2 Samuel 7

David had a wonderful place to live, and God had finally granted Him rest from the enemies surrounding Israel. He turned His attention to worship, desiring to build a glorious house for the Lord as a replacement for the tent in which the ark of God dwelt.

Was this a good desire? The prophet Nathan affirmed it, yet it was the Lord who had commanded the building of a moveable tent house of worship in the book of Exodus. That tabernacle was most appropriate for the travels of the Lord's people through the wilderness. Now God had granted them some measure of rest within the land. God had said in Deuteronomy 12 that when the day came where they would have this rest that there would be a special, more permanent place for gathering for worship that He Himself would choose. Maybe this was the time. It did seem wrong to David that the king's palace would be far more glorious than the place on earth where God lived. Nathan encouraged the king in these considerations, trusting that the Lord was leading him.

But God's Word came to the prophet that night and redirected this plan. The Lord had never asked for a palace on earth. Furthermore, rather than Israel building a place for God, the God who had chosen David and brought him to this point, the God who had chosen His people Israel, would build a place for them.

God did not need Israel to build up His self-image. The Lord would make David a house, not another palace, but a dynasty. One of David's descendants would build a house for the Name of God, and that son's kingdom would be eternal. God promised that this descendant would not only be a son to David, but a son of God. “I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son.”

What was God indicating here? Was He speaking only of Solomon, the son of David, who would build a temple of the Lord? That would be a partial fulfillment of the Lord's Word. But Solomon could not be an eternal king. A greater Son of David would one day come. He would build a more glorious house for God, a house of people that would also be a temple of the Holy Spirit.

How did David receive the Lord's words? “You have spoken also of your servant's house for a great while to come, and this is instruction for mankind, O Lord God!” He knew that there was something more here than what would happen in one generation and that this Word was for all of mankind and not just for Israel. David was humbled by the extent of God's promise to him. He was moved to worship the Lord and to trust His Word.

God had a plan for Israel. He also had very special intentions for a coming Son of David who would be the Son of God. David had wanted to build a house for God, but the Lord was determined to build a very different house for a David to come.

David believed the Lord and called upon Him to bless his descendants forever. He believed God's glorious promise though he could only see a glimpse of what would begin to happen many centuries later.

We live in an era of far more light. We know that Jesus is the promised Son of David. He is the Son of God. The Lord lives in us. We are His house on earth. We are His body, and the Son of God who died for our sins and rose again as the resurrection Man is our Head forever and ever.