1 Chronicles 17 commentary

This chapter is the same as 2Sa 7. See what is there said upon it. It is very observable that what in Samuel is said to be, “for thy word's sake,” is here said to be, “for thy servant's sake,” verse 19. Jesus Christ is both the Word of God, Re 19:13, and the Servant of God, Isa 42:1; and it is for his sake, upon account of his mediation, that the promises are made good to all believers; it is in him, that they are yea and amen. For His sake it is done, for his sake it is made known; to him we owe all this greatness, from him we are to expect all these great things. They are the unsearchable riches of Christ, which, if by faith we see in themselves, and see in the Lord Jesus, we cannot but magnify as the only true greatness, and speak honourably of them. For this blessedness may we look amidst the trials of life, and when we feel the hand of death upon us; and seek it for our children after us.

CHAPTER 17

1Ch 17:1-10. David Forbidden to Build God a House.

1. as David sat in his house--The details of this chapter were given in nearly similar terms (2Sa 7:1-29). The date was towards the latter end of David's reign, for it is expressly said in the former book to have been at the cessation of all his wars. But as to narrate the preparations for the removal of the ark and the erection of the temple was the principal object of the historian, the exact chronology is not followed.

5. I ... have gone from tent to tent, and from one tabernacle to another--The literal rendering is, "I was walking in a tent and in a dwelling." The evident intention (as we may see from 1Ch 17:6) was to lay stress upon the fact that God was a Mithhatlek (a travelling God) and went from one place to another with His tent and His entire dwelling (the dwelling included not merely the tent, but the fore-courts with the altar of burnt offerings, &c.) [Bertheau].

6. spake I a word to any of the judges--In 2Sa 7:7 it is "any of the tribes" of Israel. Both are included. But the judges "who were commanded to feed the people," form the more suitable antithesis to David.

Why have ye not built me an house of cedars?--that is, a solid and magnificent temple.

7. Thus saith the Lord of hosts, I took thee from the sheepcote--a round tower of rude construction, high walled, but open at the top, in which sheep are often enclosed at night to protect them from wild beasts. The meaning is, I elevated you to the throne from a humble condition solely by an act of divine grace, and not from any antecedent merits of your own (see on 1Sa 16:11), and I enabled you to acquire renown, equal or superior to any other monarch. Your reign will ever be afterwards regarded as the best and brightest era in the history of Israel, for it will secure to the nation a settled inheritance of prosperity and peace, without any of the oppressions or disorders that afflicted them in early times.

9-10. at the beginning, and since the time that I commanded judges--that is, including the whole period from Joshua to Saul.

I tell thee that the Lord will build thee an house--This was the language of Nathan himself, who was specially directed to assure David, not only of personal blessing and prosperity, but of a continuous line of royal descendants.

11. I will raise up thy seed--(See on 2Sa 7:12).

13. I will not take my mercy away from him, as I took it from him that was before thee--My procedure in dealing with him will be different from My disposal of Saul. Should his misconduct call for personal chastisement, I shall spare his family. If I see it necessary to withdraw My favor and help for a time, it will be a corrective discipline only to reform and restore, not to destroy. (On this passage some have founded an argument for Solomon's repentance and return to God).

14. I will settle him in my house--over My people Israel.

and in my kingdom for ever--God here asserts His right of supreme sovereignty in Israel. David and Solomon, with their successors, were only the vicegerents whom He nominated, or, in His providence, permitted.

his throne shall be established for evermore--The posterity of David inherited the throne in a long succession--but not always. In such a connection as this, the phrase "for evermore" is employed in a restricted sense (see on La 3:31). We naturally expect the prophet to revert to David before concluding, after having spoken (1Ch 17:12) of the building of Solomon's temple. The promise that his house should be blessed was intended as a compensation for the disappointment of his wish to build the temple, and hence this assurance is appropriately repeated at the conclusion of the prophet's address [Bertheau].

15. According to all ... this vision--The revelation of the divine will was made to the prophet in a dream.

16. David the king ... sat before the Lord, and said--(See on 2Sa 7:18).

Now it came to pass - See every thing recorded in this chapter amply detailed in the notes on 2Sam 7:1 (note), etc.

But have gone from tent to tent - "I have transferred my tabernacle from Gilgal to Nob, from Nob to Shiloh, and from Shiloh to Gibeon." - Targum and Jarchi.

Neither shall the children of wickedness - They shall no more be brought into servitude as they were in the time they sojourned in Egypt. This is what is here referred to.

I will establish his throne for ever - David was a type of Christ; and concerning him the prophecy is literally true. See Isa 9:7, where there is evidently the same reference.

I will not take my mercy away from him - I will not cut off his family from the throne, as I did that of his predecessor Saul.

And what is mine house, that thou hast brought me hitherto? - I am not of any regal family, and have no natural right to the throne.

Hath found in his heart to pray - The Targum expresses a full sense: "Therefore thy servant hath found an opening of mouth, that he might pray before Thee.

For thou blessest, O Lord - "Thou beginnest to bless the house of thy servant, therefore it shall be blessed for ever." - T.

The reader is requested to refer to 2 Samuel 7 (note), and the notes there for many particulars that belong to the parallel places here, and which it should answer no good purpose to repeat in this place.

Now - This whole chapter is explained, 2Sam 7:1 - 29, where the same things are recorded with little variation.

Furthermore, &c. - Must he think, that his purpose was in vain, and that he should lose the reward of it? No: it being God's act that prevented the execution of it, he shall be as fully recompensed as if it had been done.

Settle him - In the temple, this expression agrees but imperfectly with Solomon, or his successors, but strictly and properly with Christ, to whom alone that promise also of an everlasting establishment in this kingdom belongs. Kingdom - In God's kingdom in a large and general sense. And this, as well as the former phrase, singularly belongs to the Messiah, who was not only to be the king of Israel, but also of all nations. This is an intimation of that great mystery which is more fully revealed in the new testament, namely, that Christ, is the head, or king of all God's church, consisting of Jews and Gentiles, and of all nations, and indeed of all creatures, all which is God's kingdom, and by him given to his son our blessed Lord.

Who am I, &c. - We have here David's solemn address to God, in answer to his gracious message. How humbly does he here abase himself, and acknowledge his own unworthiness! How highly does he advance the name of God, and admire his condescending favour? With what devout affections does he magnify the God of Israel: with what assurance build upon the promise! What an example is this of believing, fervent prayer! The Lord enable us all thus to seek him!

The honour of thy servant - The honour God puts upon his servants, by taking them into covenant and communion with himself, is so great, that they need not, they cannot desire to be more highly honoured.

Servant's sake - In 2Sam 7:21, it is, for thy words sake, for the sake of thy promise made to thy servant.

A God - He is really to his people that which he hath styled himself, their God, having taken such care of them, and shewed such mercy and truth to them, as fully answered that title.

Blessed for ever - David's prayer concludes, as God's promise did, ver.14, with that which is for ever. God's word looks at things eternal. And so should our desires and hopes.

1 NOw it came to pass as David sat in his house, that David said to Nathan the prophet, Lo, I dwell in an house of cedars, but the ark of the covenant of the Lord remaineth under curtains.

This whole Chapter is explained, 2 Sam. 7. where the same things are recorded with very little variation of the Words; which also hath been considered in my Notes upon that Chapter; to which I refer the Reader, taking notice here but of some very few things.

Marginal references: 2 [illegible: 1 word] [illegible: 1 word] &c.

9 Also I will ordain a place for my people Israel, and will plant them, and they shall dwell in their place, and shall be moved no more, neither shall the children of wickedness wast them any more: (as at the beginning,

Such as are devoted and wholly given up to Wickedness, elsewhere called Children of B[illegible: 1+ letters]lial.

14 But I will settle him in mine house , and in my Kingdom for ever, and his throne shall be established for evermore.

In my Dwelling-place, either 1. in Ierusalem, the place where God had put his Name for ever, 2 King. 21. 4, 7. 2 Chron. 6. 5, 6. Compare 1 King. 11. 36. & 15. 4. Or, 2. In the Temple, which is more properly and constantly called Gods House; and so this Expression agrees but very imperfectly with Solomon, or his Successors, who might be said to be settled in Gods House, because they were settled near it, and in some sort set over it, because they were to take care that the Prie[illegible: 1+ letters]ts and others should perform their Offices and Gods Service in it; but strictly and properly agrees onely to Christ, to whom alone that Promise also of an Everlasting Establishment in this Kingdom belongs, as was noted on 2 Sam. 7. And this Expression seems to be most emphatically added to signifie that that person in whom all those Promises should be fully and perfectly accomplished, to wit, the Messias, should be settled not onely in the Kings Throne, as others of Davids Successors were, but also in Gods House or Temple; and consequently that he should be a Priest as well as a King; which Mystery was more clearly revealed to David, Psal. 110. 1, 2, 4. and may be intimated though obscurely (as was fit and usual in that State of the Church) in these words.

Either 1. In the Kingdom of Israel, which God calls his Kingdom, because he was in a special manner their King and Governour, having raised them up and formed them into a Kingdom, and given them that Protection and Assistance which Kings owe to their Kingdoms; and because he expected and required from them, what Kings do from their people, that they should be wholly governed by his Laws and devoted to his Service. Or 2. In Gods Kingdom in a more large and general Sence. And this as well as the former Phrase may seem singularly to belong to the Messiah, who was not onely to be the King of Israel, but also of all Nations, as was foretold even in the Old Testament, as Psal. 2. 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12. & 22. 27, 28. & 72. 11. Isa. 2. 4. Hagg. 2, 7. And so this may be an Intimation of that great Mystery which is more fully revealed in the New Testament, to wit, that Christ is the Head, or King, or Governour of all Gods Church consisting of Jews and Gentiles, and of all Nations, and indeed of all Creatures, the Angels not excepted; all which is Gods Kingdom and by him given to his Son our Blessed Lord Christ. And for the signification of these great things there is so great and remarkable an alteration of the Phrase here from what it is in 2. Sam. 7. where speaking to David he constantly calls it his (i. e. Davids) Kingdom, and his House v. 12, 13, 16, 19, 25, 27. for which he here saith my House, and my Kingdom, which also he distinguisheth from his Throne, which is mentioned in the next Clause of this Verse, and in v. 11, 12. But these things I submit to the Judicious Reader.

16 And David the king came, and sat before the LORD, and said, Who am I, O LORD God, and what is mine house, that thou hast brought me hitherto?

Which may note either his Gesture; or his Continuance there till he had finished this following Prayer.

17 And yet this was a small thing in thine eyes, O God, for thou hast also spoken of thy servants house for a great while to come, and hast regarded m[illegible: 1+ letters] according to the estate or a man of high degree, O LORD God .

i. e. Thou hast treated me as if I had been born the Son [illegible: 1 word] Great Monarch, and not a poor Shepheard, as indeed I was, [illegible: 1 word] Lord God. Oth. Thus, Thou hast regarded or [illegible: 1 word] [illegible: 1 word] Type or Figure, or according to the Rank or [illegible: 1 word] [illegible: 1 word] [illegible: 1 word] [illegible: 1 word] Man, or Man of high Degree who is also [illegible: 1 word] [illegible: 1 word] God, i. e. [illegible: 1 word] [illegible: 1 word] Messiah, who is God-man. i. e. Thou hast given to me and my House an Everlasting Kingdom, which is the peculiar Priviledge of that Great Person the Messiah, Dan. 2. 44. & 7. 13, 14.

19 O LORD for thy servants sake , and according to thine own heart hast thou done all this greatness, in making known all these great things.

In 2 Sam. 7. 21. it is for thy words [illegible: 1 word], i. e. for the sake of thy Word and Promise made to thy Servant; as that Phrase, for Davids sake, is oft thus understood, for Gods Covenants sake made with David.

Marginal references: Heb. greatnesses.

24 Let it even be established, that thy name may be magnified for ever, saying, The LORD of hosts is the God of Israel, even a God to Israel , and let the house of David thy servant be established before thee.

Or, The Lord of Hosts, the God of Israel, is a God to Israel, i. e. He is really to his People that which he hath stiled himself, their God, having taken such Care of them and shewed such Mercy and Truth to them, as did fully answer that Title.

1Ch 17:1-9

In the Chronicle, as in 2 Samuel 7, the account of the removal of the ark to the city of David is immediately followed by the narrative of David’s design to build a temple to the Lord; and this arrangement is adopted on account of the connection between the subjects, though the events must have been separated by a period of several years. Our account of this design of David’s, with its results for him and for his kingdom, is in all essential points identical with the parallel account, so that we may refer to the commentary on 2 Sam 7 for any necessary explanation of the matter. The difference between the two narratives are in great part of a merely formal kind; the author of the Chronicle having sought to make the narrative more intelligible to his contemporaries, partly by using later phrases current in his own time, such as אלהים for יהוה, מלכוּת for ממלכה, partly by simplifying and explaining the bolder and more obscure expressions. Very seldom do we find divergences in the subject-matter which alter the meaning or make it appear to be different. To supplement and complete the commentary already given in 2nd Samuel, we will now shortly treat of these divergences. In 1Ch 17:1, the statement that David communicated his purpose to build a temple to the Lord to the prophet Nathan, “when Jahve had given him rest from all his enemies round about,” is wanting. This clause, which fixes the time, has been omitted by the chronicler to avoid the apparent contradiction which would have arisen in case the narrative were taken chronologically, seeing that the greatest of David’s wars, those against the Philistines, Syrians, and Ammonites, are narrated only in the succeeding chapter. As to this, cf. the discussion on 2Sa 7:1-3.

1Ch 17:10

In 1Ch 17:10, וּלמיּמים, like וּלמן־היּום (2Sa 7:11), is to be connected with the preceding     בּראשׁונה in this sense: “As in the beginning (i.e., during the sojourn in Egypt), and onward from the days when I appointed judges,” i.e., during the time of the judges. למן is only a more emphatic expression for מן, to mark off the time from the beginning as it were (cf. Ew. §218, b), and is wrongly translated by Berth. “until the days.” In the same verse, והכנעתּי, “I bow, humble all thine enemies,” substantially the same as the והניחתי, “I give thee peace from all thine enemies” (Sam.); and the suffix in אויביך is not to be altered, as Berth. proposes, into that of the third person אויביו, either in the Chronicle or in Samuel, for it is quite correct; the divine promise returning at the conclusion to David direct, as in the beginning, 1Ch 17:7 and 1Ch 17:8, while that which is said of the people of Israel in 1Ch 17:9 and 1Ch 17:10 is only an extension of the words, “I will destroy all thine enemies before thee” (1Ch 17:8).

1Ch 17:11-16

In 1Ch 17:11, עם־אבתיך ללכת, “to go with thy fathers,” used of going the way of death, is similar to “to go the way of all the world” (1Ki 2:2), and is more primitive than the more usual אבות עם שׁכב   (2Sa 7:12). מבּניך יהיה עשׁר, too, is neither to be altered to suit ממּעיך יצא אשׁר of Samuel; nor can we consider it, with Berth., an alteration made by the author of the Chronicle to get rid of the difficulty, that here the birth of Solomon is only promised, while Nathan’s speech was made at a time when David had rest from all his enemies round about (2Sa 8:1), i.e., as is usually supposed, in the latest years of his life, and consequently after Solomon’s birth. For the difficulty had already been got rid of by the omission of those words in 1Ch 17:1; and the word, “I have cut off all thine enemies from before thee” (1Ch 17:8), does not necessarily involve the destruction of all the enemies who ever rose against David, but refers, as the connection shows, only to the enemies who up till that time had attacked him. Had the author of the Chronicle only wished to get rid of this supposed difficulty, he would simply have omitted the clause, since “they seed” included the sons of David, and needed no explanation if nothing further was meant than that one of his sons would ascend the throne after him. And moreover, the thought, “thy seed, which shall be among thy sons,” which Bertheau finds in the words, would be expressed in Hebrew by מבּניך אשׁר, while מבּניך יהיה אשׁר signifies, “who will come out of (from) thy sons;” for מן היה does not denote to be of one, i.e., to belong to him, but to arise, be born, or go forth, from one: cf. Ben. 1Ch 17:16; Ecc 3:20. According to this, the linguistically correct translation, the words cannot be referred to Solomon at all, because Solomon was not a descendant of David’s sons, but of David himself.As old Lavater has correctly remarked: Si tantum de Salomone hic locus accipiendus esset, non dixisset: semen quod erit de filiis tuis, sed quod erit de te.

The author of the Chronicle has interpreted אחריך את־זרעך theologically, or rather set forth the Messianic contents of this conception more clearly than it was expressed in ממּעיך יצא אשׁר. The seed after David, which will arise from his sons, is the Messiah, whom the prophets announced as the Son of David, whose throne God will establish for ever (1Ch 17:12). This Messianic interpretation of David’s זרע explains the divergence of the chronicler’s text in 1Ch 17:13 and 1Ch 17:14 from 2Sa 7:14-16. For instance, the omission of the words after בּן in 2Sa 7:13, “If he commit iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men” (2Sa 7:14), is the result of the Messianic interpretation of זרעך, since the reference to the chastisement would of course be important for the earthly sons of David and the kings of Judah, but could not well find place in the case of the Messiah. The only thing said of this son of David is, that God will not withdraw His grace from him.

The case is exactly similar, with the difference between 2Sa 7:14 and 2Sa 7:16. Instead of the words, “And thy house and thy kingdom shall be established for ever before thee, thy throne shall be established for ever” (Sam.), the promise runs thus in the Chronicle: “And I will settle (העמיד, cause to stand, maintain, 1Ki 15:4; 2Ch 9:8) him (the seed arising from thy sons) in my house and in my kingdom for ever, and his throne shall be established for evermore.” While these concluding words of the promise are, in the narrative in Samuel, spoken to David, promising to him the eternal establishment of his house, his kingdom, and his throne, in the Chronicle they are referred to the seed of David, i.e., the Messiah, and promise to Him His establishment for ever in the house and kingdom of God, and the duration of His throne for ever. That בּיתי here does not signify the congregation of the Lord, the people of Israel, as Berth. thinks it must be translated, is clear as the sun; for בּית, immediately preceding, denotes the temple of Jahve, and בּיתי manifestly refers back to לי בּית (1Ch 17:12), while such a designation of the congregation of Israel or of the people as “house of Jahve” is unheard of in the Old Testament. The house of Jahve stands in the same relation to the kingdom of Jahve as a king’s palace to his kingdom. The house which David’s seed will build to the Lord is the house of the Lord in his kingdom: in this house and kingdom the Lord will establish Him for ever; His kingdom shall never cease; His rule shall never be extinguished; and He himself, consequently, shall live for ever. It scarcely need be said that such things can be spoken only of the Messiah. The words are therefore merely a further development of the saying, “I will be to him a Father, and I will not take my mercy away from him, and will establish his kingdom for ever,” and tell us clearly and definitely what is implicitly contained in the promise, that David’s house, kingdom, and throne will endure for ever (Sam.), viz., that the house and kingdom of David will be established for ever only under the Messiah. That this interpretation is correct is proved by the fact that the divergences of the text of the chronicler from the parallel narrative cannot otherwise be explained; Thenius and Berth. not having made even an attempt to show how בּבּיתי והעמדתּיהוּ could have arisen out of בּיתך ונאמן. The other differences between the texts in the verses in question, לי (Chron.) for לשׁמי, את־כּסאו for ממלכתּו כּסּא את (1Ch 17:12, cf. 2Sa 7:13), and לפניך היה מאשׁר instead of וגו אשׁר שׁאוּל מעם (1Ch 17:13, cf. 2Sa 7:15), are only variations in expression which do not affect the sense. With reference to the last of them, indeed, Berth. has declared against Thenius, that the chronicler’s text is thoroughly natural, and bears marks of being more authentic than that of 2 Sam 7.

In the prayer of thanksgiving contained in 1Ch 17:16 to 27 we meet with the following divergences from the parallel text, which are of importance for their effect on the sense.

1Ch 17:17-20

Instead of the words האדם תּורת וזאת (2Sa 7:19), the Chronicle has המּעלה האדם כּתור וּראיתני, and sawest me (or, that thou sawest me) after the manner of men; תּור being a contraction of תּורה = תּורה. ראה, to see, may denote to visit (cf. 2Sa 13:5; 2Ki 8:29), or look upon in the sense of regard, respicere. But the word המּעלה remains obscure in any case, for elsewhere it occurs only as a substantive, in the significations, “the act of going up” (or drawing up) (Ezr 7:9), “that which goes up” (Eze 11:5), “the step;” while for the signification “height” (locus superior) only this passage is adduced by Gesenius in Thes. But even had the word this signification, the word המּעלה could not signify in loco excelso = in coelis in its present connection; and further, even were this possible, the translation et me intuitus es more hominum in coelis gives no tolerable sense. But neither can המעלה be the vocative of address, and a predicate of God, “Thou height, Jahve God,” as Hgstb. Christol. i. p. 378 trans., takes it, with many older commentators. The passage Psa 92:9, “Thou art מרום, height, sublimity for ever, Jahve,” is not sufficient to prove that in our verse המּעלה is predicated of God. Without doubt, המּעלה should go with וגו ראיתני, and appears to correspond to the למרחוק of the preceding clause, in the signification: as regards the elevation, in reference to the going upwards, i.e., the exaltation of my race (seed) on high. The thought would then be this: After the manner of men, so condescendingly and graciously, as men have intercourse with each other, hast Thou looked upon or visited me in reference to the elevation of myself or my race, - the text of the Chronicle giving an explanation of the parallel narrative.This interpretation of this extremely difficult word corresponds in sense to the not less obscure words in 2nd Samuel, and gives us, with any alteration of the text, a more fitting thought than the alterations in the reading proposed by the moderns. Ewald and Berth. would alter וראיתני into והראיתני (hiph.), and המעלה into למעלה, in order to get the meaning, “Thou hast caused me to see like the series of men upwards,” i.e., the line of men who stretch from David outward into the far future in unbroken series, which Thenius rightly calls a thoroughly modern idea. Böttcher’s attempt at explanation is much more artificial. He proposes, in N. k. Aehrenlese, iii. S. 225, to read למעלה...וּראיתני, and translates: “so that I saw myself, as the series of men who follow upwards shall see me, i.e., so that I could see myself as posterity will see me, at the head of a continuous family of rulers:” where the main idea has to be supplied.

The divergence in 1Ch 17:18, את־עבדּך לכבוד אליך instead of אליך לדבּר (2Sa 7:20), which cannot be an explanation or interpretation of Samuel’s text, is less difficult of explanation. The words in Samuel, “What can David say more unto Thee?” have in this connection the very easily understood signification, What more can I say of the promise given me? and needed no explanation. When, instead of this, we read in the Chronicle, “What more can Thy servant add to Thee in regard to the honour to Thy servant?” an unprejudiced criticism must hold this text for the original, because it is the more difficult. It is the more difficult, not only on account of the omission of לדבּר, which indeed is not absolutely necessary, though serving to explain יוסיף, but mainly on account of the unusual construction of the nomen כבוד with את־עבדּך, honour towards Thy servant. The construction יהוה את דּעה is not quite analogous, for כבוד is not a nomen actionis like דּעה; את־ כבד is rather connected with the practice which begins to obtain in the later language of employing את as a general casus obliquus, instead of any more definite preposition (Ew. §277, d, S. 683f., der 7 Aufl.), and is to be translated: “honour concerning Thy servant.” The assertion that את־עבדּך is to be erased as a later gloss which has crept into the text, cuts the knots, but does not untie them. That the lxx have not these words, only proves that these translators did not know what to make of them, and so just omitted them, as they have omitted the first clause of 1Ch 17:19. In 1Ch 17:19 also there is no valid ground for altering the עבדּך בּעבוּר of the Chronicle to make it correspond to דּברך בּעבוּר in Samuel; for the words, “for Thy servant’s sake,” i.e., because Thou hast chosen Thy servant, give a quite suitable sense; cf. the discussion on 2Sa 7:21. In the second half of the verse, however, the more extended phrases of 2nd Samuel are greatly contracted.

1Ch 17:21-27

The combining of ונוראות גּדלּות with שׁם לך לשׂוּם as one sentence, “to make Thee a name with great and fearful deeds,” is made clearer in 2nd Samuel by the interpolation of לכם ולעשׂות, “and for you doing great and fearful things.” This explanation, however, does not justify us in supposing that ולעשׂות has been dropped out of the Chronicle. The words ונוראות גּדלּות are either to be subordinated in a loose connection to the clause, to define the way in which God has made Himself a name (cf. Ew. §283), or connected with שׂוּם in a pregnant sense: “to make Thee a name, (doing) great and fearful things.” But, on the other hand, the converse expression in Samuel, “fearful things for Thy land, before Thy people which Thou redeemedst to Thee from Egypt (from) the nations and their gods,” is explained in Chronicles by the interpolation of לגרשׁ: “fearful things, to drive out before Thy people, which ... nations.” The divergences cannot be explained by the hypothesis that both texts are mutilated, as is sufficiently shown by the contradictions into which Thenius and Bertheau have fallen in their attempts so to explain them.

All the remaining divergences of one text from the other are only variations of the expression, such as involuntarily arise in the endeavour to give a clear and intelligible narrative, without making a literal copy of the authority made use of. Among these we include even להתפּלּל עבדּך מצא, “Thy servant hath found to pray” (1 Chr. 1725), as compared with להתפּלּל את־לבּו עבדּך מצא, “Thy servant hath found his heart,” i.e., found courage, to pray (2Sa 7:28); where it is impossible to decide whether the author of the books of Samuel has added את־לבּו as an explanation, or the author of the Chronicle has omitted it because the phrase “to find his heart” occurs only in this single passage of the Old Testament. להת עבדּך מצא signifies, Thy servant has reached the point of directing this prayer to Thee.

God's Promise to David. (b. c. 1042.)

1 Now it came to pass, as David sat in his house, that David said to Nathan the prophet, Lo, I dwell in a house of cedars, but the ark of the covenant of the Lord remaineth under curtains. 2 Then Nathan said unto David, Do all that is in thine heart; for God is with thee. 3 And it came to pass the same night, that the word of God came to Nathan, saying, 4 Go and tell David my servant, Thus saith the Lord , Thou shalt not build me a house to dwell in: 5 For I have not dwelt in a house since the day that I brought up Israel unto this day; but have gone from tent to tent, and from one tabernacle to another. 6 Wheresoever I have walked with all Israel, spake I a word to any of the judges of Israel, whom I commanded to feed my people, saying, Why have ye not built me a house of cedars? 7 Now therefore thus shalt thou say unto my servant David, Thus saith the Lord of hosts, I took thee from the sheepcote, even from following the sheep, that thou shouldest be ruler over my people Israel: 8 And I have been with thee whithersoever thou hast walked, and have cut off all thine enemies from before thee, and have made thee a name like the name of the great men that are in the earth. 9 Also I will ordain a place for my people Israel, and will plant them, and they shall dwell in their place, and shall be moved no more; neither shall the children of wickedness waste them any more, as at the beginning, 10 And since the time that I commanded judges to be over my people Israel. Moreover I will subdue all thine enemies. Furthermore I tell thee that the Lord will build thee a house. 11 And it shall come to pass, when thy days be expired that thou must go to be with thy fathers, that I will raise up thy seed after thee, which shall be of thy sons; and I will establish his kingdom. 12 He shall build me a house, and I will stablish his throne for ever. 13 I will be his father, and he shall be my son: and I will not take my mercy away from him, as I took it from him that was before thee: 14 But I will settle him in mine house and in my kingdom for ever: and his throne shall be established for evermore. 15 According to all these words, and according to all this vision, so did Nathan speak unto David.

Let us observe here,

I. How desirous and solicitous good people should be to serve the interests of God's kingdom in the world, to the utmost of their capacity. David could not be easy in a house of cedar while the ark was lodged within curtains, v. 1. The concerns of the public should always be near our hearts. What pleasure can we take in our own prosperity if we see not the good of Jerusalem? When David is advanced to wealth and power see what his cares and projects are. Not, "What shall I do for my children to get portions for them? What shall I do to fill my coffers and enlarge my dominions?" But, "What shall I do for God, to serve and honour him?" Those that are contriving where to bestow their fruits and their good would do well to enquire what condition the ark is in, and whether some may not be well bestowed upon it.

II. How ready God's prophets should be to encourage every good purpose. Nathan was no sooner aware of David's good design than he bade him go and do all that was within his heart (v. 2), for he had no reason to doubt but that God was with him in it. Ministers should stir up the gifts and graces that are in others as well as in themselves.

III. How little God affects external pomp and splendour in his service. His ark was content with a tabernacle (v. 5) and he never so much as mentioned the building of a house for it; no, not when he had fixed his people in great and goodly cities which they builded not, Deut. vi. 10. He commanded the judges to feed his people, but never bade them build him a house, v. 6. We may well be content awhile with mean accommodations; God's ark was so.

IV. How graciously God accepts his people's good purposes, yea, though he himself prevents the performance of them. David must not build this house, v. 4. He must prepare for it, but not do it; as Moses must bring Israel within sight of Canaan, but must them leave it to Joshua to put them in possession of it. It is the prerogative of Christ to be both the author and finisher of his work. Yet David must not think that, because he was not permitted to build the temple, 1. His preferment was in vain; no, "I took thee from the sheep-cote, though not to be a builder of the temple, yet to be ruler over my people Israel; that is honour enough for thee; leave the other to one that shall come after thee," v. 7. Why should one man think to engross all the business and to bring every good work to perfection? Let something be left for those that succeed. God had given him victories, and made him a name (v. 8), and, further, intended by him to establish his people Israel and secure them against their enemies, v. 9. That must be his work, who is a man of war and fit for it, and he must let the building of churches be left to one that was never cut out for a soldier. Nor, 2. Must he think that his good purpose was in vain, and that he should lose the reward of it; no, it being God's act to prevent the execution of it, he shall be as fully recompensed as if he had done it; "The Lord will build thee a house, and annex the crown of Israel to it," v. 10. If there be a willing mind, it shall not only be accepted, but thus rewarded. Nor, 3. Must he think that because he might not do this good work therefore it would never be done, and that it was in vain to think of it; no, I will raise up thy seed, and he shall build me a house, v. 11, 12. God's temple shall be built in the time appointed, though we may not have the honour of helping to build it or the satisfaction of seeing it built. Nor, 4. Must he confine his thoughts to the temporal prosperity of his family, but must entertain himself with the prospect of the kingdom of the Messiah, who should descend from his loins, and whose throne should be established for evermore, v. 14. Solomon was not himself so settled in God's house as he should have been, nor was his family settled in the kingdom: "But there shall one descend from thee whom I will settle in my house and in my kingdom," which intimates that he should be both a high priest over the house of God and should have the sole administration of the affairs of God's kingdom among men, all power both in heaven and in earth, in the house and in the kingdom, in the church and in the world. He shall be a priest upon his throne, and the counsel of peace shall be between them both, and he shall build the temple of the Lord, Zech. vi. 12, 13.

David's Grateful Acknowledgment. (b. c. 1042.)

16 And David the king came and sat before the Lord , and said, Who am I, O Lord God, and what is mine house, that thou hast brought me hitherto? 17 And yet this was a small thing in thine eyes, O God; for thou hast also spoken of thy servant's house for a great while to come, and hast regarded me according to the estate of a man of high degree, O Lord God. 18 What can David speak more to thee for the honour of thy servant? for thou knowest thy servant. 19 O Lord , for thy servant's sake, and according to thine own heart, hast thou done all this greatness, in making known all these great things. 20 O Lord , there is none like thee, neither is there any God beside thee, according to all that we have heard with our ears. 21 And what one nation in the earth is like thy people Israel, whom God went to redeem to be his own people, to make thee a name of greatness and terribleness, by driving out nations from before thy people, whom thou hast redeemed out of Egypt? 22 For thy people Israel didst thou make thine own people for ever; and thou, Lord , becamest their God. 23 Therefore now, Lord , let the thing that thou hast spoken concerning thy servant and concerning his house be established for ever, and do as thou hast said. 24 Let it even be established, that thy name may be magnified for ever, saying, The Lord of hosts is the God of Israel, even a God to Israel: and let the house of David thy servant be established before thee. 25 For thou, O my God, hast told thy servant that thou wilt build him a house: therefore thy servant hath found in his heart to pray before thee. 26 And now, Lord , thou art God, and hast promised this goodness unto thy servant: 27 Now therefore let it please thee to bless the house of thy servant, that it may be before thee for ever: for thou blessest, O Lord , and it shall be blessed for ever.

We have here David's solemn address to God, in answer to the gracious message he had now received from him. By faith he receives the promises, embraces them, and is persuaded of them, as the patriarchs, Heb. xi. 13. How humbly does he here abase himself, and acknowledge his own unworthiness! How highly does he advance the name of God and admire his condescending grace and favour! With what devout affections does he magnify the God of Israel and what a value has he for the Israel of God! With what assurance does he build upon the promise, and with what a lively faith does he put it in suit! What an example is this to us of humble, believing, fervent prayer! The Lord enable us all thus to seek him! These things were largely observed, 2 Sam. vii. We shall therefore here observe only those few expressions in which the prayer, as we find it here, differs from the record of it there, and has something added to it.

I. That which is there expressed by way of question (Is this the manner of men, O Lord God?) is here an acknowledgment: "Thou hast regarded me according to the estate of a man of high degree. Thou hast made me a great man, and then treated me accordingly." God, by the covenant-relations into which he admits believers, the titles he gives them, the favours he bestows on them, and the preparations he has made for them, regards them according to the estate of men of high degree, though they are mean and vile. Having himself distinguished them, he treats them as persons of distinction, according to the quality he has been pleased to put upon them. Some give these words here another reading: "Thou hast looked upon me in the form of a man who art in the highest, the Lord God; or, Thou hast made me to see according to the form of a man the majesty of the Lord God." And so it points at the Messiah; for, as Abraham, so David, saw his day and was glad, saw it by faith, saw it in fashion as a man, the Word made flesh, and yet saw his glory as that of the only-begotten of the Father. And this was that which God spoke concerning his house for a great while to come, the foresight of which affected him more than any thing. And let it not be thought strange that David should speak so plainly of the two natures of Christ who in spirit called him Lord, though he knew he was to be his Son (Ps. cx. 1), and foresaw him lower than the angels for a little while, but afterwards crowned with glory and honour, Heb. ii. 6, 7.

II. After the words What can David say more unto thee, it is here added, for the honour of they servant? v. 18. Note, The honour God puts upon his servants, by taking them into covenant and communion with himself, is so great that they need not, they cannot, desire to be more highly honoured. Were they to sit down and wish, they could not speak more for their own honour than the word of God has spoken.

III. It is very observable that what in Samuel is said to be for thy word's sake is here said to be for thy servant's sake, v. 19. Jesus Christ is both the Word of God (Rev. xix. 13) and the servant of God (Isa. xlii. 1), and it is for his sake, upon the score of his meditation, that the promises are both made and made good to all believers; it is in him that they are yea and amen. For his sake is all kindness done, for his sake it is made known; to him we owe all this greatness and from him we are to expect all these great things; they are the unsearchable riches of Christ, which, if by faith we see in themselves and see in the hand of the Lord Jesus, we cannot but magnify as great things, the only true greatness, and speak honourably of accordingly.

IV. In Samuel, the Lord of hosts is said to be the God over Israel; here he is said to be the God of Israel, even a God to Israel, v. 24. His being the God of Israel bespeaks his having the name of their God and so calling himself; his being a God to Israel bespeaks his answering to the name, his filling up the relation, and doing all that to them which might be expected from him. There were those that were called gods of such and such nations, gods of Assyria and Egypt, gods of Hamad and Arpad; but they were no gods to them, for they stood them in no stead at all, were mere ciphers, nothing but a name. But the God of Israel is a God to Israel; all his attributes and perfections redound to their real benefit and advantage. Happy therefore, thrice happy, is the people whose God is Jehovah; for he will be a God to them, a God all-sufficient.

V. The closing words in Samuel are, With thy blessing let the house of thy servant be blessed forever. That is the language of a holy desire. But the closing words here are the language of a most holy faith: For thou blessest, O Lord! and it shall be blessed for ever, v. 27. 1. He was encouraged to beg a blessing because God had intimated to him that he had blessings in store for him and his family: "Thou blessest, O Lord! and therefore unto thee shall all flesh come for a blessing; unto thee do I come for the blessing promised to me." Promises are intended to direct and excite prayer. Has God said, I will bless? Let our hearts answer, Lord, bless me, 2. He was earnest for the blessing because he believed that those whom God blesses are truly and eternally blessed: Thou blessest, and it shall be blessed. Men can but beg the blessing; it is God that commands it. What he designs he effects; what he promises he performs; saying and doing are not two things with him. Nay, it shall be blessed for ever. His blessings shall not be revoked, cannot be opposed, and the benefits conferred by them are such as will survive time and days. David's prayer concludes as God's promise did (v. 14) with that which is for ever. God's word looks at things eternal, and so should our desires and hopes.