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Psalms

About this book
Psalm 132

1 A song of ascents. O Lord, for David’s sake remember all his strenuous effort 2 and how he made a vow to the Lord, and swore an oath to the Powerful One of Jacob. 3 He said, “I will not enter my own home, or get into my bed. 4 I will not allow my eyes to sleep or my eyelids to slumber, 5 until I find a place for the Lord, a fine dwelling place for the Powerful One of Jacob.” 6 Look, we heard about it in Ephrathah; we found it in the territory of Jaar. 7 Let us go to his dwelling place. Let us worship before his footstool. 8 Ascend, O Lord, to your resting place,⁠ you and the ark of your strength.⁠ 9 May your priests be clothed with integrity. May your loyal followers shout for joy. 10 For the sake of David, your servant, do not reject your chosen king. 11 The Lord made a reliable promise to David; he will not go back on his word.⁠ He said, “I will place one of your descendants on your throne.⁠ 12 If your sons keep my covenant and the rules I teach them, their sons will also sit on your throne forever.” 13 Certainly the Lord has chosen Zion; he decided to make it his home. 14 He said, “This will be my resting place forever; I will live here, for I have chosen it. 15 I will abundantly supply what she needs; I will give her poor all the food they need. 16 I will protect her priests, and her godly people will shout exuberantly. 17 There I will make David strong; I have arranged a lamp for my anointed one.28⁠ 18 I will humiliate his enemies, and his crown will shine.”

Texts in conversation

Compare Psalm 132:11 and Acts 2:30

Hebrew Bible · New Testament

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Summary

Acts 2 refers to God’s promise that a descendant of David would rule on his throne, using the language of Psalm 132, which calls that promise permanent. Acts applies this hope to Jesus, presenting him as the one who fulfills it.

Passages

Psalm 132:11

Hebrew Bible
7 Let us go to his dwelling place. Let us worship before his footstool. 8 Ascend, O Lord, to your resting place, you and the ark of your strength. 9 May your priests be clothed with integrity. May your loyal followers shout for joy. 10 For the sake of David, your servant, do not reject your chosen king. 11 The Lord made a reliable promise to David; he will not go back on his word. He said, “I will place one of your descendants on your throne. 12 If your sons keep my covenant and the rules I teach them, their sons will also sit on your throne forever.”
600–201 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in Psalms

Acts 2:30

New Testament
29 “Brothers, I can speak confidently to you about our forefather David, that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. 30 So then, because he was a prophet and knew that God had sworn to him with an oath to seat one of his descendants on his throne, 31 David by foreseeing this spoke about the resurrection of the Christ, that he was neither abandoned to Hades, nor did his body experience decay. 32 This Jesus God raised up, and we are all witnesses of it. 33 So then, exalted to the right hand of God, and having received the promise of the Holy Spirit from the Father, he has poured out what you both see and hear. 34 For David did not ascend into heaven, but he himself says, ‘The Lord said to my lord, “Sit at my right hand
70–90 CE (scholarly estimate) Read in Acts

References

"... one should note the use of link words to bind the argument of passages together. This happens frequently throughout Luke-Acts, but three speeches give significant use of the technique. The first, Acts 2:16–40, has several such links between texts or between texts and exposition. The term “pour out” appears in Acts 2:17 and Acts 2:33. The title Lord appears in Acts 2:21 and Acts 2:36. The term Hades links Acts 2:27 with Acts 2:31. The concept of being seated or set on a throne ties together Acts 2:30 and Acts 2:34, linking an allusion to Psalm 132:11 to Psalm 110:1. The concept of “at the right hand” links Acts 2:33 and Acts 2:34. The combination of links argues that the initial fulfillment of the promise of the Spirit’s distribution is evidence of Jesus’ ascension to authority in fulfillment of ancient promises made to David. Acts 13, the second speech, has similar links, as the concept of “holy things” (Isaiah 55:3) and “holy one” (Psalm 16:10) unite Acts 13:34–35 to make a similar point about Jesus fulfilling Davidic hope. ..."
Ralph P. Martin and Peter H. Davids, eds., Dictionary of the Later New Testament & Its Developments (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity, 1997), 1190–1191.

References are not endorsements of their contents. Read each reference in full to understand its author's intentions in using these texts.

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Psalm 132:11 and Acts 2:30

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