1 ARST After David began to live in his palace, he said to the prophet Nathan,“It does not seem right that I am living in a palace made of cedar wood, but the sacred chest symbolizing the agreement between Yahweh and the people of Israel stays inside a tent!” BSB BSB: After David had settled into his palace, he said to Nathan the prophet, “Here I am, living in a house of cedar, while the ark of the covenant of the LORD is under a tent.”
2 ARST Nathan replied to David,“Everything you are thinking about doing, do it, because God is with you.” BSB BSB: And Nathan replied to David, “Do all that is in your heart, for God is with you.”
3 ARST But that night God spoke to Nathan. He said, BSB BSB: But that night the word of God came to Nathan, saying,
4 ARST “Go and tell my servant David this is what I, Yahweh, am saying to him:‘You will not build a temple for me to live in, BSB BSB: “Go and tell My servant David that this is what the LORD says: You are not the one to build Me a house in which to dwell.
5 ARST since I have not lived in any building from the day that I brought the people of Israel up out of Egypt until now. Rather, I have lived in my sacred tent, moving from one place to another when the Israelites moved around. BSB BSB: For I have not dwelt in a house from the day I brought Israel up out of Egypt until this day, but I have moved from tent to tent and dwelling to dwelling.
6 ARST Wherever I went with all the Israelites as they traveled, I never said to any of their leaders whom I appointed to lead them,“Why have you not built me a temple made of cedar wood?” BSB BSB: In all My journeys with all the Israelites, have I ever asked any of the leaders I appointed to shepherd My people, ‘Why haven’t you built Me a house of cedar?’
7 ARST Therefore, this is what you should say to my servant David:“Yahweh, the commander of the angel armies, says,‘I took you from a pasture where you were taking care of sheep, and I appointed you to be the ruler of Israel, my people. BSB BSB: Now then, you are to tell My servant David that this is what the LORD of Hosts says: I took you from the pasture, from following the flock, to be the ruler over My people Israel.
8 ARST I have been with you wherever you have gone, and I have removed all your enemies who opposed you. Now, I will cause you to become very famous, as well known as the names of the greatest men who have ever lived on the earth. BSB BSB: I have been with you wherever you have gone, and I have cut off all your enemies from before you. Now I will make for you a name like that of the greatest in the land.
9 ARST Formerly, during the time that I appointed leaders for my Israelite people, many violent groups oppressed them. But this will not happen anymore. I have chosen a place where my Israelite people can live peacefully and no one will disturb them anymore. I will give them rest from being attacked by their enemies. And I will defeat all your enemies. I declare to you that I, Yahweh, will enable your descendants to rule after you die. BSB BSB: And I will provide a place for My people Israel and will plant them so that they may dwell in a place of their own and be disturbed no more. No longer will the sons of wickedness oppress them as they did at the beginning
11 ARST When your life ends and you die and go to be with your ancestors who have died, I will appoint one of your descendants, one of your sons, to become king, and I will enable his kingdom to be strong. BSB BSB: And when your days are fulfilled and you go to be with your fathers, I will raise up your descendant after you, one of your own sons, and I will establish his kingdom.
12 ARST He is the one who will lead the building of a temple for me. And I will make his ruling dynasty last forever. BSB BSB: He will build a house for Me, and I will establish his throne forever.
13 ARST I will be like a father to him, and he will be like a son to me. I stopped giving faithful love to Saul, the one who was the king before you became king, but I will never stop giving faithful love to your son. BSB BSB: I will be his Father, and he will be My son. And I will never remove My loving devotion from him as I removed it from your predecessor.
14 ARST I will cause him and his descendants to rule over my people and my kingdom forever. His ruling dynasty will last forever.’” BSB BSB: But I will set him over My house and My kingdom forever, and his throne will be established forever.”
15 ARST So Nathan reported to David everything that Yahweh had revealed to him. BSB BSB: So Nathan relayed to David all the words of this entire revelation.
16 ARST Then King David went into the tent housing the sacred chest, sat in the presence of Yahweh, and prayed this prayer:“Yahweh my God, I am certainly not worthy for you to have done of all these things for me, and my family is not worthy, either. BSB BSB: Then King David went in, sat before the LORD, and said, “Who am I, O LORD God, and what is my house, that You have brought me this far?
17 ARST And O God, now, in addition to everything else, you have spoken about what will happen to my descendants in the future for many generations. Yahweh my God, you have acted toward me as though I was the most important man on the earth! BSB BSB: And as if this was a small thing in Your eyes, O God, You have spoken about the future of the house of Your servant and have regarded me as a man of great distinction, O LORD God.
18 ARST I, David, cannot say anything more to you in exchange for you honoring me. Yahweh, you know what kind of person I am. BSB BSB: What more can David say to You for honoring Your servant? For You know Your servant,
19 ARST Yahweh, you have done these great things for my sake, according to the way you wanted, and in order to reveal all of these great things. BSB BSB: O LORD. For the sake of Your servant and according to Your own heart, You have accomplished this great thing and made known all these great promises.
20 ARST Yahweh, there is no one like you. You are the only true God. This is what we have always heard. BSB BSB: O LORD, there is none like You, and there is no God but You, according to everything we have heard with our own ears.
21 ARST And there is no nation like Israel because Israel is the only nation on the earth whose people you went out to rescue to make them your people, to perform miracles and show how great and awesome you are, and to expel the people of other people groups in Canaan who were before your people, the Israelites, whom you rescued from being slaves in Egypt. BSB BSB: And who is like Your people Israel—the one nation on earth whom God went out to redeem as a people for Himself? You made a name for Yourself through great and awesome wonders by driving out nations from before Your people, whom You redeemed from Egypt.
22 ARST You caused us your Israelite people to belong to you as your people forever, and you, Yahweh, became our God! BSB BSB: For You have made Your people Israel Your very own forever, and You, O LORD, have become their God.
23 ARST And now Yahweh, I pray that you will cause the things that you have promised about me and my descendants to be fulfilled forever, and do the things that you have said that you would do. BSB BSB: And now, O LORD, let the word You have spoken concerning Your servant and his house be established forever. Do as You have promised,
24 ARST I pray that those things will happen so people will celebrate your excellent reputation forever. People will exclaim,‘Yahweh, commander of the angel armies, is the God of Israel. He is the God who rules Israel!’ You will cause my descendants to be the king of the people you rule, BSB BSB: so that Your name will be established and magnified forever when it is said, ‘The LORD of Hosts, the God of Israel, is God over Israel.’ And may the house of Your servant David be established before You.
25 ARST because you, my God, have revealed to me that you will cause me to have a ruling dynasty. So I am brave enough to pray like this to you. BSB BSB: For You, my God, have revealed to Your servant that You will build a house for him. Therefore Your servant has found the courage to pray before You.
26 ARST Now, Yahweh, you are God! You have promised to do these good things for me. BSB BSB: And now, O LORD, You are God! And You have promised this goodness to Your servant.
27 ARST And now you have promised to bless my descendants, in order that they will forever be king over the people you rule. Indeed, you, Yahweh, have given your blessing, and you will keep blessing them forever.” BSB BSB: So now You have been pleased to bless the house of Your servant, that it may continue forever before You. For You, O LORD, have blessed it, and it will be blessed forever.”
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