When a friend tells you about something he would like to do for God, the last thing you want to do is pour cold water on all the enthusiasm. I suppose this is especially true if your friend happens to be the king! So as 1 Chronicles 17 begins, it’s understandable that Nathan would respond positively to David’s idea. Why not build a permanent structure for the ark of the covenant? David’s intentions were noble and sincere. “Do all that is in your heart,” Nathan tells him, “for God is with you” (v 1-2). However, later that night Nathan hears a word from God, and David’s plans have to undergo some modification. David would not build the house of the LORD; one of his sons would do that. But God’s plan for him will involve something infinitely greater. Like 2 Samuel 7, this chapter records the single most important event in David’s life: God’s covenant promise to give him an eternal kingdom. Turning his attention from God’s house to David’s own “house,” God announces that David’s family will be the chosen vehicle for bringing salvation to the world. The Messiah will be a descendant of David. The reason God gives for declining David’s offer is that the ark does not need a temple to house it. Had God wanted such a thing, He would have asked for it. And when the time is right, He will choose the man to build it. In every detail, God’s will, not man’s, will be the determining factor (v 4-6). Notice how frequently the pronoun “I” occurs, as God reveals His gracious plan. David wants to do something for God, but what God wants to do for David is infinitely more important. It’s also true of you and me: our whole relationship with God is based on grace, from start to finish. David could only stand in awe as he heard that his promised son would not only build God’s house, but rule forever over God’s eternal kingdom (v 7-15). In 2 Samuel 7, more attention is given to the short-term implications of this covenant as it related to David’s son, King Solomon. Yet as 2 Samuel and 1-2 Kings played out, it became clear that the immediate descendants of David did not fulfill these grand hopes. By contrast, the Chronicler is not focused on all those disobedient kings that led God's people into exile. His mind is set on Him who would one day be sent from above to do God’s will perfectly. In response to God’s promise, two qualities of David’s heart are especially apparent: humility and trust. The promise was beyond his expectations, and he realized that its fulfillment was beyond his own powers. So lifting his voice in praise, David calls on God to do according to all He had spoken (v 16-27). For further meditation: