I Chronicles 17

¹Now when David was dwelling in his house, he said to Nathan the prophet: Behold I dwell in a house of cedar: and the ark of the covenant of the Lord is under skins.

²And Nathan said to David: Do all that is in thy heart: for God is with thee.

³Now that night the word of God came to Nathan, saying:

⁴Go, and speak to David my servant: Thus saith the Lord: Thou shalt not build me a house to dwell in.

⁵For I have not remained in a house from the time that I brought up Israel, to this day: but I have been always changing places in a tabernacle, and in a tent,

⁶Abiding with all Israel. Did I ever speak to any one, of all the judges of Israel whom I charged to feed my people, saying: Why have you not built me a house of cedar?

⁷Now therefore thus shalt thou say to my servant David: Thus saith the Lord of hosts: I took thee from the pastures, from following the flock, that thou shouldst be ruler of my people Israel.

⁸And I have been with thee whithersoever thou hast gone: and have slain all thy enemies before thee, and have made thee a name like that of one of the great ones that are renowned in the earth.

⁹And I have given a place my people Israel: they shall be planted, and shall dwell therein, and shall be moved no more, neither shall the children of iniquity waste them, as at the beginning,

¹⁰Since the days that I gave judges to my people Israel, and have humbled all thy enemies. And I declare to thee, that the Lord will build thee a house.

¹¹And when thou shalt have ended thy days to go to thy fathers, I will raise up thy seed after thee, which shall be of thy sons: and I will establish his kingdom.

¹²He shall build me a house, and I will establish his throne for ever.

¹³I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son: and I will not take my mercy away from him, as I took it from him that was before thee.

¹⁴But I will settle him in my house, and in my kingdom for ever: and his throne shall be most firm for ever.

¹⁵According to all these words, and according to all this vision, so did Nathan speak to David.

¹⁶And king David came and sat before the Lord, and said: Who am I, O Lord God, and what is my house, that thou shouldst give such things to me?

¹⁷But even this hath seemed little in thy sight, and therefore thou hast also spoken concerning the house of thy servant for the time to come: and hast made me remarkable above all men, O Lord God.

¹⁸What can David add more, seeing thou hast thus glorified thy servant, and known him?

¹⁹O Lord, for thy servant's sake, according to thy own heart, thou hast shewn all this magnificence, and wouldst have all the great things to be known.

²⁰O Lord there is none like thee: and here is no other God beside thee, of all whom we have heard of with our ears.

²¹For what other nation is there upon earth like thy people Israel, whom God went to deliver, and make a people for himself, and by his greatness and terrors cast out nations before their face whom he had delivered out of Egypt?

²²And thou hast made thy people Israel to be thy own people for ever, and thou, O Lord, art become their God.

²³Now therefore, O Lord, let the word which thou hast spoken to thy servant, and concerning his house, be established for ever, and do as thou hast said.

²⁴And let thy name remain and be magnified for ever: and let it be said: The Lord of hosts is God of Israel, and the house of David his servant remaineth before him.

²⁵For thou, O Lord my God, hast revealed to the ear of thy servant, that thou wilt build him a house: and therefore thy servant hath found confidence to pray before thee.

²⁶And now O Lord, thou art God: and thou hast promised to thy servant such great benefits.

²⁷And thou hast begun to bless the house of thy servant, that it may be always before thee: for seeing thou blessest it, O Lord, it shall be blessed for ever.

I Chronicles 17

¹Now it came to pass, as David sat in his house, that David said to Nathan the prophet, Lo, I dwell in an house of cedars, but the ark of the covenant of the Lord remaineth under curtains.

²Then Nathan said unto David, Do all that is in thine heart; for God is with thee.

³And it came to pass the same night, that the word of God came to Nathan, saying,

⁴Go and tell David my servant, Thus saith the Lord, Thou shalt not build me an house to dwell in:

⁵For I have not dwelt in an 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.

⁶Wheresoever I have walked with all Israel, spake I a word to any of the judges of Israel, whom I commanded to feed my people, saying, Why have ye not built me an house of cedars?

⁷Now therefore thus shalt thou say unto my servant David, Thus saith the Lord of hosts, I took thee from the sheepcote, even from following the sheep, that thou shouldest be ruler over my people Israel:

⁸And I have been with thee whithersoever thou hast walked, and have cut off all thine enemies from before thee, and have made thee a name like the name of the great men that are in the earth.

⁹Also I will ordain a place for my people Israel, and will plant them, and they shall dwell in their place, and shall be moved no more; neither shall the children of wickedness waste them any more, as at the beginning,

¹⁰And since the time that I commanded judges to be over my people Israel. Moreover I will subdue all thine enemies. Furthermore I tell thee that the Lord will build thee an house.

¹¹And it shall come to pass, when thy days be expired that thou must go to be with thy fathers, that I will raise up thy seed after thee, which shall be of thy sons; and I will establish his kingdom.

¹²He shall build me an house, and I will stablish his throne for ever.

¹³I will be his father, and he shall be my son: and I will not take my mercy away from him, as I took it from him that was before thee:

¹⁴But I will settle him in mine house and in my kingdom for ever: and his throne shall be established for evermore.

¹⁵According to all these words, and according to all this vision, so did Nathan speak unto David.

¹⁶And David the king came and sat before the Lord, and said, Who am I, O Lord God, and what is mine house, that thou hast brought me hitherto?

¹⁷And yet this was a small thing in thine eyes, O God; for thou hast also spoken of thy servant’s house for a great while to come, and hast regarded me according to the estate of a man of high degree, O Lord God.

¹⁸What can David speak more to thee for the honour of thy servant? for thou knowest thy servant.

¹⁹O Lord, for thy servant’s sake, and according to thine own heart, hast thou done all this greatness, in making known all these great things.

²⁰O Lord, there is none like thee, neither is there any God beside thee, according to all that we have heard with our ears.

²¹And what one nation in the earth is like thy people Israel, whom God went to redeem to be his own people, to make thee a name of greatness and terribleness, by driving out nations from before thy people, whom thou hast redeemed out of Egypt?

²²For thy people Israel didst thou make thine own people for ever; and thou, Lord, becamest their God.

²³Therefore now, Lord, let the thing that thou hast spoken concerning thy servant and concerning his house be established for ever, and do as thou hast said.

²⁴Let it even be established, that thy name may be magnified for ever, saying, The Lord of hosts is the God of Israel, even a God to Israel: and let the house of David thy servant be established before thee.

²⁵For thou, O my God, hast told thy servant that thou wilt build him an house: therefore thy servant hath found in his heart to pray before thee.

²⁶And now, Lord, thou art God, and hast promised this goodness unto thy servant:

²⁷Now therefore let it please thee to bless the house of thy servant, that it may be before thee for ever: for thou blessest, O Lord, and it shall be blessed for ever.