What is the Davidic Covenant?

Because of David’s faithfulness and because he had proven himself to be Theo centric, God-centre man, God is about to make some amazing promises to him. These promises are known as the Davidic Covenant.

It is described in 2nd. Samuel chapter 7. In the overall purpose of God, it is equal in its significance to the Abrahamic Covenant.

The Tabernacle was still at Gabion. David has made a tent for the Ark to stay in. 2nd. Chronicles 1;4 it says, “Now David had brought up the Ark of God from Kiriath Jearim to the place he had prepared for it, because he had pitched a tent for it in Jerusalem." David wants to build a house for God and God says on 2nd. Samuel chapter 7 verse 4, "Are you the one to build me a house to dwell in? I have not dwelt in house from the day I brought the Israelites up out of Egypt to this day."

Verse 11 says, "I have done ever since the time I appointed leaders over my people Israel. I will also give you rest from all your enemies." In fact David wanted to built a house for God but God turns the table on David and says, "I don't need you to built a house for me but I will built a house for you."

In verse 8, God reminded David of his humble beginning "I took you from the sheepcote, from following the sheep, to be roller over my people, even Israel."

God reminds here David’s roots, about his previous life when he was following the sheep. It does not take a great deal of imagination to understand what the job of following the sheep involves. The cowboys, during the old round-ups, would avoid at all costs the worst assignment in the round-up, which was called "riding drag". Those who rode drag behind the cattle ate dust from dawn to sunset. God was reminding David of his humble roots and how He took him from the pasture, from following the sheep, to the throne of Israel. He continued verse 9; "I have been with you where ever you have gone, and I have cut off all your enemies from before you. Now I will make your name great, like the names of the greatest men of the earth."

Based on His own past faithfulness to David. God made a great promise, establishing the Davidic Covenant, which had present and eschatological implications.

The Davidic Covenant consists of two parts, with each part having three sections.

Part one fulfilled before David’s death, while part two had a later fulfilment.

Section one of the first promises to be fulfilled before David died was; "I have been with you where ever you gone, and I have cut off all your enemies from before you. Now I will make your name great like the names of the greatest men of the earth." (Verse:9).

Looking at 2nd. Samuel 8;13, we can see that King David did have a great name among the nations. So this promise of God came true.

Section two begins with verse 10; "I will appoint a place for my people Israel." He would add more land to the nation. Again chapter 8 points to the fulfilment by describing David’s conquests over surrounding nations.

Section three is also in verse 11 where God had "caused you to rest from all your enemies" again we read of this in 1 Chronicles’ 23;25, "The Lord, the God of Israel, has granted rest to his people and has come to dwell in Jerusalem forever."

It is important to know that the Lord did fulfilment those promises to David because they validated those sections of part two of the covenant which would take place after his death.

The Lord says to David "When your days are over and you rest with your fathers, I will raise up your off spring (Note it is singular) to succeed you, who will come fro your own body and I will establish his kingdom. He is the one who will build a house for my Name and I will establish the throne of his kingdom for ever."

No monarch had ever received such a promise as this. God was promising David a seed (off spring) in perpetuity.

You will have son, your son will have son, his son will have son and your monarchy, your dynasty was to continue forever and ever. The physical proof of this was that the seed of David, will always have a seed, will always have a male heir of David to sit on throne generation after generation.

When the seed of David will have a male heir and male heir will set on the throne and the people will say there is the physical evidence of God's earlier promise to David. We must look back and see how Satan has attempted through the previous generations to cause the promise made in Genesis 3;15 to not occur. We have seen it happened all the way through the time of Moses and we observed it happened in the period of Judges as Satan continue to cause the people to sin in hopes that God would destroy the nation Israel and therefore Genesis 3;15 is not occur but God raised up Judges to bring the people back to Himself and even during the distressing time of King Saul. There was a remnant who worshiped God and kept the promise of the Messiah, the Redeemer, the Saviour, the Deliverer alive in Israel. Now in Davidic Covenant 2nd. Samuel chapter 7, we discover that it is through the seed of David, that the Redeemer will come and this gives a Satan much more precise target. Satan will now began to attack the progeny (off spring) of David in an attempt to bring the promises of Genesis 3;15 to not.

Well time and time again, various kings were against of God's Holy Commandments. They committed sin again and again. God send the prophets to rebuke them, so many things happened. We will examine later on an as Satan attempts to cut off Davidic line. In 1 Kings 11;36, "I (God) give one tribe to his son so that David My servant may always have a lamp before me in Jerusalem, the city where I chose to put my Name." Now we see here this promise seed (off spring) refers to candle, the lamp, that always burning it will never go out, like the eternal flame."

As long as the eternal flame burns, the One who see it can look back at that time, when God made his promise to David in 1000B.C.

So the flame burns and burns and the seed of David continues set on the throne. Even during the time of Jeremiah 400 years later at 600 B.C. one of David’s progeny (off spring) was in the throne, he was an evil king and he was so evil that prophet Jeremiah pronounce a curse on him and says that no one of the seed of this man will never prosper on the throne of David.

So the question comes in mind, what happened then to the promise made in 2nd. Samuel, chapter 7?

The seed of David has cursed and no one will prosper, well, the years goes by, in the Gospel we read about the birth of the Lord Jesus Christ, and discovered, He is legal heir to the throne of David. Through His legal father Joseph.

We know Joseph was not certainly prospering and he was not appeared to be king of Israel. But yet he was legally entitled to throne of Israel. But there was simply NO monarchy because that time the nation was under Roman occupation. Jesus, the legal son of Joseph, was entitled to the throne of David was pronounced and from all out appearances this line of Joseph was not prospering.

The question, then so how can the Lord Jesus Christ ever prosper on the throne of David since that lineage was cursed?

This was the reason for dual genealogy.

When we read the genealogy in Matthew through Joseph we find that this genealogy is under curse placed by Jeremiah and it recorded on Matthew 1;11; “Josiah the father of Jeconiah (Jehoiachin) and his brothers at the time of the exile to Babylon.”

However if we examine the genealogy of the Lord Jesus Christ through Mary as recorded by Luke, we discovered that Mary’s genealogy is also trace able to David but she was the seed of Nathan, son of David rather than Solomon. (It is very important to know that the Jews used to trace the line of genealogy through one’s wife’s father, as in the case of Barzilai in Ezra 2;61 and in Nehemiah 7;63).

This is one of the reasons for the virgin birth. By being born the Lord Jesus Christ has no physical connection at all with either the sin of Adam or the curse on line of Joseph. By being the virgin born Son of Mary He is connected to David and by passes the curse on the lineage of Joseph.

As a result He is heir to throne and heir to the promise in 2nd. Samuel as heir to the Davidic Covenant. Part of this promise that says you will have some on the throne forever. He is the lamp which shall never be put out in Jerusalem. He is the light which burns eternally. But He is not married. He has no offspring and He goes to the cross and crucified and died, all the inhabitants of the world and Satan, Demon’s rejoiced because they believe after thousand and thousand years the promise that God made in Garden of Eden in Genesis 3;15 had finally been brought to NOT.

Satan said I got Him. He is mine. I am going to keep him. But three days later on the first day of the week (Sunday) He rose from death. He fold his napkins which one was covered his face. He left it inside the tomb.

Death terrified. Looking  around. No one has done it before. Jesus reaches up and pulls death from the thorn, casting to the dungeon floor. Jesus put His heel on the neck of death. Jesus reaches down and pulls the sting out of death. Jesus puts the crown on His own head and walked out of that tomb as a victorious living King.

David has seed eternal in the heaven, setting on the throne. Therefore Lord Jesus Christ is the physical heir, the physical seed of the promise made to David in 2nd. Samuel chapter 7, that He will have a house for His name and His throne and His Kingdom will be establish forever.

Section two and three are found in verse 16; “Your house and your kingdom shall endure forever before me. Your throne shall be established forever.”

David was promised three things to be realized after his death.

1)     An eternal seed finally realized in the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ.

2)     An eternal kingdom, set aside for the present but to be re-establish again when the Lord Jesus returns to earth.

3)     An eternal throne upon which Christ Himself will set. All these promises were conveyed by God to David through the prophet Nathan. What a privilege it must have been for the prophet to announce the Davidic Covenant to his monarch.

David listened in awe to the words of God through Nathan. Then in humanity and gratitude, he sought to commune with the Lord, setting before the Ark and saying, “Who am I, O sovereign Lord, and what is my family, that You have brought me this far? And as if this were not enough in Your sight, O Sovereign Lord, You have also spoken about the future of the house of Your servant.”

David continued, recognizing that nothing in him deserved such exaltation verse 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.”

We are also in the Ministry of Lord Jesus Christ and we can also say, “Who am I? What I have done for You that You should do such a great thing for me.”