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From Silence to Song: The Davidic Liturgical Revolution
The debate in many Reformed circles over worship music is only a small part of the larger question of Reformed liturgics. All sides admit that the New Testament offers relatively little instruction on liturgy, and so the debate over the regulative principle continues with apparently little hope for resolution.In this study, Peter Leithart's key insight reveals a prominent scriptural example of a liturgy that interprets God's commands for worship in ways for more biblically grounded than traditional regulativism allows. King David's tabernacle worship becomes a rich story, not only in respect to liturgical wisdom, but also to the significance of Zion in fulfillments of the Christian era.
138 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 3, 2003
19 people are currently reading
185 people want to read
About the author
Peter J. Leithart
130 books364 followersPeter Leithart received an A.B. in English and History from Hillsdale College in 1981, and a Master of Arts in Religion and a Master of Theology from Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia in 1986 and 1987. In 1998 he received his Ph.D. at the University of Cambridge in England. He has served in two pastorates: He was pastor of Reformed Heritage Presbyterian Church (now Trinity Presbyterian Church), Birmingham, Alabama from 1989 to 1995, and was founding pastor of Trinity Reformed Church, Moscow, Idaho, and served on the pastoral staff at Trinity from 2003-2013. From 1998 to 2013 he taught theology and literature at New St. Andrews College, Moscow, Idaho, where he continues to teach as an adjunct Senior Fellow. He now serves as President of Trinity House in Alabama, where is also resident Church Teacher at the local CREC church. He and his wife, Noel, have ten children and five grandchildren.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 47 reviews
October 2, 2023
Excellent work.
February 7, 2024
I liked this a lot. It was amusing. Leithart comes across very well in these pages, and he makes some very good points. His comparison of David to Moses and Solomon as Joshua was helpful, and a comparison I don't believe I had come across before, and caused me to say, 'huh'. His definition of the regulative principle of worship was excellent, and his argument for David going beyond the requirement of the Law in introducing musical liturgy seems a brilliant example for those who wish to stick it into their theological gun cabinets. His reasoning that David operated on a 'regulation-by-analogy' principle in this case was likewise helpful. There is an implicit exhortation to improve one's theology of singing, and there is plenty of Biblical evidence to back it up.
I began this book with an axe to grind against regulative principle-abiding individuals. Leithart has a bigger axe, and he knows how to wield it better than I would. 'Where else do we go, if we are going to be Biblical, to work out the meaning of worship? What book gives us more information about worship than Leviticus? Certainly, no book of the New Testament offers anything like a theology of worship, or even much practical guidance. Reformed liturgists who limit themselves to the New Testament are practising dispensationalists, however strongly their professed adherence to covenant theology.'
I began this book with an axe to grind against regulative principle-abiding individuals. Leithart has a bigger axe, and he knows how to wield it better than I would. 'Where else do we go, if we are going to be Biblical, to work out the meaning of worship? What book gives us more information about worship than Leviticus? Certainly, no book of the New Testament offers anything like a theology of worship, or even much practical guidance. Reformed liturgists who limit themselves to the New Testament are practising dispensationalists, however strongly their professed adherence to covenant theology.'
January 19, 2025
Leithart has noticed a silence in scholarly circles on the topic of the Davidic tabernacle. Students of Scripture (myself included) tend to skip from the Mosaic tabernacle to Solomon's temple, giving no notice to the thunderous music of 1 Chronicles when David brings the ark up to a tent in Jerusalem. Leithart fills this scholarly silence with song.
Although some of his claims are tenuous (which he acknowledges throughout), Leithart helped me see the unique, eschatological significance of a part of Scripture I haven't ever paid attention to before this book. And he made me laugh.
Although some of his claims are tenuous (which he acknowledges throughout), Leithart helped me see the unique, eschatological significance of a part of Scripture I haven't ever paid attention to before this book. And he made me laugh.
July 8, 2024
Absolutely marvelous.
July 23, 2012
Great exegesis of the interesting transition in Israel's worship from the Tabernacle of Moses to the Tabernacle of David. Leithart examines David's application of the Torah that lead him to incorporate music and singing into the sacrificial system. The last chapter deals with implications for our worship today. Overall, a very helpful book for any musical worship leader.
January 26, 2025
Why Does Chronicles Omit So Much?
Why does Chronicles exclude major sections & episodes like David’s adultery with Bathsheba, the murder of Uriah, or the extended narrative of Saul’s attempts to kill David?
The answer lies in Chronicles’ eschatological focus, and specifically on how David transformed Israel's worship. Unlike Samuel, which highlights David’s political and personal struggles, and Kings, which highlights how Solomon built the temple (it's always 'Solomon's temple' there), Chronicles emphasizes David's role in founding the temple. He did this not by physically building it, but by reforming the spiritual structures of worship that would re-shape Israel’s relationship with God—and ultimately foreshadow the New Covenant form of spiritual, Gentile-led worship. This is mirrored in how Chronicles is placed at the end of the Hebrew canonical ordering, showing how Israel's is a story in search of an ending.
The Liturgical Revolution: David’s Tabernacle
Leithart shows how David’s reforms contrast starkly with Mosaic worship:
Silence to Song (& Word): There was no verbal confession of sin or absolution in the Levitical system of sacrifice, no words of God rehearsed, let alone any singing or music. All of this is revolutionised by the introduction of Word & song to Israel's worship by David's reforms.
The Priesthood Expanded: David introduced choirs, musicians, and gatekeepers into the worshiping community, radically expanding the scope of participation beyond sacrifices and priestly intercession (1 Chronicles 15:16–24; 25:1–7).
Gentile Inclusion: The story of Obed-Edom is central to Leithart’s argument. He contends that the Gittite who housed the Ark (2 Samuel 6:10–11) and the Levitical gatekeeper/musician mentioned later (1 Chronicles 15:18; 26:4–8) are the same person. This means David’s tabernacle did more than allow Gentiles into God’s people—it gave them roles in priestly service and access to the Ark itself, foreshadowing the New Covenant’s radical inclusion (Ephesians 2:11–22; 1 Peter 2:9).
From Divided to Undivided Worship: Unlike the Mosaic tabernacle's 3 sections separating the Ark from the people & priests with veils, David’s tent brought the Ark into the heart of Jerusalem where it was visited by David himself and even the Gentiles like Obed-Edom.
Congregational Dynamic : David's joyful choirs, psalms of thanksgiving & communal praise transitioned & transformed tabernacle worship now marked by joyful participation. Worship included not just the "sweet aroma" of burnt offerings (Leviticus 1:9) but also the "sweet aroma" of praise (Psalm 141:2; Hebrews 13:15).
So is Solomon's temple a step back into darkness after David's radical booth?
Does Solomon's re-introduction of a divided structure, the separation off of the ark, the removal of Gentiles, etc., all constitution a step back after David's revolutionary reforms? Only insofar as the Aaronic priesthood represented a step back from Melchizedek's earlier everlasting, eschatological priesthood. David's booth was 'an end' not 'the end'. David's booth was a brief flash-forward to what worship would look like at the end of time, a brief moment of the distant future breaking in, now and not yet. Zion was a different mount from Moriah yet when Solomon's temple was established on Moriah, the installation of the ark there meant that Zion and Moriah were merged into one. Now we never hear of God's promises to Moriah, but always to Zion. The hope for the eschaton was always David's special Zionic tent.
Leithart and the Regulative Principle of Worship
Leithart uses these insights to critique a rigid interpretation of the Regulative Principle of Worship (RPW). He positions David’s innovations as biblically sanctioned developments (2 Chronicles 29:25), based upon inference by analogy from what Scripture requires to fulfil its requirements. We should do the same with contemporary worship. Yet he thinks dirges have no place in church worship and should be kept to funerals. Has he not ready all the laments & dirges David wrote in the book of Psalms? I worry about the lack of emotional breadth and depth to Leithart's gleeful approach to worship.
Why does Chronicles exclude major sections & episodes like David’s adultery with Bathsheba, the murder of Uriah, or the extended narrative of Saul’s attempts to kill David?
The answer lies in Chronicles’ eschatological focus, and specifically on how David transformed Israel's worship. Unlike Samuel, which highlights David’s political and personal struggles, and Kings, which highlights how Solomon built the temple (it's always 'Solomon's temple' there), Chronicles emphasizes David's role in founding the temple. He did this not by physically building it, but by reforming the spiritual structures of worship that would re-shape Israel’s relationship with God—and ultimately foreshadow the New Covenant form of spiritual, Gentile-led worship. This is mirrored in how Chronicles is placed at the end of the Hebrew canonical ordering, showing how Israel's is a story in search of an ending.
The Liturgical Revolution: David’s Tabernacle
Leithart shows how David’s reforms contrast starkly with Mosaic worship:
Silence to Song (& Word): There was no verbal confession of sin or absolution in the Levitical system of sacrifice, no words of God rehearsed, let alone any singing or music. All of this is revolutionised by the introduction of Word & song to Israel's worship by David's reforms.
The Priesthood Expanded: David introduced choirs, musicians, and gatekeepers into the worshiping community, radically expanding the scope of participation beyond sacrifices and priestly intercession (1 Chronicles 15:16–24; 25:1–7).
Gentile Inclusion: The story of Obed-Edom is central to Leithart’s argument. He contends that the Gittite who housed the Ark (2 Samuel 6:10–11) and the Levitical gatekeeper/musician mentioned later (1 Chronicles 15:18; 26:4–8) are the same person. This means David’s tabernacle did more than allow Gentiles into God’s people—it gave them roles in priestly service and access to the Ark itself, foreshadowing the New Covenant’s radical inclusion (Ephesians 2:11–22; 1 Peter 2:9).
From Divided to Undivided Worship: Unlike the Mosaic tabernacle's 3 sections separating the Ark from the people & priests with veils, David’s tent brought the Ark into the heart of Jerusalem where it was visited by David himself and even the Gentiles like Obed-Edom.
Congregational Dynamic : David's joyful choirs, psalms of thanksgiving & communal praise transitioned & transformed tabernacle worship now marked by joyful participation. Worship included not just the "sweet aroma" of burnt offerings (Leviticus 1:9) but also the "sweet aroma" of praise (Psalm 141:2; Hebrews 13:15).
So is Solomon's temple a step back into darkness after David's radical booth?
Does Solomon's re-introduction of a divided structure, the separation off of the ark, the removal of Gentiles, etc., all constitution a step back after David's revolutionary reforms? Only insofar as the Aaronic priesthood represented a step back from Melchizedek's earlier everlasting, eschatological priesthood. David's booth was 'an end' not 'the end'. David's booth was a brief flash-forward to what worship would look like at the end of time, a brief moment of the distant future breaking in, now and not yet. Zion was a different mount from Moriah yet when Solomon's temple was established on Moriah, the installation of the ark there meant that Zion and Moriah were merged into one. Now we never hear of God's promises to Moriah, but always to Zion. The hope for the eschaton was always David's special Zionic tent.
Leithart and the Regulative Principle of Worship
Leithart uses these insights to critique a rigid interpretation of the Regulative Principle of Worship (RPW). He positions David’s innovations as biblically sanctioned developments (2 Chronicles 29:25), based upon inference by analogy from what Scripture requires to fulfil its requirements. We should do the same with contemporary worship. Yet he thinks dirges have no place in church worship and should be kept to funerals. Has he not ready all the laments & dirges David wrote in the book of Psalms? I worry about the lack of emotional breadth and depth to Leithart's gleeful approach to worship.
January 8, 2024
As always, Leithart stimulates the little grey* cells. I'm not sure I'm 100 percent convinced of his thesis—that the Davidic tabernacle was a New Covenant sneak peek—but I'm not unconvinced either. And I'm more than ever convinced that the strict regulativists (exclusive psalmody/no instruments) are wrong.
Excellent narration work on this one.
*One must spell it with the e in honor of Poirot.
Excellent narration work on this one.
*One must spell it with the e in honor of Poirot.
July 28, 2014
Really good stuff. The style is clearly early Leithart (and early Canon Press, too - they didn't reign in his footnotes nearly enough), but there is really good information contained in the book. It really takes off in the last chapter when Dr. L starts to express his personal opinion.
As a fun side-note, it's interesting to get a glimpse of the really early stages of modern Reformed liturgics - one footnote refers to an unpublished work by Jeff Meyers, tentatively titled The Lord's Service. A House For My Name had just been published, and Leithart was still finishing up his commentary on Samuel (which is given, I think, three different tentative titles in footnotes to as many chapters).
Definitely worth reading. One quick recommendation: you should plow through 2 Samuel and 1 Chronicles beforehand, since he bounces around a lot in those two books and assumes you're familiar with the context of chapters he discusses.
As a fun side-note, it's interesting to get a glimpse of the really early stages of modern Reformed liturgics - one footnote refers to an unpublished work by Jeff Meyers, tentatively titled The Lord's Service. A House For My Name had just been published, and Leithart was still finishing up his commentary on Samuel (which is given, I think, three different tentative titles in footnotes to as many chapters).
Definitely worth reading. One quick recommendation: you should plow through 2 Samuel and 1 Chronicles beforehand, since he bounces around a lot in those two books and assumes you're familiar with the context of chapters he discusses.
October 18, 2023
2023 Review:
Very good. His work on the development of liturgical practices and the basis for liturgical exegesis is very good. I found his chapter on the Booth of David very interesting and I liked connections he made of David being a new Moses. The final chapter is great and I enjoyed how he spun some of the RPW arguments around on them, especially how the Bible portrays song as having instrumental accompaniment and that removing that is actually diverging from the Word of God.
2019 Review:
A good short study of David's tabernacle and it's relation to liturgy, especially regarding song
Very good. His work on the development of liturgical practices and the basis for liturgical exegesis is very good. I found his chapter on the Booth of David very interesting and I liked connections he made of David being a new Moses. The final chapter is great and I enjoyed how he spun some of the RPW arguments around on them, especially how the Bible portrays song as having instrumental accompaniment and that removing that is actually diverging from the Word of God.
2019 Review:
A good short study of David's tabernacle and it's relation to liturgy, especially regarding song
December 6, 2016
The Bible is like a very active version of The Wood between the Worlds. A lot is happening and a Christian reader is hugely edified (praise God!), as he splashes through the puddles watching the action explicitly noted. However, there are also untapped depths in each pool. Here, Leithart puts on a ring and dives into texts we normally ice skate over, and what a fruitful project it is.
November 20, 2019
This is a short, but somewhat difficult and obtuse book on a section of 1 Chronicles that doesn't get much attention. Leithart's thesis surrounds the transitional tent in Jerusalem, housing the Ark of the Covenant after it was returned from Philistia, but before the construction of the temple by Solomon.
The thesis is that David understood the latent liturgical theology of the Ark of the Covenant and established the musical worship of Yahweh in the tent on Mount Zion. This liturgical worship seems to have no direct antecedent in the Pentateuch and in a way, seems to spring out of nothing.
If this sounds related to the regulative principle on worship, you're right. Much of the book deals with that and seeks to develop what worship is, biblically speaking.
Leithart explores 1 Chronicles, Old Testament law, and more to understand the liturgical advances made by David prior to the construction of the temple
Much of the book is technical and perhaps even a bit speculative, or at least not fully developed. But it is interesting, and it is a section of Scripture that seems to bear more significance than it might seem, based on how little it is discussed.
The thesis is that David understood the latent liturgical theology of the Ark of the Covenant and established the musical worship of Yahweh in the tent on Mount Zion. This liturgical worship seems to have no direct antecedent in the Pentateuch and in a way, seems to spring out of nothing.
If this sounds related to the regulative principle on worship, you're right. Much of the book deals with that and seeks to develop what worship is, biblically speaking.
Leithart explores 1 Chronicles, Old Testament law, and more to understand the liturgical advances made by David prior to the construction of the temple
Much of the book is technical and perhaps even a bit speculative, or at least not fully developed. But it is interesting, and it is a section of Scripture that seems to bear more significance than it might seem, based on how little it is discussed.
June 3, 2025
Quintessential Leithart. Fantastic insights into the development of the sacrifice of praise, the applicability of the sacrificial system to worship and liturgy (why not look to Leviticus!?), and the two-stage fulfillment of the tabernacle's trajectory (I was shocked by his insights into the Davidic tent at Zion—especially related to Gentile inclusion).
I am quite skeptical of his application of the peace offering to communion. I actual think the intertextuality in these texts points toward the peace offered to one another in a holy kiss or the grace and peace toward one another. This peace obviously derives from the peace we have with God, but I think this is where Leithart's, how shall I put it, reckless intertextuality can at times come back to bite him.
Overall, such a great book! Christians are singing people, and for good reason.
I am quite skeptical of his application of the peace offering to communion. I actual think the intertextuality in these texts points toward the peace offered to one another in a holy kiss or the grace and peace toward one another. This peace obviously derives from the peace we have with God, but I think this is where Leithart's, how shall I put it, reckless intertextuality can at times come back to bite him.
Overall, such a great book! Christians are singing people, and for good reason.
March 20, 2022
Wow! Category shifting and thought provoking. I’ll need to read this again.
January 26, 2009
Just great.
April 9, 2010
I appreciated this book simply because it provokes a great deal of serious reflection on what constitutes biblical worship.
June 26, 2014
Excellent treatment of the liturgical implications of King David's ark-tent on Mount Zion. I learned a lot about Chronicles!
February 11, 2025
The temporary Ark-tent of David is an obscure topic for sure, but as Leithart demonstrates it is one that warrants consideration. Why do the prophets speak so much of a future restoration in terms of a return to Davidic glory? This books brings clarity to that. I did find it hard to stay engaged with the chapter on Sacrifices of Praise. There is a fair amount of technical discussion there of Hebrew terms, but I have no training in Hebrew. The last two chapters I found very enjoyable though. The concluding chapter leaves one with a lot of food for thought on how to approach church worship under the New Covenant. I would recommend this to pretty much any Christian.
April 12, 2025
I learned a lot, as usual, from Leithart's unpacking of the Old Testament. It's to my shame, but I had never even realized that there was a separate tent that David had built for the Ark. The explanation of Obed-Edom's inclusion in the Levitical order was convincing. And, while I appreciate a cappella singing, this book makes a pretty compelling case for including instruments in corporate worship. He also explains why eucharistic music should be lively and triumphant since it's a feast, not a funeral. Very good.
November 16, 2022
A technical treatment of 1 Chronicles with lively application for worship today. Part of the reason I found this a more difficult read is because I am not as familiar with 1 Chronicles, shame on me. 3.5, worth the read if not only because virtually no Bible teachers I’ve encountered consider the significance of Davidic tabernacle worship. A book on the same topic by Leithart that I would recommend to start with is his more recent "Theopolitan Liturgy"
May 30, 2021
Leithart does a fine job of making you excited about the fine details in Chronicles, Leviticus, and other bits of your bible reading plan that you (quietly) wish you didn’t have to bother with. This book demonstrates very careful consideration of the theology of worship, and the New Covenant’s relationship to the Old.
July 10, 2024
It’s Leithart, so there is a ton of attention to the details of the text. Always worthwhile.
Some of the argumentation is quite dense, and on audio difficult to follow. The last chapter was probably the most engaging; I agreed with the spirit of what he was doing there, though I’d quibble with a number of the applications.
Some of the argumentation is quite dense, and on audio difficult to follow. The last chapter was probably the most engaging; I agreed with the spirit of what he was doing there, though I’d quibble with a number of the applications.
May 19, 2017
This book uses an OT example to argue for a "weak" RPW stance that undermines the Reformed Confessional beliefs. This author is dangerous and supportive of the Federal Vision heresy, New St. Andrews College and mentions positively Federal Visionists in this book.
December 14, 2017
The first five chapters are indispensable to me. The theology so clear, so helpful, so necessary as a foundation for our modern praxis related to worship.
Chapter six can be torn out of the book. (my opinion)
Chapter six can be torn out of the book. (my opinion)
October 16, 2023
Great Old Testament exegesis by Leithart on music on King David's musical revolution. Surprisingly, Leithart does not mention King David singing Hillsong, Bethel, or Elevation music, which is shameful.
September 2, 2025
Great Interpretation of David’s Tabernacle
Excellent book, great insights, and well researched. Highly recommend it! (But skip the last chapter, waste of time. David brought in music for the first time because the Lord inspired him to do so, period)
Excellent book, great insights, and well researched. Highly recommend it! (But skip the last chapter, waste of time. David brought in music for the first time because the Lord inspired him to do so, period)
May 2, 2018
Wonderful introduction to the theology of song, Zion, and the Davidic Tabernacle. You just can’t find stuff like this anywhere else!
August 20, 2019
Eye-opening as usual with Leithart. Particularly interesting was where he showed that David applied the law liberally and creatively, like Jesus.
September 19, 2019
Extremely helpful discussion on using the Bible as a guide for liturgy, especially the Old Testament (focusing primarily in Chronicles, with long discussions from Samuel and Amos as well).
August 9, 2022
Convinced me that the sons and daughters of Zion ought to sing with instrumental accompaniment.
November 9, 2023
Contains some helpful thoughts on worship.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 47 reviews