But they shall serve the Lord their God
And him only, in a spiritual manner, in righteousness and true holiness, with reverence and godly fear; having respect to all his precepts and ordinances, and every branch of religious worship; joining themselves to Gospel churches, and worshipping along with them, before them, and in the midst of them; see ( Revelation 3:9 ) ; and David their king;
not literally, who shall be raised up from the dead, and reign over them, which Kimchi supposes possible, though he does not assert it; nor his successors called by his name, as the kings of Egypt were called Pharaohs and Ptolemies, and the Roman emperors Caesars, of which we have no instance; nor were there any kings of David's line upon the throne of Israel after the Babylonish captivity, until the Messiah came, and who is the Person here meant; and so the Targum paraphrases it,
``and they shall hearken to, or obey, Messiah the son of David their king;''and Kimchi owns that it may be interpreted of Messiah the son of David, whose name is called David, as it is in many prophecies, ( Ezekiel 34:23 Ezekiel 34:24 ) ( Ezekiel 37:24 Ezekiel 37:25 ) ( Hosea 3:5 ) ; and this prophecy is understood of the Messiah by several Jewish writers F19; and in the Talmud F20 it is said,
``the holy blessed God will raise up unto thee another David; as it is said, "and they shall serve the Lord their God, and David their king, whom I will raise up unto them"; it is not said, "he hath raised up", but "I will raise up";''and Christ is called David, not only because he is his son, but because he is his antitype. David was a type of Christ in his birth and parentage; the son of Jesse, born of mean parents, and at Bethlehem; in his outward form, ruddy and beautiful; in his inward character, a man of holiness, wisdom, and courage; in his offices of shepherd, prophet, and king; in his afflictions and sorrows, and in his wars and victories. The same Person is here meant as in the former clause, "the Lord their God"; since it is Jehovah that is here speaking; and he does not say "they shall serve me", but "the Lord their God"; and since the same service is to be yielded to David as to the Lord their God; and who is, in his divine nature, the Lord God, and so the object of all religious worship and service; and, in his human nature, of the seed of David; and by office a King, appointed by his Father, and owned by his people, as King of saints; so the words may be rendered, "they shall serve the Lord their God, even David their King"; see ( Titus 2:13 ) ( Jude 1:4 ) ; whom I will raise up unto them;