Psalm 132, 133, 134 and 135 … Consider His Desired Dwelling Place

Originally posted: 12/10/2020

For the Lord has chosen Zion;
He has desired it for His habitation.
¹⁴ “This is My resting place forever;
Here I will dwell, for I have desired it,” (132:13-14).

Each of our four psalms today makes at least one reference to either the place He Dwells (resting place/habitation) or to the House of the Lord (or God). The tabernacle, that held the Ark of the Covenant, was a temporary structure that enabled worship of God for the children of Israel. The temple in Jerusalem, often called Zion, was to be the Place where God’s Presence would come to rest among His people. And King David was so committed to building a house for the Lord that he vowed he would not rest until it was accomplished.

Remember, O Lord, on David’s behalf,
All his affliction;
² How he swore to the Lord
And vowed to the Mighty One of Jacob,
³ “Surely I will not enter my house,
Nor lie on my bed;
⁴ I will not give sleep to my eyes
Or slumber to my eyelids,
⁵ Until I find a place for the Lord,
A dwelling place for the Mighty One of Jacob,” (132:1-5).

But how can anyone possibly build a Dwelling Place for Him? It’s not as though God needs a house; for all of creation is His. However, He is looking for humble hearts who bow in deference at His Word.

“Heaven is My throne and the earth is My footstool.
Where then is a house you could build for Me?
And where is a place that I may rest?
² “For My hand made all these things,
Thus all these things came into being,” declares the Lord.
“But to this one I will look,
To him who is humble and contrite of spirit, and who trembles at My word,” (Isaiah 66:1).

And it is with the humble of heart that He Himself establishes His Desired Dwelling Place.

For thus says the high and exalted One
Who lives forever, whose name is Holy,
“I dwell on a high and holy place,
And also with the contrite and lowly of spirit
In order to revive the spirit of the lowly
And to revive the heart of the contrite,” (Isaiah 57:15).

When we are humble of heart and surrender to Christ Jesus in faith, He builds us on His foundation, in His Spirit, into His Desired Dwelling Place.

So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints, and are of God’s household, ²⁰ having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the corner stone, ²¹ in whom the whole building, being fitted together, is growing into a holy temple in the Lord, ²² in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling of God in the Spirit, (Ephesians 2:20-21).

And that should simply knock us off our feet. This Holy God, this Mighty God, this Creator God, this Omnipotent, Omniscient, Omnipresent God Desires to Dwell in us! Oh, how can it be?

Consider His Desired Dwelling Place

As we consider these verses in psalms that refer to the temple in Zion, contemplate this truth; if we have placed our faith in Jesus Christ, His Desired Dwelling Place is us!

• His Desired Dwelling Place is the Place of His Choosing.
  • For the Lord has chosen Zion;
    He has desired it for His habitation.
    ¹⁴ “This is My resting place forever;
    Here I will dwell, for I have desired it, (132:13-14).
    • Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, ⁴ just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him, (Ephesians 1:3-4).

• His Desired Dwelling Place is the Place of His Provision.
  • “I will abundantly bless her provision;
    I will satisfy her needy with bread,” (132:15).
    • And my God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus, (Philippians 4:19).

• His Desired Dwelling Place is the Place of His Salvation and Joy.
  •  “Her priests also I will clothe with salvation,
    And her godly ones will sing aloud for joy,” (132:16).
    • Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. ² Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God, (Romans 5:1-2 ESV).

• His Desired Dwelling Place is the Place of His Power.
  • For I know that the Lord is great
    And that our Lord is above all gods.
    ⁶ Whatever the Lord pleases, He does,
    In heaven and in earth, in the seas and in all deeps, (135:5-6).
    • And He has said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness,” (2 Corinthians 12:9a).

How do we respond to His Desired Dwelling Place?

In awe, amazement, thanksgiving, wonder, even disbelief… but it’s true, we are His Desired Dwelling Place, for He has declared it to be so.

For God, who said, “Light shall shine out of darkness,” is the One who has shone in our hearts to give the Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ. ⁷ But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, so that the surpassing greatness of the power will be of God and not from ourselves; (2 Corinthians 4:6-7).

And while it’s beyond our ability to truly understand, when we trust in Christ’s payment for our sins and we are born again, the Spirit of God dwells in us and gives His life to our mortal bodies.

However, you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. But if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Him. ¹⁰ If Christ is in you, though the body is dead because of sin, yet the spirit is alive because of righteousness. ¹¹ But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you, (Romans 8:9-11).

Oh, may we never get over it… because His Spirit Dwells in us, we are made alive and empowered to live as His Desired Dwelling Place!

• As His Desired Dwelling Place, let us humbly bow before Him in Worship.
  • Let us go into His dwelling place;
    Let us worship at His footstool, (132:7).

• As His Desired Dwelling Place, let us commit to foster unity in the body of Christ.
  • Behold, how good and how pleasant it is
    For brothers to dwell together in unity! (133:1).

• As His Desired Dwelling Place, let us ask the Lord to grow us in our desire to serve Him wherever and whenever He leads.
  • Behold, bless the Lord, all servants of the Lord,
    Who serve by night in the house of the Lord! (134:1).

Oh, may all that we do, and all that we are as His Desired Dwelling Place, bring Him honor and blessing and praise!

Blessed be the Lord from Zion,
Who dwells in Jerusalem.
Praise the Lord! (135:21).

Let’s Grow Together!