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22 September. 1 Chronicles chapters 24-25
This passage consists of the rotas of different extended families in the service of the Temple. The names mean nothing to us now, but clearly it was important at the time that the whole of the tribe of Levi had been set apart centuries earlier as dedicated to leading public worship and administration, and all that went with it. Nowadays we would call it nepotism or discrimination, but that was their culture.
Just one verse stands out for me: “David and the officers of the army also set apart for the service the sons of Asaph, and of Heman, and of Jeduthun, who were to prophesy with lyres, harps, and cymbals.” (25:1). We tend to think of “prophesy” as inevitably a matter of speaking words: words given by God, either in one’s own language or (in “charismatic” churches) sometimes in a spiritual language that has to be interpreted by others equally but differently gifted. Words of prophesy might be given to encourage people in faith, to warn them that they are going wrong, or occasionally to foretell the future.
But here, prophesy seems to be equated with playing musical instruments. Music was clearly a very important part of the worship of the Temple, and we still have the words (though not the tunes) passed down to us in the form of Psalms. Many of the psalms themselves exhort people to praise God with music. It is well known that singing has many benefits, both in terms of personal health (aiding relaxation and coping with stress, for example), and in uniting people in a sense of belonging together by singing together.
Singing hymns and psalms, in particular, helps people to remember and respond to the scriptures and creeds that the church passes down from one generation to the next: call out to me “O Lord open thou our lips” and I will respond with “and our mouth shall show forth thy praise” to the chant used by Anglicans for nearly 500 years.
But even instrumental music can be of spiritual benefit, as this verse reminds us. It influences moods to a great extent, and through association helps people to remember places and events, and the words, thoughts or feelings that went with them. So the playing of music in a pace of worship is “prophecy” to the extent that those hearing it will be reminded of previous times of worship, or of words of scripture. Or it may just be gentle music that calms us and makes us open to meditation and prayer. Play on, Heman and Jeduthun!