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Though David was not to build the house of the Lord, God gives him "great and precious promises" with respect to his posterity and to the future glory of his people Israel. We see here that there is one thing nearer to the heart of our God than an outward building, however grand it may be. "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." The Lord loves to be identified with his children in all their circumstances, however lowly those circumstances may be. "I dwell with the humble and contrite heart." This is the joy of the Lord's heart, and it comes infinitely before a grand house or a magnificent palace. Mark further the prophetical character of God's message (see ver. 9). 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." Israel has been "moved" and "wasted" since this promise was made, and is being "moved" and "wasted" at the present moment. It is clear, therefore, that this is an unfulfilled prophecy of blessing yet in store for wasted and scattered Israel. That time is at hand. When "the Lord shall set his hand the second time [it was done the first time by Cyrus the Persian] to recover the remnant of his people, which shall be left, from Assyria, and from Egypt, and from Pathros, and from Cush, and from Elam, and from Shinar, and from Hamath, and from the islands of the sea. And he shall set up an ensign for the nations, and shall assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather together the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth (Isaiah 11:11, 12). Mark another truth: And it shall come to pass, when thy days be expired that thou must go to be with thy fathers. Three thoughts are suggested by this passage.

1. Man lives by days, not by years. As thy days, so shall thy strength be;" "Lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the days. We speak of years and look forward to them. God would teach us that we have only days to count on, and should therefore use each one for him.

2. Thou must go." David was wanted in another world. There are places to fill there. Just as the stones that were to form the temple on Mount Zion were hewn, shaped, and polished in Lebanon, and were sent for just as they were wanted, so is it with the departure of every true child of God. What may be the nature of the employments we cannot tell; but of each one who is taken we may hear the Lord's voice saying of him to the weeping ones left behind, "He must go for he is wanted there.

3. "Thou must go to be with thy fathers. It is a family gathering. In the Old Testament how frequently is this word used l It is not death. It is - gone to join the family gathering." "Dead" is the Bible word for those out of Christ. "Asleep" is the word for God's children. What a precious word! It is a striking contrast to our word "dead" which is always on the lips. It is like another word we use. A manufacturer looks upon his men and women in his employ and regards them as goods, and calls them "hands" - "so many hands." The Bible word is "souls" - "the souls he had gotten in Haran." How sadly men have departed from the spirit of patriarchal days! Vers. 12-14 are manifestly a reference to the Messiah, of whom Solomon was a type, and to the Messianic times of rest yet to come, of which his reign was a shadow. It is clear from David's prayer (ver. 17) that he so understood them, especially when he speaks of God having regarded him "according to the estate of a man of high degree." - W.

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

WEB: It happened the same night, that the word of God came to Nathan, saying,