassion for the needy. When he learned of Ruth’s situation, he told her not to glean in any other field than his own and to drink of his water when she was thirsty (Ruth 2:8-9). We then read of this kind and intimate gesture by Boaz:

And at mealtime Boaz said to her, ‘Come here and eat some bread and dip your morsel in the wine.’ So she sat beside the reapers, and he passed to her roasted grain. And she ate until she was satisfied, and she had some left over (Ruth 2:14). ⁴  

Though Ruth had come to true faith in Jehovah (Ruth 1:15-16), she was a Moabitess outsider trying to find her footing as a widow in an unfamiliar land. On the day Boaz encountered her, she was likely gleaning beside people she had never met before. It was an awkward situation for Ruth, to be sure. Yet Boaz warmly welcomed her to eat with him, even personally handing her food from his abundance.

But this is not the end of the story with Ruth and her caring benefactor. A short time later Boaz played the part of a kinsman redeemer, purchasing her deceased father-in-law’s land and marrying Ruth in a moving scene of loving mercy (Ruth 4:1-10). This down-and-out widow was not only rescued from her pitiful plight, but through her union with Boaz, she became the blessed mother of a great progeny (Ruth 4:13-16). Her offspring not only included King David (Ruth 4:17-22), but our Lord Jesus Christ when He came to earth in the flesh (Matt. 1:5; Luke 3:32).

Boaz’s kindness toward Ruth is one of the most stirring examples of noble compassion found in all of Scripture, and his welcoming of her to his table is part of this testimony of grace. One commentator put it this way: Boaz was “a prototype of the King of grace, Jesus Christ. [He] was a mighty man of valor, and he used his power and wealth to welcome the outsider, protect the endangered, and provide for the needy.”⁵

In showing how Christ is prefigured in Boaz, Dr. Joel Beeke notes, “Christ redeemed His people. He paid their ransom price at His own expense. He took the outsider as His bride. . . . He did it all so that we poor outsiders might rejoice in His love and give glory to God.”⁶

Praise be to God for this outpouring of mercy!

Christ’s Table: A Place of Compassion for Unworthy Sinners

David and Boaz’s welcoming table foreshadowed that of Jesus Christ, who supped with the unworthy during His earthly ministry. The scribes and Pharisees found this unfitting of Him and voiced their disapproval. In Luke’s Gospel we read this scornful question they confronted Jesus with, which the Lord did not hesitate to address:

‘Why do ye eat and drink with publicans and sinners?’ And Jesus answering said unto them, ‘They that are whole need not a physician; but they that are sick. I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.’ (Luke 5:30-32)

Even as Jesus was known to model grace as He dined in the homes of sinners,⁷ He also showed love and care for the multitudes who followed Him, feeding a crowd of 5,000 near Bethsaida and 4,000 around Decapolis by miraculously multiplying loaves of bread and fish for them to eat.⁸ It’s important to note that the first region was Jewish and the second was Gentile, yet Jesus freely ministered to both crowds.⁹ What’s more, we need not conjecture about Christ’s heart for the people, for the Gospels clearly reveal it to us. Of the second episode, Matthew records:

Then Jesus called his disciples unto him, and said, ‘I have compassion on the multitude, because they continue with me now three days, and have nothing to eat: and I will not send them away fasting, lest they faint in the way’ (Matt. 15:32).

His disciples were beside themselves on how they were to feed such a host, yet Jesus had them bring to him the seven loaves and few fish that were on hand. We are then given this moving picture of God’s provision:

And he commanded the multitude to sit down on the ground. And he took the seven loaves and the fishes, and gave thanks, and brake them, and gave to his disciples, and the disciples to the multitude. And they did all eat, and were filled: and they took up of the broken meat that was left seven baskets full. (Matt. 15:35-37)

Raised to Dine: Lazarus and Our Eternal Communion with Christ

Another mealtime scene worth mentioning is that of Jesus dining with his close friends, sisters Mary and Martha and their brother Lazarus. What’s striking is that after Jesus brought Lazurus back to life from the dead (John 11), we read that “Lazarus was one of them that sat at the table with him” (John 12:2). While it should be noted that this was a meal that Martha served, it nonetheless shows the personal and intimate communion Jesus has toward those to whom He grants new life.

This account is not just an isolated incident in the Lord’s ministry, but it points to an eternal reality: that saving life wrought by Christ ultimately leads to eternal, personal communion with Him. This truth is one that the Apostle Paul declared in his letter to the Ephesians:

But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ —  by grace you have been saved — and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus (Eph. 2:4-6)¹⁰

The Last Supper: Christ’s Model of Sacrificial Service

We come now to the Last Supper, an intimate meal held in the Upper Room with Jesus and His twelve disciples. It included the observance of Passover and the institution of Christ’s Table, which symbolized His coming death through His spilt blood and broken body.

There is much that might be said about this momentous event, but one main theme is worthy of highlighting: that Jesus modeled and emphasized sacrificial service as the royal host of this mealtime gathering. This came as He sought to prepare His disciples for His coming death, “With desire I have desired to eat this passover with you before I suffer,” Jesus said (Luke 22:15). We now quote His familiar words from Matthew’s Gospel:

And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and said, “Take, eat; this is my body.” And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, “Drink ye all of it; For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.” (Matt. 26:26-28)

Jesus was about to go to the Garden and then to the Cross, and He wanted his disciples to understand what was at stake in His effort to die a sacrificial death to redeem mankind. Yet, most frustratingly, they did not get it and selfishly began to debate among themselves who would be the greatest in the kingdom. Jesus answered their quibbling by, once again, putting Himself forward as an example of humble service in the context of the meal table:

. . . he that is greatest among you, let him be as the younger; and he that is chief, as he that doth serve. For whether is greater, he that sitteth at meat, or he that serveth? is not he that sitteth at meat? but I am among you as he that serveth. (Luke 22:26-27)

As if to underscore the point further, John’s Gospel records that Jesus “rose from supper and laid aside His garments, took a towel and girded Himself. After that, He poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet, and to wipe them with the towel with which He was girded” (John 13:4-5).

This scene around the dinner table out to pierce our hearts as we consider that the King of the World is caring for self-centered, blockheaded men who’ve missed the mark repeatedly and who He well knows are going to fail Him at He faces the darkest hour in history. Peter scoffs when Jesus tells him that he will deny His Master three times, but we know the rest of the story (Mark 14:27-31; 66-72).

Without Christ’s loving compassion at the table, and His subsequent endurance of the Cross, we would have no hope as unworthy sinners. What a loving King we serve! What a table of blessing He has given us!

Come and Dine: A Second Chance for Peter

Following His resurrection, Christ would share another meal with seven of His disciples next to the Sea of Galilee.¹¹ Among the disciples present, Peter takes center stage in this account (John 21:1-23).

The night before Jesus appeared to them, Peter decided to go fishing, and six of his companions followed him out to sea in a small craft. Their fishing attempt was fruitless, and as morning came Jesus appeared on the shore and urged them to cast their nets on the other side of the boat. When they did this, they caught a huge haul.

At this point, John realized it was Jesus, and when he informed Peter of this fact, Peter leapt from the boat and swam to shore, as the others trailed behind him in the vessel. We now read that Christ had prepared them a morning meal, “As soon then as they were come to land, they saw a fire of coals there, and fish laid thereon, and bread” (John 21:9).

After the disciples inspected their good catch of 153 fish, Jesus called them to “Come and dine” (John 21:12), and He divvied out bread and fish to the hungry men. Of this scene Matthew Henry writes: “[Jesus] had provision ready for them. When they came to land, wet and cold, weary and hungry, they found a good fire there to warm them and dry them, and fish and bread, competent provision for a good meal.”¹²

Even as Christ had given His disciples physical food to eat, He emphasized to Peter the need for him to now rise up as a sacrificial leader and feed others with spiritual nourishment.

Three times Christ asked Peter if he loved him, which somewhat exasperated this impetuous disciple, and each time Peter answered “yes,” Christ responded with the same message, “Feed my lambs. . . . Feed my sheep” (John 21:15-17). Though a painful reminder of his three denials of His Lord, Christ was giving Peter a second chance to serve under His kingdom banner.

Christ then informed Peter that, as an old man, he would die a martyr’s death in the furtherance of the Gospel and closed his discussion by telling him, “Follow me” (John 21:18-19).

Peter’s Rise: From Pentecost to Caesarea

While never perfect, Peter became a stalwart proclaimer of the Gospel, beginning on the Day of Pentecost.¹³ Three thousand souls came to Christ and were baptized in response to his bold witness that day (Act 2:13-41), and this was only the beginning of this Apostle’s fruitful ministry.

Following an unusual vision Peter had while in Joppa, he journeyed to Caesarea to preach the good news to the Gentile household of a Roman centurion named Cornelius. In his message, Peter invoked Christ’s mealtime admonitions to him:

And we are witnesses of all things which [Christ] did both in the land of the Jews, and in Jerusalem; whom they slew and hanged on a tree: Him God raised up the third day, and shewed him openly; Not to all the people, but unto witnesses chosen before of God, even to us, who did eat and drink with him after he rose from the dead. And he commanded us to preach unto the people, and to testify that it is he which was ordained of God to be the Judge of quick and dead. To him give all the prophets witness, that through his name whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins. (Acts 10:39-43)

With Peter following His Master’s call to preach, God blessed his message with Holy Spirit-wrought power. To the astonishment of the attending Jews, Gentiles came to salvation on the spot and were promptly baptized (Acts 10:44-48).

The Good Shepherd: More Lessons from Christ and Peter at the Table

As one considers Christ’s shepherding of Peter during their last two recorded meals together, an obvious lesson emerges: that mealtime stewardship is not a one-and-done proposition. It requires wise encouragement and loving confrontation and then careful follow-up, as the need requires.

At the Last Supper, Christ did not hesitate to assertively yet lovingly speak the truth to Peter about his character flaws and coming denial of his Lord. Following the Resurrection, when Peter rushed to meet Christ on the Galilean shore, Jesus appropriately reminded him of his denial, with forgiveness, while spurring him on to greater things.

Once again, we find the King’s Table to be a place of compassion for needy sinners. It’s a place of hope for those who fail. It’s a place of new starts for those who’ve blown great opportunities. And it’s a place of shepherdly follow-up, where the King of Kings calls His servants to rise above their prevailing sins and be better stewards of all they’ve been given.

Thanks be to God that He is such a longsuffering Savior!

Always Debtors: Thanks Is Due for All that We Have and Are

Peter’s early witness is easy to criticize. And it’s tempting to think that we are better than him. Yet, dear friends, let us not kid ourselves: For we, like Peter, owe a debt of thanks to God, because He is merciful, compassionate, and longsuffering toward us in our human weakness.

Jeremiah’s words in Lamentations out to stir our hearts with grateful praise: “It is of the LORD’S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness” (Lam. 3:22-23).

So, as we come to the table this Thanksgiving, it would behoove us to reflect on our constant need for Christ. Apart from Him, we would be nothing. Consider these words from the Scriptures:

“And what hast thou that thou didst not receive?” (1 Cor. 4:7)

“. . . A man can receive nothing, except it be given him from heaven.” (John 3:27)

“. . . we are [not] sufficient of ourselves to think any thing as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God;” (2 Cor. 3:5)

“For in him we live, and move, and have our being . . .” (Acts 17:28)

All that we have is a gift of God. In our sinful human flesh, we have nothing of value to offer, apart from His Divine favor. Puritan William Cooper said it well: “Thanks and praise is the homage we owe to God for all that we have and are. . . . [O]ur continual thanksgiving shows us always debtors.”¹⁴

Like Mephibosheth, the orphaned cripple, we have no hope unless we’re called to the King’s Table. But the good news is that Jesus promised that all those who answer the call of the Gospel are welcome there, “Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me” (Rev. 3:20).

Have you responded to Christ’s call with repentance and faith, bowing to His lordship? If not, the Apostle John gives these words of hope that you can claim through sincere humility and contrition: “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9).

A Sobering Reality: Obstinate Ingrates Will be Destroyed

Our discussion of the King’s Table would be incomplete if we did not emphasize a sobering reality: that though God is patient and longsuffering, His wrath will not be assuaged toward those who persist in showing ungrateful contempt for His many blessings.

We read about such a group of malcontents who were part of the Exodus from Egypt. During their wilderness sojourn, God provided the Children of Israel with a daily allotment of manna (Ex. 16:11-19), and Moses informed them that “This is the bread which the LORD hath given you to eat” (Ex. 16:15). But many of these wandering Jews were not satisfied with this gift from heaven. His “table in the wilderness” (Ps. 78:19) was not good enough for them. Numbers 11 records:

And the mixt multitude that was among them fell a lusting: and the children of Israel also wept again, and said, ‘Who shall give us flesh to eat? We remember the fish, which we did eat in Egypt freely; the cucumbers, and the melons, and the leeks, and the onions, and the garlick: But now our soul is dried away: there is nothing at all, beside this manna, before our eyes.’ (Num. 11:4-6)

As judgment, God sent quail to the murmurers and then wiped them out in a great plague while the meat was in their mouths (Num. 11:33). The Apostle Paul reminded the New Testament church about these grumbling Israelites, noting that they “were overthrown in the wilderness. Now these things were our examples, to the intent we should not lust after evil things, as they also lusted. . . . Neither murmur ye, as some of them also murmured, and were destroyed of the destroyer” (1 Cor. 10:5-6, 10).

The message should be clear: We must not act with ingratitude and disdain for God’s blessings to us, because we are not pleased with His lot for our lives — because we want something else; we want something more! In the Lord’s Prayer, Jesus taught us to pray for our “daily bread” (Matt. 6:11) not to pine for our every whim and want. While He delights in giving good gifts to His children (Matt. 7:7-11), He condemns the obstinately unthankful to reprobation (Rom. 1:21-32).

So let us not be named among the murmurers, but among the grateful recipients of God’s gracious hand.

The Marriage Supper of the Lamb, a Psalm of the Pilgrims

There is another feast coming at the end of time — the Marriage Supper of the Lamb. At this culminating event, Christ the King, will beckon His bride, the Church, to join Him at His table for all eternity. This is no mere fairy tale; it is, indeed, the consummation of all things since the beginning.

This future banquet was presaged in King Solomon’s Song of Songs, as his bride rejoiced when the king, her bridegroom, invited her to dine with him, “He brought me to the banqueting house, and his banner over me was love” (SoS. 2:4).¹⁵

It’s a beautiful scene, but what lies on time’s horizon will be far more grand than what Solomon’s bride experienced with her king in a past age. The Book of Revelation foretells of what’s to come:

Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready. And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints. And he saith unto me, ‘Write, Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb.’ And he saith unto me, ‘These are the true sayings of God.’ (Rev. 19:7-9)

As we anticipate this future feast, we should thank God now for His faithful provision, though difficulties persist. You may be facing hard challenges this Thanksgiving — my family certainly is. Yet God has blessed us all with so much, despite ongoing turmoil. So let us recount our blessings, dear friends, with heartfelt joy.

Trials were no less the lot of the Pilgrims when they landed in the New World. William Bradford noted grave challenges he and his fellow settlers faced as they came ashore, but then he cited Psalm 107 as a point of hopeful inspiration.¹⁶

In closing this discussion of the King’s Table, I commend this Psalm to you as you gather with your family this Thanksgiving, for it exalts the kind God who fills our hungry souls. May it lighten your eyes and strengthen your hearts for what lies ahead.

O give thanks unto the LORD, for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever. Let the redeemed of the LORD say so, whom he hath redeemed from the hand of the enemy; And gathered them out of the lands, from the east, and from the west, from the north, and from the south. They wandered in the wilderness in a solitary way; they found no city to dwell in. Hungry and thirsty, their soul fainted in them. Then they cried unto the LORD in their trouble, and he delivered them out of their distresses. And he led them forth by the right way, that they might go to a city of habitation. Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men! For he satisfieth the longing soul, and filleth the hungry soul with goodness. (Psalm 107:1-9)