I Chronicles 17, Plans for a Temple

David is king. A marvelous palace has been built for David and the ark is in a tent in Jerusalem. 

1 Chronicles 17: 1-2, Build a temple?

After David was settled in his palace, he said to Nathan the prophet, "Here I am, living in a palace of cedar, while the ark of the covenant of the LORD is under a tent."

Nathan replied to David, "Whatever you have in mind, do it, for God is with you."

David seeks to build a temple in Jerusalem and Nathan agrees.

1 Chronicles 17: 3-6, YHWH responds

That night the word of God came to Nathan, saying:

 "Go and tell my servant David, `This is what the LORD says: You are not the one to build me a house to dwell in. I have not dwelt in a house from the day I brought Israel up out of Egypt to this day. I have moved from one tent site to another, from one dwelling place to another. Wherever I have moved with all the Israelites, did I ever say to any of their leaders whom I commanded to shepherd my people, "Why have you not built me a house of cedar?"'

 

But suddenly God appears to Nathan and blocks the plans. He apparently does not need a temple and David is not the one to build it. In 1 Chronicles 22: 8 YHWH gives, as a reason for this denial, the bloody campaigns of David.

1 Chronicles 17: 7-10, Picked from the pasture

Now then, tell my servant David, `This is what the LORD Almighty says: I took you from the pasture and from following the flock, to be ruler over my people Israel. I have been with you wherever you have gone, and I have cut off all your enemies from before you. Now I will make your name like the names of the greatest men of the earth. And I will provide a place for my people Israel and will plant them so that they can have a home of their own and no longer be disturbed. Wicked people will not oppress them anymore, as they did at the beginning and have done ever since the time I appointed leaders over my people Israel. I will also subdue all your enemies. "`I declare to you that the LORD will build a house for you:

 

YHWH recounts his choice of David, from the days David was a shepherd. YHWH will build, out of David's line, a "house."

1 Chronicles 17: 11-14, A throne forever

When your days are over and you go to be with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, one of your own sons, and I will establish his kingdom. He is the one who will build a house for me, and I will establish his throne forever. I will be his father, and he will be my son. I will never take my love away from him, as I took it away from your predecessor. I will set him over my house and my kingdom forever; his throne will be established forever.'"

YHWH promises that one of David's sons will succeed him; that son is the one who will build the House of God. David's kingdom will then last forever. To the Chronicler, there must be some issues here, as the house of David does not continue as a kingdom in his day. Is this clearly messianic? 

God promises to be the father of the future king and to identify that king as His son. That son will reign over God's kingdom forever. Yamauchi argues that this passage has moved past Solomon to the future Messiah.

Yamauchi points out that the parallel passage in 2 Samuel 7: 12-16 has a statement about punishments for forsaking the covenant and those statements are not included here. Yamauchi argues that the Chronicler, reporting so soon after the Babylonian exile, sees no need for warnings here about apostasy.

1 Chronicles 17: 15-19, Who am I?

 Nathan reported to David all the words of this entire revelation. Then King David went in and sat before the LORD, and he said: 

"Who am I, O LORD God, and what is my family, that you have brought me this far? And as if this were not enough in your sight, O God, you have spoken about the future of the house of your servant. You have looked on me as though I were the most exalted of men, O LORD God. 

 

"What more can David say to you for honoring your servant? For you know your servant, O LORD. For the sake of your servant and according to your will, you have done this great thing and made known all these great promises.

David apparently goes into the tent housing the ark and sits down before it. He acknowledges his lack of standing and the honor of his appointment.

1 Chronicles 17: 20-24, David's response

"There is no one like you, O LORD, and there is no God but you, as we have heard with our own ears. And who is like your people Israel--the one nation on earth whose God went out to redeem a people for himself, and to make a name for yourself, and to perform great and awesome wonders by driving out nations from before your people, whom you redeemed from Egypt? You made your people Israel your very own forever, and you, O LORD, have become their God.

 

"And now, LORD, let the promise you have made concerning your servant and his house be established forever. Do as you promised, so that it will be established and that your name will be great forever. Then men will say,

`The LORD Almighty, the God over Israel, is Israel's God!'

And the house of your servant David will be established before you.

David reviews God's promise to Israel, from the time of Egypt, His protections of David and the promise of an eternal kingdom.

1 Chronicles 17: 25-27,

"You, my God, have revealed to your servant that you will build a house for him. So your servant has found courage to pray to you.

 

O LORD, you are God! You have promised these good things to your servant. Now you have been pleased to bless the house of your servant, that it may continue forever in your sight; for you, O LORD, have blessed it, and it will be blessed forever."

Yamauchi argues that this chapter is the heart of 1 Chronicles. David begins an eternal dynasty, rooted on the proper worship of YHWH as required by the Mosaic Covenant.

The emphasis here is on an infinite Jewish kingdom, begun with David, fulfilled by the future Messiah. At this time, there is no mention of the Abrahamic Covenant (Genesis 12: 1-3) in which the descendants of Israel will bless all nations and peoples. As a Gentile, I am grateful for that promise also!