2 Samuel 7:1-7 – God Says No to David
King
David settled in his palace and the Lord had given him rest from all his
enemies. David saw all that God had
given him. He was troubled of the
thought of him living in a nicer house than the Lord. He was so thankful for
what the Lord had done for him and he wanted to do something to show his
gratitude. He told the prophet Nathan
that he wanted to build the Lord a house of cedar, a temple to replace the
tabernacle. The tent where the ark lived
was called the tent of meeting and also known as the tabernacle. It was perfectly suited for moving easily as
Israel journeyed to their promised land.
Now David wanted a more appropriate place for the ark. Nathan told David to go and do all that is in
his heart.
The
house referred to here means temple.
David wanted to show honor to the Lord for all that He had done for him. He thought a tent wasn’t good enough for the
Lord. He wanted to build the Lord a
great temple. So what could be wrong
with that?
That
night the Lord came to Nathan and asked him to tell David, “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.” The Lord
never said He asked for a house. In
others words the Lord refused David. The
Lord was not angry, but was honored that David wanted to do this for Him.
Sometimes
we pray to God with good motives and even a pure heart, but God still says
“no”. When God says “no”, we need to
remember He isn’t rejecting us. He has a
better plan in mind for our lives.
When
has God said “no” to you for something you wanted?
What
was the outcome?
Was His
plan better?
2 Samuel 7:8-17 – God’s Covenant with David
The
Lord reminder David of all He had done for him.
He told David that He took him from being a shepherd to being a ruler. He had been with David wherever he had gone
and given him victory over his enemies.
Now the Lord would make David a great name and provide a place the
people of Israel. The wicked would not
oppress them anymore. David would have
rest from all his enemies.
The
Lord chose David and made him king over Israel.
He promised David that someone from his family would always be
king. The Lord would raise up his
offspring to succeed him and will establish his kingdom. He is the one who will build a house in the
Lord’s name. David’s son refers to
Solomon who would build the temple. It
also refers to all the other kings who would come from David’s family. All the kings of Israel were sons of God and
were special to Him. Jesus would come
through David’s family. His kingdom will
endure forever and David’s throne would be established forever.
Even
though the Lord said “no” to David, His “yes” to him was even greater. He said “yes” to David’s deepest desire,
which was to glorify God. God’s plan was
much greater than David’s good intent. David
wanted to build a physical house, but God was building a living house that
would endure forever. Through David, Jesus
would build His church – a living spiritual house for those who would believe
in Him.
Peace for
Israel would last for a time, but because of sin there would be more conflict just
as it is in the world today. Where there
is sin there is turmoil, but as followers of Jesus we can experience His eternal
peace.
Do you
believe in God’s promises?
If not,
what is keeping you from believing?
2 Samuel 7:18-29 – David’s Prayer of
Thanksgiving
David didn’t
become proud when he heard what the Lord promised. He was so thankful and humbled that he prayed
to the Lord. He praised the Lord for His
greatness and called himself His servant 10 times in this passage. He didn’t call himself “king”, but “your
servant”. He could hardly believe all
the Lord had promised. The Sovereign
Lord had given this unworthy man eternal love and privilege. The Lord told David what would happen in the
future. David knew he didn’t deserve
anything. He asked the Lord to keep His
promises knowing He would. He gave Him
honor and wanted his family to always serve the Lord.
David
didn’t build the temple, but accepted the Lord’s decision and obeyed Him. However in Chronicles 28 the Lord gave David the plans for the temple. This helped his son Solomon with the
preparations for the future building of the temple.
What is
keeping you from praising God even when He doesn’t give you what you’ve asked?
Principle: God keeps all His promises in His timing and for
His purposes and our good.
The
world is filled with people who are self-absorbed and want to be famous at any
cost. David’s desire was to make God’s
name great. What’s your desire?
Next
time we will continue in the book of 2
Samuel. See you here next time.
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