But as for me, I will come into Your house in the multitude of Your mercy; in fear of You I will worship toward Your holy temple. (Psalm 5:7)

David’s Temple

Solomon became King of Israel around 970 B.C. following the death of his father, David. The first major task of Solomon was to build the promised Temple of the Lord in Jerusalem. David desired to build a house for God, but the Lord told him he could not because he was a man of war and had shed blood. Before David died, he prepared everything needed for Solomon to build the house of God’s glory. Four years after Solomon became king, work on the Temple began. It would take nearly 7 ½ years to complete the Temple (not including the royal buildings).

David did not live to see the Temple of Jerusalem completed. His heart desired to build a house for the Lord, but he was not permitted. However, in his writings, David refers to the Tabernacle as the “holy temple.” The Tabernacle was first constructed by the Hebrews at Mt. Sinai more than 400 years earlier. For nearly five centuries, the Tabernacle had endured forty years of wilderness wanderings, the conquest of Canaan, Israel ruled by judges, and then looked after by Saul and David. It was set up in Shiloh during the period of conquest and then moved to Nob (four miles north of Jerusalem) and Gibeon (six miles from Jerusalem).

Jerusalem was first captured by David, who set up a tent to house the ark of the covenant. It is to this Tabernacle that David lends his voice of praise for the temple of the Lord. Eight of the psalms of David refer to the Tabernacle as the temple of the Lord. While he was unable to build the actual temple of the Lord as Solomon did, David viewed the place of worship as a sacred, holy place where he communed with the Lord. It was prophetic that David established his tent in the city of Jerusalem and placed the Ark of the Covenant there, foreshadowing the establishment of the House of the Lord in Jerusalem. For David, the tent of meeting was a place of honor and glory to the will of the Father.

Worship must come from a heart that understands the sacredness of being in the presence of the Lord God Almighty. A church building is nothing more than brick and mortar, but it is a place where saints gather to worship God. The Temple of Solomon was a grand edifice that outshone the rags of the tent where David housed the ark of the covenant, but it was the place itself that mattered to David. He worshiped the glory of God for the glory of God. To David, the tent housing the Ark of the Covenant was a temple because it was where he communed with God. He recognized the respect and honor that must be given to worship.

Jesus told the woman at the well that true worship comes from truth and spirit. David looked beyond the fabric of a worn tent to the glory of the throne of God. Sitting in a church building can be inspiring, but if the heart is not centered on the glory of God, worship is vain. Worship should always be considered worship toward the holy temple of God.