2 Samuel 7:23

23 Who [is] like your people, like Israel? [Israel is] the one nation on earth whose God {led them}, [in order] to redeem a people for himself, and to make a name for himself, and to do for you the great and awesome things for your land in the presence of your people whom he redeemed for himself from Egypt, [from the] nations and their gods.

2 Samuel 7:23 Meaning and Commentary

2 Samuel 7:23

And what one nation in the earth [is] like thy people, [even]
like Israel
For the knowledge and worship of the true God among them, for laws and or given them, and for blessings of goodness bestowed upon them:

whom God went to redeem for a people to himself;
the words are plural, "whom the gods went to redeem"; the Targum is,

``they that were sent from the Lord,''

meaning Moses and Aaron, of whom Jarchi interprets them, of the first of which it is said, "I have made thee a god unto Pharaoh", ( Exodus 7:1 ) ; but Kimchi and R. Isaiah understand it of the true God, only suppose, as the former, that the plural expression is used for the sake of honour and glory; whereas, no doubt, respect is had to the three divine Persons in the Trinity, who were all concerned in the redemption of Israel, see ( Isaiah 63:9-12 ) , where mention is made of the Lord, and of the Angel of his presence, and of his holy Spirit, as engaged therein:

and to make him a name;
either to get himself a name, and honour and glory in the world, to show forth his power and might, as well as his mercy and goodness, or to make his people famous, great, and glorious in the earth:

and to do for you great things and terrible;
as he did in the land of Ham, at the Red sea, and in the wilderness, and in the land of Canaan, great things for his people, and terrible ones to their enemies:

for thy land;
which is either spoken to God, whose was the land of Israel, and which he had chosen to dwell in, and had given to his people; or else to Israel, to whom the grant of this land was made, and who were put into the possession of it:

before thy people which thou redeemedst to thee from Egypt:
that is, the great and terrible things were done in their sight, when they were redeemed from the bondage of Egypt, see ( Psalms 78:12 ) ;

[from] the nations, and their gods?
meaning, that they were redeemed not only from Egypt, but the nations of the Canaanites were driven out before them; nor could their idols save them, but destruction came upon them as upon the gods of the Egyptians: some leave out the supplement "from", and interpret this of the persons redeemed, even of the nations and tribes of Israel, and their great men, their rulers and civil magistrates, sometimes called gods.

2 Samuel 7:23 In-Context

21 Because of your word and according to your heart, you have done all of this great thing, [in order] to let your servant know.

22 Therefore you [are] great, my lord Yahweh, for there is no one like you, and there [is] no god except you, in all that we have heard with our ears.

23 Who [is] like your people, like Israel? [Israel is] the one nation on earth whose God {led them}, [in order] to redeem a people for himself, and to make a name for himself, and to do for you the great and awesome things for your land in the presence of your people whom he redeemed for himself from Egypt, [from the] nations and their gods.

24 You have established your people Israel for yourself as a people forever, and you, O Yahweh, have become their God.

25 So then, Yahweh God, the word that you have spoken concerning your servant and concerning his house, confirm it forever, and do just as you have promised.

Footnotes

• [a]. Literally "went"; LXX reads "led"
• [b]. David switches pronouns from the third person to the second person