2 Samuel 7: 1-16
After the king was settled in his palace and the Lord had given him rest from all this enemies around him, he said to Nathan the prophet, “Here I am, living in a palace of cedar, while the Ark of God remains in a tent.”
Nathan replied to the king, “Whatever you have in mind, go ahead and do it. for the Lord is with you.”
That night the word of the Lord came to Nathan, saying,
“Go 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 dwelled 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 for 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?” ‘
“Now then, tell my servant David, ‘This is what the Lord Almighty says: I took you from the pasture and from following the flock to be 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 of the earth. And I will provide a place for my people Israel and plant them so they can have a home of their own and no longer be disturbed. Wicked people will not oppose 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: When your days are over and you rest with your fathers, I will raise up offspring to succeed you, who will come from your own body, 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 the rod of men, with floggings inflected by men. 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.’ ”
A Thought
David, with the help of God, had captured the fortress of Zion–which is the City of David. David moved into a palace built of cedar for him to be king over the people Israel. Now David wants to built a kingdom out of cedar for the Ark of God to live in, instead of a tent. The prophet Nathan received the word of the Lord for David that he would not build the temple for the Lord, but his offspring would build it. God reminded David that it was God who had taken him from the pasture tending sheep to be ruler of his people Israel and protected him from all his enemies. God made a promise to David that He would make his name great; He would provide a place of safety for his people Israel where wicked people would no longer oppose them; God will appoint leaders over his people and give them rest from their enemies. Although God told David it would be his offspring to build his temple, God promised David that He would establish him and his offspring a throne of his kingdom that will endure forever. Jesus Christ, who will reign for eternity, was a direct descendant of David.
Our Prayer
Father thank you that you have a perfect plan to remove all wickedness and your Son, Jesus Christ will rule your people through out all eternity. We ask that your Spirit guide us in the perfect plan that you have for each one of us to help establish your kingdom of righteousness. We ask in Jesus’ name, amen.
