God made five special agreements (called covenants) with his people in the Old Testament:
God promised Noah, his family, and the creation that a flood would never again destroy the world (Genesis 6:18; 9:1–17). This is called the Noachian covenant.
God promised Abraham the land of Canaan and that he would become a great nation (Genesis 15:1–21; 17:1–27). This is called the Abrahamic covenant.
God began a special relationship with Israel at Mount Sinai through Moses (Exodus 19–23). This is called the Mosaic covenant.
God promised Aaron's grandson Phinehas that his descendants would be priests (Numbers 25:10–13). This is called the Priestly covenant.
God promised David that he and his descendants would be kings (2 Samuel 7:4–17). This is called the Davidic covenant.
God also promised through Jeremiah to make a future “new covenant" (Jeremiah 31:31–34).
In 2 Samuel 7, God's promise to David is not called a covenant. But other passages do call it a covenant (see 23:5; 2 Chronicles 7:18; 21:7; Psalms 89:3–4, 28–29; 132:11–12; Isaiah 55:3; Jeremiah 33:20–21). God's promise to David that his "loving devotion will never be removed" suggests a covenant relationship (2 Samuel 7:15). Like God's promise to Abraham, his covenant with David is unconditional. It ultimately relies on God's unchanging love, not on human obedience or faithfulness.
The most important part of God's covenant with David is God's promise to always continue David's descendants and to be like a father to them (compare 1 Kings 11:36; 15:4; 2 Kings 8:19). God's blessing on David's son Solomon partly fulfills this promise (compare 2 Samuel 7:10–11 with 1 Kings 8:56; see also 1 Kings 8:20, 24). God was patient with the kings of Judah, even when they did evil things. This was because of his promise to David (see 1 Kings 11:12–13; 15:3–5).
The complete fulfillment of God's promise to David is in the Messiah, Jesus Christ, the "Son of David" (see Matthew 9:27; 20:30–31; 21:9, 15). Isaiah prophesied that someone who would "reign from the throne of David and over his kingdom … forevermore" (Isaiah 9:7). He called him the "shoot" growing "from the stump of Jesse" (Isaiah 11:1). These references point to the coming Messiah (God's chosen one).
Four passages in the New Testament show that Jesus fulfills the promises made to David by directly referring to 2 Samuel 7:1–29 (Luke 1:32–33; Acts 2:29–31; 13:22–23; Hebrews 1:5). The New Testament begins and ends by calling Jesus "the son of David," the heir to his throne (Matthew 1:1; Revelation 22:16).
Passages for Further Study
2 Samuel 7:5–16; 1 Kings 8:20–24; 11:9–13; 15:1–5; 2 Kings 8:18–19; 2 Chronicles 7:17–22; Psalms 89:3–4, 18–51; 132:10–12; Isaiah 9:6–7; 11:1–10; Jeremiah 33:20–26; Matthew 1:1; 20:30–31; 21:1–9; Luke 1:30–33, 67–79; Acts 2:22–36; Revelation 22:16