What does 2 Samuel 7:14 mean when it says 'if He commit iniquity, I will chasten Him with the rod of men'?
It means God will discipline Israel, His son, when they commit iniquity, using human instruments—the 'rod of men' and 'stripes of the children of men.' Israel repeatedly experienced this chastening, as in the book of Judges, yet God never gave up on them.
Les teaches that in 2 Samuel 7, God promises David a kingly line and a son whose kingdom will be established forever. Verse 14 acknowledges that this son may commit iniquity, and if so, God will chasten him with the rod of men—human instruments—and with the stripes of the children of men. Les points out that Israel, as God's son, has constantly been under God's disciplining, over and over. He illustrates this with the book of Judges, where the nation was on a roller coaster: they would rise to spiritual highs under a righteous judge, then fall into sin and rejection, and God would raise another judge to deliver them, only to have them go down again. Yet God chastised them without ever giving up on them.
I will be his father, and he shall be my son. If he commit iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men, and with the stripes of the children of men:
More Questions
Who is the 'He' in 2 Samuel 7:14 who commits iniquity and is chastened?
Israel is the 'He' in 2 Samuel 7:14 who commits iniquity and is chastened by God with the rod of men and stripes of the children of men.