God’s promise to David

17 When David was settled into his palace,^[a] he said to the prophet Nathan, “I’m living in a cedar palace while the chest containing the Lord’s covenant is under curtains.”

² Nathan replied, “Go ahead and do whatever you are thinking, because God is with you.”

³ But that very night God’s word came to Nathan: ⁴ Go to my servant David and tell him, This is what the Lord says: You are not the one to build the temple^[b] for me to live in. ⁵ In fact, I haven’t lived in a temple from the day I brought Israel out until this very day. I’ve been traveling from tent to tent and from dwelling to dwelling.^{[c] 6} Throughout my traveling with the Israelites, did I ever ask one of Israel’s tribal leaders, whom I appointed to shepherd my people, Why haven’t you built me a cedar temple?

⁷ So then, say this to my servant David: This is what the Lord of heavenly forces says: I myself took you from the pasture, from following the flock, to be leader over my people Israel. ⁸ I’ve been with you wherever you’ve gone. I’ve eliminated all your enemies before you. Now I will make your name great—like the name of the greatest people on earth. ⁹ I’m going to provide a place for my people Israel, and plant them so that they may live there and no longer be disturbed. Cruel people will no longer trouble them as they did earlier, ¹⁰ when I appointed judges over my people Israel. I’ll subdue all your enemies and make you great. As for a dynasty,^[d] the Lord will build one for you! ¹¹ When the time comes for you to die, I will raise up a descendant of yours after you, one of your own sons, to succeed you, and I will establish his kingship. ¹² He is the one who will build me a temple, and I will establish his throne forever. ¹³ I will become his father and he will become my son, and I’ll never withdraw my faithful love from him as I did from the one before you. ¹⁴ I’ll install him in my house and in my kingdom forever, and his throne will be established forever.

¹⁵ Nathan faithfully reported all that he had seen and heard to David.

David’s prayer

¹⁶ Then King David went and sat in the Lord’s presence. He asked:

David’s wars

18 Some time later, David defeated the Philistines, subdued them, and took Gath and its villages from Philistine control. ² He also defeated Moab, enslaving them and requiring payment. ³ David defeated Zobah’s King Hadadezer at Hamath, as he continued to establish his control along the Euphrates River. ⁴ David captured one thousand chariots from him, seven thousand cavalry, and twenty thousand foot soldiers. Then David cut the hamstrings of all but one hundred of the chariot horses. ⁵ When the Arameans of Damascus came to help Zobah’s King Hadadezer, David killed twenty-two thousand of the Arameans. ⁶ David stationed soldiers^[e] in Aram of Damascus, enslaved them, and required payment. The Lord gave David victory wherever he went.

⁷ David took the gold shields carried by Hadadezer’s servants and brought them to Jerusalem. ⁸ From Tibhath and Cun, Hadadezer’s cities, David took large amounts of bronze, with which Solomon made the bronze basin,^[f] the pillars, and the bronze equipment.

⁹ When Hamath’s King Tou heard that David had defeated the entire army of Zobah’s King Hadadezer, ¹⁰ he sent his son Hadoram to King David to wish him well and to congratulate him over his battle and defeat of Hadadezer, because Tou was an enemy of Hadadezer. Hadoram brought with him all kinds of gold, silver, and bronze objects. ¹¹ King David dedicated these to the Lord along with the silver and the gold he had taken from all these nations: Edom, Moab, the Ammonites, the Philistines, and Amalek. ¹² Abishai, Zeruiah’s son, struck down eighteen thousand Edomites in the Salt Valley. ¹³ He stationed soldiers in Edom, and all the Edomites became David’s slaves. The Lord gave David victory wherever he went.

David’s administration

¹⁴ David ruled over all Israel and maintained justice and righteousness for all his people. ¹⁵ Zeruiah’s son Joab was in command of the army; Ahilud’s son Jehoshaphat was recorder; ¹⁶ Ahitub’s son Zadok and Abiathar’s son Ahimelech^[g] were priests; Shavsha was secretary; ¹⁷ Jehoiada’s son Benaiah was in command of the Cherethites and the Pelethites; and David’s sons were the king’s chief personal advisors.

War with the Ammonites and Arameans

19 Some time later, the Ammonite King Nahash died, and his son succeeded him as king. ² “I’ll be loyal to Nahash’s son Hanun,” David said, “because his father was loyal to me.” So David sent messengers with condolences about his father’s death.

But when David’s servants arrived in the Ammonite territory to express his sympathy to Hanun, ³ the Ammonite leaders asked Hanun, “Do you really believe David is honoring your father because he has sent you condolences? Of course not! His servants have come to search the city, spy it out, and overthrow it!” ⁴ So Hanun took David’s servants, shaved them, cut off half their garments from their buttocks down, and sent them off.

⁵ When this was reported to David, he sent messengers to the men because they were completely ashamed. The king said, “Stay in Jericho until your beards have grown. Then you can come back.”

⁶ When the Ammonites realized that they had offended David, Hanun and the Ammonites sent one thousand kikkars of silver to hire chariots and cavalry for themselves from Aram-naharaim, Aram-maacah, and Zobah. ⁷ They hired thirty-two thousand chariots, as well as King Maacah and his army, who came and camped in front of Medeba, while the Ammonites left their cities and came together ready for battle. ⁸ When David heard this, he sent Joab and the entire army of warriors. ⁹ The Ammonites marched out and formed a battle line at the entrance to the city, while the kings who had come remained in the countryside.

¹⁰ When Joab saw that the battle would be fought on two fronts, he chose some of Israel’s finest warriors and deployed them to meet the Arameans. ¹¹ The rest of the army Joab placed under the command of his brother Abishai. When they took up their positions to meet the Arameans, ¹² Joab said, “If the Arameans prove too strong for me, you must help me, and if the Ammonites prove too strong for you, I’ll help you. ¹³ Be brave! We must be courageous for the sake of our people and the cities of our God. The Lord will do what is good in his eyes.”

¹⁴ When Joab and the troops who were with him advanced into battle against the Arameans, they fled from him. ¹⁵ When the Ammonites saw that the Arameans had fled, they also fled from his brother Abishai and retreated into the city. So Joab returned to Jerusalem.

¹⁶ The Arameans saw that they had been defeated by Israel. They sent out messengers to bring Aramean reinforcements from the other side of the river, with Shophach the commander of Hadadezer’s army at their head. ¹⁷ Upon hearing this, David gathered all Israel and crossed the Jordan. David advanced and took up positions against the Arameans to meet them in battle. After initiating the battle, ¹⁸ the Arameans fled before Israel, and David killed seven thousand Aramean chariot drivers and forty thousand foot soldiers. Shophach the commander of their army was killed too. ¹⁹ When the servants of Hadadezer saw that they had been defeated by Israel, they made peace with David and served him. Never again would the Arameans come to the aid of the Ammonites.