Then Nathan said unto David, Do all that is in your heart; for God is with you.

And it came to pass the same night, that the word of God came to Nathan, saying,

Go and tell David my servant, Thus says the LORD, You shall not build me a house to dwell in:

For I have not dwelt in a house since the day that I brought up Israel unto this day; but have gone from tent to tent, and from one tabernacle to another.

Now therefore thus shall you say unto my servant David, Thus says the LORD of hosts, I took you from the sheepfold, even from following the sheep, that you should be ruler over my people Israel:

And I have been with you wherever you have walked, and have cut off all your enemies from before you, and have made you a name like the name of the great men that are in the earth.

Also I will appoint a place for my people Israel, and will plant them, and they shall dwell in their place, and shall be moved no more; neither shall the children of wickedness oppress them any more, as at the beginning,

And since the time that I commanded judges to be over my people Israel. Moreover I will subdue all your enemies. Furthermore I tell you that the LORD will build you a house.

And it shall come to pass, when your days are ended that you must go to be with your fathers, that I will raise up your descendant after you, who shall be of your sons; and I will establish his kingdom.

He shall build me a house, and I will establish his throne forever.

I will be his father, and he shall be my son: and I will not take my mercy away from him, as I took it from him that was before you:

But I will settle him in my house and in my kingdom forever: and his throne shall be established forevermore.

According to all these words, and according to all this vision, so did Nathan speak unto David.

And David the king came and sat before the LORD, and said, Who am I, O LORD God, and what is my house, that you have brought me this far?

And yet this was a small thing in your eyes, O God; for you have also spoken of your servant's house for a great while to come, and have regarded me according to the estate of a man of high degree, O LORD God.

O LORD, for your servant's sake, and according to your own heart, have you done all this greatness, in making known all these great things.

And what one nation in the earth is like your people Israel, whom God went to redeem to be his own people, to make you a name of greatness and awesomeness, by driving out nations from before your people, whom you have redeemed out of Egypt?

For your people Israel did you make your own people forever; and you, LORD, became their God.

Therefore now, LORD, let the thing that you have spoken concerning your servant and concerning his house be established forever, and do as you have said.

Let it even be established, that your name may be magnified forever, saying, The LORD of hosts is the God of Israel, even a God to Israel: and let the house of David your servant be established before you.

And now, LORD, you are God, and have promised this goodness unto your servant:

Now therefore let it please you to bless the house of your servant, that it may be before you forever: for you bless, O LORD, and it shall be blessed forever.

Now after this it came to pass, that David defeated the Philistines, and subdued them, and took Gath and her towns out of the hand of the Philistines.

And he defeated Moab; and the Moabites became David's servants, and brought tribute.

And David defeated Hadadezer king of Zobah unto Hamath, as he went to establish his rule by the river Euphrates.

And David took from him a thousand chariots, and seven thousand horsemen, and twenty thousand footmen: David also hamstrung all the chariot horses, but reserved of them a hundred chariots.

And when the Syrians of Damascus came to help Hadadezer king of Zobah, David slew of the Syrians two and twenty thousand men.

Then David put garrisons in Syria of Damascus; and the Syrians became David's servants, and brought tribute. Thus the LORD preserved David wherever he went.

And David took the shields of gold that were on the servants of Hadadezer, and brought them to Jerusalem.

Likewise from Tibhath, and from Cun, cities of Hadadezer, brought David very much bronze, with which Solomon made the bronze sea, and the pillars, and the vessels of bronze.

He sent Hadoram his son to king David, to inquire of his welfare, and to congratulate him, because he had fought against Hadadezer, and defeated him; (for Hadadezer had war with Tou;) and with him all manner of vessels of gold and silver and bronze.

Them also king David dedicated unto the LORD, with the silver and the gold that he brought from all these nations; from Edom, and from Moab, and from the children of Ammon, and from the Philistines, and from Amalek.

And he put garrisons in Edom; and all the Edomites became David's servants. Thus the LORD preserved David wherever he went.

So David reigned over all Israel, and executed judgment and justice among all his people.

And Joab the son of Zeruiah was over the army; and Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud, recorder.

And Zadok the son of Ahitub, and Ahimelech the son of Abiathar, were the priests; and Shavsha was scribe;

And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and the Pelethites; and the sons of David were chief officials at the king's side.

Now it came to pass after this, that Nahash the king of the children of Ammon died, and his son reigned in his stead.

And David said, I will show kindness unto Hanun the son of Nahash, because his father showed kindness to me. And David sent messengers to comfort him concerning his father. So the servants of David came into the land of the children of Ammon to Hanun, to comfort him.

But the princes of the children of Ammon said to Hanun, Think you that David does honor your father, that he has sent comforters unto you? are not his servants come unto you to search, and to overthrow, and to spy out the land?

Therefore Hanun took David's servants, and shaved them, and cut off their garments in the middle at their buttocks, and sent them away.

Then there went certain, and told David how the men were treated. And he sent to meet them: for the men were greatly ashamed. And the king said, Remain at Jericho until your beards are grown, and then return.

And when the children of Ammon saw that they had made themselves repulsive to David, Hanun and the children of Ammon sent a thousand talents of silver to hire themselves chariots and horsemen out of Mesopotamia, and out of Aram-maachah, and out of Zobah.

So they hired thirty and two thousand chariots, and the king of Maachah and his people; who came and encamped before Medeba. And the children of Ammon gathered themselves together from their cities, and came to battle.

And when David heard of it, he sent Joab, and all the army of the mighty men.

And the children of Ammon came out, and put the battle in array before the gate of the city: and the kings that had come were by themselves in the field.

Now when Joab saw that the battle was set against him in front and behind, he chose out of all the choice of Israel, and put them in array against the Syrians.

And the rest of the people he delivered unto the hand of Abishai his brother, and they set themselves in array against the children of Ammon.

And he said, If the Syrians are too strong for me, then you shall help me: but if the children of Ammon are too strong for you, then I will help you.

Be of good courage, and let us fight valiantly for our people, and for the cities of our God: and let the LORD do that which is good in his sight.

So Joab and the people that were with him drew near before the Syrians unto the battle; and they fled before him.

And when the children of Ammon saw that the Syrians were fled, they likewise fled before Abishai his brother, and entered into the city. Then Joab came to Jerusalem.

And when the Syrians saw that they were defeated before Israel, they sent messengers, and brought forth the Syrians that were beyond the river: and Shophach the captain of the army of Hadadezer went before them.

And it was told David; and he gathered all Israel, and passed over the Jordan, and came upon them, and set the battle in array against them. So when David had put the battle in array against the Syrians, they fought with him.

But the Syrians fled before Israel; and David slew of the Syrians seven thousand men who fought in chariots, and forty thousand footmen, and killed Shophach the captain of the army.

And when the servants of Hadadezer saw that they were defeated before Israel, they made peace with David, and became his servants: neither would the Syrians help the children of Ammon any more.

And it came to pass, that after the year was ended, at the time that kings go out to battle, Joab led forth the strength of the army, and ravaged the country of the children of Ammon, and came and besieged Rabbah. But David remained at Jerusalem. And Joab defeated Rabbah, and destroyed it.

And David took the crown of their king from off his head, and found it to weigh a talent of gold, and there were precious stones in it; and it was set upon David's head: and he brought also a great amount of spoil out of the city.

And he brought out the people that were in it, and put them to work with saws, and with picks of iron, and with axes. Even so dealt David with all the cities of the children of Ammon. And David and all the people returned to Jerusalem.

And it came to pass after this, that there arose war at Gezer with the Philistines; at which time Sibbecai the Hushathite slew Sippai, that was of the children of the giant: and they were subdued.

And there was war again with the Philistines; and Elhanan the son of Jair slew Lahmi the brother of Goliath the Gittite, whose spear's shaft was like a weaver's beam.

And yet again there was war at Gath, where was a man of great stature, whose fingers and toes were four and twenty, six on each hand, and six on each foot: and he also was the son of the giant.

These were born unto the giant in Gath; and they fell by the hand of David, and by the hand of his servants.

And Satan stood up against Israel, and incited David to number Israel.

And David said to Joab and to the rulers of the people, Go, number Israel from Beer-sheba even to Dan; and bring the number of them to me, that I may know it.

And Joab answered, The LORD make his people a hundred times so many more as they are: but, my lord the king, are they not all my lord's servants? why then does my lord require this thing? why will he be a cause of guilt to Israel?

Nevertheless the king's word prevailed against Joab. Therefore Joab departed, and went throughout all Israel, and came to Jerusalem.

And Joab gave the sum of the number of the people unto David. And all they of Israel were a thousand thousand and a hundred thousand men that drew sword: and Judah was four hundred threescore and ten thousand men that drew sword.

But Levi and Benjamin counted he not among them: for the king's command was abominable to Joab.

And God was displeased with this thing; therefore he struck Israel.

And David said unto God, I have sinned greatly, because I have done this thing: but now, I beseech you, take away the iniquity of your servant; for I have done very foolishly.

And the LORD spoke unto Gad, David's seer, saying,

Go and tell David, saying, Thus says the LORD, I offer you three things: choose you one of them, that I may do it unto you.

So Gad came to David, and said unto him, Thus says the LORD, Choose you

Either three years' famine; or three months to be destroyed before your foes, while that the sword of your enemies overtakes you; or else three days the sword of the LORD, even the pestilence, in the land, and the angel of the LORD destroying throughout all the territory of Israel. Now therefore decide what word I shall bring again to him that sent me.

And David said unto Gad, I am in a great strait: let me fall now into the hand of the LORD; for very great are his mercies: but let me not fall into the hand of man.

So the LORD sent a plague upon Israel: and there fell of Israel seventy thousand men.

And God sent an angel unto Jerusalem to destroy it: and as he was destroying, the LORD beheld, and he relented of the disaster, and said to the angel that destroyed, It is enough, restrain now your hand. And the angel of the LORD stood by the threshingfloor of Ornan the Jebusite.

And David lifted up his eyes, and saw the angel of the LORD stand between the earth and the heaven, having a drawn sword in his hand stretched out over Jerusalem. Then David and the elders of Israel, who were clothed in sackcloth, fell upon their faces.

And David said unto God, Is it not I that commanded the people to be numbered? even I it is that have sinned and done evil indeed; but as for these sheep, what have they done? let your hand, I pray you, O LORD my God, be on me, and on my father's house; but not on your people, that they should be plagued.

Then the angel of the LORD commanded Gad to say to David, that David should go up, and set up an altar unto the LORD in the threshingfloor of Ornan the Jebusite.

And David went up at the saying of Gad, which he spoke in the name of the LORD.

And Ornan turned back, and saw the angel; and his four sons with him hid themselves. Now Ornan was threshing wheat.

And as David came to Ornan, Ornan looked and saw David, and went out of the threshingfloor, and bowed himself to David with his face to the ground.

Then David said to Ornan, Give me the place of this threshingfloor, that I may build an altar on it unto the LORD: you shall give it to me for the full price: that the plague may be averted from the people.

And Ornan said unto David, Take it to yourself, and let my lord the king do that which is good in his eyes: lo, I give you the oxen also for burnt offerings, and the threshing instruments for wood, and the wheat for the meal offering; I give it all.

And king David said to Ornan, Nay; but I will indeed buy it for the full price: for I will not take that which is yours for the LORD, nor offer burnt offerings without cost.

And David built there an altar unto the LORD, and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings, and called upon the LORD; and he answered him from heaven by fire upon the altar of burnt offering.

And the LORD commanded the angel; and he put up his sword again into its sheath.

For the tabernacle of the LORD, which Moses made in the wilderness, and the altar of the burnt offering, were at that time in the high place at Gibeon.

Then David said, This is the house of the LORD God, and this is the altar of the burnt offering for Israel.

And David commanded to gather together the sojourners that were in the land of Israel; and he set masons to cut hewn stones to build the house of God.

And David prepared iron in abundance for the nails for the doors of the gates, and for the fittings; and bronze in abundance without weight;

Also cedar trees in abundance: for the Zidonians and they of Tyre brought much cedar wood to David.

And David said, Solomon my son is young and tender, and the house that is to be built for the LORD must be exceedingly magnificent, of fame and of glory throughout all countries: I will therefore now make preparation for it. So David prepared abundantly before his death.

Then he called for Solomon his son, and charged him to build a house for the LORD God of Israel.

And David said to Solomon, My son, as for me, it was in my mind to build a house unto the name of the LORD my God:

But the word of the LORD came to me, saying, You have shed blood abundantly, and have made great wars: you shall not build a house unto my name, because you have shed much blood upon the earth in my sight.

Behold, a son shall be born to you, who shall be a man of rest; and I will give him rest from all his enemies round about: for his name shall be Solomon, and I will give peace and quietness unto Israel in his days.

He shall build a house for my name; and he shall be my son, and I will be his father; and I will establish the throne of his kingdom over Israel forever.