The Psalms of Ascent, Jerusalem, Zion, and Jesus -- a study of Psalm 132
- mww
- 2 days ago
- 17 min read
God chose Jerusalem to be the site of His temple.
Bible Study Ideas and Commentary for Psalm 132
This very interesting "psalm of ascent" brings together the important themes of Zion (the location of God's primary place of worship) and the Davidic line (God's chosen line of kings for His people) in a prayer that Zion would be a place of righteousness and true worship. Today, we realize that this is eternally fulfilled in Jesus and the New Jerusalem.
May your priests be clothed with righteousness, and may your faithful people shout for joy. (132:9)
Thoughts about Independence Day and the World
Last week, we were told to "Say among the nations, 'The Lord reigns!'" World events this week have reminded us that doing so can be dangerous. So, on this weekend that our church is commemorating Independence Day for the United States, what do we do with all of the war and unrest around the world?
First and foremost, as Christians we need to be aware of it and pray about it. One psalm we are not studying this quarter is Psalm 2, which opens with,
1 Why do the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain? 2 The kings of the earth take their stand, and the rulers conspire together against the Lord and his Anointed One.
As its heart, all war is an act of human rebellion against God's reign as King, as people try to "write their own destiny" and control everyone around them. And it's nothing new. Bring in a headline or two about America or about freedom in general, and pray about it together as a class. My next section gives some ideas about how you can use the psalms to do so.
But don't let your group get "woe is me" when doing so. This encouraging (and gut-wrenching) article was just posted on Baptist Press --
It's an important reminder that the war with Israel (and the United States) is an act of the Islamic Republic, the oppressive regime under which all Iranians live, including many Christians. Most Iranians don't want this war, and they do not have the freedom to speak out (without heavy reprisal). The same can be said for people living in Russia, in China, and in North Korea. People living without real freedoms under authoritarian regimes.
Pray for people living in dangerous and oppressive countries -- not only the Christians, but also the lost people whose access to the gospel is restricted. And then appreciate how hard it must be for those Christians to pray for their governments!
Praying for Your Government with the Psalms
The Bible is very clear that Christians are supposed to pray for our government for the purpose of peace and safety for all --
2 Tim 2:1 First of all, then, I urge that petitions, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for everyone, 2 for kings and all those who are in authority, so that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity.
And that's exactly how this week's psalm (Psalm 132) begins:
Lord, remember [King] David...
In a nutshell, "God, remember the promises You made to David to help him be a great king and to establish Your 'capital' in Jerusalem."
So, how can we use the psalms to help us pray for our government?
I've already mentioned that the Psalms were intended to be God's people's "prayer book". The idea is that there is a psalm that can help you put into words your thoughts and feelings and express them to God.
For this particular topic, let's start with Psalm 1:
1 How happy is the one who does not walk in the advice of the wicked or stand in the pathway with sinners or sit in the company of mockers! 2 Instead, his delight is in the Lord’s instruction, and he meditates on it day and night.
Pray that the leader in mind would be that person who delights in God's truth and does not listen to wicked advisers.
Or Psalm 2:
10 So now, kings, be wise; receive instruction, you judges of the earth. 11 Serve the Lord with reverential awe and rejoice with trembling. 12 Pay homage to the Son or he will be angry and you will perish in your rebellion, for his anger may ignite at any moment. All who take refuge in him are happy.
Substituting "kings" for any leader, pray that they would be wise, that they would submit to God and not rebel against Jesus' salvation and reign. Psalm 2 is taken to be a reference to Jesus, so your prayer also needs to include that leader's personal salvation.
David wrote Psalm 101:
5 I will destroy anyone who secretly slanders his neighbor; I cannot tolerate anyone with haughty eyes or an arrogant heart. 6 My eyes favor the faithful of the land so that they may sit down with me. The one who follows the way of integrity may serve me. 7 No one who acts deceitfully will live in my palace; the one who tells lies will not be retained here to guide me.
I think of this psalm as David's attempt to pray Psalm 1 for himself. You can pray that your leader will take up this attitude for him/herself.
So there you go, some ideas for how to use the psalms to pray for leaders.
Now, let's finally move on to --
Getting Started: Things to Think About
Yes, I realize the above section is a quintessential "thing to think about", but you might prefer to open your Bible study time with slightly lighter fare.
Have You Been Part of a Church Plant or Relocation?
At its heart, this week's psalm is a celebration that God helped David identify and establish Zion (Jerusalem) as His "capital" (more on this below). The ark (and the Tabernacle -- a symbol of God's dwelling place) had been on a long and winding road, and David helped put them in a permanent home in Jerusalem.
If you've ever been part of the process of finding a permanent location for a church, you know how fraught it can be. (And if no one in your group has, then you might want to skip to the next idea.) The physical location of a church is a huge deal, and it will have a lot to do with that church's growth and stability. What were the biggest factors in the search you were a part of? And how did you feel when the final location was finally purchased?
I've mentioned the saga of the church in Wichita that Shelly and I joined after we married, their need to downsize and relocate. This brief article is the only update I can find on years (!) of effort:
Finding the Perfect Place to Live
If the church-move idea doesn't work for your group, you can always revert to house-hunting. If anyone has recently looked for a house, this is your trigger warning. What are the factors that go into looking for a house? (Or more generally, the place you want to live.) ("Job" is in the background of everything, followed by "school", and I'll lump those under the general "quality of life" category.)
There seem to be three common factors in searching for a place to live:
Quality of life (Sarasota is a current internet poster child)
Affordability (Albuquerque)
Weather (San Diego)
(And basically, you can't find all three unless you're extremely wealthy.) For you personally, how have you prioritized your factors in your city and house search?
What's the Most Important Thing in Life?
And if nobody in your group interested in talking about house-hunting, then you can take a step back to a broader discussion about the important things in life. Something like, "What is most important to you when you think about where you live?" My guess is that you'll hear answers about family, comfort/security, community, and friends. You could then keep all of those in mind when you talk about the history of Jerusalem becoming the capital of Israel.
This Week's Big Idea: A History of Jerusalem and the Ark
A few months ago, we studied Exodus and the instructions to build the Tabernacle and the Ark of the Covenant.
The Tabernacle would be "God's house" among the Israelites, and He would "dwell" above the ark, which would be housed in the Most Holy Place. We talked about the symbolism of God being with them, but the people needing to progress through the sacrifices to deal with their sin so they could be in His presence safely. For our purposes, the point is that the Israelites associated the ark with God's presence. The people followed the ark in the conquest of the Promised Land (for example, Jericho). The books of Joshua and Judges and 1 Samuel tell us that the ark was kept in Gilgal, Shechem, Bethel, and eventually Shiloh. The superstitious Israelites lost the ark in combat with the Philistines, and the first 7 chapters of 1 Samuel document what happened next. This fantastic map from thebiblejourney.com makes it as simple as possible:
After the Philistines realized it wasn't safe for the ark to be around them, they sent it off to Kiriath Jearim, where it sat for 20 years (because the Israelites were afraid of it).
When David became king, he sought to bring the ark to his seat of power, "The City of David". Read 2 Samuel 6 for some very important events associated with that journey.
Now -- where was the "city of David" and why was David bringing the ark there? For that, we go back a chapter to 2 Samuel 5:
3 So all the elders of Israel came to the king at Hebron. King David made a covenant with them at Hebron in the Lord’s presence, and they anointed David king over Israel. 4 David was thirty years old when he began his reign; he reigned forty years. 5 In Hebron he reigned over Judah seven years and six months, and in Jerusalem he reigned thirty-three years over all Israel and Judah. 6 The king and his men marched to Jerusalem against the Jebusites who inhabited the land. The Jebusites had said to David, “You will never get in here. Even the blind and lame can repel you” thinking, “David can’t get in here.” 7 Yet David did capture the stronghold of Zion, that is, the city of David. ... 9 David took up residence in the stronghold, which he named the city of David.
We learn in Joshua 15 and Judges 1 that the Israelites captured the city (called "Jebus") but didn't drive the inhabitants ("Jebusites") out, so the Jebusites fortified it during the time of the Judges.
Why would David care about this and want to make that his capital? Well, think back to the reasons we talked about for people choosing a place to live. And then think about the things that would have been important in ancient times.
Practical Reasons
Defense. It's hard to tell today because the area has been entirely built over by a massive modern city, but the original Jebus was on a hill between two valleys. If the outer defenses were breached, invading armies would have to march unprotected down a valley and then up into a thick fortification. There's a reason why the Jebusites didn't think David could conquer their city.
Water. The Gihon Spring, to which the Jebusites had dug a shaft through the rock, emptied out into the Pool of Siloam, located just outside the city walls. It's still a reliable source of water today. Because of the shaft, the city inhabitants had access to water, and they could shut off the flow of water to the Pool of Siloam. (The men of Jebus didn't think to defend the shaft against the invading Israelites.)
Political Reasons
Jerusalem is on the border of the tribal allotments of Judah and Benjamin (and very close to Dan and Ephraim), and it's basically in the middle of Israelite territory. From there, David could get just about anywhere in the kingdom quickly, and he could reasonably say that he was not unduly influenced by any one tribe.
Religious Reasons -- the most important
The primary reason David claimed Jerusalem as his capital and put the ark there is because God told him to (see verse 14). The name "Jerusalem" basically means "city of shalom". And there is a beautiful reason why. Here are the relevant Bible verses:
Gen 14:17 After Abram returned from defeating Chedorlaomer and the kings who were with him, the king of Sodom went out to meet him in the Shaveh Valley (that is, the King’s Valley). 18 Melchizedek, king of Salem, brought out bread and wine; he was a priest to God Most High.
Gen 22:1 After these things God tested Abraham and said to him, “Abraham!” “Here I am,” he answered. 2 “Take your son,” he said, “your only son Isaac, whom you love, go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains I will tell you about.”
1 Chron 21:18 So the angel of the Lord ordered Gad to tell David to go and set up an altar to the Lord on the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite.
2 Chron 3:1 Then Solomon began to build the Lord’s temple in Jerusalem on Mount Moriah where the Lord had appeared to his father David, at the site David had prepared on the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite.
Ps 76: 1 God is known in Judah; his name is great in Israel. 2 His tent is in Salem, his dwelling place in Zion.
David built an altar on a hill (Mount Moriah) located next to the city Jebus. Mount Moriah is also considered to be the place where Abraham took Isaac for sacrifice. And further, it is believed that Melchizedek once had some kind of temple nearby. (And an unproveable but wonderful theory is that the Garden of Eden was originally placed on Mount Moriah.) And "Zion" would be another name for Mount Moriah.
So, Mount Moriah was foundational to Abraham's relationship with God, and so that should be the eventual home for God's Temple.
Some confusion -- David Lambert explained to me why people sometimes get confused by this. When the Crusaders conquered the region, they didn't find the City of David because it had been destroyed by the Romans and centuries of looting. Instead, they found a settlement on the next hill over, and that's what they called "Mount Zion". It was an error.
Mount Zion = Mount Moriah = Temple Mount
Psalm 132 and the Psalms of Ascent
Psalms 120-134 are each called "A song of ascents". When Jews took a pilgrimage to Jerusalem, they sang these psalms along the way. The psalms aren't long -- you can read them all pretty quickly and see the themes, not just about Zion, and not just about God's protection of His people, but also about preparing one's heart to be in God's presence. Psalm 132 is the longest of them, and it focuses the most heavily on the themes of David's kingship and God's kingdom.
I mentioned Psalm 2 above (twice). Here's more of it:
2:4 The one enthroned in heaven laughs; the Lord ridicules them. 5 Then he speaks to them in his anger and terrifies them in his wrath: 6 “I have installed my king on Zion, my holy mountain.” 7 I will declare the Lord’s decree. He said to me, “You are my Son; today I have become your Father.
You can see how all of these themes come together in Psalm 132.
God has chosen Zion as His "capital" on earth.
God has anointed His Son to be King of His people forever.
Today, we know that this is ultimately fulfilled in Jesus Christ, the Son of God. The Israelites simply knew that the king (in the line of David) would be the anointed ruler. And in several ways, David was a "type" (a foreshadow) of Christ. But whereas the early Jews assumed that those promises must have been fulfilled in and to David, we realize today that they were completely fulfilled in Jesus.
And that should help explain these prayers for David (or the king). We obviously don't need to "pray for Jesus" -- that God remembers His promises to Jesus, or that Jesus would be a faithful leader. But the Jews had a "regular" sinful man in mind when they thought of the king, and so they faithfully offered these prayers.
Part 1: Praying for Leaders (Psalm 132:1-10)
1 Lord, remember David and all the hardships he endured, 2 and how he swore an oath to the Lord, making a vow to the Mighty One of Jacob: 3 “I will not enter my house or get into my bed, 4 I will not allow my eyes to sleep or my eyelids to slumber 5 until I find a place for the Lord, a dwelling for the Mighty One of Jacob.” 6 We heard of the ark in Ephrathah; we found it in the fields of Jaar. 7 Let’s go to his dwelling place; let’s worship at his footstool. 8 Rise up, Lord, come to your resting place, you and your powerful ark. 9 May your priests be clothed with righteousness, and may your faithful people shout for joy. 10 For the sake of your servant David, do not reject your anointed one.
I feel like I've given you way more background than you need on this passage. So let me give you some more -- read 2 Samuel 7. That chapter explains what David wanted to do and why God wouldn't let him do it.
The point is that David was utterly committed to finding a home for the ark. Even though David did not build the Temple, this psalm combines King David with Jerusalem and Mount Zion.
Ephrathah is the region around Bethlehem; that's where David was when he heard about the location of the ark. The "fields of Jaar" is Kiriath Jearim.
It's possible that the psalm is written as if David had said verses 6-9 -- he went to the ark in Kiriath Jearim, worshiped the Lord there, and then took the ark to its home on Mount Moriah (Zion).
Verses 7-9 would eventually be a pilgrim's song: "Let's go to the Temple Mount. God, meet us there in Your glory. And when we get there, may the priests and people be worthy."
I would recommend focusing on verse 9 for discussion. The pilgrim (psalmist), on the way to Jerusalem, is hoping to find a setting where the priests are right at their jobs and the people are truly worshiping. Today, when people visit a church, what are they hoping to find?
You and I represent that entire equation. As a pastor, I fall under the "priest" part of this illustration. People have expectations for what kind of man I should be and what kind of a job I should do. Some of those expectations are even reasonable! Am I fulfilling my part?
And for everyone "sitting in the pews" -- are you faithfully and joyfully worshiping our glorious God in our church services?
Verse 10 is basically the ongoing prayer, that as the generations pass God would continue to bless David's descendants on the throne, and that's what the next section is about. Today, we realize that this is ultimately fulfilled in Jesus, Son of David and Son of God.
Bonus Big Idea: Leadership in the Southern Baptist Convention
It's always a little awkward for a Baptist to decide how these "pray for the king" psalms apply to us. Psalm 132 specifically mentions the king, the priests, and the soon-to-be temple -- in the context of ancient Israel, a nation/religion/family. So, a pretty unique socio-political situation that has little to do with Christians today.
Two weeks ago, the Southern Baptist Convention met in Dallas for their annual convention. There, they elected new leaders, voted on an annual budget, and did other official things.
If your group members don't have a Southern Baptist background, this might be a worthwhile pit stop. Annually, we elect a president; this year it is Clint Pressley. He is often called upon to make public statements, speak at big events, and politick with the various factions in SBC life. But the work of the SBC is massive -- 47,000 churches, 13,000,000 members, $450,000,000 in giving, more than 6,000 missionaries home and abroad. So, each major SBC agency has a hired staff, and they are all overseen by a board of elected trustees who are members of SBC churches. For example, the Executive Committee's hired President and CEO is Jeff Iorg; the elected chairman of the Board of Trustees for the EC is Tony Dockery. You can find out more at
All of that to say ...
Those Southern Baptist entities have absolutely no authority over any Southern Baptist church. We voluntarily associate with the SBC. They are neither our "king" nor our "priest". So, should we still pray for them?
Yes, of course we should.
Our church sends a percentage of the tithes we receive to help fund that budget they voted on, so we should absolutely pray for those people who work to put that budget drat together. And the work they do directly affects churches and church plants and missionary work all over the world, so we should absolutely pray that they are representing Jesus well and serving in righteousness.
Part 2: Remembering God's Commitments (Psalm 132:11-14)
11 The Lord swore an oath to David, a promise he will not abandon: “I will set one of your offspring on your throne. 12 If your sons keep my covenant and my decrees that I will teach them, their sons will also sit on your throne forever.” 13 For the Lord has chosen Zion; he has desired it for his home: 14 “This is my resting place forever; I will make my home here because I have desired it.
There's not much to add here. That "if" basically explains the rest of the Old Testament. David's descendants did not keep the covenant ... until Jesus.
David put the ark on Mount Moriah / Mount Zion because God told him to. So, why did God choose this place? Much of human history has been shaped by God's decision to do so. And the way I read Revelation 21, it sure seems as if the New Jerusalem is going to be located at the same place as the current Jerusalem. Maybe we can ask Him the why, though I doubt we're much worried about that when we get to heaven. Zion has to be located somewhere, right?
We should read verse 14 (and 15-16; not sure why Lifeway excluded those two verses) as God's answer to the request in verses 8-9. But whereas the psalmist asks that the priests would be clothed in righteousness, God responds (v. 16) that they will be clothed in salvation. It's a subtle escalation that the eternal state of affairs in God's temple (i.e., heaven) will be even better than the people could imagine. The worshipers will not just sing for joy (v. 9) -- they will forever sing for joy (v. 16).
Go ahead and take this section through verse 16.
Part 3: A Look Ahead to Jesus (Psalm 132:17-18)
17 There I will make a horn grow for David; I have prepared a lamp for my anointed one. 18 I will clothe his enemies with shame, but the crown he wears will be glorious.”
Even Jewish scholars recognize these verses as a Messianic reference. ("Anointed one" is literally "messiah", but we're talking about the capital-M "Messiah".) One day, one of David's descendants will be the Messiah, and God will give him (Him) a ... lamp and a crown. ? That's ... interesting.
"Crown" we can make sense of. This is poetry, so the crown is a metonymy for the reign of the king. The word for "glorious" basically means "shine" -- his (His) reign will be noteworthy all over the world.
"Lamp" is a deep cut to 1 Kings 11 (or vice versa, whichever was written first). Late in Solomon's reign, Solomon's servant Jeroboam rebelled and tried to usurp Solomon. A prophet then says this:
31 and said to Jeroboam, “Take ten pieces for yourself, for this is what the Lord God of Israel says: ‘I am about to tear the kingdom out of Solomon’s hand. I will give you ten tribes, 32 but one tribe will remain his for the sake of my servant David and for the sake of Jerusalem, the city I chose out of all the tribes of Israel. 33 For they have abandoned me; they have bowed down to Ashtoreth, the goddess of the Sidonians, to Chemosh, the god of Moab, and to Milcom, the god of the Ammonites. They have not walked in my ways to do what is right in my sight and to carry out my statutes and my judgments as his father David did. 34 However, I will not take the whole kingdom from him but will let him be ruler all the days of his life for the sake of my servant David, whom I chose and who kept my commands and my statutes. 35 I will take ten tribes of the kingdom from his son and give them to you. 36 I will give one tribe to his son, so that my servant David will always have a lamp before me in Jerusalem, the city I chose for myself to put my name there.
In 2 Sam 21:17, one of David's soldiers says that David's life is "the lamp of Israel" -- in other words, "lamp" = "line of the king". Here, God says that the kingship has been prepared for His "anointed one", which is ultimately a reference to Jesus.
"Horn" is a reference to an ox horn, a symbol of power and might
Aside: The "If"
I hope you noticed in that 1 Kings 11 passage that David's own son, the very next king in his line, would violate the "if clause" of verse 12. Not a good start.
Closing Thoughts: Applying the Psalm
In the psalm, the psalmist asks God for an opportunity to encounter Him in a meaningful time of worship -- led by faithful priests, joined by faithful worshipers, and located in God's glorious temple in the safe city God led David to establish.
Today, we understand that this is eternally fulfilled in the New Jerusalem, where God's people (including us!) will worship Him in His presence forever.
Jerusalem is currently the center of a world war waiting to happen, but one day God will put an end to all war. That is our prayer for this Independence Day holiday, that people would get to enjoy freedom, and that Christians would use that freedom to spread the gospel further.
But I think we can pray this for ourselves, knowing that we are now "the temple of the Holy Spirit". Pray that our churches would be led by faithful pastors, that we would worship God faithfully and joyfully, and that our church buildings would be safe places of community and encountering God. Don't we need all of this, too?