Year One, September 19

Bless the House of Your Servant1

2 Samuel 7:18-29

18Then King David went in and sat before the LORD (After Nathan told David that his “throne shall be established forever,” the king was overwhelmed with gratitude. He entered the Lord’s tabernacle with great respect, sat down, and worshiped.) and said, “Who am I, O Lord GOD, and what is my house, that you have brought me thus far? (This should be the normal feeling of all the Lord’s kings and priests.2 They wonder why they should be chosen, and they adore the sovereign grace3 that elected them.) 19And yet this was a small thing in your eyes, O Lord GOD. You have spoken also of your servant’s house for a great while to come, and this is instruction for mankind, O Lord GOD!”

As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are God’s ways higher than our ways.4 The greatest human attempts at compassion cannot begin to compare with divine blessings.

20“And what more can David say to you? For you know your servant, O Lord GOD!”

God knows our hearts even when we are so full of emotion we cannot find words to express ourselves. He hears our songs and understands our sighs.

21“Because of your promise, and according to your own heart, you have brought about all this greatness, to make your servant know it.”

David does not claim any of the credit for his greatness. He gives all the credit to God and the richness of his grace. He was a free grace man. He placed the crown on the right head and gave the glory to God alone.

22“Therefore you are great, O LORD God. For there is none like you, and there is no God besides you, according to all that we  have heard with our ears. (There is none like the Lord, and there are no people like his people. Faith is about things that are unique, therefore our gratefulness should motivate us to remarkable service for our Lord. If we receive more than others, we must do more than others.) 23And who is like your people Israel, the one nation on earth whom God went to redeem to be his people, making himself a name and doing for them great and awesome things by driving out before your people, whom you redeemed for yourself from Egypt, a nation and its gods? 24And you established for yourself your people Israel to be your people forever. And you, O LORD, became their God.”

This is delightful to think about. God’s choice of his people is not temporary, but eternal. He never changes in his relationship to his people.

25“And now, O LORD God, confirm forever the word that you have spoken concerning your servant and concerning his house, and do as you have spoken. (These last words explain what true prayer should be: “Do as you have spoken.” The only solid foothold for faith is God’s word. When a sinner comes before God, they must have nothing else to depend on except, “do as you have spoken.” If we cannot plead a promise, then we cannot ask in confidence. We know that God will be true to his word and this gives us boldness before the throne of grace.) 26And your name will be magnified forever, saying, ‘The LORD of hosts is God over Israel,’ and the house of your servant David will be established before you. 27For you, O LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, have made this revelation to your servant, saying, ‘I will build you a  house.’ Therefore your servant has found courage to pray this prayer to you.”

We are on solid ground when our hearts pray for that which we find promised in God’s word. Has the Lord said it? Then let us ask for it!

28“And now, O Lord GOD, you are God, and your words are true, and you have promised this good thing to your servant. 29Now therefore may it please you to bless the house of your servant, so that it may continue forever before you. For you, O Lord GOD, have spoken, and with your blessing shall the house of your servant be blessed forever.”

Pleading the promises is the sinew and muscle of prayer. When we have a promissory note from someone, we present it to them and ask for payment. We should bring the promises of Holy Scripture before the Lord and request him to make good on his word. Let us continually cry to God, “Do as you have spoken.”

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¹ 2 Samuel 7:29

² A reference to all Christians. “You are a chosen race, a royal priesthood.” (1 Peter 29)

³ sovereign grace - A term indicating that salvation is entirely the result of God’s mercy and grace. A person is incapable of contributing anything to their own salvation.

⁴ See Isaiah 55:9