David Wants to Build a Temple^(A)

7 King David was living in his ·palace [^Lhouse], and the Lord had given him ·peace [^Lrest] from all his enemies ·around [^Lsur-rounding] him [Deut. 12:10; ^Capparently a sign that the conquest of Canaan was complete and the Temple should be built]. ² Then David said to Nathan the prophet, “Look, I am living in a ·palace [^Lhouse] made of cedar wood, but the Ark of God ·is [stays; dwells] in a tent!”

³ Nathan said to the king, “Go and do what you ·really want to do [^Lhave in your mind/heart], because the Lord is with you.”

⁴ But that night the ·Lord spoke his word [^Lword of the Lord came] to Nathan, ⁵ “Go and tell my servant David, ‘·This is what the Lord says: ·Will you [Are you the one to] build a house for me to ·live [dwell] in? ⁶ From the time I brought the Israelites out of Egypt until ·now [^Lthis day] I have not ·lived [dwelt] in a house. I have been moving around all this time with a tent ·as my home [or and a tabernacle]. ⁷ As I have moved with the Israelites, ·I have never [^Lhave I ever] said to ·the tribes [any of the tribal leaders], whom I commanded to ·take care of [shepherd] my people Israel, “Why haven’t you built me a house of cedar?” ’

⁸ “You must tell my servant David, ‘This is what the Lord ·All-Powerful [of Heaven’s Armies; ^Tof hosts] says: I took you from the pasture and from ·tending [following] the sheep and made you ·leader [ruler; prince] of my people Israel. ⁹ I have been with you everywhere you have gone and have ·defeated [destroyed; ^Lcut off] your enemies for you. I will make ·you as famous [^Lfor you a name as great] as any of the great people on the earth. ¹⁰ Also I will ·choose [appoint; provide] a place for my people Israel, and I will plant them ·so they can live in their own homes [^Lto dwell in their own place]. They will not be bothered anymore. Wicked people will no longer ·bother [afflict; oppress] them as they have in the past ¹¹ when I ·chose [appointed; commanded; instituted] judges for my people Israel. But I will give you ·peace [^Lrest] from all your enemies. ·I also tell you [^LThe Lord also declares] that ·I [^Lthe Lord] will ·make your descendants kings of Israel after [^Lestablish a house/dynasty for] you.

¹² “‘When ·you die [^Lyour days are complete/fulfilled/over] and ·join [you lie down/are buried with] your ancestors, I will ·make one of your sons the next king [^Lraise up your descendant/offspring after you; ^CSolomon; 1 Kin. 1–2], and I will ·set up [establish] his kingdom. ¹³ He will build a house [^Cthe Temple; 1 Kin. 6–7] for ·me [^Lmy name], and I will ·let his kingdom rule always [^Lestablish the throne of his kingdom forever]. ¹⁴ I will be his father, and he will be my son [Ps. 2:7]. When he ·sins [does wrong], I ·will use other people to punish him. They will be my whips [^L…correct/discipline him with the rod of/used by men and the whippings/blows used by humans]. ¹⁵ I took away my ·love [favor; faithful love] from Saul, whom I removed before you, but I will never stop loving your son. ¹⁶ But your ·family [^Lhouse] and your kingdom will ·continue [endure] always before me. Your throne will ·last [^Lbe established/secure] forever.’”

¹⁷ Nathan told David ·everything God had said in [all these words of] this vision.

David Prays to God

¹⁸ Then King David went in and sat ·in front of [before; in the presence of] the Lord. David said, “Lord God, who am I? What is my ·family [^Lhouse]? Why did you bring me ·to this point [this far]? ¹⁹ But even this ·is not enough for you [^Lwas a small thing in your eyes], Lord God. You have also ·made promises about my future family [spoken about the future of my house]. ·This is extraordinary [So it is with humanity; or This is a decree/instruction/charter for the people/humanity], Lord God.

²⁰ “What more can I say to you, Lord God, since you know me, your servant, so well! ²¹ You have done ·this great thing [^Lall this greatness] ·because you said you would [^Lfor the sake of your word/promise] and ·because you wanted to [^Laccording to your will/heart], and you have ·let me know about it [made it known to your servant]. ²² This is why you are great, Lord God! There is no one like you. There is no God except you. ·We have heard all this ourselves […that we have ever heard of]! ²³ ·There is no nation like [^LWhat other nation/people is like…?] your people Israel. ·They are the only [^LWhat other…?] people on earth ·that God chose [did God choose] to be his own [Gen. 12:1–3]. ·You made your name well known. You did great and wonderful miracles for them […to make a name for himself by doing great and awesome things/miracles/wonders on their behalf?]. You went ahead of them and ·forced [drove] other nations and their gods out of the land. You ·freed [redeemed; ransomed] your people from ·slavery in Egypt [Egypt]. ²⁴ You ·made [established] the people of Israel your very own people forever, and, Lord, you ·are [have become] their God.

²⁵ “Now, Lord God, keep the ·promise forever that you made [word you have spoken] about my ·family [^Lhouse] and me, your servant. Do what you have said [promised]. ²⁶ Then ·you [^Lyour name] will be ·honored [magnified] ·always [forever], ·and people will say […by people saying], ‘The Lord ·All-Powerful [of Heaven’s Armies; ^Tof hosts] is God over Israel!’ And ·the family [^Lmay the house] of your servant David will ·continue [be established/secure] before you.

²⁷ “Lord ·All-Powerful [of Heaven’s Armies; ^Tof hosts], the God of Israel, you have ·said to me [revealed this to me, saying], ‘I will ·make your family great [^Lbuild a house/dynasty for you].’ So I, your servant, am ·brave [bold; courageous] enough to pray to you. ²⁸ Lord God, you are God, and your words are ·true [truth; trustworthy]. And you have promised these good things to me, your servant. ²⁹ Please, bless ·my family [^Lthe house of your servant]. Let it ·continue [remain] before you always. Lord God, you have ·said so [spoken]. With your blessing let ·my family [^Lthe house of your servant] always be blessed.”

God’s Promise to David^(A)

17 When David ·moved [had settled] into his ·palace [^Lhouse], he said to Nathan the prophet, “·Look [^TBehold], I am living in a ·palace [^Lhouse] made of cedar, but the Ark of the ·Agreement [Testimony; Treaty; Covenant] with the Lord ·sits in [is under] a tent.”

² Nathan said to David, “Do ·what you want to do [whatever you have in mind], because God is with you.”

³ But that night God spoke his word to Nathan, saying, ⁴ “Go and tell David my servant, ‘·This is what the Lord says [^TThus says the Lord]: You are not the person to build a house for me to live in. ⁵ From the time I brought Israel ·out of [^Lup from] Egypt until now I have not lived in a house. I have moved from one tent site to another and ·from one place to another [or lived in a Tabernacle]. ⁶ As I have ·moved [walked] with the Israelites to different places, ·I have never [^Lhave I ever…?] said to the ·leaders [^Ljudges of Israel], whom I commanded to ·take care of [shepherd] my people, “Why haven’t you built me a house of cedar?” ’

⁷ “Now, tell my servant David: ‘This is what the Lord ·All-Powerful [of Heaven’s Armies; ^Tof hosts] says: I took you from the pasture and from ·tending [following] the sheep and made you ·king [ruler; leader] of my people Israel. ⁸ I have been with you everywhere you have gone. I have ·defeated [destroyed; ^Lcut off] your enemies for you. I will make you ·as famous as any of [^La name like the name of] the great people on the earth. ⁹ I will ·choose [provide; appoint] a place for my people Israel, and I will plant them so they can live in their own homes. They will not be ·bothered [disturbed; moved] anymore. ·Wicked [Evil] people will no longer ·hurt [oppress] them as they have in the past ¹⁰ ·when I chose [beginning when I appointed] judges for my people Israel. I will ·defeat [subdue] all your enemies.

“‘I tell you that the Lord will ·make your descendants kings of Israel after [^Lbuild a house for] you. ¹¹ When ·you die [your days are over/^Tfulfilled] and join your ·ancestors [fathers], I will ·make [^Lraise up] one of your descendants—one of your sons [^CSolomon]—the new king, and I will ·set up [establish; secure] his kingdom. ¹² He will build a house [^Cthe Temple] for me, and I will ·let his kingdom rule always [establish/secure his throne forever]. ¹³ I will be his father, and he will be my son [2 Sam. 7:14; Ps. 2:7]. I took away my ·love [steadfast love; lovingkindness] from Saul, who ruled before you, but I will never ·stop loving your son [take it away from him]. ¹⁴ I will ·put him in charge of [confirm him in] my house and kingdom forever. His ·family [^Lthrone] will ·rule [be established/secure] forever.’”

¹⁵ Nathan told David ·everything God had said in this vision [all the words revealed to him].

David Prays to God

¹⁶ Then King David went in and sat ·in front of [before] the Lord. David said, “Lord God, who am I? What is my ·family [^Lhouse] that you have brought me ·to this point [this far]? ¹⁷ But that was ·not enough for you [^La small thing in your eyes], God. You have ·also made promises about my future family [spoken about your servant’s house in the distant future]. Lord God, you have treated me like a ·very important [great; exalted] person.

¹⁸ “What more can ·I [^LDavid] say to you for honoring me, your servant? You know me so well. ¹⁹ Lord, you have done this wonderful thing for ·my [^Lyour servant’s] sake ·and because you wanted to [according to your will/heart]. You have done all these great things and made them known.

²⁰ “There is ·no one [^Tnone] like you, Lord. There is no God except you. ·We have heard all this ourselves […as all that we’ve heard with our own ears confirms]! ²¹ ·There is no nation [^LAnd is there another nation…?] like your people Israel. ·They are the only people on earth that [^LWhat other nation on earth did…?] God chose to be his own. You made ·your name well known [a name for yourself] by the great and ·wonderful [awesome; terrible] things you did for them. You went ahead of them and ·forced other [drove out] nations. You ·freed [redeemed] your people from slavery in Egypt. ²² You made the people of Israel your very own people forever, and, Lord, you ·are [became; have become] their God.

²³ “Lord, ·keep the promise [^Llet the word be established/secure] forever that you ·made [spoke] about my ·family [^Lhouse] and me, your servant. Do what you have ·said [spoken]. ²⁴ ·Then you will be honored always [May your name be established and honored/exalted/magnified forever], and people will say, ‘The Lord ·All-Powerful [of Heaven’s Armies; ^Tof hosts], the God over Israel, is Israel’s God!’ And the ·family [^Lhouse] of your servant David will ·continue [be established/secure] before you.

²⁵ “My God, you have told me that you ·would make my family great [^Lbuild for your servant a house]. So I, your servant, ·am brave enough [have found courage] to pray to you. ²⁶ Lord, you are God, and you have promised these good things to me, your servant. ²⁷ ·You have chosen [It has pleased you] to bless my ·family [^Lhouse]. Let it continue before you always. Lord, you have blessed ·my family [^Lit], ·so it will [let it] ·always [forever] be blessed.”