1 Chronicles 17:17-27

17:17 And you did not stop there, O God! You have also spoken about the future of your servant’s family.¹ You have revealed to me what men long to know,² O Lord God. 17:18 What more can David say³ to you? You have honored your servant; you have given your servant special recognition.⁴ 17:19 O Lord, for the sake of your servant and according to your will,⁵ you have done this great thing in order to reveal your greatness.⁶ 17:20 O Lord, there is none like you; there is no God besides you! What we heard is true!⁷ 17:21 And who is like your people, Israel, a unique nation⁸ in the earth? Their God⁹ went to claim¹⁰ a nation for himself! You made a name for yourself by doing great and awesome deeds¹¹ when you drove out¹² nations before your people whom you had delivered from the Egyptian empire and its gods.¹³ 17:22 You made Israel your very own nation for all time.¹⁴ You, O Lord, became their God. 17:23 So now, O Lord, may the promise you made about your servant and his family become a permanent reality!¹⁵ Do as you promised,¹⁶ 17:24 so¹⁷ it may become a reality¹⁸ and you may gain lasting fame,¹⁹ as people say,²⁰ ‘The Lord who commands armies is the God of Israel.’²¹ David’s dynasty²² will be established before you, 17:25 for you, my God, have revealed to your servant that you will build a dynasty²³ for him. That is why your servant has had the courage to pray to you.²⁴ 17:26 Now, O Lord, you are the true God;²⁵ you have made this good promise to your servant.²⁶ 17:27 Now you are willing to bless your servant’s dynasty²⁷ so that it may stand permanently before you, for you, O Lord, have blessed it and it will be blessed from now on into the future.”²⁸

¹tn Heb “and this was small in your eyes, O God, so you spoke concerning the house of your servant for a distance.”

²tn The translation “You have revealed to me what men long to know” is very tentative; the meaning of the Hebrew text is unclear. The text appears to read literally, “and you see me like the searching of man, that which is upward,” which is nonsensical. The translation above assumes the following: (1) The Qal verb translated “you see me” is repointed as a Hiphil, “you showed me,” (2) תּוֹר (tor) is understood in the sense of “searching, exploring,” and (3) הַמַּעֲלָה (hamma’alah) is taken in a temporal sense of “that which lies beyond.” Thus one could translate, “you have shown me what men search for, what lies beyond.”

³tn The word “say” is supplied in the translation for clarification.

⁴tn Heb “for honoring your servant, and you, your servant, know.”

⁵tn Heb “heart.”

⁶tn Heb “to make known all the great deeds.”

⁷tn The Hebrew text reads literally, “in all which we heard with our ears,” but בְּכֹל (bÿkhol, “in all”) should probably be emended to כְּכֹל (kÿkhol, “according to all”).

⁸tn Heb “a nation, one.”

⁹tn Heb “whose God,” or “because God.” In the Hebrew text this clause is subordinated to what precedes. The clauses are separated in the translation for stylistic reasons.

¹⁰tn Heb “redeem” or “deliver.”

¹¹tn Heb “to make for yourself a name [with] great and awesome [deeds].”

¹²tn Heb “to drive out.”

¹³tn Heb “from Egypt, nations.” The parallel text in 2 Sam 7:23 reads “from Egypt, nations and its gods.”

¹⁴tn Heb “and you made your people Israel your own for a people permanently.”

¹⁵tn Heb “and now, O Lord, the word which you spoke concerning your servant and concerning his house, may it be established permanently.”

¹⁶tn Heb “as you have spoken.”

¹⁷tn Following the imperative in v. 23b, the prefixed verbal form with vav (ו) conjunctive indicates purpose/result: “so it might become a reality.”

¹⁸tn Heb “so it might be established.”

¹⁹tn Heb “and your name might be great permanently.” Following the imperative in v. 23b, the prefixed verbal form with vav conjunctive indicates purpose/result (parallel to the previous purpose/result clause): “[so]…you might gain lasting fame.”

²⁰tn Heb “saying.” The words “as people” are supplied in the translation for clarification and for stylistic reasons.

²¹tc Heb “the Lord who commands armies [traditionally, the Lord of hosts], the God of Israel, Israel’s God.” The phrases אֱלֹהֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל (’elohey yisra’el, “God of Israel”) and אֱלֹהִים לְיִשְׂרָאֵל (’elohim lÿyisra’el, “Israel’s God”) are probably alternative readings that have been conflated in the text.

²²tn Heb “the house of David.”

²³tn Heb “house.”

²⁴tn Heb “That is why your servant found to pray before you.” Perhaps the phrase אֶת לִבּוֹ (’et libbo, “his heart”) should be supplied as the object of the verb “found.”

²⁵tn Heb “the God.” The article indicates uniqueness here.

²⁶tn Heb “and you have spoken to your servant this good thing.”

²⁷tn Heb “house.”

²⁸tn Heb “for you, O Lord, have blessed and [it is] blessed permanently.”