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.

I Chronicles 17

¹Now when David was living in his house, he said to Nathan the prophet, See, I am living in a house of cedar-wood, but the ark of the Lord's agreement is under the curtains of a tent.

²And Nathan said to David, Do whatever is in your heart, for God is with you.

³But that same night, the word of God came to Nathan, saying,

⁴Go and say to David my servant, The Lord says, You are not to make me a house for my living-place:

⁵For from the day when I took Israel up, till this day, I have had no house, but have gone from tent to tent, and from living-place to living-place.

⁶In all the places where I have gone with all Israel, did I ever say to any of the judges of Israel, whom I made the keepers of my people, Why have you not made for me a house of cedar?

⁷So now, say to my servant David, The Lord of armies says, I took you from the fields, from keeping sheep, so that you might be a ruler over my people Israel;

⁸And I have been with you wherever you went, cutting off before you all those who were against you; and I will make your name like the name of the greatest ones of the earth.

⁹And I will make a resting-place for my people Israel, planting them there, so that they may be in the place which is theirs and never again be moved; and never again will they be made waste by evil men, as they were at first,

¹⁰From the time when I put judges over my people Israel; and I will overcome all those who are against you; and I will make you great and the head of a line of kings.

¹¹And when the time comes for you to go to your fathers, I will put in your place your seed after you, one of your sons, and I will make his kingdom strong.

¹²He will be the builder of my house, and I will make the seat of his authority certain for ever.

¹³I will be to him a father and he will be to me a son; and I will not take my mercy away from him as I took it from him who was before you;

¹⁴But I will make his place in my house and in my kingdom certain for ever; and the seat of his authority will never be overturned.

¹⁵So Nathan gave David an account of all these words and this vision.

¹⁶Then David the king went in and took his seat before the Lord, and said, Who am I, O Lord God, and what is my family, that you have been my guide till now?

¹⁷And this was only a small thing to you, O God; but your words have even been about the far-off future of your servant's family, looking on me as on one of high position, O Lord God.

¹⁸What more may David say to you? for you have knowledge of your servant.

¹⁹O Lord, because of your servant, and from your heart, you have done all these great things and let them be seen.

²⁰O Lord, there is no one like you, and no other God but you, as is clear from everything which has come to our ears.

²¹And what other nation in the earth, like your people Israel, did a god go out to take for himself, to be his people, making his name great and to be feared, driving out the nations from before your people whom you made free and took out of Egypt?

²²For your people Israel you made yours for ever; and you, Lord, became their God.

²³And now, Lord, let your words about your servant and about his family be made certain for ever, and do as you have said.

²⁴So let your words be made certain and your name be made great, when men say, The Lord of armies is the God of Israel; and when the family of David your servant is made strong before you.

²⁵For you, O my God, have let your servant see that you will make him head of a line of kings; and so it has come into your servant's heart to make his prayer to you.

²⁶And now, O Lord, you are God, and you have said you will give this good thing to your servant:

²⁷And now you have been pleased to give your blessing to the family of your servant, so that it may go on for ever before you; you, O Lord, have given your blessing, and a blessing will be on it for ever.