2 Samuel 7:4-17
SS Lesson for 12/08/2024
Devotional Scripture: 1 Chron 17:11-14
David ultimately became king over a united Israel. This happened approximately 1000 BC (2 Samuel 5-6). After a long civil war (3:1-2) and the conquering of the Jebusites and their city of Jerusalem (5:6-7), he made that city the capital of the reunited kingdom of Israel (5:8-12). Victory over the Philistines followed (5:17-25). After that, David brought the Ark of the Covenant into Jerusalem (also known as “the City of David” [6:16]) and placed it inside a tent (6:17). This move cemented Jerusalem as both the political and religious capital of the kingdom. After the ark’s arrival in Jerusalem, David confronted what he considered to be a grave disparity. Although he dwelled in a grand palace (2 Samuel 5:11; 7:2), no permanent abode existed for the Ark of the Covenant (7:6-7). Disturbed by this state of affairs, David decided to build a house for God. David communicated his plan to the prophet Nathan, who initially offered encouragement and approval for the king to proceed (7:1-3). Apparently, neither man had asked God for his approval, and what follows in chapter 7 was God’s reaction to the plan (1 Chronicles 17:3-15 is a parallel account).
And your house and your kingdom shall be established forever before you. Your throne shall be established forever
(Scriptural Text from the New King James Version; cross-references from the NIV)
4 But it happened that night that the word of the Lord came to Nathan, saying,
5 "Go and tell My servant David, 'Thus says the Lord: "Would you build a house for Me to dwell in?
6 For I have not dwelt in a house since the time that I brought the children of Israel up from Egypt, even to this day, but have moved about in a tent and in a tabernacle.
7 Wherever I have moved about with all the children of Israel, have I ever spoken a word to anyone from the tribes of Israel, whom I commanded to shepherd My people Israel, saying, 'Why have you not built Me a house of cedar?'"'
8 Now therefore, thus shall you say to My servant David, 'Thus says the Lord of hosts: "I took you from the sheepfold, from following the sheep, to be ruler over My people, over Israel.
9 And I have been with you wherever you have gone, and have cut off all your enemies from before you, and have made you a great name, like the name of the great men who are on the earth.
16 'Since the day I brought my people Israel out of Egypt, I have not chosen a city in any tribe of Israel to have a temple built for my Name to be there, but I have chosen David to rule my people Israel.'
4 "Go and tell my servant David, 'This is what the Lord says: You are not the one to build me a house to dwell in. 5 I have not dwelt in a house from the day I brought Israel up out of Egypt to this day. I have moved from one tent site to another, from one dwelling place to another.
5 'Since the day I brought my people out of Egypt, I have not chosen a city in any tribe of Israel to have a temple built for my Name to be there, nor have I chosen anyone to be the leader over my people Israel. 6 But now I have chosen Jerusalem for my Name to be there, and I have chosen David to rule my people Israel.' 7 "My father David had it in his heart to build a temple for the Name of the Lord, the God of Israel. 8 But the Lord said to my father David, 'Because it was in your heart to build a temple for my Name, you did well to have this in your heart. 9 Nevertheless, you are not the one to build the temple, but your son, who is your own flesh and blood — he is the one who will build the temple for my Name.'
2 "I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing.
9 David then took up residence in the fortress and called it the City of David. He built up the area around it, from the supporting terraces inward. 10 And he became more and more powerful, because the Lord God Almighty was with him.
1 These are the last words of David: "The oracle of David son of Jesse, the oracle of the man exalted by the Most High, the man anointed by the God of Jacob, Israel's singer of songs: 2 "The Spirit of the Lord spoke through me; his word was on my tongue. 3 The God of Israel spoke, the Rock of Israel said to me: 'When one rules over men in righteousness, when he rules in the fear of God, 4 he is like the light of morning at sunrise on a cloudless morning, like the brightness after rain that brings the grass from the earth.' 5 "Is not my house right with God? Has he not made with me an everlasting covenant, arranged and secured in every part? Will he not bring to fruition my salvation and grant me my every desire?
1 O Lord, the king rejoices in your strength. How great is his joy in the victories you give! 2 You have granted him the desire of his heart and have not withheld the request of his lips. Selah 3 You welcomed him with rich blessings and placed a crown of pure gold on his head. 4 He asked you for life, and you gave it to him, length of days, for ever and ever. 5 Through the victories you gave, his glory is great; you have bestowed on him splendor and majesty.
10 Moreover I will appoint a place for My people Israel, and will plant them, that they may dwell in a place of their own and move no more; nor shall the sons of wickedness oppress them anymore, as previously,
11 since the time that I commanded judges to be over My people Israel, and have caused you to rest from all your enemies. Also the Lord tells you that He will make you a house.
12 "When your days are fulfilled and you rest with your fathers, I will set up your seed after you, who will come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom.
13 He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.
14 I will be his Father, and he shall be My son. If he commits iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men and with the blows of the sons of men.
15 But My mercy shall not depart from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I removed from before you.
16 And your house and your kingdom shall be established forever before you. Your throne shall be established forever."'"
17 According to all these words and according to all this vision, so Nathan spoke to David.
9 And I will provide a place for my people Israel and will plant them so that they can have a home of their own and no longer be disturbed. Wicked people will not oppress them anymore, as they did at the beginning
7 If at any time I announce that a nation or kingdom is to be uprooted, torn down and destroyed, 8 and if that nation I warned repents of its evil, then I will relent and not inflict on it the disaster I had planned. 9 And if at another time I announce that a nation or kingdom is to be built up and planted, 10 and if it does evil in my sight and does not obey me, then I will reconsider the good I had intended to do for it.
25 They will live in the land I gave to my servant Jacob, the land where your fathers lived. They and their children and their children's children will live there forever, and David my servant will be their prince forever. 26 I will make a covenant of peace with them; it will be an everlasting covenant. I will establish them and increase their numbers, and I will put my sanctuary among them forever. 27 My dwelling place will be with them; I will be their God, and they will be my people.
8 I will not again make the feet of the Israelites leave the land I assigned to your forefathers, if only they will be careful to do everything I commanded them concerning all the laws, decrees and ordinances given through Moses."
3 You said, "I have made a covenant with my chosen one, I have sworn to David my servant,
11 When your days are over and you go to be with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, one of your own sons, and I will establish his kingdom. 12 He is the one who will build a house for me, and I will establish his throne forever.
15 You have kept your promise to your servant David my father; with your mouth you have promised and with your hand you have fulfilled it, as it is today. 16 "Now Lord, God of Israel, keep for your servant David my father the promises you made to him when you said, 'You shall never fail to have a man to sit before me on the throne of Israel, if only your sons are careful in all they do to walk before me according to my law, as you have done.' 17 And now, O Lord, God of Israel, let your word that you promised your servant David come true.
2 Solomon sent back this message to Hiram: 3 "You know that because of the wars waged against my father David from all sides, he could not build a temple for the Name of the Lord his God until the Lord put his enemies under his feet. 4 But now the Lord my God has given me rest on every side, and there is no adversary or disaster. 5 I intend, therefore, to build a temple for the Name of the Lord my God, as the Lord told my father David, when he said, 'Your son whom I will put on the throne in your place will build the temple for my Name.'
9 But you will have a son who will be a man of peace and rest, and I will give him rest from all his enemies on every side. His name will be Solomon, and I will grant Israel peace and quiet during his reign. 10 He is the one who will build a house for my Name. He will be my son, and I will be his father. And I will establish the throne of his kingdom over Israel forever.
29 "Brothers, I can tell you confidently that the patriarch David died and was buried, and his tomb is here to this day. 30 But he was a prophet and knew that God had promised him on oath that he would place one of his descendants on his throne.
11 The Lord swore an oath to David, a sure oath that he will not revoke: "One of your own descendants I will place on your throne, 12 if your sons keep my covenant and the statutes I teach them, then their sons will sit on your throne for ever and ever."
6 He said to me: 'Solomon your son is the one who will build my house and my courts, for I have chosen him to be my son, and I will be his father.
11 So the Lord said to Solomon, "Since this is your attitude and you have not kept my covenant and my decrees, which I commanded you, I will most certainly tear the kingdom away from you and give it to one of your subordinates. 12 Nevertheless, for the sake of David your father, I will not do it during your lifetime. I will tear it out of the hand of your son. 13 Yet I will not tear the whole kingdom from him, but will give him one tribe for the sake of David my servant and for the sake of Jerusalem, which I have chosen."
44 "In the time of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed, nor will it be left to another people. It will crush all those kingdoms and bring them to an end, but it will itself endure forever.
1 Now it came about when the king lived in his house, and the LORD had given him rest on every side from all his enemies, 2 that the king said to Nathan the prophet, “See now, I dwell in a house of cedar, but the ark of God dwells within tent curtains.” 3 Nathan said to the king, “Go, do all that is in your mind, for the LORD is with you.”
David has come a long way from his sheep-tending days as a young lad. It has just begun to dawn on David that God has established him as king over Israel (2 Samuel 5:12). The Philistines have twice sought to overthrow him, and twice David has defeated them. The enemies around Israel are, for the time being, at peace with David. With the help of Hiram, king of Tyre, David has completed his own palace, and he is now living in royal splendor. David now has the time to devote to other enterprises.
After a failed first effort, the ark of God has been successfully brought to Jerusalem, housed in a tent. David may have been looking out from the rooftop of his palace, his eyes fixed on the tabernacle-tent in which the ark was kept. Somehow it seems inappropriate for David to live in such splendor, while the ark of God is kept in such plain and seemingly provisional surroundings. The idea comes to him that he can build another house; this second house will be a temple in which the ark can be kept in far more fitting surroundings.
It is settled in David's mind. That is what he will do. And so David confides in Nathan the prophet, who seems also to be a friend and confidant of the king. How can such a generous gesture possibly be wrong? Why shouldn't God have a more fitting dwelling place? And so, without consulting God, Nathan gives David the go ahead. In effect, Nathan says to David, “Sounds good to me, and I'm sure it will be okay with God as well.” In biblical terms, Nathan says, “God, do all that is in your mind, for the LORD is with You” (verse 3).26
4 But in the same night the word of the LORD came to Nathan, saying, 5 “Go and say to My servant David, 'Thus says the LORD, “Are you the one who should build Me a house to dwell in? 6 “For I have not dwelt in a house since the day I brought up the sons of Israel from Egypt, even to this day; but I have been moving about in a tent, even in a tabernacle. 7 “Wherever I have gone with all the sons of Israel, did I speak a word with one of the tribes of Israel, which I commanded to shepherd My people Israel, saying, 'Why have you not built Me a house of cedar?””
I remember years ago when I was a part of the administration of a small college. Actually, there were two schools. One was a college, and the other was a remedial educational program, designed to bring educationally handicapped young people up to a college level. I was not a part of the college program, but of the remedial program. When the college needed a teacher, I thought I had the perfect candidate. The problem was that the dean of the college had already made his decision. Unwisely, I spoke to the president of both schools, and he encouraged me to go to the dean with my idea. That was not a good thing to do. The dean's response to my suggestion caught me completely off guard. “Mr. Deffinbaugh,” he responded rather hotly, “who is running this school, you, or me?” Oops. I was in trouble. By the way, he was right. My idea was just that, and I was not the one running the school.
Nathan could surely identify with how I felt that day. In the middle of the night, God gives Nathan a direct revelation, which he is to convey to David. In a way, it put both Nathan and David in their place. Like me, David had a bright idea, but it did not correspond with God's plan. The question which God asks David sets the tone for what is to follow: “Are you the one who should build Me a house to dwell in?” Oops. I like the way Eugene Peterson puts it:
“But there are times when our grand human plans to do something for God are seen, after a night of prayer, to be a huge human distraction from what God is doing for us. That's what Nathan realized that night: God showed Nathan that David's building plans for God would interfere with God's building plans for David.”27
Before we go any further, it is time for me to point out a couple of significant details. Note that in verses 1, 2, and 3 David is referred to as the king, but when God refers to David, He calls him My servant David (verse 5). I think it is safe to suggest that David is a little too conscious of his position as king. Now in relation to all the people of Israel (and those outside Israel for that matter), David is the highest authority in the land. But in relation to God, David is merely a servant. David is living in a palace, and God is living in a tent, at least in David's mind. David almost appears to be wanting to give God a helping hand. It would be like me, wearing a tuxedo, sending Ross Perot a gift certificate to buy himself some decent clothes. It is for this reason, I believe, that God appears to put David in his place, first by referring to the king as His servant, and second by saying to him, “Who are you to be building Me a house?”
We should note yet another detail here. This very issue of the value of a temple, as opposed to the tabernacle, is addressed by Stephen in Acts 7:
44 “Our fathers had the tabernacle of testimony in the wilderness, just as He who spoke to Moses directed him to make it according to the pattern which he had seen. 45 “And having received it in their turn, our fathers brought it in with Joshua upon dispossessing the nations whom God drove out before our fathers, until the time of David. 46 “David found favor in God's sight, and asked that he might find a dwelling place for the God of Jacob. 47 “But it was Solomon who built a house for Him. 48 “However, the Most High does not dwell in houses made by human hands; as the prophet says: 49 'HEAVEN IS MY THRONE, AND EARTH IS THE FOOTSTOOL OF MY FEET; WHAT KIND OF HOUSE WILL YOU BUILD FOR ME?' says the Lord, 'OR WHAT PLACE IS THERE FOR MY REPOSE? 50 'WAS IT NOT MY HAND WHICH MADE ALL THESE THINGS?'“ (Acts 7:44-50).
Stephen had been brought before the Sanhedrin on trumped up charges, one of which was that he spoke against the temple (Acts 6:13). Stephen did not deny the charge brought against him by false witnesses. Instead, he defended himself by pointing out from the Old Testament Scriptures that God was not nearly as impressed with the temple as the Jews were. He argued that God gave Israel the tabernacle, and that the temple was David's idea. He then went on to show that the God who created all things surely cannot be confined to a dwelling made by human hands. In short, God did not need a temple, and He did not ask for one. He allowed David's son to build the temple because David wanted it. It wasn't wrong; it just wasn't God's idea. God did not need a temple, and for some, a temple would convey the wrong message.
Second Samuel 7 is in agreement with Stephen's argument. In verses 6-11a, God explains to David why He does not need a temple made by him. The first reason is given in verse 6 and can be summed up in these words: “If it isn't broken, don't try to fix it.” Think about it. Why buy a new car if your present car performs perfectly? When God gave the law to Moses, He instructed him as to how a tabernacle should be constructed. Throughout Israel's history, from Mt. Sinai to the reign of David, the tabernacle had functioned flawlessly. God was with His people as the ark was kept in the tabernacle. And when the people moved from one place to another, the tabernacle and the ark went with them. God was with His people wherever they went. He gave them victory over their enemies. He gave them the possession of the promised land. Israel's history bore testimony to the fact that there was nothing to fix; the tabernacle did the job very adequately. If it isn't broken, don't fix it.
In verse 7, God gives yet another reason for there being no real need for a temple: “I didn't ask for one.” On Mt. Sinai, God gave Israel the law through Moses, and in this law, He specified how the tabernacle was to be constructed, how it was to be moved, and who was to care for it. God instructed the Israelites to build the tabernacle; He did not even ask for a temple. If a temple were needed, surely God would have asked for one, and since He did not ask, we must conclude it was not necessary.
In verses 8-11a, God gets to the heart of the matter. I want you to notice how often the pronoun “I” is found. This section is very clearly God-centered. I like the way Peterson puts it:
The message that Nathan delivers to David is dominated by a recital of what God has done, is doing, and will do. God is the first-person subject of twenty-three verbs in this message, and these verbs carry the action. David, full of what he's going to do for God, is now subjected to a comprehensive rehearsal of what God has done, is doing, and will do for and in David. What looked yesterday like a bold Davidic enterprise on behalf of God now looks picayune.28
Does David want to offer God a helping hand by building Him a better house in which to live? God reminds David Who is taking care of whom. Would David do something great for God, like build Him a temple? History would remind David (and us) that it has always been God helping us, not us helping God. David, God's servant, should recall that it was He who took him out of the pasture, from following (not leading) the sheep, and made him ruler of all Israel (verse 8). God has been with David, wherever he went, and it was He who gave David's enemies into his hand, resulting in his fame and reputation. It is God who has always come to man's aid, and not man who rescues God.
In verse 10, there is a significant change in the tense of the verbs. Previous verbs are in the past tense, referring back to what God has done in the past. Now, in verse 10, the verbs become future. After pointing out all that He has done for David and Israel in the past, God goes on to say something like: “David, My servant, you have not seen anything yet. The best is yet to come.” God promises to appoint a place for His people where they will be planted. They will have a place of their own (as David intended to give God a “place of His own”), and they will dwell in peace there because the wicked will no longer afflict them. It won't be like it used to be, from the time of the judges till the present. God will give David rest from all his enemies.29 Would David dare to think he could do something for God? It was God who gave David all that he had, and it was God who would give him yet even more.30
The question must arise: when are these promises to David fulfilled? It is clear that they were not yet fulfilled, for they are expressed as a future reality. Some might think they are fulfilled in the next three chapters (8-10), when David prevails over all his enemies who surround Israel. I don't think we can see a complete fulfillment in David's lifetime or even in that of his son Solomon. I believe these promises to David are fully realized only in the coming Kingdom of God, when the Lord Jesus Christ subdues all His enemies and establishes His kingdom on the earth. It is that time spoken of in the last chapters of the Book of Isaiah. These promises are given to David here because they pave the way for the promise God is about to make to David in the following verses, the promise to build a “house” for him.
11 . . . The LORD also declares to you that the LORD will make a house for you. 12 “When your days are complete and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your descendant after you, who will come forth from you, and I will establish his kingdom. 13 “He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. 14 “I will be a father to him and he will be a son to Me; when he commits iniquity, I will correct him with the rod of men and the strokes of the sons of men, 15 but My lovingkindness shall not depart from him, as I took it away from Saul, whom I removed from before you. 16 “Your house and your kingdom shall endure before Me forever; your throne shall be established forever.””' 17 In accordance with all these words and all this vision, so Nathan spoke to David.
The story of this chapter begins with David's intention to build a house (a temple) for God. God gently rebukes David for this heady plan. David has taken the wrong posture, of helping out God, rather than being the one who has constantly been helped by God. God did very well in taking care of His people when He associated Himself with the ark and the tabernacle. God did not ask for a temple, because He did not need one. God has been behind all of David's successes, and now He is promising even greater glory. And now God returns to the subject of a “house.” Would David build a house for God? No, he will not, though his son will. But God now announces to David that He is going to build a “house” for him. The details concerning this “house” are laid out in verses 12-17.
This prophecy, like many others, has a near and a distant fulfillment. On the near end is Solomon, David's second son by Bathsheba. It is he who will take David's place and reign over Israel after his death. We know that Nathan's words must refer to Solomon because they include the fact that David's “son” will sin, and that God will correct him. This statement cannot be made of the Messiah, the Son of David who will come to take away the sins of the world and to sit on the throne of His father, David. Unlike Saul, whose dynasty was taken away, David's “house” (his descendants) will be a dynasty, and will reign over Israel.
The descendants of David -- his “house” -- will enjoy a very unique and privileged relationship with God. It is described as a father/son relationship, or should I say a Father/son (and Father/Son) relationship. In the Bible, to be a “son” sometimes means much more than just being the physical offspring of one's father. The term “son” is employed to refer to one who rules in the place of another (the father). Adam was the “son of God” in the sense that he ruled over God's creation as His agent (see Luke 3:38). Satan and the angels are also referred to as “sons” of God in this same sense. Here, Solomon (David's descendant) is also referred to as enjoying a Father/son relationship with God.
In this sense, one does not become a “son” at one's birth; a king becomes a “son” of God when God installs him upon the throne:
4 He who sits in the heavens laughs, The Lord scoffs at them. 5 Then He will speak to them in His anger And terrify them in His fury, saying, 6 “But as for Me, I have installed My King Upon Zion, My holy mountain.” 7 “I will surely tell of the decree of the LORD: He said to Me, 'You are My Son, Today I have begotten You. 8 'Ask of Me, and I will surely give the nations as Your inheritance, And the very ends of the earth as Your possession. 9 'You shall break them with a rod of iron, You shall shatter them like earthenware”' (Psalm 2:4-9, emphasis mine).
This is exactly what God announces to our Lord Jesus Christ. God calls our Lord His “Son” at His baptism (Matthew 3:17; Mark 1:11; Luke 3:22) and at His transfiguration (Matthew 17:5; Mark 9:7; Luke 9:35). Peter makes mention of these words, linking these words to the transfiguration (2 Peter 1:17). The writer to the Hebrews also makes use of these words as proof that Jesus was the promised Jewish Messiah (1:5; 5:5). In 5:5, the author of Hebrews specifically refers to our text in 2 Samuel 7:14 as having been fulfilled in Christ. In Acts 13:33, Paul turns to these words in Psalm 2 as having been fulfilled in Christ, particularly in relationship to His resurrection from the dead.
This word “son” or “sons” is also used of those who have come to faith in Jesus Christ. When we are saved by faith, we become the “sons” of God. This term “sons” not only means we become a child of God, but that we become those who will reign with Him:
18 For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us. 19 For the anxious longing of the creation waits eagerly for the revealing of the sons of God. 20 For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it, in hope 21 that the creation itself also will be set free from its slavery to corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God. 22 For we know that the whole creation groans and suffers the pains of childbirth together until now. 23 And not only this, but also we ourselves, having the first fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our body (Romans 8:18-23).
When Christ returns to this earth and we are raised from the dead, we are adopted as sons in Christ, and we shall reign with Him for all eternity.
David will have sons, and these sons will become “sons” of God in that they will rule over Israel. But there will come one very special “son,” and through Him all of the promises God has made here and elsewhere (pertaining to the Kingdom of God) will be fulfilled, either in His first coming, or in His return to the earth. David will have many sons, who will reign after him, and he and his sons will become “sons” of God. But the greatest promise of all is that a very special “son” will come, who is a descendant of David, and His kingdom will be eternal. It is in this “Son” that all of David's hopes, all of Israel's hopes, all of our hopes are fulfilled. And this is the essence of the Davidic Covenant. God will give David sons who rule in his place, but God's promises will be fully and finally fulfilled in that special “Son” who is yet to come.
These words, spoken by Nathan, are the very word of God. They are given to Nathan in the vision, which necessitates a “revision” of the permission he has given David to build a house for God. God thus speaks to David through Nathan. These are the sure word of God.
(Adapted from URL:https://bible.org/seriespage/7-building-god-s-house-2-samuel-71-29)
Last year, a man’s mother passed away suddenly from a brain tumor discovered only a few months prior. His father followed her in death less than a week later. One of the final requests the father shared with the family was that he wanted the brother to inherit the family home since the rest of the family already owned properties. They spent their entire childhood in their parents’ house in a small Indiana town, never relocating. As funds permitted, the mother and father would periodically update the flooring and replace the roof, among other things. However, before the man and his wife returned to Alaska after the funeral services, he provided his brother with a list of outstanding repairs that the parents had not finished, and with a good-humored tone, let him know that the burden of maintaining the house now fell on him. King David had to leave the construction of God’s house to his son. But God’s grand plans went far beyond the building and upkeep of an inanimate temple. In Jesus, we are part of God’s everlasting and holy temple. And one day, we will arrive home in the Lord, enjoying the everlasting kingdom in ways David could only dream about in his own days. This eternal residence, crafted by God, is where Christ, a descendant of David, reigns for all eternity