1 Chronicles 16: 1 – 43
His Mercy endures forever
16 So they brought the ark of God and set it in the midst of the tabernacle that David had erected for it. Then they offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before God. 2 And when David had finished offering the burnt offerings and the peace offerings, he blessed the people in the name of the LORD. 3 Then he distributed to everyone of Israel, both man and woman, to everyone a loaf of bread, a piece of meat, and a cake of raisins. 4 And he appointed some of the Levites to minister before the ark of the LORD, to commemorate, to thank, and to praise the LORD God of Israel: 5 Asaph the chief, and next to him Zechariah, then Jeiel, Shemiramoth, Jehiel, Mattithiah, Eliab, Benaiah, and Obed-Edom: Jeiel with stringed instruments and harps, but Asaph made music with cymbals; 6 Benaiah and Jahaziel the priests regularly blew the trumpets before the ark of the covenant of God. 7 On that day David first delivered this psalm into the hand of Asaph and his brethren, to thank the LORD: 8 Oh, give thanks to the LORD! Call upon His name; Make known His deeds among the peoples! 9 Sing to Him, sing psalms to Him; Talk of all His wondrous works! 10 Glory in His holy name; Let the hearts of those rejoice who seek the LORD! 11 Seek the LORD and His strength; Seek His face evermore! 12 Remember His marvelous works which He has done, His wonders, and the judgments of His mouth, 13 O seed of Israel His servant, you children of Jacob, His chosen ones! 14 He Is the LORD our God; His judgments are in all the earth. 15 Remember His covenant forever, the word which He commanded, for a thousand generations, 16 the covenant which He made with Abraham, and His oath to Isaac, 17 and confirmed it to Jacob for a statute, to Israel for an everlasting covenant, 18 saying, “To you I will give the land of Canaan as the allotment of your inheritance,” 19 when you were few in number, indeed very few, and strangers in it. 20 When they went from one nation to another, and from one kingdom to another people, 21 He permitted no man to do them wrong; Yes, He rebuked kings for their sakes, 22 saying, “Do not touch My anointed ones, and do My prophets no harm.” 23 Sing to the LORD, all the earth; Proclaim the good news of His salvation from day to day. 24 Declare His glory among the nations, His wonders among all peoples. 25 For the LORD Is great and greatly to be praised; He Is also to be feared above all gods. 26 For all the gods of the peoples are idols, but the LORD made the heavens. 27 Honor and majesty are before Him; Strength and gladness are in His place. 28 Give to the LORD, O families of the peoples, give to the LORD glory and strength. 29 Give to the LORD the glory due His name; Bring an offering and come before Him. Oh, worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness! 30 Tremble before Him, all the earth. The world also is firmly established, it shall not be moved. 31 Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad; And let them say among the nations, “The LORD reigns.” 32 Let the sea roar, and all its fullness; Let the field rejoice, and all that is in it. 33 Then the trees of the woods shall rejoice before the LORD, for He Is coming to judge the earth. 34 Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He Is good! For His mercy endures forever. 35 And say, “Save us, O God of our salvation; Gather us together, and deliver us from the Gentiles, to give thanks to Your holy name, to triumph in Your praise.” 36 Blessed be the LORD God of Israel from everlasting to everlasting! And all the people said, “Amen!” and praised the LORD. 37 So he left Asaph and his brothers there before the ark of the covenant of the LORD to minister before the ark regularly, as every day’s work required; 38 and Obed-Edom with his sixty-eight brethren, including Obed-Edom the son of Jeduthun, and Hosah, to be gatekeepers; 39 and Zadok the priest and his brethren the priests, before the tabernacle of the LORD at the high place that was at Gibeon, 40 to offer burnt offerings to the LORD on the altar of burnt offering regularly morning and evening, and to do according to all that is written in the Law of the LORD which He commanded Israel; 41 and with them Heman and Jeduthun and the rest who were chosen, who were designated by name, to give thanks to the LORD, because His mercy endures forever; 42 and with them Heman and Jeduthun, to sound aloud with trumpets and cymbals and the musical instruments of God. Now the sons of Jeduthun were gatekeepers. 43 Then all the people departed, every man to his house; and David returned to bless his house.
The Bible speaks of God’s “mercy enduring forever” countless times, especially in the Psalms. I want to talk about Psalm 107.
“Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He Is good! For His mercy endures forever. 2 Let the redeemed of the Lord say so, Whom He has redeemed from the hand of the enemy, 3 and gathered out of the lands, from the east and from the west, from the north and from the south. 4 They wandered in the wilderness in a desolate way; They found no city to dwell in. 5 Hungry and thirsty, their soul fainted in them. 6 Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble, And He delivered them out of their distresses. 7 And He led them forth by the right way, that they might go to a city for a dwelling place. 8 Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, and for His wonderful works to the children of men! 9 For He satisfies the longing soul, and fills the hungry soul with goodness.10 Those who sat in darkness and in the shadow of death, bound in affliction and irons— 11 because they rebelled against the words of God, and despised the counsel of the Most High, 12 Therefore He brought down their heart with labor; They fell down, and there was none to help. 13 Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble, and He saved them out of their distresses. 14 He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death and broke their chains in pieces. 15 Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, and for His wonderful works to the children of men! 16 For He has broken the gates of bronze and cut the bars of iron in two.17 Fools, because of their transgression, and because of their iniquities, were afflicted. 18 Their soul abhorred all manner of food, and they drew near to the gates of death. 19 Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble, and He saved them out of their distresses. 20 He sent His word and healed them and delivered them from their destructions. 21 Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, and for His wonderful works to the children of men! 22 Let them sacrifice the sacrifices of thanksgiving and declare His works with rejoicing. 23 Those who go down to the sea in ships, who do business on great waters, 24 They see the works of the Lord, and His wonders in the deep. 25 For He commands and raises the stormy wind, which lifts up the waves of the sea. 26 They mount up to the heavens, they go down again to the depths; Their soul melts because of trouble. 27 They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, and are at their wits’ end. 28 Then they cry out to the Lord in their trouble, and He brings them out of their distresses. 29 He calms the storm, so that its waves are still. 30 Then they are glad because they are quiet; So He guides them to their desired haven. 31 Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, and for His wonderful works to the children of men! 32 Let them exalt Him also in the assembly of the people and praise Him in the company of the elders. 33 He turns rivers into a wilderness, and the water springs into dry ground; 34 A fruitful land into barrenness, for the wickedness of those who dwell in it. 35 He turns a wilderness into pools of water, and dry land into water springs. 36 There He makes the hungry dwell, that they may establish a city for a dwelling place, 37 and sow fields and plant vineyards, that they may yield a fruitful harvest. 38 He also blesses them, and they multiply greatly; And He does not let their cattle decrease. 39 When they are diminished and brought low through oppression, affliction, and sorrow, 40 He pours contempt on princes, and causes them to wander in the wilderness where there is no way; 41 Yet He sets the poor on high, far from affliction, and makes their families like a flock. 42 The righteous see it and rejoice, and all iniquity stops its mouth. 43 Whoever is wise will observe these things, and they will understand the lovingkindness of the Lord.”
One of my favorite verses in Psalm 107:1 is: “Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He Is good! For His mercy endures forever.” In this Psalm Israel is reminded of “their failures” and “God’s mercy.” What is mercy? One has said that mercy is “not receiving what we deserve.” When we fail, we deserve to be judged, but instead of judging us, God restores us! That’s the lesson in this precious Psalm which reveals, in 4 different ways, how God showed mercy to the nation of Israel when they failed. In each case they failed, they repented, they cried out to God, and God, in mercy, delivered them.
In verses 4-9 we have Israel’s “wandering in the wilderness”. We read “They wandered in the wilderness in a desolate way; they found no city to dwell in. Hungry and thirsty, their soul fainted in them” (verse 4-5). If we were to read Exodus through Deuteronomy we see that during their wandering, Israel murmured and complained about having no food or water. But eventually they saw the evil of their ways and according to verse 6, “Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble, and He delivered them out of their distresses.” God’s never-ending mercy was shown to those who deserved judgment!
In verses 10-16 we see Israel enslaved. Verse 10 speaks of them being “bound in affliction and irons” and it adds, in verse 11, “Because they rebelled against the words of God, and despised the counsel of the Most High.” This section refers to their time during the Babylonian captivity, as seen in the book of Daniel and in the history of the Kings. But God brought them to repentance, as we see in verses 12-13: “Therefore He brought down their heart with labor; They fell down, and there was none to help. Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble.” What was the result? God’s mercy was manifested again, for we read in verses 13-14: “And He saved them out of their distresses. He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death and broke their chains in pieces.” God’s mercy endures forever!
Verses 17-20 is referring to Israel’s condition of being bodily afflicted when the Lord came to them at His first Advent. Verse 17 declares; “Fools, because of their transgression, and because of their iniquities, were afflicted.” When the Lord appeared to them multitudes came to Him for healing and verse 19 tells us “then they cried to the LORD in their trouble, and He sent His word and healed them.” They recognized it was their sins that brought them disease, so they repented and cried out to the One Who could heal them. In MERCY He healed them, for His mercy endures forever!
We get the last picture in verses 23-32 where seamen are caught in a terrible storm. This may very well illustrate the coming “storm of judgment” in the Tribulation Period where Israel, in their rebellion, will worship the Antichrist. Because of their sin of idolatry, we read in verses 25-27: “For He commands and raises the stormy wind, which lifts up the waves of the sea…they go down again to the depths; their soul melts because of trouble. They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, and are at their wits’ end.” Scripture call this “the time of Jacob’s trouble” in Jeremiah 30:7. Daniel also referred to this in Daniel 12:1, “And there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that time,” but he goes on to say “and at that time thy people shall be delivered.” Why are they delivered? Verse 28 of our Psalm provides the answer: “Then they cry out to the LORD in their trouble, and He brings them out of their distresses.” Are we getting the picture? Israel fails, they repent, they cry out to the Lord, and He delivers them, for HIS MERCY ENDURES FOREVER!
We can take all of those examples from Psalm 107 and apply them to ourselves, for we, like Israel, often murmur and complain…we are in bondage to the world…we are physically afflicted because of some sin…or we are found worshipping something or someone other than our God. But He faithfully deals with us when we fail, causing us to repent, to cry out to Him, and then He delivers us! Why? Because “His mercy endures forever!” Praise God that we “don’t receive what we deserve.”
This is the second forerunner to the Messianic Feast in 1 Chronicles. The first was when David was made king over all Israel. Then all Israel had gathered to celebrate David’s kingship, and food had been imported from all over the land (12.39-40). But this time the king himself provides for the feast and it is because YHWH has been enthroned in the Jerusalem Tent. It is a sign of the good times coming, initially during the reign of David, but even more so in the days of the Greater David promised by the prophets when men would feast at ‘David’s’ table (Isaiah 25.6). His great emphasis on David throughout Chronicles, and the awareness of how all came short of the ideal, could only, in the light of Israel’s beliefs, have the reason of preparing for the coming of the David Who would fulfil the promises.
16 So they brought the ark of God and set it in the midst of the tabernacle that David had erected for it. Then they offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before God.
The cause for the celebration was the safe bringing of the Ark of God into the Tent which David had pitched for it where it was no doubt set up behind a veil. And there ‘they’ offered burnt-offerings and peace-offerings before God. There was a sense of deep dedication, and of well-being. The peace-offerings, which sought well-being from YHWH as they entered relationship with Him, would in themselves contribute to the feast, for part of the peace offerings would be eaten by the people as they ate together before God. It was a time of great celebration.
2 And when David had finished offering the burnt offerings and the peace offerings, he blessed the people in the name of the LORD.
Once the burnt offerings and peace offerings had been offered ‘by David’ (through the priests), he blessed the people in the Name of YHWH. This was his personal contribution.
3 Then he distributed to everyone of Israel, both man and woman, to everyone a loaf of bread, a piece of meat, and a cake of raisins.
Then to every one of Israel he provided a feast. To every man and woman, he gave a loaf of bread, a portion of flesh (from the peace offerings) and a cake of raisins. All Israel ate and gave thanks with him, celebrating the fact that the Ark had come home, just as one day all would feast before the coming of the Greater David Who would replace the Ark as the evidence of God’s presence.
4 And he appointed some of the Levites to minister before the ark of the LORD, to commemorate, to thank, and to praise the LORD God of Israel:
At the same time, he appointed certain of the Levites, who were to be named personally, for the purpose of ministering before the Ark of YHWH in the Tent which he had pitched, and to celebrate and thank and praise YHWH the God of Israel. The righteous king was ensuring the worship of the living and true God, one of the important features of the coming king. The Levites included priests, who were, of course, Levites.
5 Asaph the chief, and next to him Zechariah, then Jeiel, Shemiramoth, Jehiel, Mattithiah, Eliab, Benaiah, and Obed-Edom: Jeiel with stringed instruments and harps, but Asaph made music with cymbals; 6 Benaiah and Jahaziel the priests regularly blew the trumpets before the ark of the covenant of God.
Their names are now given. They were led by Asaph the singer, along with his loud cymbals, who was first, and then second to him came the chosen Levites who were a mixture of bass and soprano (15.20-21), all with harps and lyres. They included among them Obed-edom and Jeiel the security men (gatekeepers). This was not intended to be a repetition of the earlier lists. It was based on who was selected by David. They were accompanied by Benaiah and Jahaziel the priests who blew the trumpets continually before the Ark of the covenant of God. So was the permanent worship of the Jerusalem presence of the Name of God established. Heman and Ethan were probably responsible for the worship at the Tabernacle in Gibeon (1 Kings 3.4).
David now purposed to express thanksgiving to YHWH through the singers. This resulted in the singing of a Psalm which would become the basis for many Psalms.
7 On that day David first delivered this psalm into the hand of Asaph and his brethren, to thank the LORD:
It was on the very day of the arrival of the Ark that David first ordained the giving of thanks to YHWH for that arrival, by means of the praise, worship and thanksgiving of the singers and musicians, Asaph and his brothers. The first act of worship in a worship ‘building’ is always special, and this was no exception. But it was only to be the beginning of their expression of gratitude. From then on it was to be a continual feature of their worship. It was an encouragement to the returnees from Exile to ensure they also partook in full-hearted worship.
All this is a reminder to us that we should never forget to show our gratitude to God, and that it is not something that should be delayed.
The words of thanksgiving now offered would become the basis of several Psalms. Verses 8-22 were used in Psalm 105.1-15; verses 23-33 were used in Psalm 96. Verses 34-36 were used in Psalm 106. 47-48.
8 Oh, give thanks to the LORD! Call upon His name; Make known His deeds among the peoples! 9 Sing to Him, sing psalms to Him; Talk of all His wondrous works!
The call is, in the light of His new presence among them in the Ark, to give thanks to YHWH and call on His Name, making His doings known among the peoples. It had always been God’s intention that His people would be a witness to the nations. Thus, they are to sing praises to Him, and talk of all His marvelous works, works of which the Ark was a reminder, so that the world might know the truth about Him.
10 Glory in His holy name; Let the hearts of those rejoice who seek the LORD! 11 Seek the LORD and His strength; Seek His face evermore!
Central to their worship is to be their personal experience, especially as His living presence is now among them as depicted by the Ark. They are to glory in His holy Name, that is, glory in Him for what He Is and as they seek Him they are assured that they will find joy and will rejoice. Thus, they must take advantage of the new opportunity presented by the presence of the Ark among them, and seek Him and His strength continually.
12 Remember His marvelous works which He has done, His wonders, and the judgments of His mouth, 13 O seed of Israel His servant, You children of Jacob, His chosen ones!
Because they are the seed of Jacob/Israel, God’s servant and chosen one, they have in the past experienced His marvelous works, and wonders, and words, something of which the Ark is a reminder They are thus to remember them, recognizing that God does not change, and that they can therefore continually rely on Him.
14 He is the LORD our God; His judgments are in all the earth. 15 Remember His covenant forever, the word which He commanded, for a thousand generations, 16 the covenant which He made with Abraham, and His oath to Isaac, 17 and confirmed it to Jacob for a statute, to Israel for an everlasting covenant, 18 saying, “to you I will give the land of Canaan as the allotment of your inheritance,” 19 when you were few in number, indeed very few, and strangers in it.
The Israelites are to remember that He Is YHWH their God, the One Who said “I will be what I will be” because He controls all things, and acts throughout the world bringing about His will and exercising His judgment. And because He will not forget His covenant, they are to remember it forever, for it was made with Abraham and confirmed by an oath to Isaac, and then to Jacob. It is an everlasting and unfailing covenant, and in it He promised the land of Canaan to His people. Thus, they can look on it as their inheritance. He did it when they were but few and were merely sojourners in the land.
Thus, the returnees from Exile, themselves few, and now sojourners in the land, could gain confidence that God would fulfil His covenant on their behalf if they were faithful to His will. While they might be living in the land among others, they could be sure that one day it would be theirs.
20 When they went from one nation to another, and from one kingdom to another people,
The picture is of Israel passing from one nation (Egypt) to another nation (Canaan) from one kingdom to another people. The returnees would be able to interpret it of Babylon, for there they too had been in a foreign country.
We can interpret it of wherever we are, for we are ‘strangers and pilgrims in the earth’, awaiting the promised heavenly land.
21 He permitted no man to do them wrong; Yes, He rebuked kings for their sakes, 22 saying, “Do not touch My anointed ones, and do My prophets no harm.”
This section of the Psalm ends with the reminder that God had looked after His people, allowing no one to wrong them, reproving kings for their sake, and warning all about touching His ‘anointed ones’, His witnesses. This had been especially true when they left Egypt, for YHWH rebuked Pharaoh, and then He rebuked other kings as Israel travelled towards, and entered in, to the land of Canaan. And all the time they were travelling, apart from the initial journey to Sinai, the Ark of His covenant was among them.
All who are God’s anointed ones can be sure of His protection, and that included the returnees from Babylon, and it includes us.
YHWH having promised the protection of His people the Psalm goes on to call on men to sing to YHWH and show forth His glory. These words are also found in Psalm 96. In this regard we could argue that it would be natural to take the words of Asaph and make them into Psalms, for his Psalm divides into three, and Psalm 96 is an expansion on the middle part, occasionally altering the order of the lines. Indeed, Psalm 96 could be said to ‘smooth out the wrinkles’ in the Psalm.
23 Sing to the LORD, all the earth; Proclaim the good news of His salvation from day to day. 24 Declare His glory among the nations, His wonders among all peoples.
Here Asaph renews the call for men to sing to YHWH (verse 9) and to show forth His deliverances (verse 9), declaring His glory among the nations (verse 8) and revealing to them His marvelous works (verse 12). Such repetition was a common feature of Psalms. It is a double reminder of the need to give thanks and praise for all that God has done, and the need to bear witness of it among the nations.
25 For the LORD Is great and greatly to be praised; He Is also to be feared above all gods. 26 For all the gods of the peoples are idols, but the LORD made the heavens. 27 Honor and majesty are before Him; Strength and Gladness are in His place.
YHWH Is great and greatly to be praised. He Is to be feared above all gods, for the gods of the peoples are merely idols, while YHWH in contrast Is the One Who made the Heavens.
Idols are manmade, YHWH made everything. Furthermore, honor and majesty are, as it were, His attendants standing before Him, as great men would stand before a king, because they essentially reveal what He is.
28 Give to the LORD, O families of the peoples, give to the LORD glory and strength. 29 Give to the LORD the glory due His name; Bring an offering and come before Him. Oh, worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness!
Asaph then calls on all peoples to ascribe to YHWH glory and strength, the glory and strength which are due to Him because of what He Is. They are to recognize His splendor and His power. They should therefore bring their offerings to Him, and worship Him, not only in splendid clothing, but in the array of holiness. For only what is pure and holy is acceptable to Him. To the people of Israel, the presence among them again of the Ark of the Covenant presented a new reason why the nations should seek YHWH. And as we have seen, Hiram had already done so (14.1-2), and so would the Queen of Sheba under Solomon (2 Chronicles 9.1-9).
30 Tremble before Him, all the earth. The world also is firmly established, It shall not be moved. 31 Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad; And let them say among the nations, “The LORD reigns.” 32 Let the sea roar, and all its fullness; Let the field rejoice, and all that is in it. 33 Then the trees of the woods shall rejoice before the LORD, for He Is coming to judge the earth.
All men and women are called on to tremble before YHWH, now that He Is once more dwelling on His throne among His people. They are to tremble because they become aware of His glory and are afraid. In contrast the world of nature does not tremble. Rather it is established and cannot be moved and can consequently be glad and rejoice. For it has been set there by the hand of its Creator Who Is sovereign over all. It is only man who is unstable and does not accept His sovereignty.
Thus, the heavens are to be glad and the earth are to rejoice, because they are aware that YHWH reigns. ‘The heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament shows His handywork, day to day utters speech, and the night to night adds knowledge’ (Psalm 19.1-2). ‘And every created thing which is in the heavens and on the earth --- and all things that are in them, I heard saying, “To Him Who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be the blessing, and the honor, and the glory and the dominion for ever and ever” (Revelation 5.13).
34 Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He Is good! For His mercy endures forever. 35 And say, “Save us, O God of our salvation; Gather us together, and deliver us from the Gentiles, to give thanks to Your Holy Name, to triumph in Your praise.”
Asaph expresses his gratitude for God’s goodness as revealed in His faithfulness to His covenant love, a love which would endure forever. This was something of which the returnees from Exile were very much aware. Had He not been faithful to them too?
Asaph then goes on to urge Israel to seek salvation through Him. God was their delivering God, and they should call on Him to make them as one and deliver them from the nations. Please notice the thought of ‘all Israel’ in their being ‘gathered together’. Unity would produce strength. That too was what the returnees from Exile needed to do. United they would stand, divided they would fall.
36 Blessed be the LORD God of Israel from everlasting to everlasting! And all the people said, “Amen!” and praised the LORD.
The Psalm closes with praise to YHWH. He had come among them on the Mercy Seat on the Ark, as the God of Israel, and Asaph thus sought that He be blessed (truly praised and honored) from ages past to ages yet to come. And all the people confirmed their agreement by saying ‘Amen’ (let it be sure) and by themselves praising YHWH.
Asaph and his Levitical brothers are now given responsibility for conducting the worship in Jerusalem, with the priestly functions probably in the hands of Abiathar the Priest. It would seem likely that David would keep the man who had been faithful to him as Priest, as the Priest of his own Sanctuary. Heman and Jeduthun and their Levitical brothers are given responsibility for the worship in the Tabernacle at Gibeon where the bronze altar was (1 Kings 3.4), with the priestly functions in the hands of Zadok the Priest, who may well have served under Saul. Due to the conflict between David’s house and Saul’s there were at this stage two Priests, Abiathar and Zadok.
37 So he left Asaph and his brothers there before the ark of the covenant of the LORD to minister before the ark regularly, as every day’s work required;
David left Asaph and his fellow-Levites to have responsibility for the ministry before the Ark of the Covenant of YHWH in Jerusalem on a continual basis, operating as every day required, no doubt on a shift system but with Asaph on call. In view of the mention of Obed-edom and his sixty-eight fellow-Levites, who are seemingly to share the work with them, it would appear that his fellow-Levites (‘brothers’) are those mentioned in verse 5 as singers, and that their ministry will mainly be music.
38 and Obed-Edom with his sixty-eight brethren, including Obed-Edom the son of Jeduthun, and Hosah, to be gatekeepers;
Two doorkeepers were appointed for the Ark. Door keeping involved keeping out all who were not qualified to enter, a very important and delicate exercise requiring great authority, and they also had their part in looking after the treasury.
39 and Zadok the priest and his brethren the priests, before the tabernacle of the LORD at the high place that was at Gibeon, 40 to offer burnt offerings to the LORD on the altar of burnt offering regularly morning and evening, and to do according to all that is written in the Law of the LORD which He commanded Israel;
This makes clear that the Tabernacle was at this stage at Gibeon
41 and with them Heman and Jeduthun and the rest who were chosen, who were designated by name, to give thanks to the LORD, because His mercy endures forever; 42 and with them Heman and Jeduthun, to sound aloud with trumpets and cymbals and the musical instruments of God. Now the sons of Jeduthun were gatekeepers.
With Zadok and his brother priests, who looked after the Sanctuary in Gibeon and offered the sacrifices, were the Levite singers under Heman and Jeduthun. They had as assistants a select group. And their purpose was the same as that of Asaph, to lead the singing by ‘giving thanks to YHWH’ Whose ‘covenant love endures forever’. The presence of the Ark had brought a new assurance of the permanence of the covenant, and of God’s love for His people. This group had trumpets and cymbals and other instruments for those whose duty it was to sing aloud the songs of God. Meanwhile the door of the Tabernacle was constantly guarded by the sons of Jeduthun to prevent unauthorized access.
43 Then all the people departed, every man to his house; and David returned to bless his house.
The excitement of the day was over. The Ark of the Covenant of YHWH was safely set in its place in the Jerusalem. Worship was continually going on around it. And God was present among His people in a new way. The people were thrilled. Filled with deep satisfaction and gratitude every man among them departed for his home. And David too returned home to bless his house. In other words, he was so filled with reverence and praise that on arrival home he called down God’s blessing on his household, filled with joy because God was among them in a new way.
