Chapter 7 of Shmuel B is one of the foundational chapters in all of Tanach: King David, after Hashem had given him rest from all his enemies around him, seeks to build a house for Hashem. Natan the prophet initially agrees, and that very night a prophecy comes to him that David will not build the house, but rather his son after him. Out of this refusal an immense promise is born: the eternity of the kingship of the house of David. At the end of the chapter David comes before Hashem in a prayer of thanksgiving and request. We will follow the order of the pesukim and see the explanations of the Malbim and the words of Chazal.
וַיֹּאמֶר הַמֶּלֶךְ אֶל־נָתָן הַנָּבִיא רְאֵה נָא אָנֹכִי יוֹשֵׁב בְּבֵית אֲרָזִים וַאֲרוֹן הָאֱלֹהִים יֹשֵׁב בְּתוֹךְ הַיְרִיעָה׃ - And the king said to Natan the prophet: See now, I dwell in a house of cedar, while the Ark of God dwells within the curtain.
לֵךְ וְאָמַרְתָּ אֶל־עַבְדִּי אֶל־דָּוִד כֹּה אָמַר יְהֹוָה הַאַתָּה תִּבְנֶה־לִּי בַיִת לְשִׁבְתִּי׃ - Go and say to My servant, to David: So says Hashem: Shall you build Me a house for My dwelling?
There is a beautiful explanation of the Malbim, based on the precise wording of the pesukim, as to why Hashem refused to allow David to build Him a house. What is the meaning of "you have shed much blood"? The Malbim explains: in order to build a house for Hashem, the most minimal and essential requirement is that the intention of the person building it be entirely and absolutely for the sake of Heaven, without any ulterior motive and without any additional intention beyond the very building of the Beit HaMikdash itself.
To understand this, one must know two foundations. The first: as long as the Beit HaMikdash exists, it has an immense power to protect the people of Israel from their enemies. It is brought that during the siege of Yerushalayim they would raise up the daily tamid offering for the people of Yerushalayim by rope: the besieged would lower down vessels full of gold, and the besiegers would raise up to them over the wall a lamb for the tamid offering. Until one day a traitor from Israel arose and said to them: you do not understand, as long as they are offering korbanot you cannot overcome them. So they raised up to them a pig, which dug its hooves into the wall of Yerushalayim, and the land of Israel shook five hundred parsah by five hundred parsah, and that was the breach through which the Beit HaMikdash was destroyed. So we see that the Beit HaMikdash is like an umbrella sheltering Israel from their enemies.
The second foundation: all the abundance in the world comes through the Beit HaMikdash. If there is blessing in the world, physical abundance, produce and plenty, it all comes through the Beit HaMikdash. Concerning this it is said that had the nations known this, they would have posted guards around the Beit HaMikdash so that it would not be destroyed. Had they known that all abundance comes from the people of Israel and from the place of the Mikdash, they would have protected it. In destroying it, they harmed themselves. However, when Israel began to stray from the path, the abundance, instead of coming to holiness, came to impurity, to the nations. It emerges: salvation from wars comes by means of the Beit HaMikdash, and economic abundance comes from the Beit HaMikdash.
The Malbim says: in David's time Israel was not yet completely saved from wars, and there was not yet economic abundance. The Gemara brings that people would come to David and say to him: Your people Israel need sustenance. And what would he answer them? "Go out and stretch forth your hands against the marauding band" - go out and fight the enemies and take spoils, and you will have something to eat. There is no economic abundance, and there are wars. The Holy One, blessed be He, says to him: if you build the house now, it is very possible that a thought will creep into your heart, it is worth building the house, for from now on we will have quiet from our enemies; it is worth building the house, for from now on we will have economic abundance. Therefore Hashem says to him explicitly: "Shall you build Me a house for My dwelling?" The house must be built one hundred percent for the sake of Heaven, and therefore the expression "for My name" is repeated six or seven times. And if David builds the house, there is a concern that it will not be one hundred percent for the sake of Heaven, since he is still in the midst of the wars, and a thought of personal gain in building the house might creep in.
And note another point: this reason is stated by the Holy One, blessed be He, to David personally, and is not conveyed through Natan. Why? Because there is here an element that is somewhat hurtful to David, as if it were possible that his intention would not be one hundred percent for the sake of Heaven. Therefore this message was not conveyed through a prophet but directly to David through ruach hakodesh, so that there would be no offense to him.
כִּי יִמְלְאוּ יָמֶיךָ וְשָׁכַבְתָּ אֶת־אֲבֹתֶיךָ וַהֲקִימֹתִי אֶת־זַרְעֲךָ אַחֲרֶיךָ אֲשֶׁר יֵצֵא מִמֵּעֶיךָ וַהֲכִינֹתִי אֶת־מַמְלַכְתּוֹ׃ הוּא יִבְנֶה־בַּיִת לִשְׁמִי וְכֹנַנְתִּי אֶת־כִּסֵּא מַמְלַכְתּוֹ עַד־עוֹלָם׃ - When your days are complete and you lie with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall come forth from your own body, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.
The son, who will arise after him into a settled and calm kingdom, will be able to build the House with a pure intention, purely for the sake of Heaven.
אֲנִי אֶהְיֶה־לּוֹ לְאָב וְהוּא יִהְיֶה־לִּי לְבֵן אֲשֶׁר בְּהַעֲוֺתוֹ וְהֹכַחְתִּיו בְּשֵׁבֶט אֲנָשִׁים וּבְנִגְעֵי בְּנֵי אָדָם׃ - I will be a father to him, and he shall be a son to Me, so that when he sins I will chastise him with the rod of men and with the afflictions of human beings.
David receives a promise here: your son will reign after you one hundred percent. The grandson, that already depends on his deeds. But how can it be guaranteed that the son will reign with certainty, what if he causes trouble? To this the Holy One, blessed be He, says: "so that when he sins I will chastise him with the rod of men." Since you are righteous, I promise you that your son will reign after you; if he causes trouble he will receive blows, but I will not remove the kingdom from him. This is a promise on your merit. And he will be to Me as a son: a father does not cast off his son and does not resign from him, but disciplines him when he strays.
Who is "the rod of men"? Chazal say: this is Hadad and Rezon ben Elyada. Hashem raised them up as adversaries to Shlomo, as we will see at the beginning of Sefer Melachim: when Shlomo begins to stray from the path, in that he married Pharaoh's daughter and his wives worshipped idolatry and he did not protest against them, the Holy One, blessed be He, raised up against him Hadad and Rezon ben Elyada as adversaries. This is "when he sins I will chastise him with the rod of men" - a rod is a staff, meaning he will receive blows.
And what are "the afflictions of human beings"? Chazal say: this is Ashmedai. And how is this connected to the afflictions of human beings? I mentioned this also in the book "Mishnat HaChalomot," where there is an entire chapter on the subject of the demons and their origin. One of the sources of the demons is the one hundred and thirty years during which Adam separated from his wife after the sin: for one hundred and thirty years he separated from her, and during those years the female spirits would come and be aroused by him, and Adam was blemishing by the wasteful emission of seed. From that seed that Adam saw the demons were born, and they were created as spirit without a body. Therefore they are called "the afflictions of human beings" - benohi de'Adam kadma'ah, the sons of Adam. And corresponding to those one hundred and thirty years of Adam were the one hundred and thirty years in Egypt from when they went down there until Moshe was born.
And this is what happened with Ashmedai, who drove Shlomo out of his kingdom. It is written that David HaMelech reigned over the entire world, whereas Shlomo descended from level to level: he reigned over the whole world, then only over the Land of Israel, then only over Jerusalem, then over his house, and finally over his staff - "I Kohelet son of David... I Shlomo was king in Jerusalem." Afterward it is written that Hashem restored him to his kingdom, and there is a dispute whether he returned or not. In any case, the one who pushed him from his kingdom was Ashmedai, and this was the reproof to Shlomo for changing his way. But note: the kingdom was not divided in his days. Why? Because there is a promise to David - if the son causes trouble he will receive blows, but the kingship will not be taken from him. Whereas with the grandson, if he causes trouble, there is no promise, and there indeed the kingdom was divided.
וְחַסְדִּי לֹא־יָסוּר מִמֶּנּוּ כַּאֲשֶׁר הֲסִרֹתִי מֵעִם שָׁאוּל אֲשֶׁר הֲסִרֹתִי מִלְּפָנֶיךָ׃ - But My kindness shall not depart from him as I removed it from Shaul, whom I removed from before you.
The kindness that I will do with him will not depart from him: his kingdom will be an absolute kingdom, I will not take the kingship from him as I took it from Shaul.
וְנֶאְמַן בֵּיתְךָ וּמַמְלַכְתְּךָ עַד־עוֹלָם לְפָנֶיךָ כִּסְאֲךָ יִהְיֶה נָכוֹן עַד־עוֹלָם׃ - And your house and your kingdom shall be steadfast forever before you; your throne shall be established forever.
What is the meaning of this promise? After all, it is possible that the throne will in fact be interrupted, as we see today that we have no king from the house of David. Rather, the intention is that the dynasty will not cease from you: if the kingship returns, it will return to David. We await Mashiach ben David, not, for example, Mashiach ben Shaul. The throne awaits the coming of the King Mashiach, Mashiach ben David, who will come and sit upon his throne. This is "your throne shall be established forever."
כְּכֹל הַדְּבָרִים הָאֵלֶּה וּכְכֹל הַחִזָּיוֹן הַזֶּה כֵּן דִּבֶּר נָתָן אֶל־דָּוִד׃ - According to all these words and according to all this vision, so did Natan speak to David.
What is the difference between "words" (devarim) and "vision" (chizayon)? "Dibbur" is a harsh expression, in contrast to "amirah" which is soft. This prophecy has two parts: first words of rebuke, and then words of appeasement. The words of rebuke are "according to all these words," and the words of appeasement, which are the promises about the future, are the "vision" (chizayon) - for the prophet foresees for him what will happen in the future, as in the language of Scripture "Natan the seer," "Gad the seer." And Scripture emphasizes "so did Natan speak to David": he was not ashamed. Even though there were somewhat harsh matters here, he said them just as they were transmitted to him from Hashem.
וַיָּבֹא הַמֶּלֶךְ דָּוִד וַיֵּשֶׁב לִפְנֵי יְהֹוָה וַיֹּאמֶר מִי אָנֹכִי אֲדֹנָי יֱהֹוִה וּמִי בֵיתִי כִּי הֲבִאֹתַנִי עַד־הֲלֹם׃ - And King David came and sat before Hashem and said: Who am I, my Lord Hashem, and who is my house, that You have brought me thus far?
David comes to thank Hashem for the tremendous tidings: a faithful house, kingship for him and his descendants forever, and a dynasty that will never cease, for Mashiach will be from the dynasty of the house of David. He comes first of all to give thanks, and afterward to pray about the future.
Our Sages say: "Who am I and who is my house" - usually kingship comes to a person either on account of his own greatness or on account of his family. David says: I in myself have no greatness at all - "who am I"; and also on account of my house I am not worthy, for my family is young among the families of Israel, my father was not a king, and my house is not among the royal houses. And the Midrash says that David said: Behold, I come from Ammon and from Moav. It is not enough that I entered the congregation - which is in itself a great difficulty, and only "an Ammonite but not an Ammonitess, a Moavite but not a Moavitess" made me fit - but You even made me king. Who am I and what merit do I have?
And from the language "and he sat before Hashem" our Sages learned that there is no sitting in the courtyard except for the kings of the house of David. And some say that the intention is not actual sitting but tarrying and standing before Hashem, for above there is no sitting: "seraphim standing above Him," "and all the host of heaven standing by Him," "and I will give you passage among these that stand" - and can it be that above there is no sitting yet David sits? And some of our Sages expounded that he supported himself, or that he composed himself in prayer, that is, he devoted himself to prayer. It emerges that there is a dispute whether there is sitting for the kings of the house of David in the courtyard or not.
וַתִּקְטַן עוֹד זֹאת בְּעֵינֶיךָ אֲדֹנָי יֱהֹוִה וַתְּדַבֵּר גַּם אֶל־בֵּית־עַבְדְּךָ לְמֵרָחוֹק וְזֹאת תּוֹרַת הָאָדָם אֲדֹנָי יֱהֹוִה׃ - And this was still too small in Your eyes, my Lord Hashem, and You have spoken also concerning Your servant's house for the distant future, and this is the law of man, my Lord Hashem.
David says: Master of the Universe, You were not content with this. The very granting of the kingdom is a tremendous kindness, and You further promised it to me for generations upon generations - a doubled and redoubled kindness. "And You have spoken also concerning Your servant's house for the distant future."
And what is the meaning of "and this is the Torah of man," a statement that seems entirely disconnected? The Malbim explains: David comes to say, Master of the world, it is clear to me that all of this prophecy and tidings is not for my sake and not by virtue of my own personal merit. Rather, You, the Holy One blessed be He, plan the world from beginning to end, and part of the planning of the world is that just as You chose the people of Israel to be a treasured nation, so too You chose that this treasured people should have a king. And the king is chosen by Your decision, just as the people of Israel were chosen by Your decision. This is not because of the private merit of a particular person, but rather it is part of the decisions of the Creator of the world. And then the question "who am I to deserve this and by what merit" falls away: I am nothing, this is the Creator of the world and it is part of His plan, to choose a people as His tribe, to choose a place where the Beit HaMikdash will be built, and to choose the one from whom the kingship will come. And this is "this is the Torah of man": this is the Torah of all mankind, and it is a matter of the wholeness of Israel as a whole, and therefore the Holy One blessed be He appoints for them a king.
וּמַה־יּוֹסִיף דָּוִד עוֹד לְדַבֵּר אֵלֶיךָ וְאַתָּה יָדַעְתָּ אֶת־עַבְדְּךָ אֲדֹנָי יֱהֹוִה׃ - And what more can David say to You, for You know Your servant, my Lord God.
If so, what more can I add to say to You from myself, David the private individual? If I were to ask "who am I and what is my house" - do You not know Your servant, You know that I am worth nothing. Why should I go on at length and say who I am and what I am, when You know that in truth there is no merit in me at all.
בַּעֲבוּר דְּבָרְךָ וּכְלִבְּךָ עָשִׂיתָ אֵת כׇּל־הַגְּדוּלָּה הַזֹּאת לְהוֹדִיעַ אֶת־עַבְדֶּךָ׃ - For the sake of Your word and according to Your heart You have done all this greatness, to make it known to Your servant.
The Malbim explains: we do not find that the Holy One blessed be He sends a prophet to a person in order to inform him of a private matter. Usually a prophet is sent to convey counsel concerning the entire kingdom, or a matter concerning all future generations, for every prophecy that was needed for the generations was written down, and what was not needed for the generations was not written down. There is no prophecy that was written merely because it was fitting for its own time. If so, from the fact that a special prophecy was sent to me through a prophet, I understand that this is not a private and temporary message for me, but rather an encompassing announcement about future matters, and from here it is clear that You have chosen me for this level, and therefore I have taken courage in my soul to come and make the following requests.
עַל־כֵּן גָּדַלְתָּ יְהֹוָה אֱלֹהִים כִּי־אֵין כָּמוֹךָ וְאֵין אֱלֹהִים זוּלָתֶךָ בְּכֹל אֲשֶׁר־שָׁמַעְנוּ בְּאׇזְנֵינוּ׃ - Therefore You are great, Lord God, for there is none like You and there is no God besides You, in all that we have heard with our ears.
What is Your greatness? That You are the One who causes all causes from beginning to end. You created the world and You will seal it, You are first and You are last and there is nothing besides You. Your spirit gives life to everything, and You allot all things from beginning to end. To determine who will be king, which will be the principal nation, what will happen and how the future redemption will be - all is in Your hand. There is no one to limit You and no one to prevent You, for everything is by Your will.
וּמִי כְעַמְּךָ כְּיִשְׂרָאֵל גּוֹי אֶחָד בָּאָרֶץ אֲשֶׁר הָלְכוּ־אֱלֹהִים לִפְדּוֹת־לוֹ לְעָם וְלָשׂוּם לוֹ שֵׁם וְלַעֲשׂוֹת לָכֶם הַגְּדוּלָּה וְנֹרָאוֹת לְאַרְצֶךָ מִפְּנֵי עַמְּךָ אֲשֶׁר פָּדִיתָ לְּךָ מִמִּצְרַיִם גּוֹיִם וֵאלֹהָיו׃ - And who is like Your people, like Israel, one nation in the land, whom God went to redeem for Himself as a people, and to make for Himself a name, and to do for you the greatness and awesome things for Your land, before Your people whom You redeemed for Yourself from Egypt, nations and its gods.
The verse is unclear: "God went" in the plural? "To do for you the greatness" and then "for Your land"? Rashi explains: "Elohim" also carries the meaning of leader and judge, as in "I have made you a god to Pharaoh" - that Moshe would be the leader who rules over him. And here "whom God went" refers to Moshe and Aharon, the leaders who went to redeem for Him a people. "And awesome things for Your land before Your people" - the verse here is elliptical, and it is as if it said: because of Your people whom You redeemed for Yourself from Egypt, You drove out nations and their gods. The nations who were in the land and their gods You drove out by the merit of Your people Israel, and You brought Your people in here.
And the Malbim continues the line of thought that David began: after he said that the announcement about the eternity of the kingdom of the house of David is not a private matter but rather "the Torah of man," a matter of the wholeness of Israel as a whole, David adds that the people of Israel are the treasured aspect among the nations, and the house of David is the treasured aspect within the people of Israel. The most excellent among the nations are Israel, and the most excellent among Israel is the kingship. And this is "and who is like Your people, like Israel, one nation in the land": Israel are the unique ones, they are the heart of all the nations, and all the nations are like shells compared to the fruit, which is Israel. And just as the heart gives life to the entire body, so what gives life to all the worlds is the merit of the people of Israel.
And now he proves this with three things. The first, from the aspect of the beginning: "whom God went to redeem for Himself as a people" - the Holy One blessed be He went Himself to redeem. Whom does a person go to redeem himself? His son, one who is connected to him. Had we not been the treasure of creation, Hashem would not have troubled Himself - "I and not an angel, I and not a seraph." The second, from the abundance of signs and wonders: "and to make for Himself a name and to do for you the greatness" - Hashem goes and destroys all of Egypt in order to bring us out, and this shows that Israel is a unique treasured people, and through this His name is magnified in the world and greatness is made for Israel. And the third: "and awesome things for Your land before Your people" - also in the holy land He did awesome things, for Yehoshua came to conquer the land and the Jordan was split, and the sun stood still in Givon and the moon in the valley of Ayalon, and hailstones came down from the heavens. All these are awesome things for Your land, and before Your people - by the merits of the people of Israel, for we are a treasured people.
At the end of the pasuk, "גּוֹיִם וֵאלֹהָיו": some read it as ordinary meaning and some as sacred meaning. If it is ordinary meaning, the interpretation is as we explained: You did awesome deeds for Your land because of Your people whom You redeemed from Egypt, and You drove out before them the nations and their gods, and then it refers to the gods of the nations. But there is another possibility, as the Sages expounded, that the meaning is sacred: "You redeemed from Egypt nations and its God" - You redeemed My people Israel, and as it were the Holy One redeemed Himself. For the Sages taught "I am with him in trouble" and "the Shechinah itself is in exile," the Shechinah itself as it were is in exile. So David says to the Holy One: You redeemed from Egypt Your people, and also, as it were, Yourself.
וַתְּכוֹנֵן לְךָ אֶת־עַמְּךָ יִשְׂרָאֵל לְךָ לְעָם עַד־עוֹלָם וְאַתָּה יְהֹוָה הָיִיתָ לָהֶם לֵאלֹהִים׃ - And You established for Yourself Your people Israel to be Your people forever, and You, Hashem, became their God.
After first stating that Israel is a treasured nation, unique in the world, that the entire world exists for its sake and they are like the heart, David says: and among them You established for Yourself the House of David to be the treasure. And just as You established Israel for Yourself as a people forever, so I ask that the House of David too be established before You forever.
וְעַתָּה יְהֹוָה אֱלֹהִים הַדָּבָר אֲשֶׁר דִּבַּרְתָּ עַל־עַבְדְּךָ וְעַל־בֵּיתוֹ הָקֵם עַד־עוֹלָם וַעֲשֵׂה כַּאֲשֶׁר דִּבַּרְתָּ׃ - And now, Hashem God, the word that You spoke concerning Your servant and concerning his house, establish it forever, and do as You have spoken.
At first glance this is difficult: if Hashem has already promised, what room is there to tell Him "do as You have spoken"? Regarding a person who cannot be relied upon, there is room to remind him of his word, but the Creator of the world, who has spoken, does one need to ask Him to fulfill it? Rather, the intent of the request stems from the concern that they might sin. If Israel will sin, or if I and my house will sin, we will not be worthy that what was promised be fulfilled in us. Therefore David asks: "and do as You have spoken" - as You said "whom, when he sins, I will chastise with the rod of men," if they sin give them blows, but do not drive them out from before You, and let the kingdom remain for my seed forever.
וְיִגְדַּל שִׁמְךָ עַד־עוֹלָם לֵאמֹר יְהֹוָה צְבָאוֹת אֱלֹהִים עַל־יִשְׂרָאֵל וּבֵית עַבְדְּךָ דָוִד יִהְיֶה נָכוֹן לְפָנֶיךָ׃ - And may Your name be magnified forever, saying, Hashem of Hosts is God over Israel, and the house of Your servant David shall be established before You.
Through Your conducting Israel in a wondrous way, in a way that is not natural, Your name will be magnified in the world, for when the Holy One performs miracles for us everyone sees that Hashem rules over His world. This is "and may Your name be magnified forever, saying, Hashem of Hosts is God over Israel" - through the miracles that You perform for the people of Israel.
כִּי־אַתָּה יְהֹוָה צְבָאוֹת אֱלֹהֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל גָּלִיתָה אֶת־אֹזֶן עַבְדְּךָ לֵאמֹר בַּיִת אֶבְנֶה־לָּךְ עַל־כֵּן מָצָא עַבְדְּךָ אֶת־לִבּוֹ לְהִתְפַּלֵּל אֵלֶיךָ אֶת־הַתְּפִלָּה הַזֹּאת׃ - For You, Hashem of Hosts, God of Israel, have revealed to Your servant, saying, I will build you a house; therefore Your servant has found it in his heart to pray to You this prayer.
Here David is concerned that the matter might appear as a trait of pride: what business have you, David, to make such requests - that Hashem establish your house forever, that He protect you, that He make you an eternal treasure like the people of Israel? At first glance these are demands that are too lofty, and they contain a kind of presumption. Therefore he prefaces: do not consider it pride and haughtiness of heart on my part that I come with these requests, for "You have revealed to the ear of Your servant, saying, I will build you a house." I did not come to request what was not offered to me; only after You revealed it to my ear and promised it to me do I understand that You chose me for this level, and therefore I mustered the courage in my soul to ask. "Therefore Your servant has found it in his heart to pray to You this prayer."
וְעַתָּה אֲדֹנָי יֱהֹוִה אַתָּה־הוּא הָאֱלֹהִים וּדְבָרֶיךָ יִהְיוּ אֱמֶת וַתְּדַבֵּר אֶל־עַבְדְּךָ אֶת־הַטּוֹבָה הַזֹּאת׃ - And now, Lord God, You are God, and Your words are truth, and You have spoken to Your servant this goodness.
David does not want the abundance of his prayer to make him appear doubtful, as one whose faith is lacking, as if he does not believe that Hashem can fulfill what He promised, or that perhaps Hashem might change His will and not fulfill it. Therefore he removes three doubts: "You are the God" - Elokim means the mighty One, the One who has all ability and all powers, the power is in Your hand; "and Your words shall be truth" - I have no doubt that You might change Your will, for there is no change before the Holy One, blessed be He; "and You have spoken this goodness to Your servant" - I believe in the truth of the prophecy, so that You should not say that I am in doubt whether this was truly a prophecy.
וְעַתָּה הוֹאֵל וּבָרֵךְ אֶת־בֵּית עַבְדְּךָ לִהְיוֹת לְעוֹלָם לְפָנֶיךָ כִּי־אַתָּה אֲדֹנָי יֱהֹוִה דִּבַּרְתָּ וּמִבִּרְכָתְךָ יְבֹרַךְ בֵּית־עַבְדְּךָ לְעוֹלָם׃ - And now, may it please You to bless the house of Your servant, that it may be forever before You, for You, Lord Hashem, have spoken it, and through Your blessing may the house of Your servant be blessed forever.
Now the need for the prayer becomes clear: not so that Hashem should fulfill His word, for in that I have no doubt at all. My request is that we be worthy from the side of those who receive. "May it please You to bless the house of Your servant to be forever before You" - bless the house of David that they always be righteous before You, that there be in them the fear of Heaven, that they be true servants of Hashem. That we always walk before You, and through this we will be worthy to receive all the blessing that was promised in the prophecy the Holy One, blessed be He, gave him.
David wanted to build a house for Hashem, and he was told "Shall you build Me a house" - for the building of the house must be one hundred percent "for My name," and in David's days, which were still days of wars and lack of abundance, there was a concern that an intention of benefit from the protection and abundance the Beit HaMikdash brings might creep in. Therefore the house would be given to Shlomo, and with it came an immense promise: "I will be to him a father" - if he sins he will be chastised with the rod of men and with the afflictions of human beings, but the kingship will not be taken from him, and the dynasty of the house of David is faithful forever until the coming of Mashiach ben David. And David, with wondrous humility, comes and says "Who am I and who is my house": this is not my private merit but "the way of man," part of the Creator's plan, who chose Israel as a treasure from all the nations and the house of David as a treasure from Israel. And finally he makes the true request: not that Hashem should fulfill His word, for in that there is no doubt, but that we should merit it from our own side, that He bless the house of His servant to be forever before Him, righteous and worthy of blessing.