The House of the Lord

1 Now when the king dwelt in his house, and the LORD had given him rest from all his enemies round about, 2 the king said to Nathan the prophet, "See now, I dwell in a house of cedar, but the ark of God dwells in a tent." 3 And Nathan said to the king, "Go, do all that is in your heart; for the LORD is with you." 4 But that same night the word of the LORD came to Nathan, 5 "Go and tell my servant David, 'Thus says the LORD: Would you build me a house to dwell in? 6 I have not dwelt in a house since the day I brought up the people of Israel from Egypt to this day, but I have been moving about in a tent for my dwelling. 7 In all places where I have moved with all the people of Israel, did I speak a word with any of the judges of Israel, whom I commanded to shepherd my people Israel, saying, "Why have you not built me a house of cedar?"' 8 Now therefore thus you shall say to my servant David, 'Thus says the LORD of hosts, I took you from the pasture, from following the sheep, that you should be prince over my people Israel; 9 and I have been with you wherever you went, and have cut off all your enemies from before you; and I will make for you a great name, like the name of the great ones of the earth. 10 And I will appoint a place for my people Israel, and will plant them, that they may dwell in their own place, and be disturbed no more; and violent men shall afflict them no more, as formerly, 11 from the time that I appointed judges over my people Israel; and I will give you rest from all your enemies. Moreover the LORD declares to you that the LORD will make you a house. 12 When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall come forth from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. 13 He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom for ever. 14 I will be his father, and he shall be my son. When he commits iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men, with the stripes of the sons of men; 15 but I will not take my steadfast love from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I put away from before you. 16 And your house and your kingdom shall be made sure for ever before me; your throne shall be established for ever.'" 17 In accordance with all these words, and in accordance with all this vision, Nathan spoke to David.

2 Samuel 7:1-17

In the above passage David, King of Israel, comes to a realization of how much God has blessed him. The king is living in a palace. Yet, the Ark of the Covenant, God's symbol of his residence upon earth, rests in a tent. So, David proposes to build God a house. David's response to God's blessing is admirable. But, the concept of the God of the universe dwelling in a house made by human hands is somewhat taken to task through the prophet, Nathan. In verses 5-7, Nathan, reveals that God has not chosen not to dwell in a house; nor, has he commanded David to build a house for him. Instead, he points out that he took David, a shepherd (who lives out of doors) and made him a prince over "my people Israel". Instead, it is the Lord God who will make a house out of David (v.11) and give him a future and descendants. One of these descendants will build a "house for my name". (v13) That house and the kingdom of David shall "be made sure for ever before me; your throne will be established forever".

We know that the throne of David did end when King Nebuchadnezzar of the Babylonians destroyed the temple in 587 B.C. The Old Testament books of Ezra and Nehemiah recount the story of the reconstruction of the second temple that began under Cyrus the Great and completed about 515 B.C. That temple was reconstructed under King Herod the Great in 20 B.C. and ultimately that temple was destroyed by the Romans in 70 A.D. The "wailing wall" in Jerusalem today is the only remnant of that construction left standing.

So how does God's promise through the prophet stand today? Jesus, who was born of the House of David, proclaimed that through the kingdom of God, the Messiah would come and save us. Isaiah 33:22 states:

"For the LORD is our judge, the LORD is our ruler, the LORD is our king; he will save us."

It is the reign of God that is part of the Messianic promise that delivers salvation. Isaiah 11: 1-10 talks about a "shoot" and a "branch" that will grow from the stump of Jesse. He will be anointed with the spirit and show that with wisdom, understanding, power and knowledge that his kingdom will mean the triumph of righteousness. In that day the one from Jesse will stand as "a signal to the peoples; the nations shall inquire of him".

Years later the apostle Peter in 1 Peter 2 would proclaim:

Come to him, to that living stone, rejected by men but in God's sight chosen and precious; 5 and like living stones be yourselves built into a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 6 For it stands in scripture: "Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone, a cornerstone chosen and precious, and he who believes in him will not be put to shame." 7 To you therefore who believe, he is precious, but for those who do not believe, "The very stone which the builders rejected has become the head of the corner," 8 and "A stone that will make men stumble, a rock that will make them fall"; for they stumble because they disobey the word, as they were destined to do. 9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God's own people, that you may declare the wonderful deeds of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. 10 Once you were no people but now you are God's people; once you had not received mercy but now you have received mercy.