The Lord's Message to David

(1 Chronicles 17.1-15)

7 King David moved into his new palace, and the Lord let his kingdom be at peace. ² Then one day, as David was talking with Nathan the prophet, David said, “Look around! I live in a palace made of cedar, but the sacred chest has to stay in a tent.”

³ Nathan replied, “The Lord is with you, so do what you want!”

⁴ That night, the Lord told Nathan ⁵ to go to David and give him this message:

David, you are my servant, so listen to what I say. Why should you build a temple for me? ⁶ I didn't live in a temple when I brought my people out of Egypt, and I don't live in one now. A tent has always been my home wherever I have gone with them. ⁷ I chose leaders and told them to be like shepherds for my people Israel. But did I ever say anything to even one of them about building a cedar temple for me?

^8 (A) David, this is what I, the Lord All-Powerful, say to you. I brought you in from the fields where you took care of sheep, and I made you the leader of my people. ⁹ Wherever you went, I helped you and destroyed your enemies right in front of your eyes. I have made you one of the most famous people in the world.

¹⁰ I have given my people Israel a land of their own where they can live in peace, and they won't have to tremble with fear any more. Evil nations won't bother them, as they did ¹¹ when I let judges rule my people. And I have kept your enemies from attacking you.

Now I promise that you and your descendants will be kings. ^12 (B) I'll choose one of your sons to be king when you reach the end of your life and are buried in the tomb of your ancestors. I'll make him a strong ruler, ¹³ and no one will be able to take his kingdom away from him. He will be the one to build a temple for me. ^14 (C) I will be his father, and he will be my son.

When he does wrong, I'll see that he is corrected, just as children are corrected by their parents. ¹⁵ But I will never put an end to my agreement with him, as I put an end to my agreement with Saul, who was king before you. ^16 (D) I will make sure that one of your descendants will always be king.

The Lord's Message to David

(2 Samuel 7.1-17)

17 Soon after David moved into his new palace, he said to Nathan the prophet, “Look around! I live in a palace made of cedar, but the sacred chest is kept in a tent.”

² Nathan replied, “The Lord is with you—do what you want.”

³ That night, the Lord told Nathan ⁴ to go to David and tell him:

David, you are my servant, so listen carefully: You are not the one to build a temple for me. ⁵ I didn't live in a temple when I brought my people out of Egypt, and I don't live in one now. A tent has always been my home wherever I have gone with them. ⁶ I chose special leaders and told them to be like shepherds for my people Israel. But did I ever say anything to even one of them about building a cedar temple for me?

⁷ David, this is what I, the Lord All-Powerful, say to you. I brought you in from the fields where you took care of sheep, and I made you the leader of my people. ⁸ Wherever you went, I helped you and destroyed your enemies right in front of your eyes. I have made you one of the most famous people in the world.

⁹ I have given my people Israel a land of their own where they can live in peace. They will no longer have to tremble with fear—evil nations won't bother them, as they did ¹⁰ when I let judges rule my people, and I will keep your enemies from attacking you.

Now I promise that like you, your descendants will be kings. ¹¹ I'll choose one of your sons to be king when you reach the end of your life and are buried beside your ancestors. I'll make him a strong ruler, ¹² and no one will be able to take his kingdom away from him. He will be the one to build a temple for me. ^13 (A) I will be like a father to him, and he will be like a son to me. I will never put an end to my agreement with him, as I put an end to my agreement with Saul, who was king before you. ¹⁴ I will make sure that your son and his descendants will rule my people and my kingdom forever.