Hundreds and hundred of Nikkor lenses will fit the D700. And YES, as 480sparky said, DX lenses can be recognized by the D700, and they CAN be used on Nikon full-frame cameras. They might not cover the entire 24 x 36mm frame area, at all lengths; some will cover the entire 4 to 5 aspect ratio, leaving the far corners.edges black, but still...makes a nice 4x5 or 8x10 aspect image! PLUS...they WILL cover the entire DX-crop area on a full-frame Nikon body like the D700.
One good good thing about the D700 is that 12MP on FX does not "stress" the optics. The image is big to begin with, (24x36mm sensor), and the MP is low-ish, so...you can use a huge number of lenses!
Yeah...the 24-85mm, non-VR AF-S lens is handy. I have one, not too shabby, very handy a lens, AF-S autofocus, easy to carry.
There are DOZENS of common Nikon zooms that will work on the D700. I would go to Ken Rockwell.com, and look at some of his lens reviews. If you are a beginner, I would tend to stick to the AF, or AF-D, or AF-S, or AF-S G series zoom lenses, for the autofocusing. Some of the older lenses for 35mm autofocus cameras are inexpensive, and decent on the 12-MP FX Nikon. The 28-105mm AF-D is a good example: inexpensive, has a good close-up "macro" mode, and is pretty inexpensive, good for a weekender type lens.