Old/New Testament
A Tent for the Ark
16 So they brought the ark of God and set it inside the tent which David had pitched for it, and they offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before God. 2 When David had finished offering the burnt offerings and the peace offerings, he blessed the people in the name of the Lord. 3 He distributed to everyone in Israel, both man and woman, to everyone a loaf of bread, a portion of meat, and a raisin cake.
4 He appointed some of the Levites to minister before the ark of the Lord and to profess [God’s name] and to [a]thank and praise the Lord, the God of Israel: 5 Asaph the chief, and second to him Zechariah, then Jeiel (Jaaziel), Shemiramoth, Jehiel, Mattithiah, Eliab, Benaiah, Obed-edom, and Jeiel with musical instruments, harps and lyres; also Asaph played loud-sounding cymbals; 6 and Benaiah and Jahaziel the priests blew trumpets continually before the ark of the covenant of God.
7 Then on that day David first entrusted to Asaph and his relatives to give thanks to the Lord [as their chief task].
Psalm of Thanksgiving
8
O give thanks to the Lord, call on His name;
Make His deeds known among the peoples.
9
Sing to Him, sing praises to Him;
Speak of all His wonders.
10
Glory in His holy name;
Let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice.
11
Seek the Lord and His strength;
Seek His face continually [longing to be in His presence].
12
Remember [with gratitude] His marvelous deeds which He has done,
His miracles and the judgments from His mouth,
13
O seed of Israel His servant,
[b]Children of Jacob, His chosen ones!
14
He is the Lord our God;
His judgments are in all the earth.
15
Be mindful of His covenant forever,
The promise which He commanded and established to a thousand generations,
16
The covenant which He made with Abraham,
And His oath (sworn promise) to Isaac.
17
He confirmed it as a statute to Jacob,
And to Israel as an everlasting covenant,(A)
18
Saying, “To you I will give the land of Canaan,
As the portion of your possession and inheritance.”
19
When you were few in number,
Even a very few, and strangers in it,
20
When they wandered from nation to nation,
And from one kingdom to another people,
21
He allowed no man to oppress or exploit them,
And, He reproved and punished kings for their sakes, saying,(B)
22
“Do not touch My anointed ones,
And do My prophets no harm.”(C)
23
Sing to the Lord, all the earth;
Proclaim the good news of His salvation from day to day.
24
Declare His glory among the nations,
His marvelous works among all peoples.
25
For great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised;
He is also to be feared [with awe-filled reverence] above all gods.
26
For all the gods of the peoples are [lifeless] idols,
But the Lord made the heavens.
27
Splendor and majesty are [found] in His presence;
Strength and joy are [found] in His place (sanctuary).
28
Ascribe to the Lord, O families of the peoples,
Ascribe to the Lord glory and honor and strength.
29
Ascribe to the Lord the glory and honor due His name;
Bring an offering [of thanksgiving], and come before Him;
Worship the Lord in the splendor of holiness.
30
Tremble [reverently] before Him, all the earth;
The world is firmly established, it will not be moved.
31
Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice;
And let them say among the nations, “The Lord reigns.”
32
Let the sea roar, and all the things that fill it;
Let the field rejoice, and all that is in it.
33
Then the trees of the forest will sing for joy before the Lord;
For He comes to judge and govern the earth.
34
O give thanks to the Lord, for He is good;
For His lovingkindness endures forever.
35
Then say, “Save us, O God of our salvation;
Gather us together and rescue us from the nations,
That we may give thanks to Your holy name,
And glory in Your praise.”
36
Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel,
Forever and ever.
And all the people said, “Amen,” and praised the Lord.
Worship before the Ark
37 So David left Asaph and his relatives there before the ark of the covenant of the Lord to minister before the ark continually, as each day’s work required; 38 and Obed-edom with his sixty-eight relatives; also Obed-edom the son of Jeduthun, and Hosah, were to be gatekeepers. 39 David left Zadok the priest and his relatives the priests before the dwelling place (tabernacle) of the Lord in the high place which was at Gibeon,(D) 40 to offer burnt offerings to the Lord on the altar of burnt offering continually, morning and evening, in accordance with all that is written in the Law of the Lord, which He commanded Israel. 41 With them were Heman and Jeduthun, and the rest who were chosen and designated by name, to give thanks to the Lord, for His lovingkindness endures forever. 42 With them were Heman and Jeduthun with trumpets and cymbals for those who were to sound aloud, and instruments for [accompanying] the songs of God. And the sons of Jeduthun were to be at the gate.
43 Then all the people departed, each to his house, and David returned [home] to bless his household.
God’s Covenant with David
17 As David sat in his house (palace), he said to Nathan the prophet, “Behold, I live in a house of cedars, while the ark of the covenant of the Lord is under tent curtains.” 2 Then Nathan said to David, “[c]Do all that is in your heart, for God is with you.”
3 But it came about that same night that the word of God came to Nathan, saying, 4 “Go and tell David My servant, ‘Thus says the Lord, “You shall not build a house for Me to dwell in; 5 for I have not dwelt in a house since the day that I brought Israel up [from Egypt] until this day, but I have gone from tent to tent and from one dwelling place to another. 6 Wherever I have walked with all Israel, did I say a word to any of the judges of Israel, whom I commanded to shepherd My people, saying, ‘Why have you not built for Me a house of cedar?’”’ 7 Now, therefore, this is what you shall say to My servant David: ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts, “I took you from the pasture, from following the sheep, to be leader over My people Israel. 8 I have been with you wherever you have gone, and I have cut off all your enemies from before you; and I will make your name like the name of the great ones of the earth. 9 I will appoint a place for My people Israel, and will plant them, so that they may live in their own place and not be moved again [nor tremble with fear]; and the [d]wicked will not waste (persecute) them anymore, as formerly, 10 since the time that I commanded judges to be over My people Israel. And I will humble and subdue all your enemies.
“Furthermore, I tell you that the Lord will build you a house (a blessed posterity). 11 And it shall come to pass that when your days are completed and you must go to be with your fathers [in death], I will raise up one of your descendants after you, one of your own sons; and I will establish his kingdom. 12 He shall build Me a house, and I will establish his throne forever.(E) 13 I will be his father and he shall be My son; and I will not take My steadfast love and mercy away from him, as I took it from him (King Saul) who was before you.(F) 14 But I will settle [e]him in My house and in My kingdom forever, and his throne shall be established forevermore.”’”(G) 15 According to all these words and according to all this vision, so Nathan spoke to David.
David’s Prayer in Response
16 Then David the king went in and sat before the Lord and said, “Who am I, O Lord God, and what is my house and family that You have brought me this far? 17 This was a small thing in Your eyes, O God; but You have spoken of Your servant’s house for a great while to come, and have regarded me according to the standard and estate of a man of high degree (prominence), O Lord God. 18 What more can David say to You for the honor granted to Your servant? For You know Your servant. 19 O Lord, for Your servant’s sake, and in accordance with Your own heart, You have accomplished all this greatness, to make known all these great things. 20 O Lord, there is no one like You, nor is there any God except You, according to all that we have heard with our ears. 21 And what one nation on the earth is like Your people Israel, whom God went to redeem for Himself as a people, to make a name for Yourself by great and awesome and terrible things, by driving out nations from before Your people, whom You redeemed out of Egypt? 22 You made Your people Israel Your own people forever, and You, Lord, became their God.
23 “Therefore now, O Lord, let the word which You have spoken concerning Your servant and his house endure forever, and do as You have said. 24 Let Your name [and the character that it denotes] endure and be magnified forever, saying, ‘The Lord of hosts is the God of Israel, yes, a God to Israel; and the house of Your servant David is established before You.’ 25 For You, O my God, have revealed to Your servant that You will build for him a house (descendants); therefore Your servant has found courage to pray before You. 26 And now, O Lord, You are God, and you have spoken and promised this good thing to Your servant. 27 Therefore may it please You to bless the house (descendants) of Your servant, that it may continue before You forever; for what You bless, O Lord, is blessed forever.”
David’s Kingdom Strengthened
18 After this it came about that David defeated and subdued the Philistines, and he took Gath and its villages out of the hand of the Philistines. 2 He defeated Moab, and the Moabites became David’s servants and brought tribute (gifts).
3 David also defeated Hadadezer king of Zobah as far as Hamath, as he went to establish his [f]dominion to the Euphrates River. 4 David took from him 1,000 chariots, 7,000 horsemen, and 20,000 foot soldiers (infantrymen). David also [g]hamstrung [nearly] all the chariot horses [to make them lame and useless], but left enough of them for 100 chariots.
5 When the Arameans (Syrians) of [h]Damascus came to help Hadadezer king of Zobah, David killed 22,000 of the Arameans. 6 Then David put military outposts among the Arameans in Damascus; and the Arameans became David’s servants and brought tribute. Thus the Lord helped David wherever he went. 7 David took the shields of gold which were carried by the servants of Hadadezer and brought them to Jerusalem. 8 Likewise from Tibhath and from Cun, cities of Hadadezer, David brought a very large amount of bronze, with which Solomon later made the bronze Sea (large basin), the pillars, and the utensils of bronze.(H)
9 When Tou king of Hamath heard how David had defeated all the army of Hadadezer king of Zobah, 10 he sent Hadoram his son to King David to greet him and to bless (congratulate) him, because he had fought against Hadadezer and had defeated him; for Hadadezer had been at war with Tou. And Hadoram brought all kinds of articles of gold and silver and bronze. 11 King David also dedicated these to the Lord [setting them apart for sacred use], with the silver and the gold which he brought from all the nations: from Edom, Moab, the Ammonites, the Philistines, and from Amalek.
12 Also Abishai the son of Zeruiah [David’s half sister] defeated 18,000 Edomites in the Valley of Salt. 13 He put military outposts in Edom, and all the Edomites became David’s servants. Thus the Lord helped David wherever he went.
14 So David reigned over all Israel and administered justice and righteousness for all his people. 15 Joab the son of Zeruiah was in command of the army, and Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud was the recorder; 16 Zadok the son of Ahitub and Abimelech the son of Abiathar were the priests, and Shavsha was secretary (state scribe); 17 and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was in charge of the [i]Cherethites and the Pelethites [David’s bodyguards], and the sons of David were chiefs at the king’s side.
28 Then Jesus called out as He taught in the temple, “You know Me and know where I am from; and I have not come on my own initiative [as self-appointed], but He who sent Me is true, and Him you do not know. 29 I know Him Myself because I am from Him [I came from His very presence] and it was He [personally] who sent Me.” 30 So they were eager to arrest Him; but no one laid a hand on Him, because His time had not yet come. 31 But many from the crowd believed in Him. And they kept saying, “When the Christ comes, will He do more signs and exhibit more proofs than this Man?”
32 The Pharisees heard the crowd muttering these things [under their breath] about Him, and the chief priests and Pharisees sent [a]guards to arrest Him. 33 Therefore Jesus said, “For a little while longer I am [still] with you, and then I go to Him who sent Me. 34 You will look for Me, and will not [be able to] find Me; and where I am, you cannot come.” 35 Then the Jews said among themselves, “Where does this Man intend to go that we will not find Him? Does He intend to go to the Dispersion [of Jews scattered and living] among the Greeks, and teach the Greeks? 36 What does this statement of His mean, ‘You will look for Me, and will not [be able to] find Me; and where I am, you cannot come’?”
37 Now on the last and most important day of the feast, Jesus stood and called out [in a loud voice], “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink! 38 He who believes in Me [who adheres to, trusts in, and relies on Me], as the Scripture has said, ‘From his innermost being will flow continually rivers of living water.’”(A) 39 But He was speaking of the [Holy] Spirit, whom those who believed in Him [as Savior] were to receive afterward. The Spirit had not yet been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified (raised to honor).
Division of People over Jesus
40 Listening to these words, some of the people said, “This is certainly the Prophet!”(B) 41 Others said, “This is the Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed)!” But others said, “Surely the Christ is not going to come out of Galilee, is He? 42 Does the Scripture not say that the Christ comes from the descendants of David, and from Bethlehem, the village where David lived?”(C) 43 So the crowd was divided because of Him. 44 Some of them wanted to arrest Him, but no one laid hands on Him.
45 Then the guards went [back] to the chief priests and Pharisees, who asked them, “Why did you not bring Him [here with you]?” 46 The guards replied, “Never [at any time] has a man talked the way this Man talks!” 47 Then the Pharisees said to them, “Have you also been deluded and swept off your feet? 48 Has any of the rulers or Pharisees believed in Him? 49 But this [ignorant, contemptible] crowd that does not know the Law is accursed and doomed!” 50 Nicodemus (the one who came to Jesus before and was one of them) asked, 51 “Does our Law convict someone without first giving him a hearing and finding out what he is [accused of] doing?” 52 They responded, “Are you also from Galilee? Search [and read the Scriptures], and see [for yourself] that no prophet comes from Galilee!” 53 [b][And everyone went to his own house.
Copyright © 2015 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, CA 90631. All rights reserved.