1 And it came to pass, when the king sat in his house and the LORD had given him rest from all his enemies around him, 2 that the king said unto Nathan, the prophet, See now, I dwell in a house of cedar, but the ark of God dwells within curtains. 3 And Nathan said to the king, Go, do all that is in thy heart, for the LORD is with thee.
4 And it came to pass that night that the word of the LORD came unto Nathan, saying, 5 Go and tell my slave David, Thus hath the LORD said, Shalt thou build me a house for me to dwell in? 6 For I have not dwelt in any house since the time that I brought up the sons of Israel out of Egypt, even to this day, but have walked in a tent and in a tabernacle. 7 In all the places in which I have walked with all the sons of Israel did I speak a word in any of the tribes of Israel, unto whom I commanded to feed my people Israel, saying, Why did ye not build me a house of cedar? 8 Now, therefore, so shalt thou say unto my slave David, Thus hath the LORD of the hosts said, I took thee from the sheepcote, from following the sheep, to be prince over my people, over Israel; 9 and I have been with thee wherever thou didst walk and have cut off all thine enemies out of thy sight and have made thee a great name, like unto the name of the great men that are in the earth. 10 Moreover I will appoint a place for my people Israel and will plant them, that they may dwell in their place and never again be removed; neither shall the sons of iniquity afflict them any more as before, 11 since the time that I commanded judges to be over my people Israel. And I will cause thee to rest from all thy enemies. Likewise, the LORD makes thee to know that he will make thee a house. 12 And when thy days are fulfilled and thou shalt sleep with thy fathers, I will set up thy seed after thee, which shall proceed out of thy bowels, 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. If he commits iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men and with the stripes of the sons of men; 15 but my mercy shall not depart away from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I took away from before thee. 16 And thy house and thy kingdom shall be established for ever before thee; thy throne shall be established for ever. 17 According to all these words and according to all this vision, so did Nathan speak unto David.
18 Then King David went in and sat before the LORD, and he said, O Lord GOD, Who am I and what is my house that thou hast brought me thus far? 19 And this was yet a small thing in thy sight, O Lord GOD; but thou hast spoken also of thy slave’s house for a great while to come and that this shall be the condition of a man, O Lord GOD. 20 And what more can David say unto thee? For thou, Lord GOD, knowest thy slave. 21 For thou hast done all these great things by thy word and according to thine own heart to make thy slave know them. 22 Therefore, thou art great, O LORD God, for there is none like thee, neither is there any God beside thee, according to all that we have heard with our ears. 23 And who in the earth is like thy people, like Israel? A Gentile for the love of whom God went to ransom as a people to himself and to give him a name and to do with you great and terrible things in thy land because of thy people whom thou didst redeem unto thee from Egypt, from the Gentiles and their gods? 24 For thou hast confirmed to thyself thy people Israel to be thy people for ever, and thou, LORD, have become their God. 25 And now, O LORD God, the word that thou hast spoken concerning thy slave and concerning his house, raise it up for ever and do as thou hast said. 26 For thus shall thy name be magnified for ever that it may be said, The LORD of the hosts is God over Israel and that the house of thy slave David be established before thee. 27 For thou, O LORD of the hosts, God of Israel, hast revealed to thy slave, saying, I will build thee a house. Therefore, thy slave has found it in his heart to pray this prayer in thy presence. 28 And now, O Lord GOD, thou art God, and thy words shall be firm, and thou hast spoken this goodness unto thy slave. 29 Therefore, now let it please thee to bless the house of thy slave that it may continue for ever before thee, for thou, O Lord GOD, hast spoken it, and with thy blessing the house of thy slave shall be blessed for ever.