2 Samuel 7:5 (KJV)

Passage

Go and tell my servant David, Thus saith the LORD, Shalt thou build me an house for me to dwell in?

Nearby Context

2 Samuel 7:3 And Nathan said to the king, Go, do all that is in thine heart; for the LORD is with thee.

2 Samuel 7:4 And it came to pass that night, that the word of the LORD came unto Nathan, saying,

2 Samuel 7:5 Go and tell my servant David, Thus saith the LORD, Shalt thou build me an house for me to dwell in?

2 Samuel 7:6 Whereas I have not dwelt in any house since the time that I brought up the children of Israel out of Egypt, even to this day, but have walked in a tent and in a tabernacle.

2 Samuel 7:7 In all the places wherein I have walked with all the children of Israel spake I a word with any of the tribes of Israel, whom I commanded to feed my people Israel, saying, Why build ye not me an house of cedar?

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "tell", "servant", "david", "thus", "saith", "lord", "shalt", and "thou". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "tell" and "servant", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 4's "And it came to pass that night..." into verse 6's "Whereas I have not dwelt in any...", so "tell" and "servant" belong inside that flow. In 2 Samuel context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "tell" and "servant" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.