18 Then King David went in and sat before the Lord, and he said:
“Who am I, Sovereign Lord, and what is my family, that you have brought me this far? 19 And as if this were not enough in your sight, Sovereign Lord, you have also spoken about the future of the house of your servant—and this decree, Sovereign Lord, is for a mere human!
20 “What more can David say to you? For you know your servant, Sovereign Lord. 21 For the sake of your word and according to your will, you have done this great thing and made it known to your servant.
22 “How great you are, Sovereign Lord! There is no one like you, and there is no God but you, as we have heard with our own ears. 23 And who is like your people Israel—the one nation on earth that God went out to redeem as a people for himself, and to make a name for himself, and to perform great and awesome wonders by driving out nations and their gods from before your people, whom you redeemed from Egypt? 24 You have established your people Israel as your very own forever, and you, Lord, have become their God.
25 “And now, Lord God, keep forever the promise you have made concerning your servant and his house. Do as you promised, 26 so that your name will be great forever. Then people will say, ‘The Lord Almighty is God over Israel!’ And the house of your servant David will be established in your sight.
27 “Lord Almighty, God of Israel, you have revealed this to your servant, saying, ‘I will build a house for you.’ So your servant has found courage to pray this prayer to you. 28 Sovereign Lord, you are God! Your covenant is trustworthy, and you have promised these good things to your servant. 29 Now be pleased to bless the house of your servant, that it may continue forever in your sight; for you, Sovereign Lord, have spoken, and with your blessing the house of your servant will be blessed forever. (II Samuel 7)
Yesterday we noted that the books of I & II Samuel were at one time one book describing for us the transition from the time of the judges to that of the kings. The first book ends with the death of King Saul, then the second begins with the process of David consolidating the nation over the course of numerous years. When we read with our Starbuck's drive-through mentality these events seem to be quick and short, but it took a long time for David to become King over all Israel. When he finally did, He wanted to build God a temple. He said: "LORD, it's not right that I have a fancy temple while You live in a tent that is hundreds of years old." But God said "no", saying his Son would build the temple, and instead giving David the promise of an everlasting kingdom - that this rule of David was not the end of this journey, but that one of His descendants would be the ultimate king. That is what leads David to this prayer of praise above. David is overwhelmed by the Sovereignty of God, and moved to ask these questions: "Who am I for you to do this for me and to let me know? What more can I say in response than this: Do it Lord! Whatever will bring You glory and accomplish Your purpose: I'm in!" As the book continues on, things go downhill; we see the sinful side of David's life with all it's struggles, yet at the end He is still praising God for these same reasons: "Who am I, that Holy God would even use me or speak to me? What more can I say?" Look inside. Read the scripture above again. Then look around: What do you see that God has done or given that makes you say: "Who am I, Lord?" No matter how great or badly things are right now, I can see your gracious hand in my life!" Take a pic, Show me. Have your kids re-enact the crowning of David, but don't bow before Him; bow in praise of our Sovereign King.
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