1 Chronicles 17
New American Standard Bible
God’s Covenant with David
17 (A)And it came about, when David lived in his house, that David said to Nathan the prophet, “Look, I am living in a house of cedar, but the ark of the covenant of the Lord is under tent curtains.” 2 Then Nathan said to David, “Do whatever is in your heart, for God is with you.”
3 But it happened that same night, that the word of God came to Nathan, saying, 4 “Go and tell David My servant, ‘This is what the Lord says: “(B)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 up Israel to this day, (C)but I have [a]gone from tent to tent and from one dwelling place to another. 6 In all places where I have walked with all Israel, have I spoken a word (D)with any of the judges of Israel, whom I commanded to shepherd My people, saying, ‘Why have you not built Me a house of cedar?’”’ 7 Now, therefore, this is what you shall say to My servant David: ‘This is what the Lord of armies says: “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 have eliminated all your enemies from you; and I will make for you a name like the name of the great ones who are on the earth. 9 And I will appoint a place for My people Israel, and will plant them there, so that they may live in their own place and not tremble with anxiety again; and the [b]wicked will not make them waste away anymore as they did previously, 10 even from the day that I commanded judges to be over My people Israel. And I will subdue all your enemies.
Moreover, I tell you that the Lord will build a house for you. 11 When your days are fulfilled that you must [c]go to be with your fathers, then I will set up one of your [d]descendants after you, who will be from your sons; and I will establish his kingdom. 12 He shall build for Me a house, and I will establish his throne forever. 13 (E)I will be his father and he shall be My son; and I will not take My favor away from him, (F)as I took it from him who was before you. 14 But I will settle him in My house and in My kingdom forever, and his throne will be established forever.”’” 15 According to all these words and according to all of this vision, so Nathan spoke to David.
David’s Prayer in Response
16 Then King David came in and sat before the Lord, and said, “(G)Who am I, Lord God, and what is my house that You have brought me this far? 17 This was a small thing in Your eyes, God; but You have spoken of Your servant’s house for a great while to come, and have viewed me according to the standard of a person of high degree, Lord God. 18 What more can David still say to You concerning the honor bestowed on Your servant? For You know Your servant. 19 Lord, (H)for Your servant’s sake, and according to Your own heart, You have accomplished all this greatness, to make known all these great things. 20 Lord, there is none like You, nor is there any God besides You, according to everything 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 for You a name by great and awesome things, by driving out nations from before Your people, whom You redeemed from Egypt? 22 (I)For You have made Your people Israel Your own people forever, and You, Lord, became their God.
23 “Now, Lord, let the word that You have spoken concerning Your servant and concerning his house be established forever, and do just as You have spoken. 24 Let Your name be established and be great forever, saying, ‘The Lord of armies is the God of Israel, a God to Israel; and the house of Your servant David is established before You.’ 25 For You, my God, have revealed to Your servant that You will build him a house; therefore Your servant has found courage to pray before You. 26 Now, Lord, You are God, and have [e]promised this good thing to Your servant. 27 And now You have decided to bless the house of Your servant, that it may [f]continue forever before You; for You, Lord, have blessed, and it is blessed forever.”
Footnotes
- 1 Chronicles 17:5 Lit been
- 1 Chronicles 17:9 Lit sons of injustice
- 1 Chronicles 17:11 I.e., die
- 1 Chronicles 17:11 Lit seed
- 1 Chronicles 17:26 Lit said
- 1 Chronicles 17:27 Lit be
1 Chronicles 17
International Standard Version
God Establishes His Covenant with David(A)
17 After David had settled down to live in his palace, he[a] spoke with the prophet Nathan. “Look, here I am living in this[b] cedar palace, but the ark of the Lord’s covenant remains surrounded by curtains!”
2 “Do everything you have in mind,”[c] Nathan replied to David, “because God is with you.”
3 But later that same night, this message came to Nathan from God:
4 “Go tell David, my servant, ‘This is what the Lord says:
“‘“You won’t be building a house[d] for me to inhabit, will you? 5 After all, I haven’t lived in a house from the day I brought out Israel until today. Instead, I’ve lived from tent to tent and from one place to another.[e] 6 Wherever I’ve moved within all of Israel, did I ever ask even one judge of Israel whom I commanded to shepherd my people, ‘Why haven’t you built me a cedar house?’”’
7 “Now therefore this is what you are to tell my servant David:
‘This is what the Lord of the Heavenly Armies says: “I took you from the pasture myself—from tending sheep—to become Commander-in-Chief[f] over my people Israel.
8 “‘“Furthermore, I have remained with you everywhere you have gone, annihilating all your enemies right in front of you. I will make your reputation[g] great, like the reputation[h] of the great ones who have lived on[i] earth. 9 I will establish a homeland[j] for my people Israel, planting them in a secure location where they will never be disturbed anymore. Wicked people[k] will not oppress them as happened in the past, 10 during the time I had commanded judges to administer[l] my people Israel. I’ll also grant you deliverance from all your enemies.
“‘“I’m also announcing to you that the Lord also will himself build a house[m] for you. 11 It will come about that when your life[n] is complete and you go to join your ancestors, I will raise up your offspring[o] after you, who is related to one of[p] your sons, and I will fortify his kingdom. 12 He will build a temple dedicated to me, and I will make his throne last forever. 13 I will be a father to him and he will be a son to me. I will never remove my gracious love from him as I did from the one who preceded you. 14 I will confirm him in my Temple and in my kingdom forever, and his throne will remain secure forever.”’”
15 Using precisely these words, Nathan communicated this complete oracle to David.
David’s Prayer(B)
16 Then King David went in, sat down in the presence of the Lord, and said:
“Who am I, Lord God, and what is my household,[q] since you have brought me to this? 17 Furthermore, this is a small thing to you, God, and yet you have spoken concerning your servant’s household for a great while to come, and you have seen in me the fulfillment[r] of man’s purpose, Lord God.
18 “What more can David say to you about how you are honoring your servant, and you surely know your servant. 19 Lord, for the sake of your servant, and consistent with your heart, you have done all of these great things and are now making these[s] great things known.
20 “Lord, there is no one like you, and we have heard from no god other than you. 21 What other one nation on the earth is like your people Israel, God, which you have redeemed from slavery to become your own people, making a great name for yourself when you redeemed your people from Egypt. You did awesome miraculous deeds, driving out nations that stood in their way. 22 You took[t] your people Israel to be your very own people forever, and you, Lord, have become their God.
23 “And now, Lord, let what you have spoken concerning your servant and his household be done forever—and let it be done just as you’ve promised. 24 May your name be made great and honored forever: The Lord of the Heavenly Armies, the God of Israel, is God for Israel, and may the family of David your servant stand before you forever.
25 “Because of you, my God, I have been bold to pray to you, as you have told your servant that you will build him a dynasty. 26 And now, Lord, you are God, and you have promised all of these good things to your servant. 27 Furthermore, it has pleased you to bless the dynasty of your servant, so that it will continue in place forever in your presence, because when you, Lord, grant a blessing, it is an eternal blessing.”
Footnotes
- 1 Chronicles 17:1 Lit. David
- 1 Chronicles 17:1 Lit. the
- 1 Chronicles 17:2 Lit. heart
- 1 Chronicles 17:4 Lit. house; and so throughout the chapter
- 1 Chronicles 17:5 The Heb. lacks to another
- 1 Chronicles 17:7 Lit. Nagid; i.e. a senior officer entrusted with dual roles of operational oversight and management authority
- 1 Chronicles 17:8 Lit. name
- 1 Chronicles 17:8 Lit. name
- 1 Chronicles 17:8 The Heb. lacks have lived
- 1 Chronicles 17:9 Lit. place
- 1 Chronicles 17:9 Lit. Children of wickedness
- 1 Chronicles 17:10 Lit. judges over
- 1 Chronicles 17:10 I.e. a dynasty
- 1 Chronicles 17:11 Lit. days
- 1 Chronicles 17:11 Lit. seed; MT is sing.
- 1 Chronicles 17:11 Or is from
- 1 Chronicles 17:16 Lit. house, and so throughout the chapter
- 1 Chronicles 17:17 Lit. turning
- 1 Chronicles 17:19 The Heb. lacks these
- 1 Chronicles 17:22 Lit. gave
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