1 Tawarikh 15:16-21

15:16 David told the leaders of the Levites to appoint some of their relatives as musicians; they were to play various instruments, including stringed instruments and cymbals, and to sing loudly and joyfully. ¹  15:17 So the Levites appointed Heman son of Joel; one of his relatives, Asaph son of Berechiah; one of the descendants of Merari, ²  Ethan son of Kushaiah; 15:18 along with some of their relatives who were second in rank, including Zechariah, ³  Jaaziel, Shemiramoth, Jehiel, Unni, Eliab, Benaiah, Maaseiah, Mattithiah, Eliphelehu, Mikneiah, Obed-Edom, and Jeiel, the gatekeepers.

15:19 The musicians Heman, Asaph, and Ethan were to sound the bronze cymbals; 15:20 Zechariah, Aziel, Shemiramoth, Jehiel, Unni, Eliab, Maaseiah, and Benaiah were to play the harps according to the alamoth style; ⁴  15:21 Mattithiah, Eliphelehu, Mikneiah, Obed-Edom, Jeiel, and Azaziah were to play the lyres according to the sheminith style, ⁵  as led by ⁶  the director;

1 Tawarikh 16:4-5

16:4 He appointed some of the Levites to serve before the ark of the Lord, to offer prayers, songs of thanks, and hymns to the Lord God of Israel. 16:5 Asaph was the leader and Zechariah second in command, followed by Jeiel, Shemiramoth, Jehiel, Mattithiah, Eliab, Benaiah, Obed-Edom, and Jeiel. They were to play stringed instruments; Asaph was to sound the cymbals;

1 Tawarikh 16:42

16:42 Heman and Jeduthun were in charge of the music, including the trumpets, cymbals, and the other musical instruments used in praising God. The sons of Jeduthun guarded the entrance. ⁷ 

1 Tawarikh 23:5-7

23:5 4,000 are to be gatekeepers; and 4,000 are to praise the Lord with the instruments I supplied for worship.” ⁸  23:6 David divided them into groups corresponding to the sons of Levi: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari.

23:7 The Gershonites included Ladan and Shimei.

1 Tawarikh 23:2

23:2 David ⁹  assembled all the leaders of Israel, along with the priests and the Levites.

1 Tawarikh 23:13

23:13 The sons of Amram:

Aaron and Moses.

Aaron and his descendants were chosen on a permanent basis to consecrate the most holy items, to offer sacrifices before the Lord, to serve him, and to praise his name. ¹⁰ 

1 Tawarikh 29:25-26

29:25 The Lord greatly magnified Solomon before all Israel and bestowed on him greater majesty than any king of Israel before him. ¹¹ 

David’s Reign Comes to an End

29:26 David son of Jesse reigned over all Israel.

1 Tawarikh 1:2

1:2 Kenan, Mahalalel, Jered,

1 Tawarikh 1:12

1:12 Pathrusites, Casluhites (from whom the Philistines descended ¹² ), and the Caphtorites.

Ezra 3:10-11

3:10 When the builders established the Lord’s temple, the priests, ceremonially attired and with their clarions, ¹³  and the Levites (the sons of Asaph) with their cymbals, stood to praise the Lord according to the instructions left by ¹⁴  King David of Israel. ¹⁵  3:11 With antiphonal response they sang, ¹⁶  praising and glorifying the Lord:

“For he is good;

his loyal love toward Israel is forever.”

All the people gave a loud ¹⁷  shout as they praised the Lord when the temple of the Lord was established.

Nehemia 12:24

12:24 And the leaders of the Levites were Hashabiah, Sherebiah, Jeshua son of Kadmiel, and their colleagues, who stood opposite them to offer praise and thanks, one contingent corresponding to the other, as specified by ¹⁸  David the man of God.

Nehemia 12:27

The Wall of Jerusalem is Dedicated

12:27 At the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem, ¹⁹  they sought out the Levites from all the places they lived ²⁰  to bring them to Jerusalem to celebrate the dedication joyfully with songs of thanksgiving and songs accompanied by cymbals, harps, and lyres.

Nehemia 12:43-46

12:43 And on that day they offered great sacrifices and rejoiced, for God had given them great joy. The women and children also rejoiced. The rejoicing in Jerusalem could be heard from far away.

12:44 On that day men were appointed over the storerooms for the contributions, first fruits, and tithes, to gather into them from ²¹  the fields of the cities the portions prescribed by the law for the priests and the Levites, for the people of Judah ²²  took delight in the priests and Levites who were ministering. ²³  12:45 They performed the service of their God and the service of purification, along with the singers and gatekeepers, according to the commandment of David and ²⁴  his son Solomon. 12:46 For long ago, in the days of David and Asaph, there had been directors ²⁵  for the singers and for the songs of praise and thanks to God.

Mazmur 81:2

81:2 Sing ²⁶  a song and play the tambourine,

the pleasant sounding harp, and the ten-stringed instrument!

Mazmur 92:1-3

Psalm 92 ²⁷ 

A psalm; a song for the Sabbath day.

92:1 It is fitting ²⁸  to thank the Lord,

and to sing praises to your name, O sovereign One! ²⁹ 

92:2 It is fitting ³⁰  to proclaim your loyal love in the morning,

and your faithfulness during the night,

92:3 to the accompaniment of a ten-stringed instrument and a lyre,

to the accompaniment of the meditative tone of the harp.

Mazmur 150:3-5

150:3 Praise him with the blast of the horn!

Praise him with the lyre and the harp!

150:4 Praise him with the tambourine and with dancing!

Praise him with stringed instruments and the flute!

150:5 Praise him with loud cymbals!

Praise him with clanging cymbals!

Wahyu 15:2-4

15:2 Then ³¹  I saw something like a sea of glass ³²  mixed with fire, and those who had conquered ³³  the beast and his image and the number of his name. They were standing ³⁴  by ³⁵  the sea of glass, holding harps given to them by God. ³⁶  15:3 They ³⁷  sang the song of Moses the servant ³⁸  of God and the song of the Lamb: ³⁹ 

“Great and astounding are your deeds,

Lord God, the All-Powerful! ⁴⁰ 

Just ⁴¹  and true are your ways,

King over the nations! ⁴² 

15:4 Who will not fear you, O Lord,

and glorify ⁴³  your name, because you alone are holy? ⁴⁴ 

All nations ⁴⁵  will come and worship before you

for your righteous acts ⁴⁶  have been revealed.”

[15:16]  ¹ tn Heb “causing to be heard to lift up with a voice of joy.”

[15:17]  ² tn The Hebrew text adds, “their brothers.”

[15:18]  ³ tc The Hebrew text adds בֶּן (ben, “son”) here; the word is omitted in three Hebrew mss and most LXX mss. If the word is original, perhaps the name of Zechariah’s father was accidentally omitted. Some English versions treat the word as an additional name in the list (“Ben”; e.g., KJV, ASV, NASB).

[15:20]  ⁴ tn The meaning of the Hebrew word עֲלָמוֹת (’alamot) is uncertain; perhaps it refers to a particular style of music. See HALOT 835-36 s.v. עַלְמָה.

[15:21]  ⁵ tn The meaning of the Hebrew word שְׁמִינִית (shÿminit) is uncertain; perhaps it refers to a particular style of music. See HALOT 1562 s.v. שְׁמִינֹי.

[15:21]  ⁶ tn Heb “for” or “according to.”

[16:42]  ⁷ tn Heb “and with them, Heman and Jeduthun, trumpets and cymbals for sounding, and the instrument of song of God, and the sons of Jeduthun [were] at the gate.”

[23:5]  ⁸ tn Heb “made to [or “for”] praise.”

[23:2]  ⁹ tn Heb “he”; the referent (David) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[23:13]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “and Aaron was set apart to consecrate it, the most holy things, he and his sons, permanently, to sacrifice before the Lord, to serve him, and to bless his name permanently.”

[29:25]  ¹¹ tn Heb “and gave to him glory of kingship which there was not concerning every king before him over Israel.”

[1:12]  ¹² tn Heb “came forth.”

[3:10]  ¹³ sn This was a long, straight, metallic instrument used for signal calls, rather than the traditional ram’s horn (both instruments are typically translated “trumpet” by English versions).

[3:10]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “according to the hands of.”

[3:10]  ¹⁵ sn See Ps 107:1; 118:1, 29; 136:1. Cf. 2 Chr 5:13; 7:3; 20:21.

[3:11]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “they answered.”

[3:11]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “great.”

[12:24]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “in [accord with] the commandment of.”

[12:27]  ¹⁹ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[12:27]  ²⁰ tn Heb “from all their places.” The words “they lived” are implied.

[12:44]  ²¹ tc The translation reads מִשְּׂדֶי (missÿde, “from the fields”) rather than the MT reading לִשְׂדֵי (lisdey, “to the fields”).

[12:44]  ²² tn Heb “for Judah.” The words “the people of” have been supplied in the translation for clarity, since “Judah” is a proper name as well as a place name.

[12:44]  ²³ tn Heb “standing.”

[12:45]  ²⁴ tc With many medieval Hebrew MSS and the ancient versions the translation reads the conjunction (“and”). It is absent in the Leningrad MS that forms the textual basis for BHS.

[12:46]  ²⁵ tn Heb “heads.” The translation reads with the Qere the plural רֹאשֵׁי (ro’shey, “heads”) rather than the Kethib singular רֹאשׁ (ro’sh, “head”) of the MT.

[81:2]  ²⁶ tn Heb “lift up.”

[92:1]  ²⁷ sn Psalm 92. The psalmist praises God because he defeats the wicked and vindicates his loyal followers.

[92:1]  ²⁸ tn Or “good.”

[92:1]  ²⁹ tn Traditionally “O Most High.”

[92:2]  ³⁰ tn The words “it is fitting” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons. Verses 1-3 are actually one long sentence in the Hebrew text, but this has been divided up into two shorter sentences in the translation in keeping with contemporary English style.

[15:2]  ³¹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence within the narrative.

[15:2]  ³² sn See Rev 4:6 where the sea of glass was mentioned previously.

[15:2]  ³³ tn Or “had been victorious over”; traditionally, “had overcome.”

[15:2]  ³⁴ tn Grk “of his name, standing.” A new sentence was started here in the translation by supplying the words “They were.”

[15:2]  ³⁵ tn Or “on.” The preposition ἐπί (epi) with the accusative case could mean “on, at, by, near”; given the nature of this scene appearing in a vision, it is difficult to know precisely which the author of Revelation intended. See BDAG 363 s.v. ἐπί 1.c.γ, “At, by, near someone or someth.”

[15:2]  ³⁶ tn Grk “harps of God.” The phrase τοῦ θεοῦ (tou qeou) has been translated as a genitive of agency.

[15:3]  ³⁷ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated.

[15:3]  ³⁸ tn See the note on the word “servants” in 1:1.

[15:3]  ³⁹ tn Grk “saying.” The participle λέγοντες (legontes) is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated.

[15:3]  ⁴⁰ tn On this word BDAG 755 s.v. παντοκράτωρ states, “the Almighty, All-Powerful, Omnipotent (One) only of God…(ὁ) κύριος ὁ θεὸς ὁ π. …Rv 1:8; 4:8; 11:17; 15:3; 16:7; 21:22.”

[15:3]  ⁴¹ tn Or “righteous,” although the context favors justice as the theme.

[15:3]  ⁴² tc Certain mss (Ì⁴⁷ א*^,2 C 1006 1611 1841 pc) read “ages” (αἰώνων, aiwnwn) instead of “nations” (ἐθνῶν, eqnwn), which itself is supported by several mss (א¹ A 051 Ï). The ms evidence seems to be fairly balanced, though αἰώνων has somewhat better support. The replacement of “ages” with “nations” is possibly a scribal attempt to harmonize this verse with the use of “nations” in the following verse. On the other hand, the idea of “nations” fits well with v. 4 and it may be that “ages” is a scribal attempt to assimilate this text to 1 Tim 1:17: “the king of the ages” (βασιλεὺς τῶν αἰώνων, basileu" twn aiwnwn). The decision is a difficult one since both scenarios deal well with the evidence, though the verbal parallel with 1 Tim 1:17 is exact while the parallel with v. 4 is not. The term “king” occurs 17 other times (most occurrences refer to earthly kings) in Revelation and it is not used with either “ages” or “nations” apart from this verse. Probably the reading “nations” should be considered original due to the influence of 1 Tim 1:17.

[15:4]  ⁴³ tn Or “and praise.”

[15:4]  sn Jeremiah 10:7 probably stands behind the idea of fearing God, and Psalm 86:9-10 stands behind the ideas of glorifying God, his uniqueness, and the nations coming to worship him. Many other OT passages also speak about the nations “coming to his temple” to worship (Isa 2:2-3, 49:22-23, 66:23-24; Micah 4:2; Zech 8:20-22). See G. K. Beale, Revelation [NIGTC], 796-97.

[15:4]  ⁴⁴ sn Because you alone are holy. In the Greek text the sentence literally reads “because alone holy.” Three points can be made in connection with John’s language here: (1) Omitting the second person, singular verb “you are” lays stress on the attribute of God’s holiness. (2) The juxtaposition of alone with holy stresses the unique nature of God’s holiness and complete “otherness” in relationship to his creation. It is not just moral purity which is involved in the use of the term holy, though it certainly includes that. It is also the pervasive OT idea that although God is deeply involved in the governing of his creation, he is to be regarded as separate and distinct from it. (3) John’s use of the term holy is also intriguing since it is the term ὅσιος (Josios) and not the more common NT term ἅγιος (Jagios). The former term evokes images of Christ’s messianic status in early Christian preaching. Both Peter in Acts 2:27 and Paul in Acts 13:35 apply Psalm 16:10 (LXX) to Jesus, referring to him as the “holy one” (ὅσιος). It is also the key term in Acts 13:34 (Isa 55:3 [LXX]) where it refers to the “holy blessings” (i.e., forgiveness and justification) brought about through Jesus in fulfillment of Davidic promise. Thus, in Rev 15:3-4, when John refers to God as “holy,” using the term ὅσιος in a context where the emphasis is on both God and Christ, there might be an implicit connection between divinity and the Messiah. This is bolstered by the fact that the Lamb is referred to in other contexts as the King of Kings and Lord of Lords (cf. 1:5; 17:14; 19:16 and perhaps 11:15; G. K. Beale, Revelation [NIGTC], 796-97).

[15:4]  ⁴⁵ tn Or “all the Gentiles” (the same Greek word may be translated “Gentiles” or “nations”).

[15:4]  ⁴⁶ tn Or perhaps, “your sentences of condemnation.” On δικαίωμα (dikaiwma) in this context BDAG 249 s.v. 2. states, “righteous deed…δι᾿ ἑνὸς δικαιώματος (opp. παράπτωμα) Ro 5:18. – B 1:2 (cp. Wengst, Barnabas-brief 196, n.4); Rv 15:4 (here perh.= ‘sentence of condemnation’ [cp. Pla., Leg. 9, 864e; ins fr. Asia Minor: LBW 41, 2 [κατὰ] τὸ δι[καί]ωμα τὸ κυρω[θέν]= ‘acc. to the sentence which has become valid’]; difft. Wengst, s. above); 19:8.”