Psalms 132 KJV
The Lord Chose Zion
About This Psalm
David's vow to find a place for God's ark. God's vow to establish David's throne forever. Mutual commitment.
1ord, remember David, and all his afflictions:
2 How he sware unto the LORD, and vowed unto the mighty God of Jacob;
3 Surely I will not come into the tabernacle of my house, nor go up into my bed;
4 I will not give sleep to mine eyes, or slumber to mine eyelids,
5 Until I find out a place for the LORD, an habitation for the mighty God of Jacob.
6 Lo, we heard of it at Ephratah: we found it in the fields of the wood.
7 We will go into his tabernacles: we will worship at his footstool.
8 Arise, O LORD, into thy rest; thou, and the ark of thy strength.
9 Let thy priests be clothed with righteousness; and let thy saints shout for joy.
10 For thy servant Davidโs sake turn not away the face of thine anointed.
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.
12 If thy children will keep my covenant and my testimony that I shall teach them, their children shall also sit upon thy throne for evermore.
13 For the LORD hath chosen Zion; he hath desired it for his habitation.
14 This is my rest for ever: here will I dwell; for I have desired it.
15 I will abundantly bless her provision: I will satisfy her poor with bread.
16 I will also clothe her priests with salvation: and her saints shall shout aloud for joy.
17 There will I make the horn of David to bud: I have ordained a lamp for mine anointed.
18 His enemies will I clothe with shame: but upon himself shall his crown flourish.
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Did You Know?
The psalm's reference to hearing of the ark 'at Ephratah' and finding it in 'the fields of the wood' subtly links Bethlehem's region with Kirjath-Jearim, framing the ark's journey as a divinely guided discovery rather than a mere military transfer.
God's sworn response in verses 11-12 echoes the conditional structure of ancient Near Eastern land grants while ultimately pointing toward an unconditional messianic perpetuity, as the 'fruit of thy body' language is later applied to Christ in Acts 2.
The unusual verb 'bud' for the horn of David in verse 17 evokes agricultural imagery of a sprouting plant, directly anticipating the messianic 'Branch' motif developed in Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Zechariah.
By pairing the priests' clothing with 'righteousness' and 'salvation' in verse 16, the psalm reinterprets Aaronic garments from Exodus 28 as ethical and eschatological realities extended to all saints, not just the priesthood.
The promise that Zion will be both God's 'resting place' and a source of material blessing for the poor in verse 15 fuses the theology of divine indwelling with social provision, a connection rarely made explicit elsewhere in the Psalter.