Psalm 132:7 (NKJV)
“Let us go into His tabernacle;
Let us worship at His footstool.”
A Song of Ascent: Drawing Near to the Footstool of God
My Notes
Psalm 132:7 (NKJV)
“Let us go into His tabernacle;
Let us worship at His footstool.”
Psalm 132 is one of the Songs of Ascents, sung by pilgrim worshipers as they journeyed upward toward Jerusalem—physically ascending the hills, and spiritually lifting their hearts toward God. These songs were often sung during feast times, when God’s people traveled together to appear before Him in the place He chose for His name.
As they walked, they remembered David’s passion for the dwelling place of God—his longing that the ark of the covenant would no longer wander, but rest in a place devoted to the worship of the LORD. That shared memory stirred a shared resolve:
“Let us go… let us worship.”
This verse is not a private whisper but a united invitation. Worship is not merely an individual act; it is a holy agreement among God’s people to seek Him together.
The Tabernacle and the Footstool
The psalmist speaks humbly and reverently. Even the most splendid earthly sanctuary is described as God’s footstool, not His throne. Heaven alone is His dwelling place in fullness. The ark—overlaid with gold, crowned with mercy, overshadowed by cherubim—was still only the place where His feet were said to rest.
This language guards us from a subtle danger: mistaking sacred spaces for the fullness of God Himself. The temple could never contain His essence. Instead, it served as a meeting place, a gracious accommodation where God invited His people to draw near.
Yet how remarkable this invitation is. Though the sanctuary reveals only “the glories of His feet,” the pilgrims hasten there with joy, knowing that where the LORD chooses to make His presence known, worship must follow.
To enter God’s house without worship is to miss its purpose. The psalm reminds us that sacred spaces are not for spectacle, routine, or convenience—but for adoration, reverence, and surrender.
From Ark to Christ
The tabernacle, the ark, and the temple all point forward to Christ. God’s dwelling among His people finds its fullest expression not in stone or gold, but in Jesus Himself, and now in His gathered church.
Every place where Christ is honored becomes, in a sense, a tabernacle—a dwelling place of God by His Spirit. These gatherings are precious to believers because of:
- God’s presence
- God’s provision
- God’s people
- God’s work
True worship today, like true worship then, is offered in His name, through faith, and by the help of His Spirit.
The Ascent of the Psalm
Notice the movement in this Song of Degrees:
- “We heard…” — testimony awakens desire
- “We found…” — pursuit leads to discovery
- “We will go…” — resolve leads to action
- “We will worship…” — action culminates in adoration
Every genuine spiritual ascent ends not in arrival, but in worship.
Prayer
Abba, You are enthroned in heaven, and yet You invite us to draw near. Teach our hearts to value Your presence more than any place, and to seek You not out of habit, but out of holy desire. As we come before You, let us not rush past reverence. May we worship at Your footstool with humility, gratitude, and awe. Fix our eyes and lift our hearts to You alone. Where You are present, may we be found worshiping. I ask this in Jesus’ name, Amen.
Key Takeaways
- Worship is both a privilege and a response to God’s presence.
- Sacred spaces matter, but they must always point beyond themselves to God.
- True worship requires humility—recognizing that even our best offerings fall beneath His throne.
- Spiritual ascent always leads toward deeper reverence, not familiarity without awe.
Cross References (NKJV)
Isaiah 2:2 (NKJV)
“Now it shall come to pass in the latter days
That the mountain of the LORD’s house
Shall be established on the top of the mountains,
And shall be exalted above the hills;
And all nations shall flow to it.”
Isaiah 66:1 (NKJV)
“Thus says the LORD:
‘Heaven is My throne,
And earth is My footstool.
Where is the house that you will build Me?
And where is the place of My rest?’”
1 Chronicles 28:2 (NKJV)
“Then King David rose to his feet and said, ‘Hear me, my brethren and my people: I had it in my heart to build a house of rest for the ark of the covenant of the LORD, and for the footstool of our God, and had made preparations to build it.’”
Psalm 99:5 (NKJV)
“Exalt the LORD our God,
And worship at His footstool—
He is holy.”
1 Chronicles 13:3 (NKJV)
“and let us bring the ark of our God back to us, for we have not inquired of it since the days of Saul.”
Meditation Questions
- What does “going into His tabernacle” look like in my life today?
- Are there ways I attend worship without fully engaging in worship?
- What helps me move from hearing about God to truly worshiping Him?
Proverb for Today
My son, keep my words, And treasure my commands within you. Keep my commands and live, And my law as the apple of your eye. Bind them on your fingers; Write them on the tablet of your heart. Say to wisdom, “You are my sister,” And call understanding your nearest kin, Proverbs 7:1-4 NKJV
Daily Scripture
“The Lord bless you and keep you; The Lord make His face shine upon you, And be gracious to you; The Lord lift up His countenance upon you, And give you peace.” ’ Numbers 6:24-26 NKJV
Bill
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Summary of Commentaries:
The commentators agree that Psalm 132:7 expresses a joyful, united resolve to seek God’s dwelling place and worship Him with humility. The tabernacle, though sacred, is only God’s footstool, reminding worshipers of His everlasting greatness. Pilgrims, inspired by David’s devotion, ascend together to adore God where He makes His presence known, recognizing that entering His house without true worship dishonors Him.
Commentaries:
Charles Spurgeon
“We will go into his tabernacles.” Having found the place where he dwells, we will hasten thereto. He has many dwellings in one in the various courts of his house, and each of these shall receive the reverence due: in each the priest shall offer for us the appointed service; and our hearts shall go where our bodies may not enter. David is not alone; he is represented as having sought the ark with others, for so the word “we” implies; and now they are glad to attend him in his pilgrimage to the chosen shrine, saying, “We found it, we will go.” Because these are the Lord’s courts, we will resort to them.
“We will worship at his footstool.” The best ordered earthly house can be no more than the footstool of so great a King. His ark can only reveal the glories of his feet, according to his promise that he will make the place of his feet glorious: yet thither will we hasten with joy, in glad companionship, and there will we adorn him. Where Jehovah is, there shall he be worshipped. It is well not only to go to the Lord’s house, but to worship there: we do but profane his tabernacles if we enter them for any other purpose.
Before leaving this verse, let us note the ascent of this Psalm of degrees—”We heard…we found…we will go…we will worship.”
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Enduring Word
Let us go into His tabernacle: As one of the Songs of Ascents, this song was sung by pilgrim travelers going to the temple in Jerusalem, mainly at feast times. They remembered and understood David’s great heart for God’s house and used it to inspire them as they said, “Let us go into His tabernacle; let us worship at His footstool.” (Guzik)
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Albert Barnes
We will go into his tabernacles – His tents, or the fixed resting place prepared for the ark. This is evidently language supposed to have been used on bringing up the ark into its place in Jerusalem: language such as they may be supposed to have sung or recited on that occasion.
We will worship at his footstool – See the notes at Psalms 99:5. The meaning is, the footstool of God: let us bow humbly at his feet. The language denotes profound adoration. It expresses the feelings of those who bear the ark to its assigned place.
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John Gill
We will go into his tabernacles,…. The tabernacles of him that was heard of at Ephratah; born in Bethlehem, and found in the ministry of the word among the Gentiles: enter into his churches, raised and formed there, which are the tabernacles or dwelling places of Christ; where he has his residence, takes his walks, and dwells; and which are very lovely, amiable, and pleasant, and so desirable by believers to go into; because of the presence of God in them, the provisions there made for them, the company there enjoyed; the work there done, prayer, praise, preaching, and hearing the word, and administration of all ordinances. Some render it as a mutual exhortation, “let us go into his tabernacles”; see Isaiah 2:2;
we will worship at his footstool; any place of worship on earth may be called the footstool of God, with respect to heaven his throne, Isaiah 66:1; particularly the ark is so called, 1 Chronicles 28:2; in which the law was; over which was the mercy seat, and over that the cherubim of glory, and between them the Majesty of God dwelt; so that the ark was properly his footstool: and all this being typical of Christ may direct us to observe, that all religious, spiritual, and evangelic worship, is to be performed in his name, and in the faith of him, and by the assistance of his grace and Spirit; see Psalm 99:5.
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Matthew Henry
They were resolved to attend it: “Let us but have a convenient place, and we will go into his tabernacle, to pay our homage there; we will worship at his footstool as subjects and suppliants, which we neglected to do, for want of such a place, in the days of Saul,” 1 Chr. 13:3.
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Miscellaneous Comments
“Tabernacles” are spoken of in the plural number, and this it may be (though we may doubt whether the Psalmist had such minute distinctions in his eye) because there was in the Temple an inner sanctuary, a middle apartment, and then the court. It is of more importance to attend to the epithet which follows, where the Psalmist calls the Ark of the Covenant God’s footstool, to intimate that the sanctuary could never contain the immensity of God’s essence, as men were apt absurdly to imagine. The mere outward Temple with all its majesty being no more than his footstool, his people were called upon to look upwards to the heavens, and fix their contemplations with due reverence upon God himself.
—John Calvin.
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