When Solomon dedicated the temple, he said at the end of his great prayer, “arise, O Lord God, into thy resting place, thou, and the ark of thy strength”, 2 Chron. 6. 41, 42. The fact that these two verses are repeated in verses 8-10 of this psalm shows that Psalm 132 was a psalm of Solomon when the ark was brought into the newly completed temple.
In verses 1-7, Solomon recalls his father David’s exercises regarding the choice of a place for His habitation. So David placed the ark in a tent on mount Zion, 1 Chron. 16. 1, the ark having been found “in the fields of the wood”, Psa. 132. 6, namely Kirjath-jearim, 1 Sam. 7. 1; 1 Chron. 13. 6.
In verses 8-13, we have Solomon’s prayer. He was concerned about
- the priests being clothed with righteousness, v. 9;
- the perpetuation of David’s royal line, vv. 10-11;
- the Lord’s desire for mount Zion, v. 13. (This is surprising, since the temple was built on mount Moriah, and the ark had been taken “out of … Zion”, 1 Kings 8. 1.
In verses 14-18 we have God’s answer. All three points are dealt with,
- The priests would be clothed with salvation, v. 16.
- David’s line would bud, v. 17.
- God had chosen Zion for His habitation, v. 14.
Here are many lessons for believers today,
- The lives of all believers as priests in the local church should match their lives as lived in the world. Peter is concerned about this in 1 Peter 2. 1-11; as living stones forming a holy priesthood, we must lay “aside all malice, and all guile, and hypocrisies, and envies, and all evil speakings”, abstaining “from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul”,
- David’s line leading to Christ would speak to us of the Lord’s divine authority over His people today. For example, in the record of the church at Antioch, the title “Lord” appears five times in Acts 11. 20-26, showing their submission to His authority,
- The chosen place for the Lord’s presence today is seen in His words, “where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them”, Matt. 18. 20. He does not dwell now “in temples made with hands”, Acts 7. 48, but in the hearts of His people by faith, Eph. 3. 17.
“We will … make our abode with him”, John 14. 23.
