“And he stationed the Levites in the house of the Lord with cymbals, with stringed instruments, and with harps, according to the commandment of David, of Gad the king’s seer, and of Nathan the prophet; for thus was the commandment of the Lord by His prophets.”
—2 Chronicles 29:25
(This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.)
When David established his tent, his actions made some revolutionary statements. Not only was he restoring the Presence of God to the center of the people of God, he established an order of worship that carried on through the following generations. And the implications of what he did carry on to today. Our present day worship teams, knowingly or unknowingly, are following, in some measure, the order that David set up.
In this article, I want to explore the order of worship that David set up and show how this is the biblical framework for praise and worship—not only for worship teams to follow, but for the everyday believer.
Matthew Lilley, author of David’s Tabernacle, one of the best books out there on the subject, wrote, “As you study the kings who pursued the Lord and led Israel into seasons of revival, you will notice a stunning trend: they adopted Davidic worship. When the nation would turn back to God, the people would also turn back to worshipping the Lord the way David did.” (p. 135-136)
You’ll see this in the reigns of Hezekiah, Josiah, Joash, and during the time of Ezra and Nehemiah.
In the above verse (2 Chronicles 29:25), it says that during Hezekiah’s time, “...he stationed the Levites in the house of the Lord with cymbals, with stringed instruments, and with harps, according to the commandment of David…”
Firstly, David ordered this kind of worship. Then the verse goes on to say that the prophets said it as well, “...for thus was the commandment of the Lord by His prophets.” Which tells me that this was not just in David’s heart, this was God’s heart!
Worship, the way David set it up, wasn’t just a good idea, it was a God idea. The Davidic order of worship is a manifestation of the heart of God.
Here are at least 5 characteristics of Davidic worship:
1. Open access to the Presence of God
One unique thing about David’s Tabernacle was that there was no veil between the ark of the covenant and the people. The priests would minister before the ark continually (1 Chron. 16:4, 37).
That is a HUGE statement.
In Moses’ Tabernacle, no one was allowed to go into the room where the ark of the covenant was except the high priest once a year. David made it so the priests could access the Presence of God freely and continually!
It’s a prophetic foreshadowing of what Christ Jesus would make available to us through the cross. When Jesus died, the veil in the temple was torn in two from top to bottom, signifying open access to God (Matt. 27:51).
Now we, the priests of the Lord (1 Peter 2:9), can come before God freely (Heb. 4:16) and bring our sacrifices of praise (Heb. 13:15).
That’s a lot of theology to say this one simple thing:
We have open access to the Presence of God.
And because of that, we can approach and worship Him freely.
2. Perpetual praise
The priests would minister continually to the Lord through song (1 Chron. 16:37). This continual praise lasted for the entirety of David’s reign: 33 years.
This wasn’t just a “warm-up to the sermon”; this was a reflection of heaven.
David must’ve tapped into the heart of God and got a glimpse of what John saw in Revelation 4 and 5: The perpetual worship that is lifted up to God.
I wrote about that here, and say that the perpetual fires of worship are fueled by perpetually seeing God. The hosts of heaven keep seeing how glorious God is and respond with worship.
At minimum, what this means for us is having hearts that carry reverence for God in every area of our lives.
Our daily practice should include ministering to the Lord in thanksgiving, praise, and worship.
The implication for our worship times in church is that there would be a flow of love expressed to God through song. Not a rigid religious ritual, but a gathering of hearts who’ve tasted and seen that the Lord is good, and can’t help but respond in praise and worship.
3. Expressive praise
Much of the expressions we employ in our praise and worship times come from the Psalms. And much of the Psalms came from either David or the worshippers David appointed in his tabernacle.
They include expressions such as singing, playing music, shouting, dancing, kneeling, bowing, lifting hands, clapping hands, etc.
These expressions are not charismatic or pentecostal things—they’re biblical!
And just normal human being things.
Your outward expression of praise completes your inward devotion of worship. It’s one thing to say “I love you” and it’s another thing to live out “I love you.”
David, when he brought in the ark of the covenant to Jerusalem, danced before the Lord with all his might! (2 Sam. 6:14)
God is worthy of your praise expression!
4. Prophetic
“Moreover David and the captains of the army separated for the service some of the sons of Asaph, of Heman, and of Jeduthun, who should prophesy with harps, stringed instruments, and cymbals…”
—1 Chronicles 25:1
Prophetic ministry was a key characteristic of the Tabernacle of David. I said this in part 1, but when we minister to God, He ministers to us. One of the primary ways this happened in David’s Tabernacle was through prophetic ministry.
An example of this is in Psalm 46. Verse 1 says, “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.” Then when you jump down to verse 10 it says, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!”
The narrative changed from people singing about God to God singing to them! That’s prophetic worship ministry in action. And that word is still encouraging people today!
In our worship times today, we should expect to hear from the Lord. When we minister to God, He ministers to us! The singers and musicians at our churches can enter into this kind of ministry by the Holy Spirit. Paul said to eagerly desire spiritual gifts, especially the gift of prophecy (1 Cor. 14:1).
5. Skilled musicians
“Sing to Him a new song; Play skillfully with a shout of joy.”
—Psalm 33:3
David appointed singers and musicians who were skilled. It’s also worth mentioning that there was a lot of administrative work that went into organizing the worship at David’s tent. Shout out to Planning Center!
The musicians and singers were skilled in two main areas: music and anointing.
It’s one thing to have someone know how to play an instrument or sing well. It’s another thing to have someone who knows how to minister under the anointing.
When scripture talks about skill in David’s Tabernacle, I believe it’s referring to both music and anointing.
These are the ones who know how to move with God, move the heart of God, and produce sounds that carry the heart of God. When they sing or play, it’s not only a good sound, but it’s a heavenly sound. God accompanies their ministry.
God is looking for singers and musicians who would not only grow in their musical skills, but spend time ministering to the Lord and find out what pleases Him (Eph. 5:10).
CONCLUSION
Why is this so important for us today? One reason is, David’s order of worship is the scriptural precedent we have for having a worship team at our churches. There are little pockets of singers and musicians throughout scripture—but there isn’t another framework like David set up.
But mainly, the Davidic order of worship gives us the heart of God for what He desires in praise and worship.
Remember, this wasn’t just David’s idea or the prophets, this was the commandment of the Lord (2 Chron. 29:25). This is what God desires!
Let’s give God what He wants.
Question: How have you employed the order of worship that David established? What have been the results?