The significance of the Davidic covenant is that God established David's royal bloodline as the perpetual line through which Israel's promised King — Jesus Christ — would come.
In 2 Samuel 7, God promised to set up David's seed after him and to establish the throne of his kingdom forever. Les Feldick teaches that this was not mainly about Solomon's 40-year reign but about a royal bloodline carried through history until the New Testament. Christ, born of Mary with Joseph as His legal father, came down the royal bloodlines of David and Solomon. The covenant therefore explains why Christ came to Israel as her promised King.
2 Samuel 7:12 — God's foundational promise to raise up David's offspring and establish his kingdom.
2 Samuel 7:13 — The verse Les emphasizes: the throne of David's kingdom is established 'for ever.'
2 Samuel 7:14 — The father-son relationship and the chastening caveat that Les connects to Israel's iniquity.
2 Samuel 7:16 — Repeats the 'for ever' promise for David's house, kingdom, and throne.
In 2 Samuel 7, God speaks to David concerning his offspring and his kingdom. Verse 12 reads, 'And when thy days be fulfilled, and thou shalt sleep with thy fathers, I will set up thy seed after thee, which shall proceed out of thy bowels, and I will establish his kingdom.' Verse 13 continues, 'He shall build an house for my name, and I will stablish the throne of his kingdom for ever.' Verse 14 adds, '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.' The promise is repeated and broadened in verse 16: 'And thine house and thy kingdom shall be established for ever before thee: thy throne shall be established for ever.' The scriptural record, therefore, ties David's royal offspring to an everlasting throne and to a father-son relationship with God.
Les Feldick points to 2 Samuel 7 as the record of what we call the Davidic covenant. He stresses that the promise is God's own: 'God says, I will. Not David, but God will.' He explains that the substance of the covenant is not primarily Solomon's 40 years of rule and reign but rather a royal bloodline that would carry all the way up or down through history until the New Testament. When God says, 'I will stablish the throne of his kingdom for ever,' Les emphasizes that this is a perpetual kingdom. Les places the Davidic covenant within the larger Abrahamic covenant. Every covenant that God made with Israel, he says, sits within the bounds of the Abrahamic promise — the nation, the land, and the ruler or government over the kingdom. David becomes the beginning of the royal family from which would come the government: not a democracy but a monarchy, ruled by the King of kings and Lord of lords, a benevolent King whose kingdom will be righteous, fair, and glorious. Finally, Les connects the covenant to Christ. From David's loins would come a royal house — a royal family of kings who would rule over Israel — and through that line would one day come the King of kings, Jesus Christ. Christ was born of Mary with Joseph as His legal father, and both Mary and Joseph come down the royal family bloodlines of David and Solomon. This is why, when John the Baptist presented Jesus as Israel's King, the long view was the kingdom: a king and a kingdom belong together.
The Davidic covenant is recorded in 2 Samuel 7, where God speaks to David through the prophet Nathan. The key promise is in verses 12–14: God will set up David's seed after him and establish his kingdom, He will establish the throne forever, and He will be a father to David's royal son. Les Feldick calls this 'the Davidic covenant' and repeatedly directs his students to 2 Samuel 7.
Les Feldick is emphatic that the promise is not limited to Solomon's 40 years of rule and reign. In 2 Samuel 7:13, God says, 'I will stablish the throne of his kingdom for ever.' Les calls this a perpetual kingdom and says David's royal family was not just for generations of this existence but all the way into eternity. The 'for ever' language is the heart of the covenant.
Les teaches that from David's loins would come a royal family of kings, and through that line of kings would one day come the King of kings — Christ. He notes that Christ was born of Mary with Joseph as His legal father, and that both Mary and Joseph come down the royal family bloodlines of David and Solomon. Because the covenant promised a perpetual throne and a royal bloodline, it identifies Christ as the promised King of Israel.
Les repeatedly says that every covenant God made with Israel is wrapped up inside the Abrahamic covenant. In Genesis 12, God chose Abraham to bring about a nation of people through whom He would communicate and accomplish His plan of redemption. The Abrahamic promise included a nation, a geographical land, and at the appropriate time a ruler or government over the kingdom. David becomes the beginning of the royal family from which that government — a monarchy under the King of kings — would come.
Les explains that when Jesus came and John the Baptist presented Him as Israel's King, the long view was the kingdom. You cannot have a viable kingdom without a king, and a king is of no earthly use unless he has a kingdom. This is what Israel was to have understood — that the promised King had come in keeping with the covenants. The Davidic covenant therefore gives the reason for Christ's first advent: He came to Israel as her promised King.
Abrahamic Covenant Background
Les sets the stage by showing that in Genesis 12 God chose Abraham to bring forth a nation through which He would work out the whole plan of redemption — the larger covenant that surrounds the Davidic covenant.
The Promise in 2 Samuel 7
Les shows that the Davidic covenant begins in 2 Samuel 7, where God — not David — makes the promise: 'I will' set up David's seed and establish his kingdom through a royal bloodline that carries into the New Testament.
The Royal Bloodline and Christ
Les explains that from David's loins would come a royal family of kings, and through that line would come the King of kings — Christ, born of Mary with Joseph as His legal father, both descending from David and Solomon.
The Davidic Covenant Within the Abrahamic
Les identifies 2 Samuel 7 as the Davidic covenant and stresses that every covenant God made with Israel sits within the bounds of the Abrahamic covenant.
A Perpetual Kingdom
Les emphasizes that God promised to establish the throne of David's kingdom not for 40 years but forever — a perpetual kingdom.
The Royal Family Leading to the King
Les lists the Davidic covenant among the other covenants and explains that David was promised a royal family leading up to the King — that is the government of Israel.
Royal Line Into Eternity
Les teaches that David begins the royal family that continues all the way into eternity, and from the line of Abraham and David would come a monarchy ruled by the benevolent King of kings.
King and Kingdom Together
Les explains that all covenants are wrapped up in the Abrahamic covenant, and that a kingdom needs a king just as a king needs a kingdom — so when Jesus was presented as Israel's King, the kingdom was the long view.
2 Samuel 7:12: And when thy days be fulfilled, and thou shalt sleep with thy fathers, I will set up thy seed after thee, which shall proceed out of thy bowels, and I will establish his kingdom.
God's promise that David's own offspring would carry the royal line and that God would establish his kingdom — the foundation of the Davidic covenant.
2 Samuel 7:13: He shall build an house for my name, and I will stablish the throne of his kingdom for ever.
The 'for ever' pledge that Les highlights as making the kingdom perpetual rather than limited to Solomon's lifetime.
2 Samuel 7:14: 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:
God's father-son relationship with David's royal offspring, with the chastening caveat Les applies to Israel's history.
2 Samuel 7:16: And thine house and thy kingdom shall be established for ever before thee: thy throne shall be established for ever.
Restates the everlasting character of David's house and throne — the heart of the covenant's significance.
The Davidic covenant is God's promise to David recorded in 2 Samuel 7. God promised that from David's own body would come a royal bloodline and that He would establish the throne of his kingdom forever. Les Feldick notes that God says 'I will' — the promise depends on God, not on David.
Les Feldick teaches that through David's royal line would come the King of kings. Christ was born of Mary with Joseph as His legal father, and both Mary and Joseph descend from the royal bloodlines of David and Solomon. The covenant therefore identifies Christ as Israel's promised King.
No. Les Feldick emphasizes that the promise in 2 Samuel 7 was not primarily about Solomon's 40-year reign but about a royal bloodline that would carry through history. God promised to establish the throne 'for ever' — a perpetual kingdom.
Les teaches that every covenant God made with Israel is wrapped up inside the Abrahamic covenant. The Abrahamic promise involved a nation, a land, and a ruler over the kingdom. David begins the royal family from which the King would come.
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