The Geography of God's Presence Text: Psalm 132:6-10
Introduction: A Passion for the Presence
We live in an age that is allergic to place. Our digital world flattens everything. You can "be" anywhere, which means you are functionally nowhere. We have relationships with people we've never met, attend "churches" in our pajamas, and consume a constant stream of disembodied information. But the Christian faith is not a gnostic escape from the physical world; it is the story of God entering into it, redeeming it, and establishing His presence within it. God cares about geography. He cares about dirt, and rivers, and cities. And He cares about where His people gather to worship Him.
Psalm 132 is a song about this very thing. It is a song of ascents, sung by pilgrims on their way up to Jerusalem, on their way to the house of the Lord. It is a song that remembers David's consuming passion, not for a bigger palace or a stronger army, but for finding a fixed, physical place for the presence of the living God. David was a man after God's own heart, and what was at the center of his heart? A zealous, almost obsessive desire to see the Ark of the Covenant, the tangible symbol of God's presence and rule, brought to its proper resting place in Zion.
This psalm is a corporate remembrance of that holy ambition. It is a prayer that God would remember David's zeal and, on that basis, continue to bless His people, His priests, and His anointed king. The portion of the psalm before us today is the voice of the people, the congregation, responding to the memory of David's vow. They remember the search, they announce their intention to worship, and they call upon God to act in power. This is not ancient history for us. This is the grammar of true worship. It is a pattern that shows us how to seek God's presence, how to approach Him, and what to ask for when we do.
The Text
Behold, we heard of it in Ephrathah, We found it in the fields of Jaar. Let us come into His dwelling place; Let us worship at the footstool of His feet. Arise, O Yahweh, to Your resting place, You and the ark of Your strength. Let Your priests be clothed with righteousness, And let Your holy ones sing for joy. For the sake of David Your servant, Do not turn away the face of Your anointed.
(Psalm 132:6-10 LSB)
The Search and the Discovery (v. 6)
The first thing the people recall is the story of finding the Ark. It had been lost, neglected, and forgotten.
"Behold, we heard of it in Ephrathah, We found it in the fields of Jaar." (Psalm 132:6)
This verse is a bit of poetic geography, but the point is clear. The Ark of the Covenant had a troubled history after the days of Eli. It was captured by the Philistines, who quickly learned that the unholy possession of a holy God is a terrifying liability. After God afflicted them with tumors, they sent it back. It ended up in Kiriath-jearim, which is what "the fields of Jaar" refers to, and it sat there in obscurity in the house of Abinadab for decades. During the reign of Saul, nobody seemed to care. The king was busy with his own anxieties and ambitions, and the symbol of God's presence was left in a dusty corner of the country.
But David was different. "Ephrathah" is another name for the region of Bethlehem, David's hometown. The sense here is something like, "The rumor of it reached us way back home, and then we went and found it right where it was, in the fields of Jaar." David's first order of business as king was to bring the Ark back to the center of Israel's life. He had a holy fixation on the presence of God. He knew that the nation's strength, its identity, and its future were all tied to the presence of Yahweh in their midst. A nation that forgets where the Ark is has forgotten who it is.
This is a direct challenge to us. Is the presence of God an afterthought in our lives, our families, our churches? Or is it the central, driving passion? Do we say, "First let me secure my career, my finances, my comfort, and then I will make some room for God," or do we, like David, say, "I will not give sleep to my eyes until I have found a place for the Lord"? The first step to revival is always a renewed, desperate search for the manifest presence of God.
The Invitation to Worship (v. 7)
The discovery of the Ark immediately leads to the proper response: corporate worship.
"Let us come into His dwelling place; Let us worship at the footstool of His feet." (Psalm 132:7)
Notice the corporate nature of this. "Let us come... Let us worship." Worship is not a private, individualistic affair. It is something we do together. The discovery of God's presence is not for my personal enjoyment; it is for the gathering of the saints. We are called to come together into His tabernacles, His dwelling place.
And where do we worship? "At the footstool of His feet." In the Old Testament, the Ark of the Covenant was the footstool of God's invisible throne. The lid of the Ark, the mercy seat with the cherubim, was where God's glory dwelt between the wings. To worship at His footstool was to come as low as possible before the enthroned, transcendent King. It is an act of profound humility. We do not saunter into God's presence as equals. We don't come to negotiate terms. We come to bow. We approach with reverence and awe, recognizing the infinite distance between the Creator and the creature, the Holy One and the sinner.
This posture of humility is the only acceptable posture in worship. Modern worship, so often characterized by casual sentimentality and a focus on our feelings, has forgotten this. We have tried to climb up on the throne with God instead of bowing at His footstool. But true worship begins with the recognition of our place. We are the creatures. He is the King. We bow down.
The Prayer for God's Action (v. 8)
Having resolved to worship, the people now call upon God to act. Their worship is not passive; it is an invocation.
"Arise, O Yahweh, to Your resting place, You and the ark of Your strength." (Psalm 132:8)
This is liturgical language, drawn from the prayer Moses would pray whenever the Ark set out before Israel in the wilderness: "Arise, O Yahweh, and let Your enemies be scattered" (Numbers 10:35). It is a prayer for God to move in power. The Ark is called "the ark of Your strength" because it was the visible sign of God's prevailing might. Where the Ark went in faith and obedience, God's enemies were routed.
But here, the prayer is not for the Ark to set out for war, but for it to come to its "resting place." This is Zion, the place God has chosen. The prayer is for God to take up His throne, to settle in the midst of His people as their resident King. This is a prayer for the kingdom to come. "Arise, Lord, and take your throne among us. Rule here. Let this be the center of your operations on earth."
This is what our worship should be. It is a summons. When we gather on the Lord's Day, we are praying, in effect, "Arise, O Lord, come to this resting place. Come, Lord Jesus, you who are the true Ark of God's strength, and meet with us. Manifest your royal power here." Every faithful worship service is a petition for the kingdom to be established in our midst.
The Prayer for a Pure Ministry and a Joyful People (v. 9-10)
The final two verses of our text specify the results of God's enthronement. When God arises and takes His place, it has a direct effect on the ministers and the congregation.
"Let Your priests be clothed with righteousness, And let Your holy ones sing for joy." (Psalm 132:9)
This is a crucial connection that we must not miss. The presence of God produces righteousness in the leadership and joy in the people. The two are inextricably linked. The priests, the ministers of the covenant, are to be "clothed with righteousness." This is not their own righteousness. It is a righteousness that God provides. It is the righteousness of Christ, imputed to them. A minister who stands before God's people must be wrapped in a righteousness that is not his own. His confidence cannot be in his eloquence, his education, or his piety. It must be in the finished work of the great High Priest, Jesus Christ.
And what is the result of a righteous ministry? A joyful people. "Let Your holy ones sing for joy." The word for "sing for joy" is a strong one; it means to shout, to cry out in exultation. This is not a quiet, polite happiness. This is loud, uninhibited, celebratory joy. Why? Because when the gospel of God's righteousness in Christ is clearly proclaimed by men who are clothed in it, the people of God are liberated from their sin and guilt. They are set free. And free people are loud. A church where the pulpit is sound and the gospel is clear will be a church where the pews are ringing with joyful praise.
And on what basis do they ask for all this?
"For the sake of David Your servant, Do not turn away the face of Your anointed." (Psalm 132:10)
The plea is based on God's covenant promise to David. "God, you made a promise to David. You chose him. For his sake, do not reject the current king, his descendant." The people are appealing to God's covenant faithfulness. They are not basing their plea on their own merits, but on God's sworn oath.
But we read this now on this side of the cross. We know who the true David, the greater David, is. We know who the ultimate Anointed One is. Our prayer is not, "For the sake of the historic David," but rather, "For the sake of Jesus Christ, Your servant, do not turn away Your face from us." Jesus is our plea. He is the reason God hears us. He is the fulfillment of the Davidic covenant. All the promises of God find their "Yes" in Him (2 Corinthians 1:20). When God looks at us, He sees us in the face of His Anointed, and for His sake, He does not turn us away. Because He did not turn His face away from the cross, He will never turn His face away from those who are in Christ.
Conclusion: The Ark is Christ
This entire psalm pushes us forward to the Lord Jesus Christ. He is the one we were looking for when we were lost. He is the one we heard of, the rumor of salvation, and the one we found, or rather, who found us, in the fields of our own Kiriath-jearim, our town of spiritual neglect.
Jesus is the true dwelling place of God. In Him, all the fullness of the Deity dwells bodily (Colossians 2:9). To come to Him is to come into the presence of God. Jesus is the Ark of God's strength. In His life, death, and resurrection, the enemies of God were scattered once and for all. He has now ascended to His resting place, the right hand of the Father, and He has taken His throne.
And because He has done this, our priests, our ministers, can be clothed with His perfect righteousness. And we, His holy ones, can and must shout for joy. Our joy is not based on our circumstances or our feelings. It is based on an objective, historical, covenantal reality. God made a promise to David, and He kept that promise in Jesus. For the sake of Jesus, God's anointed, His face is forever turned toward us in favor. Therefore, let us come boldly into His presence. Let us worship at His footstool. And let us sing.