And now, O Lord God; Hebrew, Jehovah God. Similarly, in 2 Samuel 7:26 the Hebrew is "Let thy Name be magnified forever, saying, Jehovah Sabaoth is God over Israel." The special relation of Jehovah to Israel is throughout kept constantly in view; for Jehovah is the Name of Deity in covenant with his people, and it is in the confirmation and permanence of the covenant that David sees the true value of the lasting continuance of his own house. read more
( 1 Chronicles 17:23-27 ). ( ZION .) Promise and prayer. "Do as thou hast said" ( 2 Samuel 7:25 ). 1 . God has spoken to men. "His greatness is unsearchable" ( 2 Samuel 7:22 ; Psalms 145:3 ); nevertheless, he has surely spoken to them in his Word ( 2 Samuel 7:4 ; Hebrews 1:1 ). 2 . He has spoken in the way of promise ( 2 Samuel 7:28 ). A large portion of Divine revelation consists of promises, "exceeding great and precious" ( 2 Peter 1:4 ), pertaining to the... read more
God's Name magnified in his people. Any name of God is magnified when it is made to appear great in the eyes of his intelligent creatures, and they esteem and declare it great. This is done when he himself adds to the significance of the name by yet more glorious works or revelations; and when they come to larger conceptions of its significance, and consequently use the name with greater fulness of meaning. Thus as "the sons of God" watched the various stages of creation, the name of... read more
Thou hast revealed to thy servant; Hebrew, thou hast uncovered the ear of thy servant. (see note on 1 Samuel 9:15 ). Hath thy servant found in his heart; Hebrew, hath found his heart. The word "heart" has a wide meaning in Hebrew, embracing both our intellectual and our moral powers. Here it simply means "courage," as in, 1 Samuel 17:32 . The Revised Version puts this in the margin: "Therefore hath thy servant been bold to pray this prayer." read more
( ZION .) A prayer found in the heart. When a prayer such as David's is found in the heart, it is: 1 . Found in the right place. If only on the tongue it is not really found at all Its proper abode is the heart; yet it is not always found there, even when renewed, as the heart must be for its dwelling. 2 . Possessed of priceless worth; in contrast with other things that are often found in the heart ( Matthew 15:19 ). A rare flower among weeds, a fountain in the desert, a... read more
Prayer induced and encouraged by promise. David gives the promise of God to him as a reason for praying that his house might be established forever. He intimates that otherwise he would not have found it in his heart to do so. In like manner, the promises of God to Christians incite and encourage them to pray for bestowments that they would not have otherwise ventured to ask for. I. THE GREATNESS OF GOD 'S PROMISES . They set before us blessings so precious, vast, and... read more
And now, O Lord God, thou art that God. The pronoun rendered "that" is really a personal pronoun used as the copula, which the Authorized Version inserts in italics. As this grammatical usage, which is common to all the Semitic languages, was not understood at the time when our version was made, we find all the parts of the verb "to be" constantly printed in italics, as though absent, while really they are expressed in the Oriental way. This has the advantage, however, of reminding the... read more
Truth of God's words. "Thou art God, and thy words are truth" (Revised version). David may be thinking only of the promises of God, and expressing his own confidence in their fulfilment to himself and his family. But his assertion applies to all the words of God, declarations and threatenings as well as promises; and, as his language is general, his thought may be general also; and his faith in the truth of all the words of God might then be regarded as the ground of his faith in the... read more
Let it please thee to bless; or, begin and bless. Literally, the verb signifies to make up the mind and set about the doing of the thing purposed. Thus David prays that the blessing may now at once begin to take effect. It is often rendered "please" in our version, because the verb is one used only of a determination resolved upon of the free will of the purposer. Its force is well seen in Job 6:9 , where what Job prays for is that God would deliberate no longer, but decide the matter... read more
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The Pulpit Commentary - 2 Samuel 7:25
God's promises and our prayers. "Do as thou hast said." The words are used by David of the promises given to him respecting himself and his house. They are applicable to all the promises. I. THEY FURNISH A GUIDE TO OUR PRAYERS . What God has said shows us what we should ask. His promises indicate: 1 . The kind of blessings which we should most earnestly seek. The promises of God—those given us in Christ especially—assure us of temporal good so far as is needful; but... read more