Psalm 132

The LORD Has Chosen Zion
A Song of Ascents.

¹Remember, O LORD, in David’s favor,
all the hardships he endured,
²how he swore to the LORD
and vowed to the Mighty One of Jacob,
³"I will not enter my house
or get into my bed,
⁴I will not give sleep to my eyes
or slumber to my eyelids,
⁵until I find a place for the LORD,
a dwelling place for the Mighty One of Jacob."
⁶Behold, we heard of it in Ephrathah;
we found it in the fields of Jaar.
⁷"Let us go to his dwelling place;
let us worship at his footstool!"

⁸Arise, O LORD, and go to your resting place,
you and the ark of your might.
⁹Let your priests be clothed with righteousness,
and let your saints shout for joy.
¹⁰For the sake of your servant David,
do not turn away the face of your anointed one.

¹¹The LORD swore to David a sure oath
from which he will not turn back:"One of the sons of your body
I will set on your throne.
¹²If your sons keep my covenant
and my testimonies that I shall teach them,their sons also forever
shall sit on your throne."

¹³For the LORD has chosen Zion;
he has desired it for his dwelling place:
¹⁴"This is my resting place forever;
here I will dwell, for I have desired it.
¹⁵I will abundantly bless her provisions;
I will satisfy her poor with bread.
¹⁶Her priests I will clothe with salvation,
and her saints will shout for joy.
¹⁷There I will make a horn to sprout for David;
I have prepared a lamp for my anointed.
¹⁸His enemies I will clothe with shame,
but on him his crown will shine."

This psalm refers to 2 important things in the history of Israel: the ark, or Ark of the Covenant, and the promise God made to David, what we call the Davidic Covenant. I’d encourage you to read 2 Samuel 6-7. It is a good amount of reading, but it will give you some great biblical history on how David was involved with the ark and this promise with God. Verses 1-10 take a look at the ark, so let’s go there first…

Ark: The ark was important to the people of Israel because it held the laws that God gave to Moses (yep, the 10 commandments on the stone tablets were in the ark!). It represented God’s covenantal relationship with the Israelites, His people. God’s law was holy. He created it to show Israel His standard of perfection, knowing that no person could attain it. When the ark was in the temple, there was a special place (The Holy of Holies) that the ark was kept. Once a year, a priest would sprinkle blood from an animal sacrificed to God on top of the ark. Instead of God seeing the law and how His people did not meet the standards, God would see the blood that was to atone for the sins of the Israelites.

What do verses 3-5 tell us that David wanted for the ark? Why do you think this was important to him? Look at 2 Samuel 6:6-9. How did David feel about God and the ark at this point? Why? What do you think changed his emotions regarding God and the ark? Do you think there were advantages for David to bring the ark to Jerusalem, the city he was in and the center of Israel?

Promises: God’s promises to David are found in 2 Samuel 7:8-16, read this passage now. What promises were made to David? Part of the promises that we will focus on are found in this psalm in verses 11-12. God tells David that one of his sons will continue to be king and if his descendants keep the way of God, they will also reign as king. The son that took over as king was Solomon. While his reign was not perfect, Solomon was given wisdom from God while he was king (a big chunk of what scholars call ‘wisdom literature’ in the Old Testament was written by Solomon: a lot of Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Solomon). Solomon was able to build the temple that David prayed for (1 Kings 6) and the ark was placed there (1 Kings 8). However, after Solomon, things took a bad turn. His son, Rehoboam, did not listen to the wisdom of the elders and his decisions ended up splitting up the kingdom of Israel (1 Kings 12). So, by David’s grandson it looks like all is lost for this promise!

But here’s my favorite part- it isn’t. Read Luke 1:26-33. Who does it say Jesus is? Whose line is he in (for a complete lineage, check out Matthew 1)? Jesus was born into the line of David. Read verse 18 of this psalm again. Does that verse sound familiar to the life of Christ? Jesus Christ is the answer to this promise that was given to David. Even though David’s descendants did not follow God, He sent His Son, the only one able to follow God’s law perfectly, to reign on David’s throne forever. How do you see Jesus tie into the ark?

I hope this humbles you and boggles the mind a bit. If we look back at David’s story in 2 Samuel 7, he prays for God to allow him to build a resting place for the ark. Instead of saying yes, God blesses David with some pretty amazing promises. These promises could not be filled during David’s lifetime or through the means that man thought, but ultimately they are filled in Jesus Christ. If you have never read about Jesus Christ and His ministry, start out reading in the book of John. I’d encourage you to praise God for this amazing plan and for His Son!