John Calvin Commentary Psalms 122:2

"Our feet are standing Within thy gates, O Jerusalem," — Psalms 122:2 (ASV)

Our feet shall be standing within your gates, O Jerusalem! In the Hebrew text the verb is indeed in the past tense, which it would not be unsuitable to retain; but as it makes little difference to the meaning whether one reading or the other is adopted, I have no difficulty in leaving my readers to their own choice. David rehearses the language in which all the godly commonly expressed themselves—that they would eventually stand with sure footing in Jerusalem, because it was God's will to establish His sanctuary there, which until now had often changed its location and had been carried from place to place.

Through this pilgrim state of the ark, God reminded the people that He had not spoken by Moses without cause concerning what I referred to a little while ago. Thus, whenever the ark of the covenant was moved from one place to another, God thereby stirred up the hearts of His servants to desire and pray that a specific, settled place might be appointed for it.

Moreover, this fixing of its location was not a matter of small importance. As while it was frequently changing its dwelling place, the faith of the people hung in suspense; so after God had chosen a permanent residence for it, He by this testified more unequivocally that He would be the everlasting and unchangeable protector of His people. It is, therefore, not surprising to find the faithful gratefully acknowledging that their feet, which until now had been accustomed to run from place to place, should from now on stand steadfast within the gates of Jerusalem.

The ark, it is true, dwelt a long time in Shiloh (1 Samuel 1:3), but since God had made no promise concerning that place, it could not be the permanent dwelling place of that symbol of the divine presence. On the contrary, since, as we shall see in Psalm 132:14, it was said of Mount Zion, This is my rest for ever, the faithful, depending upon that promise, confidently boast that their feet shall hereafter be at rest and stand firm.

Furthermore, as Christ, in whom dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily, (Colossians 2:9), and who is our true Immanuel (Isaiah 7:14), now resides among us, He has furnished us with reason for more abundant joy. We are, therefore, ungrateful and dull if that promise—Lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the world,
(Matthew 28:20)—does not enrapture us with exceeding joy, especially if we see it publicly received and with common agreement in any place.

What I have just quoted concerning the rest or repose of the Lord has at last been accomplished in the person of Christ, as is evident from Isaiah 11:10: His rest shall be glorious. Here the Prophet does not speak of the burial of Christ, as some interpreters mistakenly suppose, but of the future distinction of the Church.