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It may be of interest to the reader to know that the LXX here uses apokalupto, where
the A.V. reads "uncovered". This word, of course, gives us the word used for the
"revelation" of Jesus Christ--which emphasizes a point that has perhaps not been given
its due weight, namely, that the "revelation" of Jesus Christ, even though "glorious in our
eyes", is nevertheless a condescension on His part. There is a "light" in which He dwells
that is unapproachable (I Tim. 6: 16), and the "glory" of His appearing must not hide
from us the other equally glorious fact that all His acts on our behalf are condescensions
beyond our understanding.
The house of the Lord and the house of David (II Sam. 7: 1-29).--With the coming of
the Ark to the city of David, there comes also "rest round about from all his enemies";
and the King, contemplating the disparity between his own house of cedar, and the house
of curtains that held the Ark of God, is moved to build a house for the Lord. He reveals
later to his son Solomon, however, that the Lord had forbidden his building such a house,
because he had "shed blood abundantly". The Temple must be associated with one who
was in type the Prince of Peace.
In II Sam. 7:, to David's amazement, the Lord makes a promise concerning his
house:
"Also the Lord telleth thee that He will make thee an house" (II Sam. 7: 11).
Further on, in verse 18, we read:
"Then went King David in, and sat before the Lord and said, Who am I, O Lord God?
and what is my house, that Thou hast brought me hitherto? And this was yet a small
thing in Thy sight, O Lord God; but Thou hast spoken also of Thy servant's house for a
great while to come. And is this the manner of man, O Lord God?" (II Sam. 7: 18, 19).
David was facing grace, and was learning in his measure the same lesson that we may
learn to-day as we contemplate the grace of God, namely, that the grace of the "hitherto",
is to be eclipsed by the "exceeding riches of grace" which the Lord will reveal in the ages
to come (Eph. 2: 7).
This indeed was not "the manner of man". The word "manner" is the Hebrew torah,
"law", and "man" here is "Adam". The passage reminds us of Psalm 8:, where David
asks "What is man?" and then goes on to speak of the Lord's wonderful condescension
to a position "lower than the angels", which will ultimately associate the sons of Adam
with the Son of God in His dominion over all the works of His hand. David saw by faith
something of the glorious truth revealed subsequently in I Cor. 15: 22-28, 45-49; and
Heb. 2: 5-10.
With great reluctance we must pass over the intervening chapters that reveal such
great depths, after the heights of chapter 7:, and come now to the closing chapters
22:-24: Chapter 21: significantly ends with the overthrow of several giants, one of
them being another Goliath of Gath (II Sam. 21: 19).