2 Samuel 7:12
ESV
When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom.
NIV
When your days are over and you rest with your ancestors, I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, your own flesh and blood, and I will establish his kingdom.
NASB
When your days are finished and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your descendant after you, who will come from you, and I will establish his kingdom.
CSB
When your time comes and you rest with your fathers, I will raise up after you your descendant, who will come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom.
NLT
For when you die and are buried with your ancestors, I will raise up one of your descendants, your own offspring, and I will make his kingdom strong.
KJV
And when thy days be fulfilled, and thou shalt sleep with thy fathers, I will set up thy seed after thee, which shall proceed out of thy bowels, and I will establish his kingdom.
NKJV
“When your days are fulfilled and you rest with your fathers, I will set up your seed after you, who will come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom.
What does 2 Samuel 7:12 mean?
David wanted to build God a "house": a stationary temple as a permanent dwelling place for the ark of the covenant (Exodus 25:10). God tells him that's not his job. Instead, God will build David a "house": a reputation as a great man, rest for his people, and an eternal dynasty (2 Samuel 7:1–11).God's promise that David's son will inherit his throne and position seems obvious to us. We tend to take this for granted because of our own experiences. The royals of Britain, for example, have come from only a few families. In Bible times, this direct inheritance was rarer. The northern kingdom of Israel, as well as Babylon / Persia / Greece, prove that political intrigue and war are as influential on who will be king as family line.
But God will ensure that a descendant of David sits on the throne of first the united Israel and then the southern kingdom Judah until the Babylonian captivity. Jacob prophesied this as he lay dying: "The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor the ruler's staff from between his feet, until tribute comes to him; and to him shall be the obedience of the peoples" (Genesis 49:7).
Solomon's throne doesn't last forever. Because of his idolatry, the nation is split when he dies (1 Kings 11). About 330 years later, Judah falls to the Babylonians. That's a strong hint that God's promise has a dual fulfillment. On the surface, it applies to Solomon. More deeply, He's talking about Jesus.
