This is a psalm which I hope will grow on you. It appears at first sight a bit daunting and difficult.

But I hope that after you get to grips with it, you’ll agree with me that it’s a great psalm. It’s about a faithful God who keeps His promises. It’s a royal psalm that leads us ultimately to see Jesus the Anointed of God.

You’ll notice its length. The average length of these psalms of ascents is six verses. This psalm however has 18 verses: three times the average. Why? Perhaps it’s an indication of its importance.

We don’t know the date or the author of the psalm. It may have been David who wrote it in celebration of the day when he brought the ark of the Lord back to Zion (2 Sam. 6). It may have been Solomon or some other who wrote it for use at the dedication of the Temple (1 Kings 8). It may have been Ezra or Nehemiah who composed it for the rededication of the second temple in the days after the return from exile. The fact is: we just don’t know the author and it doesn’t really matter. It’s an inspired song that speaks of Christ.

It’s a very appropriate psalm of ascents. It’s all about Jerusalem, Zion, David and his hopes and vision of the future. Imagine the pilgrims standing in Jerusalem admiring the city and the magnificent Temple. They are reminded of the driving force of the man behind it. They recall the trouble and effort that David expended to see it built. That’s what the first part of the psalm is all about.

Then in the second part of the psalm, the pilgrims look forward to the blessings which God promised David. The psalm is in two equal halves. It’s also ‘bifocal’ as it focuses on things that are close up and things that are far away.

Alec Motyer comments, “The psalm ‘hangs’ on three verses referring to David: verse 1 prays that the Lord will credit to David’s account all the trouble he has taken; verse 10 asks that again for David’s sake — the Lord will favour His anointed king; and finally in verses 17-18 the Lord responds that He intends to establish a strong, anointed monarchy ‘for David’, victorious and flourishing.”

This psalm is a meditation on 2 Samuel 7:1-17. It recounts David’s desire to build a house for the Lord and the Lord’s amazing response: ‘The Lord Himself shall establish a house for you’ (2 Sam. 7: 11).

1. In Praise of David’s Desire and Devotion (1-10)⤒🔗

The opening five verses give credit to David for being the man who wanted to build a house for the Lord. David at this time was well established in Jerusalem. The military situation was stable (2 Sam. 7:1). There was peace. But something bothered him. He was living in a mansion — a luxurious cedar paneled house — while God dwelt in a mere tent (2 Sam. 7:2). It didn’t seem right. He felt guilty and ashamed. He determined therefore to do something about it. The psalm tells us that the matter occupied his mind 24/7. He says, ‘I will not enter my house or go to my bed, I will allow no sleep to my eyes, no slumber to my eyelids, till I find a place for the Lord, a dwelling for the Mighty One of Jacob’ (verses 2­-5). Allowing for poetic licence, David was nonetheless consumed by the idea of building a house for the Lord.

Even so, the Lord subsequently told David that he was not the man to build it. He was a man of war, so how could a man of war build a house of peace? (1 Chron. 22:7-8). Nonetheless, his desire was noble and highly commendable. He had gone to great pains to prepare for the building of the temple. He had set aside 100,000 talents of gold, a million talents of sliver, quantities of bronze and iron too great to be weighed, and wood and stone, and many skilled workmen (1 Chron. 22:14-15).

What’s the lesson? It’s not condemning us necessarily for living in comfortable houses. But if we do, we should exercise the same level of care maintaining the Lord’s meeting house and supporting His work. That’s what the people in Haggai’s day failed to do. But David was a man consumed by the Lord’s business. He spent every waking hour thinking and planning what he could do for the Lord. What about you? How much of your time and thoughts are spent thinking, ‘What (more) can I do for the Lord?’

Verses 6-8 give credit to David for being the man who brought the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem (You can read about it in 2 Sam. 6:1-15). Remember how the Ark had been captured by the Philistines back in the days of Eli? It proved, however, a ‘hot potato’ for the Philistines to handle. Many fell ill with tumours and died (1 Sam. 5:6). Their fish god, Dagon, kept falling over and injuring himself. So the Philistines decided to get rid of the Ark and returned it to Israel on a cart pulled by two cows. It eventu­ally ended up in the house of Abinadab in Kiriath Jearim. There it remained for 20 years — all during the reign of Saul. The Ark was therefore ‘abandoned’ by Israel for many years.

David, however, had never forgotten about the Ark. He had first heard about it in Ephrathah —that is Bethlehem (6). We can only presume that it was part of the instruc­tion he received when he was a lad in the family home of his father Jesse. Now in the days of his king­ship, the Ark was found in ‘the fields of Jaar’ (which is Kiriath Jearim: see 1 Chron. 13:5). He resolved to bring it to Jerusalem. After one failed attempt (remember the Uzzah tragedy: 2 Sam. 6: 6-7), after three months he tried again. This time they followed the Lord’s instructions. There was great rejoicing as it approached the city (2 Sam. 6:12ff). David knew how important it was to have the Ark there. It was His dwelling place, the place of His presence (5, 7). It was His footstool; though His throne is in heaven His feet are on earth (7). It was the Ark of His Might (8). It was the place of reconciliation and forgiveness, which is why it was called the Ark of the Covenant.

David wanted the Lord to be at the centre of the nations worship. He wanted the priests to be what they were meant to be — clothed in justice; and he wanted the people of God to do what they should do — rejoice in the Lord (8-9). ‘Both priests and people were to be united in worship and to reflect the saving righteousness of God’ (Harman). Therein lies a lesson and a challenge.

2. In Praise of God’s Promise to David (11-18)←⤒🔗

Just as David made an oath to the God of Jacob, so the Lord made an even greater oath to David (verses 11-12). You can read it in 2 Sam. 7:12-16. It’s a remarkable promise. Dale Ralph Davis instructs us that that promise to David would not be annulled by death. The Lord said, ‘When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever’ (2 Sam. 7: 12-13). Nor would it be destroyed by sin. ‘When he com­mits iniquity, I will discipline him with the rod of men, but my steadfast love will not depart from him’ (2 Sam. 7:14-15). Nor would it be exhausted by time, ‘And your house and your kingdom shall be made sure forever before me. Your throne shall be established forever’ (2 Sam. 7:16).

David had successors: he had a dynasty. There was a ‘house’ of David that lasted for about 400 years, until 587 BC when it ended with the exile, because of death, sin and failure. Had God therefore failed to keep His oath? The answer is in the New Testament. The angel Gabriel said to Mary concerning the child she was expecting, ‘He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever and of his kingdom there shall be no end’ (Luke 1:32-33). Peter told the people at Pentecost about the resurrection of Jesus. He said David, ‘being therefore a prophet and knowing that God had sworn an oath to him that he would set one of his descendants on his throne ... foresaw and spoke about the resurrection of the Christ’ (Acts 2:30-31). God therefore kept His oath and was building for David a ‘house’ far bigger and better than he could ever have imagined.

‘For the Lord has chosen Zion; he has desired it for his dwelling place: This is my resting place forever; here I will dwell, for I have desired it’ (13-14). Forever? How do we explain that? He no longer dwells in Jerusalem. Has he broken his oath? The answer is again found in the New Testament. ‘But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable angels in festal gathering, and to the assembly of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God the judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, and to Jesus, the mediator of the new covenant’ (Hebrews 12:22-24). Where is Zion now? It’s where Christ is — at the heart of His redeemed people. The earthly Jerusalem was only a temporary Zion; it was a type or picture of the heavenly Zion. There in Zion God has promised that He will provide for the needs of His people and will also clothe her priests with salvation and her saints shall ever sing with joy (15-16).

The psalm closes on a high note (17-18). It mentions a horn, a lamp, and a crown. These are symbols of strength, clarity and royal dignity. God’s promised King — His Anointed One — the Messiah — will have strength; His crown will shine; He will triumph over His enemies and He will reign forever. The psalm is therefore being fulfilled in Christ. He is the fulfilment of David’s desire; and the Lord has kept His oath to David. God is a faithful God who keeps His promises. ‘All the promises of God find their Yes in him’ (2 Cor. 1:19).

Prayer:←⤒🔗

Loving Father, you have on oath promised us a Saviour, Jesus Christ, your Son. We thank you that He delights to be in the midst of His people and has promised that He will abide with us until the consummation of the world. Bless us in all we seek to do for you and fill us with your joy. May you direct and keep us in peace, through the same Jesus Christ. Amen.