2 Sam 7:12-16 is sometimes described as the “center” of the Historical books. In this important passage, God makes a covenant with David which includes a promise that David’s son will rule after him. David is finally secure in Jerusalem and he has built his own palace and fortress, yet he has not built a temple for the Ark of the Covenant; it remains in the Tabernacle (7:1-3). While David wants to build the Temple, the Lord tells him that he will not do so, but his son will.
For David, however, God gives a wonderful promise that David’s dynasty will continue and that he will have a son who will “reign forever.” The king would be like a son of God (Psalm 2, for example). While His son Solomon does in fact build the Temple, he does not reign forever. Kings in the line of David ruled because God kept His promise to David. In 2 Kings 20:34, the Lord says that He will defend the city of Jerusalem “for the sake of His servant David.” Sadly, the line of kings descending from David comes to an end by the end of 2 Kings. Nevertheless, a new king in the line of David becomes the hope of the prophets.
By the time of the New Testament, it is clear that Jesus is the ultimate “son of David” who fulfills this prophecy. For example, Matthew 1:1 describes Jesus as “the son of David,” and at His baptism, the voice from Heaven says, “This is my Beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased” (Matt 3:17). In what other ways is Jesus described as a King in the Gospels? In the nativity story, the wise men worship Jesus as king and bring him kingly gifts. Herod fears Jesus is a rival king (Matt 2:1-12), He is mocked as “king of the Jews” (Mark 15:18), the title on the cross declares Him to be King of the Jews (Mark 15:26), and the Roman guard calls Him a son of God (Mark 15:39).
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