2 Samuel 7 – 2018-12-31
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- Bible Text:
2 Samuel 7:1-17 (ESV)
1 Now when the king lived in his house and the Lord had given him rest from all his surrounding enemies, 2 the king said to Nathan the prophet, “See now, I dwell in a house of cedar, but the ark of God dwells in a tent.” 3 And Nathan said to the king, “Go, do all that is in your heart, for the Lord is with you.”
4 But that same night the word of the Lord came to Nathan, 5 “Go and tell my servant David, ‘Thus says the Lord: Would you build me a house to dwell in? 6 I have not lived in a house since the day I brought up the people of Israel from Egypt to this day, but I have been moving about in a tent for my dwelling. 7 In all places where I have moved with all the people of Israel, did I speak a word with any of the judges 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 you shall say to my servant David, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts, I took you from the pasture, from following the sheep, that you should be prince over my people Israel. 9 And I have been with you wherever you went and have cut off all your enemies from before you. And I will make for you a great name, like the name of the great ones of the earth. 10 And I will appoint a place for my people Israel and will plant them, so that they may dwell in their own place and be disturbed no more. And violent men shall afflict them no more, as formerly, 11 from the time that I appointed judges over my people Israel. And I will give you rest from all your enemies. Moreover, the Lord declares to you that the Lord will make you a house. 12 When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall 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 to him a father, and he shall be to me a son. When he commits iniquity, I will discipline him with the rod of men, with the stripes of the sons of men, 15 but my steadfast love will not depart from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I put away from before you. 16 And your house and your kingdom shall be made sure forever before me. Your throne shall be established forever.’” 17 In accordance with all these words, and in accordance with all this vision, Nathan spoke to David.
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Reflection & Application:
- 2 Samuel 7:1-13“Startlingly, God reverses David’s proposal. David cannot build a house for the Lord; the Lord will build a house for David… The grace shown to David in the past will now extend into the future. This promise is not simply for David, but for the line of David that will come after him.”[1]
- Reflect on David’s sentiment in v. 2 and what this reveals about David’s heart. What facts has David noticed to be incongruent? To what extent am I aware of my own comforts as out of balance with the state of God’s honor in the world, and what can I do about it?
2 Samuel 7:14-16
“The oracle of Nathan in 2 Sam 7:4-16 locates God’s grace toward Israel in an unconditional and everlasting promise to the line of David. This was a new theological understanding in Israel and stood in tension with the conditional ‘if’ of the Mosaic covenant at Mt. Sinai. […] Obedience to covenant requirements is still demanded. Judgment, even of Davidic kings, is still the consequence of covenant disobedience (7:14b), but the commitment of God to steadfast love toward David’s line and the Davidic kingdom is everlasting and cannot be broken (7:15-16).”[2]
- What picture of God emerges in this passage?
[1] Thomas B. Dozeman. The New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume II. (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1998). 1257.
[2] Thomas B. Dozeman. The New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume II. (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1998). 1255.
- 2 Samuel 7:1-13“Startlingly, God reverses David’s proposal. David cannot build a house for the Lord; the Lord will build a house for David… The grace shown to David in the past will now extend into the future. This promise is not simply for David, but for the line of David that will come after him.”[1]
Prayer