In today's passage the Lord promises to establish a dynasty for David. He states that the royal line of kingly succession will follow the family line of David forever.
"After the king was settled in his palace and the Lord had given him rest from all his enemies around him, he said to Nathan the prophet, 'Here I am, living in a house of cedar, while the ark of God remains in a tent.'" (2 Samuel 7:1-2) Our next chapter will tell us of various victories won by David in battle after he became king. A number of scholars believe the events of Chapter 8 took place before the events of our current chapter since the Lord says it was after "the Lord had given him rest from all his enemies around him" that David began thinking of building a house for the ark. The reason for placing the information of Chapter 7 out of chronological order is assumed to be because the Lord's establishing of a covenant with the house of David is far more important than anything else that happens in the book of 2 Samuel. In promising David that no one but a descendant of his will ever sit on the throne of Israel, the Lord is making it clear that the Messiah will come from David's family line.
Nathan the prophet is more than just an advisor to the king; he is his friend. When he answers David I think he is speaking as a friend and not as a prophet. "Nathan replied to the king, 'Whatever you have in mind, go ahead and do it, for the Lord is with you.'" (2 Samuel 7:3) Nathan doesn't stop and pray and consult the Lord when making his reply. He's thinking about all the victories the Lord has given David (which we'll study in our next chapter) and he's thinking about how the Lord blesses everything David does because of David's love and obedience toward the Lord. He assumes the Lord will put His stamp of approval on David building a temple, for David's intentions are honorable. David also assumes the Lord will put His stamp of approval on the building project, and I don't think either of these men is trying to be disobedient to the Lord when they excitedly begin talking about such a glorious undertaking. Their only intention appears to be to honor the Lord.
There's nothing sinful about David wanting to build a temple to house the ark. It's just that he isn't the man the Lord has chosen for the job and He will gently inform David of this through the prophet Nathan. The Lord appreciates David's desire to build a temple. He is pleased that David wants to do something in His honor. But the Lord chooses the gifts and talents He gives to each person and He makes plans for their lives accordingly. David's skills lie primarily in warfare, not in architecture. He is a man who has shed much blood in his lifetime and the Lord will choose a man to build the temple who has a gift for imagining and creating beauty out of wood and stone and metal. The Lord will choose a man who has had the blessing of living in a time of peace, due to David's military victories, and who has not had to thrust swords through enemies in battle.
Nathan assumed the Lord would bless David's desire to build a temple. The Lord will bless David but in an even bigger and better way. In the meantime He instructs Nathan to tell David not to begin construction of a temple. "But that night the word of the Lord came to Nathan, saying, 'Go and tell My servant David, 'This is what the Lord says: Are you the one to build Me a house to dwell in? I have not dwelt in a house from the day I brought the Israelites up out of Egypt to this day. I have been moving from place to place with a tent as My dwelling. Wherever I have moved with all the Israelites, did I ever say to any of their rulers whom I commanded to shepherd My people Israel, 'Why have you not built Me a house of cedar?'" (2 Samuel 7:4-7)
The Lord is honored that David wants to build a temple; no one has suggested such a thing before. The Israelites have been settled in the promised land for over four hundred years but no man has ever proposed building a temple for the Lord. The Lord isn't putting David down when He asks, "Are you the one to build Me a house to dwell in?" He's saying something like, "No one has ever before offered to do such a thing and I have never asked or commanded anyone to do such a thing. I don't need a temple for the ark that represents My covenant with Israel. I was perfectly satisfied with the tent I instructed Moses to make in the wilderness and I feel the same way about the tent you've set up at Jerusalem. You seem to feel guilty for living in a palace while the ark resides in a simple tent but a simple tent is all I've ever asked for. I don't feel slighted by you because you live in a fine home and the ark is housed in a tent. You haven't done anything wrong in building a house for yourself to establish your residency in the new capital city. I don't feel critical toward you in the least. The guilt you are feeling is a false guilt, prompted by the human mind that thinks extravagant things must be done to honor Me. But I don't think as humans think. The highest honors anyone could show Me is by giving me their love and obedience."
Because David loves the Lord and strives to obey Him, the Lord will bless him and all his generations after him. He says to Nathan, "Now then, tell My servant David, 'This is what the Lord Almighty says: I took you from the pasture, from tending the flock, and appointed you ruler over My people Israel. I have been with you wherever you have gone, and I have cut off all your enemies from before you. Now I will make your name great, like the names of the greatest men on earth. 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 and have done ever since the time I appointed leaders over My people Israel. I will also give you rest from all your enemies. The Lord declares to you that the Lord Himself will establish a house for you.'" (2 Samuel 7:8-11) The Lord says, "You have honored My name; I will honor your name. You want to build Me a house; I will build you a house." David will say to the Lord in Psalm 18:25a: "To the faithful You show Yourself faithful." The Lord is a rewarder of those who love Him, obey Him, and honor His name.
The Lord continues His message to David. "'When your days are over and you rest with your ancestors, I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, your own flesh and blood, and I will establish his kingdom. He is the one who will build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. I will be his father, and he will be My son. When he does wrong, I will punish him with a rod wielded by men, with floggings inflicted by human hands. But My love will never be taken away from him, as I took it away from Saul, whom I removed from before you. Your house and your kingdom will endure forever before Me; your throne will be established forever.' Nathan reported to David all the words of this entire revelation." (2 Samuel 7:12-17)
We know that David's son and successor, Solomon, will build the temple. Solomon won't live a perfect life (no one does) and he won't walk as closely with the Lord as David did, but the Lord's promise to David will still stand. The Lord will have to chastise Solomon as a father chastises a son. The Lord will have to chastise the entire nation, when idolatry becomes rampant later on, as a father deals with his son. Though He may have to apply correction from time to time, He will never go back on His word to David regarding his descendants and He will never turn His back on Israel. In this same way, He never turns His back on you and me either. We mess up, sometimes unintentionally and sometimes on purpose. But He doesn't disown us. He may have to apply correction from time to time but He is still our Father and we are still His children. For example, I remember my father and mother putting me in timeouts or removing certain privileges due to deliberate bad behavior on my part but they were still my father and mother. I was still their child. I still lived in their home and was taken care of by them. That's what the Lord is saying to David, that even if his descendants mess up deliberately and horribly, He won't disown them. He will correct them as a parent corrects a child, in love and in their best interests.
David has good intentions in our text today and his heart is in the right place. It just isn't the Lord's plan for him to be the man who builds a temple. Solomon, who hasn't even been born yet, has already been chosen by the Lord to build the temple. It's notable that Solomon is the man who penned these words: "In their hearts humans plan their course, but the Lord establishes their steps." (Proverbs 16:9) And, "Many are the plans in a person's heart, but it is the Lord's purpose that prevails." (Proverbs 19:21) I can't help wondering if Solomon was thinking about the events from today's text when he wrote down those words. His father wanted to build the temple and planned to build the temple but the Lord had other plans. The Lord enabled Solomon to fulfill this dream of his father's, just as He promised He would. The Lord will keep every promise He's ever made, including the one that someday the King of all kings will reign over the earth forever from the throne of David.
Join us tomorrow as we study David's response to the Lord's awesome promise to him.
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