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1 Chronicles 16

¹They brought the Ark of God and placed it inside the special tent David had prepared for it. And they presented burnt offerings and peace offerings to God. ²When he had finished his sacrifices, David blessed the people in the name of the Lord. ³Then he gave to every man and woman in all Israel a loaf of bread, a cake of dates, and a cake of raisins.

⁴David appointed the following Levites to lead the people in worship before the Ark of the Lord—to invoke his blessings, to give thanks, and to praise the Lord, the God of Israel. ⁵Asaph, the leader of this group, sounded the cymbals. Second to him was Zechariah, followed by Jeiel, Shemiramoth, Jehiel, Mattithiah, Eliab, Benaiah, Obed-edom, and Jeiel. They played the harps and lyres. ⁶The priests, Benaiah and Jahaziel, played the trumpets regularly before the Ark of God’s Covenant.

David’s Song of Praise

⁷On that day David gave to Asaph and his fellow Levites this song of thanksgiving to the Lord:

⁸Give thanks to the Lord and proclaim his greatness. Let the whole world know what he has done.

⁹Sing to him; yes, sing his praises. Tell everyone about his wonderful deeds.

¹⁰Exult in his holy name; rejoice, you who worship the Lord.

¹¹Search for the Lord and for his strength; continually seek him.

¹²Remember the wonders he has performed, his miracles, and the rulings he has given,

¹³you children of his servant Israel, you descendants of Jacob, his chosen ones.

¹⁴He is the Lord our God. His justice is seen throughout the land.

¹⁵Remember his covenant forever— the commitment he made to a thousand generations.

¹⁶This is the covenant he made with Abraham and the oath he swore to Isaac.

¹⁷He confirmed it to Jacob as a decree, and to the people of Israel as a never-ending covenant:

¹⁸“I will give you the land of Canaan as your special possession.”

¹⁹He said this when you were few in number, a tiny group of strangers in Canaan.

²⁰They wandered from nation to nation, from one kingdom to another.

²¹Yet he did not let anyone oppress them. He warned kings on their behalf:

²²“Do not touch my chosen people, and do not hurt my prophets.”

²³Let the whole earth sing to the Lord! Each day proclaim the good news that he saves.

²⁴Publish his glorious deeds among the nations. Tell everyone about the amazing things he does.

²⁵Great is the Lord! He is most worthy of praise! He is to be feared above all gods.

²⁶The gods of other nations are mere idols, but the Lord made the heavens!

²⁷Honor and majesty surround him; strength and joy fill his dwelling.

²⁸O nations of the world, recognize the Lord, recognize that the Lord is glorious and strong.

²⁹Give to the Lord the glory he deserves! Bring your offering and come into his presence. Worship the Lord in all his holy splendor.

³⁰Let all the earth tremble before him. The world stands firm and cannot be shaken.

³¹Let the heavens be glad, and the earth rejoice! Tell all the nations, “The Lord reigns!”

³²Let the sea and everything in it shout his praise! Let the fields and their crops burst out with joy!

³³Let the trees of the forest sing for joy before the Lord, for he is coming to judge the earth.

³⁴Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good! His faithful love endures forever.

³⁵Cry out, “Save us, O God of our salvation! Gather and rescue us from among the nations, so we can thank your holy name and rejoice and praise you.”

³⁶Praise the Lord, the God of Israel, who lives from everlasting to everlasting! And all the people shouted “Amen!” and praised the Lord.

Worship at Jerusalem and Gibeon

³⁷David arranged for Asaph and his fellow Levites to serve regularly before the Ark of the Lord’s Covenant, doing whatever needed to be done each day. ³⁸This group included Obed-edom (son of Jeduthun), Hosah, and sixty-eight other Levites as gatekeepers.

³⁹Meanwhile, David stationed Zadok the priest and his fellow priests at the Tabernacle of the Lord at the place of worship in Gibeon, where they continued to minister before the Lord. ⁴⁰They sacrificed the regular burnt offerings to the Lord each morning and evening on the altar set aside for that purpose, obeying everything written in the Law of the Lord, as he had commanded Israel. ⁴¹David also appointed Heman, Jeduthun, and the others chosen by name to give thanks to the Lord, for “his faithful love endures forever.” ⁴²They used their trumpets, cymbals, and other instruments to accompany their songs of praise to God. And the sons of Jeduthun were appointed as gatekeepers.

⁴³Then all the people returned to their homes, and David turned and went home to bless his own family.

1 Chronicles 16 (NLT)

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1 Chronicles

Chapter 16

16 of 29