King David, the temple, and the halleluyah chorus

Judaism, Fall, 1998 by Shubert Spero

This condition, which must have lasted for the several decades in which the Ark of the Lord was geographically separated from the altar, offered David an opportunity unique in the history of Judaism. It has been said that there are two foci to the Jewish Temple.(22) One is the altar which represents all of the cultic and ritual acts which are performed in order to put one into the right relationship with God. The other is the Holy of Holies which for most of the First Temple period contained the Ark of the Covenant and later was filled by a dark emptiness which suggested the fearsome immediate Presence of God. David, from the very beginning, had gravitated to the latter. This is reflected in his joy in the Lord which pervades the Psalms:

Seek ye the Lord and His strength Seek His face continually Sing unto Him, sing praises unto Him Sing praises unto the Lord with the harp: With the harp and with voice of melody.(23)

And when David asks that he be permitted to build a Temple for the Lord, he formulates it as follows: "Lo, I dwell in a house of cedar but the Ark of the Covenant dwells under curtains" (i.e., in a tent).(24) Apparently David's primary concern was not for a facility that would bring together the sacred relics and the cultic practices, but rather to honor the Lord whose Presence hovers over the Ark of the Covenant by housing it in more permanent quarters.

One thing have I asked of the Lord, that I will seek: That I may dwell in the House of the Lord all the days of my life To behold the graciousness of the Lord and to visit in His Temple. . . And I will offer in His tent offerings of trumpet-sound I will sing, yea I will sing praises unto the Lord.(25)

David's concept of a temple was essentially a place where he could continually experience the delight of the Presence of the Lord and sing His praises. In those terms it mattered little whether it was a tent (ohel), a house (bayit), or a Temple (heichal)!

There was nothing in the tradition which might suggest what sort of service, if any, was to be performed before the Ark of the Covenant which historical circumstances had isolated in a tent on the slope of a hill in Jerusalem. Its designated place as the Holy of Holies of the Tabernacle suggests that it be hidden from sight and was off-limits to public visitation.(26) On the other hand, regular sacrifices were not warranted since, as already indicated, there was no continuous tradition of a bama in Jerusalem. What David does for the first time is to bring together, on a regular basis, the most sacred and revered physical symbol of the Divine Presence with what he considers the "purest" form of Divine worship.

David instructs the Levites to compose, sing, and play with musical instruments songs of praise to God, morning and evening, unaccompanied by any other ritual or cultic acts.(27) The first such psalm, probably composed by David himself, is to be found right there and contains some of the most memorable passages in Biblical psalmody:

O give thanks unto the Lord call upon His name Make known His doings among the peoples. Sing unto Him sing praises unto Him Speak ye in His holy name; Let the heart of them rejoice that seek the Lord (16:8-12).