Lectionary Year B
July 20, 2003
II Samuel 7:1-14a

Step II: Disposition

A. Genre

(JFC) This pericope seems like a narrative of conversations and history. David and Nathan converse, God talks to Nathan and also states a relatively long discourse of recent history of Israel before concluding by stating a promise for David's family's future. The lines of the earlier dialogue are brief and straight-forward. God's lines are repetitious and interruptory, a few times repeating "Israel" and "people" and interrupting the flow of statements by reciting facts that might not have been in any shorter statements originally.

B. Personal Interaction

(JFC) Does Nathan have the right and/or reputation to suggest David go ahead with his dreams? God seems to think not. God has other ideas; are they necessarily better? They appear here to go unchallenged. Is God being sarcastic or merely rhetorical? Does the mention of judges refer directly and/or only to those in the Book of the Judges?

C. Organization

(JFC) Nathan's directions to David come in the 3rd verse. God's better idea covers verses 5-14, with particular reference in verses 9b-11, not to eliminate the final 3 verses. God's sarcasm might be read in verse 7, where we might read rhetorically questioning.



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