Worship in Jerusalem

MEMORY VERSE: “Exalt the Lord our God, and worship at holy hill; for the Lord our God is holy.” —Psalm 99:9

II SAMUEL 6:12,13,17,18; 7:1-3,11b-13

THE ark of the Lord, sometimes called “the ark of the covenant,” was originally located in the most holy of the tabernacle which Moses constructed in the wilderness. The ark was a symbol of God’s presence with his people. It was a rectangular box, overlaid with gold. It contained the two tables of the Law, Aaron’s rod that budded, and the golden pot of manna.—Deut. 31:24-26; Num. 17:8-10; Exod. 16:31-34; Heb. 9:3,4

The ark of the Lord was wrested from Israel by the Philistines about the close of Eli’s period of judgeship. Indeed, it was the news that the ark had been captured and his two sons killed, that brought about the death of this aged servant of Israel as high priest and judge. (I Sam. 4) The ark was in the land of the Philistines seven months. (I Sam. 6:1) Much trouble accompanied its presence, so they returned it to Israel.

David, having great reverence for the Lord and the Lord’s ways, decided that the ark should be brought under his direct care. He had a tent-like tabernacle prepared to house the ark, and the day it was brought to its new resting place there was great rejoicing. David himself danced before the Lord in the street.

God blessed David and gave “him rest round about from all his enemies.” This gave him time for serious reflection, and he decided that he would like to build a more substantial dwelling place for the ark. He said to the Prophet Nathan, “See now, I dwell in an house of cedar, but the ark of God dwelleth within curtains.” Without consulting the Lord, Nathan said to the king, “Go, do all that is thine heart; for the Lord is with thee.”

But that night the Lord appeared to Nathan and instructed him to withdraw his consent for David to build a house for him. Instead of permitting David to build a house for him, the Lord instructed Nathan to say to David that his seed would build him a house. (vss. 12,13,16) Later, in point of time, the word “house” is used with a somewhat different connotation. Instead of referring to a building, it denoted what throughout history since then became known as a “ruling house,” or family.

David was to be a type of Christ, and it is the ruling house of the antitypical David that is referred to in Isaiah 2:2-4, which reads, “It shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the Lord’s house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it. And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the Law, and the Word of the Lord from Jerusalem. And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.”

David’s throne was located on a mountain—Mount Zion of Jerusalem—so the antitypical ruling house of David is referred to in Isaiah’s prophecy as “the mountain of the Lord’s house.” This is the messianic kingdom, or government, and is often referred to in the Scriptures simply as a “mountain,” or “the mountain of the Lord.” (Micah 4:1,2) Such is the prophecy of Isaiah 25:6-9, where the Lord promises to destroy death and wipe away tears from all faces through the agencies of this righteous and powerful government.

After the Prophet Nathan outlined the Lord’s promise to David to build him a house, David replied, “Who am I, O Lord God? and what is my house, that thou hast brought me hitherto? And this was yet a small thing in thy sight, O Lord God; but thou hast spoken also of thy servant’s house for a great while to come.” (II Sam. 7:18,19) David knew that the promise had implications which he did not understand. He did not discern that it was one of the messianic promises.

QUESTIONS

What was the ark of the covenant, and what did it symbolize?

Explain the circumstances under which it was brought to Jerusalem after being wrested from the Israelites by the Philistines.

What did God mean in his promise to build a house for David?

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