Expert: Dr. (Rev.) Miles Bateman, USAF (retired) - 2/16/2008

Question
Hi,

I'm confused as to why God didn't allow King David to build the Jewish Temple and reserved this task to David's son, King Solomon? I heard God considered David to be a man of violence. However, didn't God say to kill the Caananites and other heathen people? Did David just do what God instructed hinm to do? Could you please explain where God was coming from on this subject?

Answer
Hi Brison! Great question, I would answer by telling you that scripture tells us that David was a man after God's own heart. David was blessed to be favored by God and although he had his limitations and fell short in his personal life, he was a devout Champion of God and his people. David was a great warrior and a great King, but just as God had promised Moses that he would lead the children of Israel to the promised land, God would not allow Moses to be the one to lead them into the Holy Land. That task fell to Joshua, just as building the Temple fell to Solomon after David's reign. In both cases God used the victories of one generation to pass his blessings on to another generation. God also used this generational example as a template for the coming of the Messiah, he could have made David the Messiah, but chose instead one of his descendants, Jesus. The building of the temple by one of David's descendants (Solomon) is a perfect allegory for the building of God's church by another of David's descendant's (Jesus).  Why did God choose this example? Possibly as a test of the faithfulness of generations to come, possibly as an example for future generations, and possibly to form a bridge of faith from one generation to the next or as a bridge from one faith (Judaism) to the next (Christianity). There are several possibilities, but the good news is that the generational bridge held up. Today, if you visit Temple Mount in Jerusalem, you can find both Jews and Christians worshipping side by side a stone's throw from the remnants of Solomon's Temple and King David's tomb. I went to Jerusalem during the summer and I found this to be quite striking and memorable. I hope this helps.
Keep the Faith! Miles