Psalm 132 God’s Sovereign Plans for His People
A song for pilgrims ascending to Jerusalem.
“Lord, remember David and all that he suffered. He made a solemn promise to the Lord. He vowed to the Mighty One of Israel, “I will not go home; I will not let myself rest. I will not let my eyes sleep nor close my eyelids in slumber until I find a place to build a house for the Lord, a sanctuary for the Mighty One of Israel.”
“We heard that the Ark was in Ephrathah; then we found it in the distant countryside of Jaar. Let us go to the sanctuary of the Lord; let us worship at the footstool of his throne.
Arise, O Lord, and enter your resting place, along with the Ark, the symbol of your power. May your priests be clothed in godliness; may your loyal servants sing for joy.
For the sake of your servant David, do not reject the king you have anointed. The Lord swore an oath to David with a promise he will never take back: “I will place one of your descendants on your throne. If your descendants obey the terms of my covenant and the laws that I teach them, then your royal line will continue forever and ever.”
“For the Lord has chosen Jerusalem; he has desired it for his home. “This is my resting place forever,” he said. “I will live here, for this is the home I desired. I will bless this city and make it prosperous; I will satisfy its poor with food. I will clothe its priests with godliness; its faithful servants will sing for joy. Here I will increase the power of David; my anointed one will be a light for my people. I will clothe his enemies with shame, but he will be a glorious king.”
“Lord, remember David and all that he suffered. He made a solemn promise to the Lord. He vowed to the Mighty One of Israel, “I will not go home; I will not let myself rest. I will not let my eyes sleep nor close my eyelids in slumber until I find a place to build a house for the Lord, a sanctuary for the Mighty One of Israel.” If you remember the story of the Ark of the Covenant, the Israelites insisted on taking it into battle, only for the Philistines to defeat the Israelites and capture the Ark. But capturing is not the same as keeping, and after several incidents of divine wrath, including bubonic plague, the Philistines return the Ark to Israel on a cart pulled by milk cows who cry for their calves, even as they head to Israel. The Ark winds up being kept by a family in Kiriath Jearim and later by a man named Obed Edom until David studies God’s commandments and then arranges for the Ark to be brought into Jerusalem carried by priests as Moses has commanded.
“We heard that the Ark was in Ephrathah; then we found it in the distant countryside of Jaar. Let us go to the sanctuary of the Lord; let us worship at the footstool of his throne.”
1 Chronicles 16 describes King David bringing the Ark to Jerusalem, with singing, dancing, and blowing of trumpets. One of the songs David wrote for the musicians to sing was this: “Arise, O Lord, and enter your resting place, along with the Ark, the symbol of your power. May your priests be clothed in godliness; may your loyal servants sing for joy.”
“For the sake of your servant David, do not reject the king you have anointed. The Lord swore an oath to David with a promise he will never take back: “I will place one of your descendants on your throne. If your descendants obey the terms of my covenant and the laws that I teach them, then your royal line will continue forever and ever.” When Jesus Christ came as Messiah, being borne in the lineage of David, these verses literally came true.
“For the Lord has chosen Jerusalem; he has desired it for his home. “This is my resting place forever,” he said. “I will live here, for this is the home I desired. I will bless this city and make it prosperous; I will satisfy its poor with food. I will clothe its priests with godliness; its faithful servants will sing for joy. Here I will increase the power of David; my anointed one will be a light for my people. I will clothe his enemies with shame, but he will be a glorious king.” Was this psalm written during David’s reign or after the Israelites returned from Babylon? We don’t know; all we know is that God has definitely chosen Jerusalem as a holy city.
You might read this psalm and ask, “So what? What does this psalm have to do with me?” First, God knows all our suffering, our fears, our trials, and our failures. But praise God, He has not forgotten us, nor is He indifferent to all our trials. Second, David has set all of us an example, for David began making promises to God back when King Saul was still chasing David all over Israel. David didn’t wait until he was safe before he began serving God; David began as a teenager herding sheep. Third, David completely fulfilled his promises to God, regardless of the cost to himself.
Why does this psalm rate as a psalm of pilgrimage? Pilgrims are focused, traveling to Jerusalem, working toward a goal. No matter what time we are born in, we are all pilgrims headed somewhere. If God has called us to set out on pilgrimage, He will protect us and help us to complete our pilgrimage. When John Wesley, founder of the Methodist Church, was dying, he is quoted as having said, “The best of all is, God is with us.” And He is.
PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and caring for us. Lord, help us to trust that You are leading us and guiding us. Help us to follow hard after You all the days of our lives. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.
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