Musical
Worship Teams, Outlawed and Restored -- Ezekiel 40
See that there was no praise service in the synagogue because in Numbers 10:7 it was outlawed when calling an assembly or Qahal or synagogue or church in the wilderness.
If you get nothing else please grasp that not among the Jews nor in the most vile pagan temples did the musicians enter into the Holy Places. Among the Jews, the Holy Place is a carnal type of the spiritual body of Christ. No Levitical musician could enter into this type of the church of Christ even to clean out the garbage.
The temple musicians in a "religious sense" (grouped with prostitutes in pagan religions) were in the court making a loud mocking noise during the sacrifice and burning of animals.
In fulfilment of the prophetic type, it was prophesied in Psalm 41 and fulfilled in the Dead Sea Scroll translation that Judas and the military musicians would attempt to turn Jesus into a coward.
In earlier fragments we quoted scholars who believe--with a lot of Biblical evidence--that David changed the worship practices of Israel to be like that of the nations by adding musical worship teams because they were going to spend all of their resources on a temple like the nations in which God would not and could not dwell.
The Bible shows that David and the commanders of the army reorginized the military Levitical musical worship teams, who had forced soldiers into battle with panic music. They would now serve the new temple-state which David made possible with military victory. Furthermore, these musical worship teams intruded into the actual place of animal sacrifices and were dressed in fine linen reserved for the priestly class:
All the Levites who were musicians--Asaph, Heman, Jeduthun and their sons and relatives--stood on the east side of the altar, dressed in fine linen and playing cymbals, harps and lyres. They were accompanied by 120 priests sounding trumpets. 2 Chr 5:12NIV
Also the Levites which were the singers, all of them of Asaph, of Heman, of Jeduthun, with their sons and their brethren, being arrayed in white linen, having cymbals and psalteries and harps, stood at the east end of the altar, and with them an hundred and twenty priests sounding with trumpets:) 2 Chr 5:12KJV
The word is not MUSICIANS but singers:
Shiyr (h7891) sheer; or (the orig. form) 7788 (1 Sam. 18:6), shoor; a prim. root [rather ident. with 7788 through the idea of strolling minstrelsy]; to sing: - behold [by mistake for 7788], sing (-er, - ing man, -ing woman).
Shuwr (h7788) shoor; a prim. root; prop. to turn, i. e. travel about (as a harlot or a merchant): - go, sing. See also 7891.
Josephus notes that the Levites performing priestly services (hard bondage, Abad) caused the fall of the nation ONCE and that their political campaign to wear linen garments and perform would cause their fall again: and it did.
You will remember, of course, that God only authorized two trumpets.
While Judah was not exempt and finally fell, it was the unfaithful or even unlawful Levites in Israel who pushed calf worship to the limit. Their worship is described by Amos and others as being much like the calf (Apis) worship at Mount Sinai which was accompanied with lots of singing and musical accompaniment. Idols were later added to the Jerusalem temple. The priest-musicians were often foreigners.
In Ezekiel's Idealized Temple (Eze 40f) the Levites who usurped priestly duties (as they had tried to do in the Wilderness) were banned from the religious worship services as performers. In both Israel and Judah idols were worshipped right in the temples. This was Solomon's ancient wineskin kingdom in which the walls were broken down and pagan idols were worshipped.
"professional musicians emerged in Israel about the time of David and Solomon. From then on, we have abundant historical evidence of the role which the professional musicians played in the organization of the temple ritual." (International Dictionary of the Bible, p. 461, Abingdon).
The people as congregation never sang with instrumental accompaniment.
And without the inner gate were the chambers of the singers in the inner court, which was at the side of the north gate; and their prospect was toward the south: one at the side of the east gate having the prospect toward the north. Ezekiel 40:44
However, the NIV reads:
Outside the inner gate, within the inner court, were two rooms, one at the side of the north gate and facing south, and another at the side of the south gate and facing north. Ezekiel 40:44 NIV
The RSV, LXX, LIV, Amp, LB, Moffat, NEB and several other English versions omit any reference to singers and follow the Greek text rather than the Hebrew (Masoretic).
This is sending us a message that God did not need sacrifices, temples or the musical worship teams attached to animal sacrifices. When Christ has accomplished His once-for-all sacrifice there is not call for music during sacrifices.
This is fortunate, because even the KJV which mentions singers defines the two chambers and does not include singers or musical instruments:
And he said unto me, this chamber, whose prospect is toward the south, is for the priests, the keepers of the charge of the house. Ezekiel 40:45
And the chamber whose prospect is toward the north is for the priests, the keepers of the charge of the altar: these are the sons of Zadok among the sons of Levi, which come near to the Lord to minister unto him. Ezekiel 40:46
Why are the Levitical singers and musical worship teams left out of the idealized, perhaps spiritual kingdom?
Ezekiel, in the idealized temple (beginning in Ezekiel 40), blames the reassigned Levites for Israel's failure. They were quick to recruit from non-Levitical talent and these were often Canaanites because of their musical talent. The Levites would be demoted from roles of overseers and made into true ministers (servants rather than rulers)--
"Because they ministered unto them before their idols, and caused the house of Israel to fall into iniquity (perverse); therefore have I lifted up mine hand against them, saith the Lord God, and they shall bear their iniquity. Eze 44:12
And they shall not come near unto me, to do the office of a priest unto me, nor to come near to any of my holy things, in the most holy place: but they shall bear their shame, and their abominations which they have committed. Eze 44:13
They would be put in charge in the sense of being watchmen or custodians.
This is a repetition of the musical idolatry at Mount Sinai:
Num
18:2 And thy brethren also of the tribe of Levi,
the tribe of thy father,
bring thou with thee, that they may be joined unto thee, and minister
unto thee:
but thou and thy sons with thee shall minister BEFORE
the tabernacle of witness.
[never IN]
H8334 sharath shaw-rath' A primitive root; to attend as a menial or worshipper; figuratively to contribute to:--minister (unto), (do) serve (-ant, -ice, -itor), wait on.
Num
18:3 And they shall keep thy charge, and the charge of all the
tabernacle:
only
they shall not
come nigh the vessels of the sanctuary and the
altar,
that
neither they, nor ye also, die.
Then and later, no "civilian" could ever come near the sacred things at no time in Israelite history:
Num
18:6 And I, behold, I have taken your brethren the Levites
from among the
children of Israel:
to you they are given as a gift for the LORD,
to do
the service of the tabernacle
of the congregation.
and within the veil; and ye shall serve: I have given your priest’s office unto you as a service of gift:
and the stranger that cometh nigh shall be put to death.
All of the prophets speaking by the Spirit OF Christ confirm that the Monarchy were the Levitical Warrior Musicians served in a system abandoned to worship the starry host.
Neither have our kings, our princes, our priests, nor our fathers, kept thy law, nor hearkened unto thy commandments and thy testimonies, wherewith thou didst testify against them. Neh 9:34
For they have not served thee in their kingdom, and in thy great goodness that thou gavest them, and in the large and fat land which thou gavest before them, neither turned they from their wicked works. Neh 9:35
Behold, we are
servants this day,
[and so are you]
and for
the land that thou
gavest unto our fathers
to eat the fruit thereof and the good
thereof,
behold, we are servants
in it: Neh 9:36
And it yieldeth
much increase unto the kings whom
thou hast set
over us
because of our sins:
also they have dominion over our
bodies, and over our cattle,
at their pleasure,
and we are in great distress. Neh 9:37
They
have sown wheat, but shall reap thorns:
they have put
themselves to
pain, but
shall not profit:
and they shall be ashamed
of your revenues
because of the fierce anger of the Lord.
Je.12:13
The priests sounded the trumpets in war or for assembly. They also sounded them, as God commanded, at the beginning and ending of the sacrifice. However, they did not, as God commanded, play the trumpets in a loud, rejoicing or triumping-over way. Of the Zadokite priest Ezekiel wrote:
And it shall come to pass, that when they enter in at the gates of the inner court, they shall be clothed with linen garments; and no wool shall come upon them, whiles they minister in the gates of the inner court, and within. Eze 44:17
See how Josephus warns the levites against putting on the linen garments to take up their role of singers again. Josephus warnes them against destroying the nation AGAIN. Previously they had performed on the steps leading from the Court of Women.
Ezekiel does not provide for the Levite's musical worship teams to play their little instruments of confusion in the new Idealized Temple. The priests, however, used the trumpets much like we might use a church bell.
The Levites came near to "prophesy" which was to sing their own songs accompanied with various musical instruments while the sacrifices were being made. This was clearly added by David and vastly enlarged by Solomon for the temple rituals. These, however, were not the services where the common Israelite worshiped.
The pagan, Levitical and early Catholic musical worship teams involved taking those not qualified or authorized to be overseers of the flock. They dressed them up in clerical garb and assured talent to make them appear to have authority. Before women were permitted this clergy privilege, young boys were dressed up like women but became a distinct clergy class because they were male but seemed female. The staged performance (1) usurped adult male authority, (2) appealed to the sexual drive of the men, and (2) replaced the Biblical text and especially Psalms with self-composed praise songs which taught wrong doctrine.
This music among the Jews was so completely put down that permission to restore it had to be granted by the king who, it was suggested, would gain honor from the novelty. He could even pretend that he invented the priestly musical worship teams, which was as ancient as Babel. The musical worship teams performed an ancient, pagan ritual with magical incantations as power devices to gain magic from the gods. This was why figuratively the "congregation" was deprived of their "song books" or "Bible" and were forced to be spectators. This was because if you did not say the words just right the gods might harm you.
"There is but one step from a musical incantation to religious music. In the Bible, apotropaic practices are perfectly compatible with monotheistic worship. Thus cultic music appears on three or four levels in the OT:
in the frenzied songs of the professional prophets (1 Sam. 10:5-6);
in the early numinous ordinances... in Leviticus and Numbers,and eventually, in the organized songs, chants, and psalms of the temple and of the professional Levitic musicians." (Interpreters Dictionary of the Bible, p. 458, Abingdon). (See Homer Odyssey XI.260 ff)
The songs or chants of the Rabbi would not be very complex harmony with a jungle beat. This was always considered part of the female nature. When the young girls went out to play (clergy around Jesus) they wanted to blow their little whistles, dance, and get everyone excited to join in their game. This is why God outlawed female leadership for that short period when the assembly comes together.
"'The women's songs have preserved, to some extent, the qualities of uninfluenced chant: they belong to the group of tunes directed by motoric impulse (as in dance or occupation songs.)" (Bible Dict., p. 458).
Have you noticed the "motor impulse" of infants when they hear a musical beat? It is human nature because it feeds directly into the heart beat and other frequencies which make the body operate. By analogy, if you put an electrical charge into a dead frog's legs it will still jump but there is no "spirit" making the frog look alive.
When Paul became a man he put away childish things.
While the Psalms continued as a record of the nation, the manner in which the Psalms were presented was LOST and no Jewish authority has any knowledge of their performance. Without knowing how they were presented it is a fact that no music was added to the synagogues prior to the year 1815.
"There is ample evidence, both in scriptural and in rabbinical sources, that the art of singing was diligently cultivated, especially in the temple. I Chr. 25 not only relates the initial organization of the temple singers, but uses in its terminology the words 'trained in song' and 'skillful." The Talmud even hints that lack of correct singing annuled the value of the sacrifice (B. 'Arak. 11a). The musical training of a Levitical singer took at least five years of intensive preparation (B. Hullin 24a). (Interpreter's Dictionary of the Bible, p. 460, Abingdon).
"The enigmatic musical superscriptions... to the psalms constitutes a real musical terminology, which, however, is almost unintelligible... either the original meaning of these musical terms was then generally forgotten, or, on account of the continuous tradition of the temple, it was still understood, but as a secret closely guarded by the priestly class." (International Dictionary of the Bible, p. 459, Abingdon).
"In Ancient Egypt, priests kept all secrets of astronomy, music and architecture inside the temples. Those sciences were not intended to be known by common people. Likewise, the sons of the pharos who adopted the new religion "Christianity" kept one of the oldest musical heritages in the world sung for more than 2000 years in Coptic Churches till our age. Nowadays only few hundreds of deacons and Egyptian people in the whole world can sing those beautiful tunes in the Coptic Language (which is the last form of evolution of Ancient Egyptian language).
Blind Singers, tomb carving at Tel El Amarna
When David and the commanders of the army reassigned the warrior musicians for the developing temple state it was not intended that they function as priests. They were used for dedicatory and purification rituals connected with the civil state but were not used as part of '"congregational worship." This was not true in Israel as Amos makes us aware that they took David's invention and used them for daily "worship" in their house of the king (as god).
"Herodotus mentions that when in Egypt, he was astonished to hear the very same mournful but ravishing 'Song of Linus, sung by the Egyptians (although under another name)... Linus was the same god as the Bacchus of Greece, or Osiris (merged with Apis of Mount Sinai fame) of Egypt; for Homer introduces a boy (soprano) singing the song of Linus, while the vintage (new wine festival) is going on, and the Scholiast says that this song was sung in memory of Linus, who was torn in pieces by dogs... In some places in Egypt, for the song of Linus or Osiris, a peculiar melody seems to have been used. Savary says that, in the temple of Abydos, 'the priest repeated the seven vowels in the form of hymns, and that musicians were forbid to enter it.' (Hislop, Alexander, The Two Babylons, p. 22, Loizeaux Brothers.)
These manipulation (facilitation) secrets are taught during "choir practice" or the rehearsal of the musical worship team ritual. The congregation is not competent to make the clergy presentation. In ancient paganism, in fact, to sing the magical song or play the idol-instrument might get you zapped by the god unhappy with your talent.
"There is a lack of technical information in our sources (about temple singing); its cause is the deliberate silence of the priests, which is, however slightly, lifted but once, by Josephus, himself a priest. Only in one passage he discloses one of the internal 'stage secrets' of the priests performance."
Then Josephus is partially quoted but we will quote the entire passage from Whiston:
"Now as many of the Levites, which is a tribe of ours, as were singers of hymns, persuaded the king to assemble a sanhedrim, and to give them leave to wear linen garments, as well as the priests
for they said that this would be a work worthy the times of his government, that he might have a memorial of such a novelty, as being his doing. Nor did they fail of obtaining their desire; for the king, with the suffrages of those that came into the sanhedrim, granted the singers of hymns this privilege, that they might lay aside their former garments, and wear such a linen one as they desired;
and as a part of this tribe ministered in the temple, he also permitted them to learn those hymns as they had besought him for.
Now all this was contrary to the laws of our country, which, whenever they have been transgressed, we have never been able to avoid the punishment of such transgressions. (Antiq. XX.ix.6).
The "stage secrets" of course was that the musical worship teams were injecting morphine-like drugs into the worshipers, primarily the monks or priests, and made the sensual feelings feel like the enthus o mania of the pagan "churches." The king would gain credit and perhaps "tenure" because of the public applause.
The priests took away the psalms and composed or arranged their own words and style of singing. This took the words out of the hands of the lowly laiety so that they had to hear, admire and "follow the leaders" of the priestly singers. This was a "hand feeding" method which allowed their own ideas to prevail over the Word of God. In effect, the king or presiding pastor, did mortal combat with those who might have prevented destruction--the elders.
Instrumental Music, Musical Worship Teams and Warfare
God gave the trumpets to signal in warfare and they were usually used, as by Gideon, to panic the enemy into cowardice. Numbers 10:7 specificially outlaws the "loud rejoicing" which was to prove one's superiority over the enemy to be used for the "assembly." This is why in all ancient civilizations:
"For nonliterate peoples, music often serves purposes other than entertainment or aesthetic enjoyment. Certain wind instruments are closely associated with the supernatural, and their sounds connote powerful magic. Australian Aborigines, for instance, identify the sound of a bull-roarer with the voices of supernatural beings; for the Plains Indians, the same sound signifies an awesome natural phenomenon, such as thunder. Wind instruments are often among a group's most important ritual objects, and in some cultures they are specially venerated. The Kamairua Indians of the Amazon rain forest keep their giant flutes (three to four feet long), wherein spirits are believed to dwell, in a special shrine where they are worshiped. The flutes and drums of New Guinea are similarly housed and worshiped.
"Wind instruments in primitive cultures also serve nonreligious functions. In New Guinea, bamboo trumpets were once played
to frighten an enemy during battle and
to alert a village that the victorious warriors were coming home with the corpses of the foes."Conch-shell trumpets are used for signaling in the Pacific coastal regions of Colombia and in the Ecuadoran highlands.
Trumpets also may be associated with the office of king or chief, as in West Africa,
where their use is strictly controlled by tribal law. "wind instrument" Encyclopędia Britannica Online.
Paul in Greek and the Prophets in Hebrew used a word which meant either instruments of war of musical instruments of idolatry. The Ante Nicene Fathers knew that instrumental music was so effective because it was really a Weapon of war.
"Then to all mankind He calls out, 'Let every spirit praise the Lord,' because He rules over every spirit He has made.
In reality, man is an instrument for peace,but these other things, if anyone concerns himself overmuch with them,
become instruments of conflict, for inflaming the passions. The Etruscans, for example, use the trumpet for war; the Arcadians, the horn; the Sicels, the flute; the Cretans, the lyre; the Lacedemonians, the pipe; the Thracians, the bugle; the Egyptians, the drum; and the Arabs, the cymbal.But as for us, we make use of one instrument alone: only the Word of peace by whom we a homage to God, no longer with ancient harp or trumpet or drum or flute
which those trained for war employ." (Clement of Alexandria, 190AD The instructor, Fathers of the church, p. 130)
Those who add musical worship teams or their mechanical counterpart--the organ--know full well that they will triumph over and divide the church. Some will run to safety but others will remain on the "ship" but ritual worship dominated by a team will grate their nerves. Worship services, in the words of Paul, will "do more harm than good" and people cannot go home saying "it was good for us to have been here" and be better equipped for life.
When Psalm 41 says that Judas as Satan't change agent would not triumph over Messiah it uses the same form of musical rejoicing which was explicitely forbidden for Israel when they came together to listen To God. Judas carried a "bag for carrying mouthpieces of wind instruments in" and Jesus said of the clergy:
But whereunto shall I liken this generation? It is like unto children sitting in the markets, and calling unto their fellows, Mt 11:16
And saying, We have piped unto you, and ye have not danced; we have mourned unto you, and ye have not lamented. Mt.11:17
Then began he to upbraid the cities wherein most of his mighty works were done, because they repented not: Mt 11:20
"Spanheim takes notice here that the Greeks had such singers of hymns; and that usually children or youths were picked out for that service; as also, that those called singers to the harp, did the same that David did here, i. e. join their own vocal and instrumental music together." (Josephus, notes by William Whiston, John Winston, Co. p. 186)
"On the return of friends long absent, and particularly on the return of a victorious army, bands of women and children issue from the town and villages to form a triumphal procession to celebrate the victory, as they go along,
gratify the soldiers with dancing, instrumental music, and extempore songs, in honor of the generals who have earned the highest distinction." (Peloubet's Notes, 1903, p. 224).
When The Spirit Christ (Jn 14:18) guided the apostles into all truth they had not the slightest urge to conduct worship as a musical praise service. Rather, singing is the result of filling up with the Word (Spirit) of Christ and then teaching one another with it.
When musical worship was again added as a clergy ritual to oversee the flock they adopted Levitical songs, clerical robes and thereby violated God's original commandment.
Scholars Condemn Instrumental Music
Ante-Nicene Fathers, Vol. I, Dialogue of Justin with Trypho, a Jew, Chapter XXII commenting on Amos:
Ye who come to the evil day, who are approaching, and who hold to false Sabbaths; who lie on beds of ivory, and are at ease upon their couches; who eat the lambs out of the flock, and the sucking calves out of the midst of the herd; who applaud at the sound of the musical instruments; they reckon them as stable, and not as fleeting, who drink wine in bowls, and anoint themselves with the chief ointments, but they are not grieved for the affliction of Joseph. Wherefore now they shall be captives, among the first of the nobles who are carried away; and the house of evil-doers shall be removed, and the neighing of horses shall be taken away from Ephraim.-So Also Were Sacrifices and Oblations.
Accordingly He neither takes sacrifices from you nor commanded them at first to be offered because they are needful to Him, but because of your sins. For indeed the temple, which is called the temple in Jerusalem, He admitted to be His house or court, not as though He needed it, but in order that you, in this view of it, giving yourselves to Him, might not worship idols. And that this is so, Isaiah says: `What house have ye built Me? saith the Lord. Heaven is My throne, and earth is My footstool
Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, Series II, Vol. X , Ambrose, Book III, Chapter VI, 27.