What Does Psalm 132:13 Mean in the King James?
For the LORD hath chosen Zion; he hath desired it for his habitation.
The analysis reads the King James wording.
King James Version The King James Version, first published in 1611. Selah Verse shows the standard text.
THE KEY
Zion is chosen as the place the LORD wants to settle, turning divine selection into a desire for presence.
THE MEANING
The LORD chooses Zion and desires it as a dwelling; the choice is joined to longing. The verse speaks now of divine nearness as intentional: the dwelling is wanted, not merely assigned.
WHAT THIS UNDOES
It undoes the belief that God’s presence is reluctant or accidental: this dwelling is both chosen and desired.
THE ROOT
מוֹשָׁב
moshav
GROWS FROM
י־ש־ב
y-sh-b
To sit, remain, or dwell.
“habitation” in this verse is moshav. The Hebrew word מוֹשָׁב (moshav, dwelling or settlement) grows from the verb יָשַׁב (yashav, to sit or dwell). The verse pictures Zion as where the LORD settles, not merely a place the LORD visits.
ALSO GROWS
yashav: To sit, remain, or dwell.
יָשַׁב
This verb is the seed of מוֹשָׁב, tying the place of habitation to the act of settling there.
yoshev: One who sits or dwells; an inhabitant.
יֹשֵׁב
The same root names both the dwelling place and the one who inhabits it.
toshav: A resident or settler.
תּוֹשָׁב
This branch gives the root a sense of settled belonging: the dwelling is connected to life lived there.
אִוָּהּ
ivvah
GROWS FROM
א־ו־ה
ʾ-w-h
To desire, wish for, or long for.
“desired” in this verse is ivvah. The verse says the LORD desires Zion as a dwelling, joining choice to longing. The place is not simply assigned; it is wanted as a home.
ALSO GROWS
avah: To desire or wish for.
אָוָה
This is the verb behind “desired,” making the LORD’s intention active rather than incidental.
ta'avah: Desire or longing.
תַּאֲוָה
The noun carries the same seed into the language of longing, underscoring the force of “desired.”
THE PATTERN
The place God chooses becomes a dwelling where God is present among people.
And let them make me a sanctuary; that I may dwell among them.And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.THE THREAD
Why leap ye, ye high hills? this is the hill which God desireth to dwell in; yea, the LORD will dwell in it for ever.This verse echoes Psalm 132:13 by joining God’s desire to God’s dwelling on a chosen hill. Together they show that the place matters as the home of a presence that intends to remain.
Read the SDV Bible.
Every verse has a Deep Dive in the app.
The iPhone Bible app with the Selah Decoded Version.
Does something in this reading look wrong? Tell us