The Ark Set in the Tent
16 So they brought in the ark of God, placed it in the midst of the tent that David had erected for it, and drew near to God with burnt offerings and peace offerings. 2 When David had finished offering the burnt offerings and the peace offerings, he blessed the people in the name of the Lord. 3 Then he distributed to all the children of Israel, both men and women, a loaf of bread, a piece of meat, and a raisin cake for each.
4 And he appointed some of the Levites to minister before the ark of the Lord, to commemorate, to thank, and to praise the Lord God of Israel: 5 Asaph the chief, and next to him Zechariah, then Jeiel, Shemiramoth, Jehiel, Mattithiah, Eliab, Benaiah, and Obed-Edom: Jeiel with stringed instruments and harps, but Asaph made music with the cymbals. 6 Moreover, Benaiah and Jahaziel the priests sounded trumpets continually before the ark of the covenant of God.
David’s Psalm of Thanksgiving(A)
7 On that day then, David delivered for the first time this psalm of thanksgiving to the Lord into the hand of Asaph and his brothers:
8 Give thanks to the Lord, call on His name;
make known His deeds among the peoples.
9 Sing to Him, sing praise to Him,
recount all His wonders.
10 Glory in His holy name;
let the heart of those who seek the Lord rejoice.
11 Seek the Lord and His strength;
seek His face continually.
12 Remember His wonders which He has done,
His wonders and the judgments of His mouth,
13 O seed of Israel, His servant,
O sons of Jacob, His chosen.
14 He is the Lord our God;
His judgments are in all the earth.
15 Remember His covenant forever,
the word He commanded for a thousand generations,
16 that He made with Abraham,
even His oath to Isaac.
17 He confirmed it to Jacob as a statute,
to Israel for an everlasting covenant,
18 saying, “To you I will give the land of Canaan
as the portion of your inheritance.”
19 When you were few in number,
few indeed, and strangers there,
20 when they wandered from nation to nation,
from one kingdom to another,
21 He allowed no man to oppress them;
He rebuked kings on their account,
22 saying, “Do not touch My anointed,
and do My prophets no harm.”
23 Sing to the Lord, all the earth.
Proclaim good tidings of His salvation from day to day.
24 Declare His glory among the nations,
His wonders among all the peoples.
25 For great is the Lord and greatly to be praised.
He is to be feared above all gods.
26 For all the gods of the peoples are idols,
but the Lord made the heavens.
27 Honor and majesty are before Him;
strength and joy are in His place.
28 Give to the Lord, O families of the peoples,
give to the Lord glory and strength.
29 Give to the Lord the glory due His name;
bring an offering and come before Him,
bow down to the Lord in holy array.
30 Tremble before Him, all the earth.
The world also is firmly established; it shall not be moved.
31 Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad.
Let them say among the nations, “The Lord is King.”
32 Let the sea roar, and all its fullness.
Let the field rejoice, and all that is in it.
33 Then the trees of the forest will ring out before the Lord,
for He is coming to judge the earth.
34 Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good;
for His mercy endures forever.
35 Now say, “Save us, O God of our salvation,
and gather us and deliver us from the nations,
that we may give thanks to Your holy name,
to glory in Your praise.
36 Blessed is the Lord, the God of Israel,
from everlasting to everlasting.”
Then all the people said, “Amen,” and “Praise the Lord.”
Worship Before the Ark
37 So he left Asaph and his brothers before the ark of the covenant of the Lord to minister before the ark regularly, as each day required, 38 and also Obed-Edom and his sixty-eight brothers, while Obed-Edom, the son of Jeduthun, and Hosah were to be gatekeepers.
39 And he left Zadok the priest and his priestly brothers before the tabernacle of the Lord at the high place that was at Gibeon 40 to offer burnt offerings to the Lord on the altar of burnt offering continually, morning and evening, according to all that was written in the Law of the Lord, which He commanded Israel.
41 With them were Heman and Jeduthun and the rest who were chosen, who were marked by name to give thanks to the Lord, for His mercy endures forever. 42 Heman and Jeduthun had with them trumpets and cymbals to sound aloud and instruments for sacred song. The sons of Jeduthun were appointed to the gate.
43 Then all the people departed, each man to his house, and David returned to bless his house.