1 Chronicles 17
1 After David began to live in his palace, he said to the prophet Nathan, “[It does not seem right that] I am here living in a palace made of cedar [wood], but Yahweh’s Sacred Chest is kept inside a tent!”
And it came to pass, when David dwelt in his house, that David said to Nathan the prophet: 'Lo, I dwell in a house of cedar, but the ark of the covenant of the LORD dwelleth under curtains.'
2 Nathan replied to David, “Whatever you are thinking about doing, do it, because God is with/guiding you.”
And Nathan said unto David: 'Do all that is in thy heart; for God is with thee.'
3 But that night God spoke [MTY] to Nathan. He said,
And it came to pass the same night, that the word of God came to Nathan, saying:
4 “Go and tell my servant David that this is what I, Yahweh, am saying to him: ‘You are not the one who should build a temple for me to live in.
'Go and tell David My servant: Thus saith the LORD: Thou shalt not build Me a house to dwell in;
5 I have not lived in any building, from the day that I brought the people of Israel up [out of Egypt] until now. Instead, I have [lived in a tent], moving from one place to another with [the Israelis] when they moved to other places [DOU].
for I have not dwelt in a house since the day that I brought up Israel, unto this day; but have gone from tent to tent, and from one tabernacle to another.
6 Wherever I went with all the Israelis [as they traveled], I never [RHQ] said to any of their leaders whom I appointed to lead [MET] them, “Why have you not built me a temple made of cedar [wood]?”’
In all places wherein I have walked among all Israel, spoke I a word with any of the judges of Israel, whom I commanded to feed My people, saying: Why have ye not built Me a house of cedar?
7 Therefore, this is what you should say to my servant David: ‘I, the Almighty Commander of the armies of angels, took you from a pasture where you were taking care of sheep, [and I appointed you] to be the ruler of my Israeli people.
Now therefore thus shalt thou say unto My servant David: Thus saith the LORD of hosts: I took thee from the sheepcote, from following the sheep, that thou shouldest be prince over My people Israel;
8 I have (been with/helped) you wherever you have gone, and I have gotten rid of all your enemies as you advanced. And now I will cause you to become very famous, as well-known as the names of the greatest men [who have ever lived] on the earth.
and I have been with thee whithersoever thou wentest, and have cut off all thine enemies from before thee; and I will make thee a name, like unto the name of the great ones that are in the earth.
9 Formerly, during the time that I appointed leaders for my Israeli people, many violent groups oppressed them. But this will not happen any more. I have chosen a place where my Israeli people can live [peacefully] and no one will disturb them any more. I will give not allow them to [be attacked by] their enemies. And I will defeat all your enemies. I declare to you that I, Yahweh, will enable your descendants to rule after you [die].
And I will appoint a place for My people Israel, and will plant them, that they may dwell in their own place, and be disquieted no more; neither shall the children of wickedness waste them any more, as at the first,
even from the day that I commanded judges to be over My people Israel; and I will subdue all thine enemies. Moreover I tell thee that the LORD will build thee a house.
11 When your life ends [EUP], and you [die and] go to be with your ancestors [who have died], I will appoint one of your sons to become king, and I will enable his kingdom to (be strong/resist all their enemies).
And it shall come to pass, when thy days are fulfilled that thou must go to be with thy fathers, that I will set up thy seed after thee, who shall be of thy sons; and I will establish his kingdom.
12 He is the one who will [arrange for] a temple to be built for me. And I will enable his descendants to be kings [MTY] of Israel forever.
He shall build Me a house, and I will establish his throne for ever.
13 I will be [like] a father to him, and [it will be as though] he [is] a son to me. I stopped loving [Saul, ] the one who was the king before you became king, but I will never stop loving your son.
I will be to him for a father, and he shall be to Me for a son; and I will not take My mercy away from him, as I took it from him that was before thee;
14 I will cause him to rule over my people [MTY], and his kingdom will endure forever [DOU].’”
but I will settle him in My house and in My kingdom for ever; and his throne shall be established for ever.'
15 So Nathan reported to David everything that Yahweh had revealed to him.
According to all these words, and according to all this vision, so did Nathan speak unto David.
16 Then David went [into the Sacred Tent] and sat in the presence of Yahweh, and prayed this: “Yahweh my God, I am certainly not [RHQ] worthy for you to have done all these things for me, and my family is not worthy, either.
Then David the king went in, and sat before the LORD; and he said: 'Who am I, O LORD God, and what is my house, that Thou hast brought me thus far?
17 “And O God, now, in addition to everything else, you have spoken about what will happen to my descendants in the future for many generations. Yahweh my God, you have acted toward me as though I was the most important man [on the earth]!
And this was a small thing in Thine eyes, O God; but Thou hast spoken of Thy servant's house for a great while to come, and hast regarded me after the manner of a man of high degree, O LORD God.
18 “What more can I, David, say to you [for honoring me]? Although you know very well what I am like,
What can David say yet more unto Thee concerning the honour which is done to Thy servant? for Thou knowest Thy servant.
19 Yahweh, for my sake and because it is what you wanted to do, you have done these great things [for me], and you have revealed to me these things [that you are promising to do].
O LORD, for Thy servant's sake, and according to Thine own heart, hast Thou wrought all this greatness, to make known all these great things.
20 “Yahweh, you are great. There is no one like you. Only you are God, which is what we have always heard.
O LORD, there is none like Thee, neither is there any God beside Thee, according to all that we have heard with our ears.
21 And there is no nation in the world like Israel [RHQ]. Israel is the only nation on the earth whose people you rescued. You performed great and awesome miracles, rescuing our ancestors from [being slaves in] Egypt, and expelling the people of other people-groups [who were in Canaan].
And who is like Thy people Israel, a nation one in the earth, whom God went to redeem unto Himself for a people, to make Thee a name by great and tremendous things, in driving out nations from before Thy people, whom Thou didst redeem out of Egypt.
22 You have caused us your Israeli people to belong to you forever, and you, Yahweh, have become our God!
For Thy people Israel didst Thou make Thine own people for ever; and Thou, LORD, becamest their God.
23 “And now Yahweh, I pray that you will cause the things that you have promised to do for me and my descendants [MTY] to be fulfilled forever.
And now, O LORD, let the word that Thou hast spoken concerning Thy servant, and concerning his house, be established for ever, and do as Thou hast spoken.
24 When that happens, you [MTY] will be famous forever. And people will exclaim, ‘The Almighty Commander of the armies of angels, is the God who rules Israel!’ And you will cause that forever there will be descendants [MTY] of mine who will rule.
Yea, let it be established, and let Thy name be magnified for ever, that it may be said: The LORD of hosts is the God of Israel, even a God to Israel; and the house of David Thy servant shall be established before Thee.
25 “You, my God, have revealed to me that you will cause [some of] my descendants to become kings. So I am brave enough to pray like this to you.
For Thou, O my God, hast revealed to Thy servant that Thou wilt build him a house; therefore hath Thy servant taken heart to pray before Thee.
26 Yahweh, you are God! You have promised to do these good things for me.
And now, O LORD, Thou alone art God, and hast promised this good thing unto Thy servant;
27 And now you, Yahweh, have [promised to] bless my descendants [MTY], in order that they will continue to rule forever. That will happen because you, Yahweh, are the one who has blessed them, and you will keep blessing them forever.”
and now it hath pleased Thee to bless the house of Thy servant, that it may continue for ever before Thee; for Thou, O LORD, hast blessed, and so let Thy servant be blessed for ever.'
