Tim Maas Retired Quality Assurance Specialist with the U.S. Army

In my opinion, David's discomfort did not arise from living in a palace as such (since he was, after all, God's anointed king of Israel), but instead resulted from David's realization that, while he was dwelling in a palace, the ark of God containing the tablets of the Law that Moses had received from God at Mount Sinai (which symbolized God's presence with Israel) was still being kept in the same tent-like tabernacle that Israel had constructed for it at God's direction (Exodus 25-27) ever since the exodus from Egypt hundreds of years before. David believed that God deserved a dwelling that was much more majestic than his own, and intended to build a temple for God.

In 2 Samuel 7:4-16, God commended David for his intention. However, God reminded David that He had never instructed any of the people who had led, judged, or ruled over Israel since the exodus to build Him such a temple.

Also, God said that David should not be the one to build such a temple, because he had been a man of war who had shed much blood (1 Chronicles 22:8-10). 

Nevertheless, God promised David that He would give David a son who would reign after him whose rule would be marked by peace, and that this son (who turned out to be Solomon) would be the one who would build the temple (as described in 1 Kings 5 through 1 Kings 8).

God went further, and promised David that his descendants would always rule Israel, as long as they obeyed God by observing the Law that God had given to Israel through Moses. And although hundreds of years passed and God also subsequently judged the sin of the kings who came after David, it was, in fact, from David's lineage that both the mother (Mary) and earthly father (Joseph) of God's promised Messiah Jesus were descended, as noted in Luke 3 and Matthew 1.

January 25 2016 • 0 responses • Vote Up • Share • Report