Tehillim 132 | The Temple and the House of David

The psalm opens with a reference to David’s vow to prioritize the building of the Temple. The vow is expressed through a threefold repetition of conditional statements such as: “If I enter my house...”. The fourth clause then reveals the content of the vow: “Until I find a place for the Lord.” The relationship between these conditional actions and the vow is deliberate — David swears that he will not enter his own house or lie quietly in his bed until he finds a place and house for God. Later in the psalm, we encounter verses that resemble a ceremony of bringing the Ark to the Temple: “Let us enter His dwelling; let us worship at His footstool. Advance, Lord, to Your resting place, You and Your mighty Ark” (132:7–8). These verses parallel Shlomo’s words at the dedication of the Temple (Diveri HaYamim 6:41–42).

This psalm clearly echoes the narrative of David’s request to Natan to build the Temple (Shmuel II 7). There too, David links his own house with the house of God — he feels uneasy living in a grand house of cedar while the Ark of God dwells in a tent: “Look now – I am dwelling in a cedarwood palace, while the Ark of God is dwelling in a tent” (ibid., v. 2). The continuation of that story closely relates to the remainder of our psalm: as a reward for David’s desire to build a house for God, God promises to build David a “house” — an eternal royal dynasty: “Moreover, the Lord declares that the Lord will establish a house for you... I will raise up your own seed after you... and I will firmly establish his royal throne forever” (ibid., vv. 11–13). This psalm intertwines both themes, highlighting the deep connection between God’s choice of Jerusalem and His choice of the house of David. The beautiful mutuality in the relationship between David, who wants to build a house for God, and God, who builds a house for David – is also emphasized in our psalm: The psalm describes: David’s oath to God, and God’s oath to David.

When was the psalm recited? It seems likely that it was said at the dedication of the Temple by Shlomo, as reflected in Shlomo’s own words and as suggested by many commentators. Another possibility arises from the psalm’s placement within Sefer Tehillim: if we adopt the view that the Songs of Ascents relate to the return from exile, then perhaps the psalm was also recited at the dedication of the Second Temple. This would explain why the psalm opens with a plea — “Lord, remember David and all his suffering” (132:1) — and why, immediately after the further request, “For the sake of Your servant David, do not reject Your anointed one,” we find a mention of God’s oath to David’s eternal dynasty. Perhaps the returnees of the Second Temple period recalled that oath in a plea to God: please fulfill Your promise and help us reestablish the monarchy. They even echo Shlomo’s own dedication prayer, beseeching God to restore the glory of Jerusalem and the house of David. The Sforno writes at the start of his commentary on the psalm: “In this psalm, the poet prays that the monarchy of the house of David will endure through the Messiah.”