Testament is another word for Covenant. 2nd Samuel Chapter 7 describes the Covenant God made with King David. He makes 7 promises to David about his future and the future of his descendants, but first, he reminds David of something very important, where he came from:
God said to David: I took you from the pasture, from tending the flock, to be ruler over my people Israel.
Jesus, who is frequently called the Son of David, said: I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep (John 10:11).
Here are the 7 Promises God made to the Shepherd of His people, David:
Promise #1: I will make a great name for you like that of the greatest on the earth.
Fulfillment #1: David is revered as the greatest King of Israel and one of the greatest Kings the world has ever known. His name is known throughout the earth.
Fulfillment #2: Jesus IS the name above all names. Philippians 2:9-10 declares: God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth
Promise #2: I will designate a place for my people Israel and plant them, so that they may live there and not be disturbed again. Evildoers will not continue to oppress them as they have done...I will give you rest from all your enemies.
Partial Fulfillment #1: God did give the people rest during Solomon's reign. No wars were recorded during that time and they had great peace and prosperity. But God's covenant was conditional and Solomon disobeyed, so enemies were allowed to rise up. Later, all the people would disobey and have to be punished by being turned over to various enemies and ultimately to the Assyrians and Babylonians. God always keeps his promises. But this one could not reach it's ultimate fulfillment because of the sins of ancient Israel.
Complete Fulfillment #2: Ultimately, this promise will be fulfilled completely in Heaven. God has not forgotten His promise. It is still valid and will be honored through Jesus. (Revelation 21:1-22:5)
Promise #3: I will raise up after you your descendant who will come from your body and I will establish his kingdom.
1st Fulfillment: David's son Solomon became king over Israel. He reigned over one of the wealthiest empires that ever existed and was highly exalted. God established His Kingdom....So the Kingdom was established in Solomon's hand (1 Kings 2:46).
2nd Fulfillment: Jesus, was also a direct descendant of David, legally through Joseph's lineage and physically through Mary's bloodline. Jesus is called "The King of Kings and the Lord of Lords" (Rev. 17:14, 19:16, 1 Tim 6:15)
Promise #4: He is the one who will build a house for my name.
1st Fulfillment: Solomon built God's temple. (1 Kings 6-8) When Solomon finished building the temple of the Lord, the royal palace and all that Solomon desired to do, the Lord appeared to Solomon a second time... (1 Kings 9:1)
2nd Fulfillment: Jesus is building God's church and a place for Him to dwell, as prophesied here and in the *quotations below. I've included the OT Scriptures referenced in this passage because they are so important in proving Jesus is the fulfillment of prophecy:
You, yourselves, like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. For it stands in Scripture: "Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone, a cornerstone chosen and precious, and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame. Now to you who believe, this stone is precious. But to those who do not believe, "The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone." and "a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense," They stumble because they disobey the word.... (1 Peter 2:5-7) *Isaiah 28:16, *Psalm 118:22, *Isaiah 8:14
Paul's letter to the Ephesians elaborates on this same concept and on the unity between Jewish and Gentile believers. (Chapter 2:19-22)
You are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, having been BUILT on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone, in whom the whole building, being fitted together, grows into a Holy Temple in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.
Promise #5: I will be a father to him and he will be my son. When he does wrong, I will discipline him with the rod of men and blows from mortals.
Fulfillment #1 When Solomon sinned, was unfaithful to God and worshipped other gods, God raised up enemies against him. (1 Kings 11:14-40). God used Assyria as his rod to punish Israel. (Isaiah 10:5)
Fulfillment #2 Jesus is called the Son of God. Matthew 3:17 records that God's voice spoke from heaven saying: This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.
Unlike Solomon, Jesus did not sin. But he took our punishment anyway: For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. (2 Cor 5:21) Isaiah had prophesied:
He was pierced for our transgressions, bruised for our iniquities, the chastisement of our peace was on him and by his stripes, we are healed. (Isaiah 53:5) 1 Peter 2:24 quotes this passage as being true about Jesus.
Jesus was beaten (Luke 22:63), palm slapped (Matthew 26:67), scourged/striped (Matthew 27:26) beaten with a staff in the head repeatedly (Matthew 27:30) and ultimately killed on a cross, then pierced with a sword to verify his death.
The punishment Jesus took fulfilled this prophecy, even though He didn't deserve it. You see, there came a time in David's life when he and Israel had sinned greatly. I will be writing in depth about this later in the summer, but for right now it is sufficient to explain that David basically says to God, Wasn't I the chief around here? Aren't I responsible? He asks God to let all the punishment be on him and his descendants and God says, Yes. The covenant He made with David was modified---Jesus as a descendant of David, took all the punishment for us and fulfilled that part of the covenant.
Promise #6: My faithful love will never leave him.
Fulfillment #1: Even though Solomon was unfaithful to God. God remained faithful to him
Fulfillment #2: God did not abandon Jesus or leave him dead, He rose Him up from the grave.
Promise #7: I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever....Your house and kingdom will endure before me forever and your throne will be established forever
This promise is fulfilled through Jesus. It looks beyond Solomon and all other Kings to the promised Messiah. Because of Solomon's sin, the kingdom was torn in two after his reign. Ultimately, because of their sin, the people of Israel and Judah were taken into captivity and the line of Davidic Kings was cut off. There has not been a King from the Davidic line to sit on the earthly throne of Israel since 586 B.C. because the Covenant was broken. But God remained faithful. He remembered His promise to David. Isaiah 11:1 prophesied that from that cut off line of Kings, or stump, a shoot would grow. Revelation 5:5 and Romans 15:12 show that Jesus is that shoot, that new tree. He will reign over both Jews and Gentiles. Isaiah also prophesied:
Of the increase of His government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish and sustain it with justice and righteousness from that time and forevermore. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will accomplish this.
Luke 1:32-33 records these words to show that Jesus is the fulfillment of God's covenant with David:
He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David, He will reign over the house of Jacob forever. His kingdom will never end.
This passage, like many Old Testament prophecies, will not be completely fulfilled until Jesus comes again and we are with Him in heaven. But we can see how many of these promises have already come true through Jesus. And we can have great hope for the future because God always keeps His promises.
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