How to use the different types of prayer in one prayer (2 Sam 7.19–29)
Who am I, O Lord GOD, and what is my house, that you have brought me thus far? And 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. May this be instruction for the people, O Lord GOD! And what more can David say to you? For you know your servant, O Lord GOD! Because of your promise, and according to your own heart, you have wrought all this greatness so that your servant may know it. Therefore you are great, O LORD God; for there is no one like you, and there is no God besides you, according to all that we have heard with our ears. Who is like your people, like Israel? Is there another nation on earth whose God went to redeem it as a people, and to make a name for himself, doing great and awesome things for them, by driving out before his people nations and their gods? And you established your people Israel for yourself to be your people forever; and you, O LORD, became their God.
And now, O LORD God, as for the word that you have spoken concerning your servant and concerning his house, confirm it forever; do as you have promised. Thus your name will be magnified forever in the saying, ‘The LORD of hosts is God over Israel;’ and the house of your servant David will be established before you. For 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.
And now, O Lord GOD, you are God, and your words are true, and you have promised this good thing to your servant; now 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.
This prayer is one of the better examples of the purpose of this study. It is an excellent model for enriching our prayers because it demonstrates the interconnectedness of prayer types. That can lead us to turn a prayer of thanksgiving into a prayer of praise, turning the blessings around to shine in both directions. Our prayers become more organic, interconnected, and rich. This prayer is worth a detailed examination.
Background
After the defeat of the Philistines and the capture of Jerusalem, David has the ark of the covenant brought to the new capital city. It is a time of great rejoicing for Israel. (David’s wife even criticizes him for being a bit too celebratory in public.)
Chapter 7 begins with David telling the prophet Nathan that he wants to build a temple for the Ark of the Covenant. He notes that he, the king, lives in a beautiful house made of cedar, but God’s Ark is housed in a tent. Nathan tells the king he should do as he wished.
But that night, God sends a message to Nathan in a dream. He instructs him to tell David that he is not to build Him a house—instead, God will make a great house of David.
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