1 Chronicles 16

16 ¹They brought the ark of our Father and set it inside the tent that David had pitched for it, and they offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before our Father. ²When David had finished offering the burnt offerings and peace offerings, he blessed the people in the name of our Father. ³And he distributed to every Israelite, both men and women, a loaf of bread, a date cake, and a raisin cake.

⁴He appointed some of the Levites to minister before the ark of our Father, to invoke, to give thanks, and to praise our Father. ^a a v4 "To invoke" means to call on God's name — summoning him in prayer and public proclamation. ⁵Asaph was the chief, and second to him were Zechariah, then Jeiel, Shemiramoth, Jehiel, Mattithiah, Eliab, Benaiah, Obed-edom, and Jeiel, with harps and lyres; and Asaph sounded the cymbals. ⁶Benaiah and Jahaziel the priests were to blow the trumpets regularly before the ark of the covenant of our Father.

David's Song of Thanks to Our Father

⁷On that day David first appointed Asaph and his brothers to give thanks to our Father: ⁸Give thanks to our Father; call upon his name; proclaim his deeds among the peoples! ⁹Sing to him; sing praises to him; tell of all his wondrous works! ¹⁰Exult in his holy name; let the hearts of those who seek our Father rejoice! ¹¹Seek our Father and his strength; seek his presence continually! ¹²Remember the wondrous works that he has done, his miracles and the judgments he pronounced. ¹³You children of Israel his servant, you sons of Jacob, his chosen ones! ¹⁴He is our Father; his judgments are in all the earth. ¹⁵Remember his covenant forever, the word he commanded for 1,000 generations, ¹⁶the covenant he made with Abraham, his sworn oath to Isaac, ¹⁷which he confirmed to Jacob as a statute, to Israel as an everlasting covenant, ¹⁸saying, "To you I will give the land of Canaan as your allotted inheritance." ¹⁹When you were few in number, of little importance, and strangers in the land, ²⁰wandering from nation to nation, from one kingdom to another people, ²¹he allowed no one to oppress them; he rebuked kings on their account,

²²"Do not touch my anointed ones, and do my prophets no harm!"

²³Sing to our Father, all the earth! Proclaim his salvation day after day. ²⁴Publish his glorious deeds among the nations; tell every people the amazing things he has done! ²⁵For great is our Father, and most worthy of praise; he is to be feared above all gods. ²⁶For all the gods of the peoples are idols, but our Father made the heavens. ²⁷Splendor and majesty are before him; strength and joy are in his dwelling. ²⁸Ascribe to our Father, all families of the peoples, ascribe to our Father glory and strength! ²⁹Ascribe to our Father the glory due his name; bring an offering and come before him! Worship our Father in the splendor of holiness. ³⁰Tremble before him, all the earth! Indeed, the world is firmly established; it will never be moved. ³¹Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice, and let them say among the nations, "Our Father reigns!" ³²Let the sea roar, and all that fills it; let the fields exult, and everything in them! ³³Then the trees of the forest will sing for joy before our Father, for he comes to judge the earth. ³⁴Give thanks to our Father, for he is good; for his covenant love endures forever! ³⁵Say also: "Save us, our Father; gather us and rescue us from among the nations, that we may give thanks to your holy name and exult in your praise." ³⁶Blessed be our Father, from everlasting to everlasting! Then all the people said, "Amen!" and praised our Father.

Worship Established Before Our Father's Ark

³⁷So David left Asaph and his brothers there before the ark of the covenant of our Father, to minister regularly before the ark as each day required, ³⁸and Obed-edom with his sixty-eight brothers; Obed-edom son of Jeduthun and Hosah were to be gatekeepers. ³⁹And Zadok the priest and his fellow priests served before the tabernacle of our Father at the high place that was at Gibeon, ^b b v39 A "high place" was an outdoor worship site, often built on elevated ground. ⁴⁰to offer burnt offerings to our Father on the altar of burnt offering regularly, morning and evening, according to all that is written in the law of our Father, which he commanded Israel. ⁴¹With them were Heman and Jeduthun and the rest of those chosen and designated by name to give thanks to our Father, for his covenant love endures forever. ⁴²Heman and Jeduthun had with them trumpets and cymbals to sound, and instruments for the sacred songs of our Father. The sons of Jeduthun were stationed at the gate. ⁴³Then all the people departed, each to his home, and David turned to bless his own household.