Temple Baptist Church - 7-6-2025
Psalm 132
Introduction:
A. Psalm 132 is another of the Psalms of Degrees or Upward Psalms that were sung by the pilgrims traveling from around the world to Jerusalem on one of the three feast days, where all males were required to attend.
B. In this beautiful Psalm, we find three tenses: past, present, and future. The Psalm speaks of a rest upon the promises and presence of God among His people, Israel.
C. There is a lot of speculation about who wrote the Psalm, King David or King Solomon. King David is mentioned four times in the Psalms, but there is a strong possibility that King Solomon wrote them, as David’s name was used in the third person, and the verses cover the past rather than the present. Verse 6 shifts from the third person to the first person, distinguishing between the past and the present.
1. If King David wrote the Psalm, it was written concerning his moving the Ark of the Covenant from the house of Obededom to the Tabernacle in Jerusalem, 1 Chronicles 13-15.
2. If King Solomon wrote the Psalm, it was written concerning his moving the Ark from the Tabernacle into Solomon’s Temple in 1 Kings 8 and 2 Chronicles 5-7, where it rested until the Babylonian Captivity.
D. Be it what it may be, the Psalm serves as a reminder that the LORD God chose to dwell among men.
1. Verses 1-5. The Past. The Tabernacle and Solomon’s Temple.
a. Verse 1. David’s Method of moving the Ark was wrong!
1) In 1 Chronicles 13, we find the first attempt to bring the Ark back to the Tabernacle failed, as they carried the Ark of God on a new cart with Uzza and Ahio driving it. The oxen stumbled, and Uzza put his hand to the Ark to steady it and was struck dead.
2) They failed to carry the Ark after “Due Order.” The Ark was left at the home of Obededom for three months, and his house prospered.
b. Verse 2-5. But his heart was right. In 1 Chronicles 15, Israel carried the Ark upon the shoulders of the priests and brought it home as King David danced before the Lord with all his might.
c. King David vowed a vow unto God and kept it! A man after God’s own heart!
1) I will not enter my house.
2) I will not sleep or tire.
3) Until I have found a place of habitation for the mighty God of Jacob!
d. King David’s heart was to build a Temple as the final resting place of the Ark of the Covenant, but God would not allow him to do so.
Psalms 132:11 The LORD hath sworn in truth unto David; he will not turn from it; Of the fruit of thy body will I set upon thy throne.
e. Though King David’s desire consumed him, God chose Solomon to build it because King David was “a man of war, and hast shed blood.”
1 Chronicles 28:2-3 Then David the king stood up upon his feet, and said, Hear me, my brethren, and my people: As for me, I had in mine heart to build an house of rest for the ark of the covenant of the LORD, and for the footstool of our God, and had made ready for the building: (3) But God said unto me, Thou shalt not build an house for my name, because thou hast been a man of war, and hast shed blood.
2. Verses 6-9. The Present.
a. Verse 6. The Promise of the Messiah. I find it interesting that the word “Ephratah” is used here. “Ephratah” is another name used for Bethlehem and means “to bear fruit”. To increase in fruit bearing. Though Christ had not been born at this time, the promise of the Messiah was found in Micah 5:2.
Micah 5:2 But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.
“Ephratah” was a promise of the Word becoming flesh and dwelling among men. The resting place of the Ark was in Jerusalem where Christ the Messiah will one day rule and reign for a thousand years. Dwelling among men once again.
b. Verse 7. The Promise of a Place of Worship. “His tabernacles” is plural: both the Tabernacle in the Wilderness and Solomon’s Temple, where these pilgrims were headed, the LORD was to be worshipped. Today, we are to worship in the local churches.
c. Verses 8-9. The Promise of God’s Presence.
1) Verse 8. The Lord’s Resting Place among His people. The presence of God with His people. “ there am I in the midst.” “Lo, I am with you alway.” “ I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.”
2) Verse 9. The Saint’s Worship in Righteousness. “The beauty of holiness.”
3. Verses 10-13. The Prediction of the Throne. From King David to the fruit of his body, to the Second Coming of Christ.
a. Verse 10. The Prerogative of Succession. Succession depends upon personal choice.
b. Verse 11-12. The Promise of Succession. “The LORD hath sworn in truth unto David; he will not turn from it; Of the fruit of thy body will I set upon thy throne.”
c. Verse 13. The Place of Succession. The LORD hath chosen Zion.
4. The Future. Verses 14-18. All of the above verses highlight human responsibility. This last section could be labeled: “You do what you are supposed to do, and I WILL do what I promised you that I will do.”
a. Verse 14. The Saviour’s Promise of Christ’s Dwelling. Today, the Lord Jesus Christ and the Holy Ghost dwell with their children. At the end of the world as we know it, God will dwell with His people for all eternity, world without end, Amen!
b. Verse 15. The Saviour’s Promise of the Saint’s Provision. Better than in the early days of Adam and Eve, God will supply not only our needs but the desires of our hearts. The Garden of Eden had an “off-limits” tree. The New Heaven and New Earth will have no “off-limits” section. It will ALL be ours.
c. Verse 16. The Saviour’s Promise of Imputed Righteousness. Adam and Eve were clothed with innocence, with the potential to sin. We will all be dressed in His righteousness alone, faultless to stand before His throne.
d. Verse 17. The Saviour’s Promise of Illumination. John the Baptist was a burning light that introduced the Light of the World, Christ Jesus. Today, we still live in a dark world, but our Lord Jesus Christ will be the light of our eternity. Never will we experience or walk in darkness again.
e. Verse 18. The Saviour’s Promise of Christ’s Eternal Throne. Finally, true justice and equality. “Our liberty in Love instead of law.”
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