Israel was so powerful at that time that most of the nations around them paid tribute to the King. The point is, David was in the will of God. God was executing His righteous judgment through David and the Israelite armies, although we know it was from the hand of God and not from the arm of the flesh that they were delivered (Zech 4:6). Even though David had blood on his hands, it was God’s will that he be used by God as His sovereign right hand in doing His will. If they were allowed to live in the land, the Israelites would eventually adopt their religion, or they’d mix it in with their own worship, but God ensured these nations would be put under subjection by the hand of David. God wanted these nations out of the Promised Land so that they wouldn’t pollute the true worship of God. Many of them practiced pagan religions that included child sacrifice. There was nothing evil in what David did in destroying these nations. So why couldn’t David build the temple of God as he desired? Blood Stained Hands It was because David repented (Psalm 51) and more, that God considered David a man after His own heart (Acts 13:22). God gave them peace in the land, despite David’s great sin with Bathsheba and having her husband murdered (Uriah). It took several years for David to gain peace in the land, but by the time David sat upon the throne, the nation was at its zenith in size and strength. It was “when the king lived in his house and the LORD had given him rest from all his surrounding enemies, the king said to Nathan the prophet, “See now, I dwell in a house of cedar, but the ark of God dwells in a tent.” And Nathan said to the king, “Go, do all that is in your heart, for the LORD is with you” (2 Sam 7:1-3). It was many years before the land had peace. David wanted to build the temple of God, but God said no, so why couldn’t David build the Temple of God? Consolidating PowerĪfter King Saul had died, it took some time for King David to establish the nation of Israel.

The prophet nathan and king david