2 Samuel 7:2
in 2 Samuel 7he said to Nathan the prophet, “Here I am, living in a house of cedar, while the ark of God remains in a tent.”
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
that the king said unto Nathan the prophet, See now, I dwell in a house of cedar, but the ark of God dwelleth within curtains.
KJV
That the king said unto Nathan the prophet, See now, I dwell in an house of cedar, but the ark of God dwelleth within curtains.
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This verse in 2 Samuel 7
Commentary
7 notes on this verseThat the king said unto Nathan the prophet,.... This is the first time this prophet is made mention of, but often afterwards, yet who he was, and from whence he came, is not known; he appears to be a man of great piety and prudence, as well as endowed with a prophetic spirit, and was very familiar with David, and perhaps dwelt in his palace; being a man on all accounts fit for conversation with princes, to whom David imparted what he had been meditating upon in his heart.
This site's exposition
After the king had settled into his palace
on 2 Samuel 7:1-2
David is settled in a house of cedar while the ark of God still sits within curtains, and the mismatch troubles him. The Lord has just given him rest from every enemy. That contrast, a king housed and a God still camping, drives the whole chapter that follows.
This site's exposition
he said to Nathan the prophet
Nathan the prophet appears here for the first time. Barnes notes that he later confronts David at 2 Samuel 12:1 and wrote a history of David's reign, cited at 1 Chronicles 29:29. Clarke describes the tent of the ark as covered with skins, after Exodus 26:14.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
Yes, but in the multitude of counsellors there is safety. David told him, that by him he might know the mind of God. It was certainly a good work, but it was uncertain whether it was the will of God that David should have the doing of it.
The Nineteenth Century3 voices
I dwell in a house of cedar - That is, a house whose principal beams, ceiling, and wainscot, were cedar. Dwelleth within curtains - Having no other residence but the tabernacle, which was a place covered with the skins of beasts, Exo 26:14.
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
It was magnificent for that age, though made wholly of wood: houses in warm countries not being required to possess the solidity and thickness of walls which are requisite for dwellings in regions exposed to rain and cold. Cedar was the rarest and most valuable timber.
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
Nathan the prophet - Here first mentioned, but playing an important part afterward (e. g. 2Sa 12:1; 1Ki 1:10; 1Ch 29:29; 2Ch 9:29). From the two last passages it appears that he wrote the history of David’s reign, and a part at least of Solomon’s. His distinctive title is the prophet, that of Gad the seer (compare 1Sa 9:9). He was probably nuch younger than David. In 2Sa 7:3, he spoke his own private opinion; in 2Sa 7:4, this was corrected by the word of the Lord.
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
On the verses either side of this one
And Hashem granted him rest. [Dovid] said [The condition] has been fulfilled, "And He has granted you peace from all your enemies etc." (Devarim:10). What is written after [that verse]? "Let it be that the place that [Hashem, your Elokim] chooses etc.
This section is reception history: how the passage was read and kept in the Jewish tradition. Where a reading parts from an essential of the Christian faith, the section says so at that point.
Texts and citation data: Sefaria; each excerpt follows its version’s licence. 4 further sources are cited on this chapter that carry no English text this site may quote or only restate the verse.
The words behind it
16 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיֹּ֤אמֶר | vaiyomer | and he said | H559 → | 5305 times |
| הַמֶּ֙לֶךְ֙ | hamelekh | the king | H4428 → | 2525 times |
| אֶל־ | ʾel- | to | H413 → | 5510 times |
| נָתָ֣ן | natan | Nathan | H5416 → | 41 times |
| הַנָּבִ֔יא | hanavi' | the prophet | H5030 → | 314 times |
| רְאֵ֣ה | reeh | see | H7200 → | 1300 times |
| נָ֔א | na' | please | H4994 → | 404 times |
| אָנֹכִ֥י | ʾanokhi | I | H595 → | 359 times |
| יוֹשֵׁ֖ב | yoshev | [am] dwelling | H3427 → | 1079 times |
| בְּבֵ֣ית | beveit | in a house of | H1004 → | 2046 times |
| אֲרָזִ֑ים | ʾarazim | cedar<s> | H730 → | 73 times |
| וַֽאֲרוֹן֙ | vaaron | and [the] ark of | H727 → | 202 times |
| הָֽאֱלֹהִ֔ים | haelohim | <the> God | H430 → | 2601 times |
| יֹשֵׁ֖ב | yoshev | [is] dwelling | H3427 → | 1079 times |
| בְּת֥וֹךְ | betokh | in [the] midst of | H8432 → | 418 times |
| הַיְרִיעָֽה׃ | hayriah | the tent curtain | H3407 → |
וַיֹּ֤אמֶרand he said
vaiyomerH559 →5305 times
הַמֶּ֙לֶךְ֙the king
hamelekhH4428 →2525 times
אֶל־to
ʾel-H413 →5510 times
נָתָ֣ןNathan
natanH5416 →41 times
הַנָּבִ֔יאthe prophet
hanavi'H5030 →314 times
רְאֵ֣הsee
reehH7200 →1300 times
נָ֔אplease
na'H4994 →404 times
אָנֹכִ֥יI
ʾanokhiH595 →359 times
יוֹשֵׁ֖ב[am] dwelling
yoshevH3427 →1079 times
בְּבֵ֣יתin a house of
beveitH1004 →2046 times
אֲרָזִ֑יםcedar<s>
ʾarazimH730 →73 times
וַֽאֲרוֹן֙and [the] ark of
vaaronH727 →202 times
הָֽאֱלֹהִ֔ים<the> God
haelohimH430 →2601 times
יֹשֵׁ֖ב[is] dwelling
yoshevH3427 →1079 times
בְּת֥וֹךְin [the] midst of
betokhH8432 →418 times
הַיְרִיעָֽה׃the tent curtain
hayriahH3407 →
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
John 2:17His disciples remembered that it is written: “Zeal for Your house will consume Me.”
it leads to
- Psalms 69:9
because zeal for Your house has consumed me, and the insults of those who insult You have fallen on me.
- Psalms 119:139
My zeal has consumed me because my foes forget Your words.
- Psalms 69:9
Through
Acts 7:46who found favor in the sight of God and asked to provide a dwelling place for the God of Jacob.
it leads to
- Psalms 132:1–5
O LORD, remember on behalf of David all the hardships he endured,
- Acts 13:22
After removing Saul, He raised up David as their king and testified about him: ‘I have found David son of Jesse a man after My own heart; he will carry out My will in…
- Psalms 132:1–5
Through
2 Samuel 5:11Now Hiram king of Tyre sent envoys to David, along with cedar logs, carpenters, and stonemasons, and they built a palace for David.
it leads to
- 1 Chronicles 14:1
Now Hiram king of Tyre sent envoys to David, along with cedar logs, stonemasons, and carpenters, to build a palace for him.
- 1 Kings 5:1–2
Now when Hiram king of Tyre heard that Solomon had been anointed king in his father’s place, he sent envoys to Solomon; for Hiram had always been a friend of David.
- 1 Chronicles 14:1
Through
2 Samuel 12:1Then the LORD sent Nathan to David, and when he arrived, he said, “There were two men in a certain city, one rich and the other poor.
it leads to
- 1 Kings 20:35–41
Meanwhile, by the word of the LORD, one of the sons of the prophets said to his companion, “Strike me, please!” But the man refused to strike him.
- Psalms 51:1–19
Have mercy on me, O God, according to Your loving devotion; according to Your great compassion, blot out my transgressions.
- 1 Kings 20:35–41
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies10
On this verse
About 2 Samuel
Who and where
1 name in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); Keil and Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Books of Samuel and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.