Then Hezekiah commanded that the burnt offering be offered on the altar. And when the burnt offering began, the song to the LORD began also, and the trumpets, accompanied by the instruments of David king of Israel. The whole assembly worshiped, and the singers sang, and the trumpeters sounded. All this continued until the burnt offering was finished. When the offering was finished, the king and all who were present with him bowed themselves and worshiped. And Hezekiah the king and the officials commanded the Levites to sing praises to the LORD with the words of David and of Asaph the seer. And they sang praises with gladness, and they bowed down and worshiped.
2 Chronicles 29:27-30 (ESV)
What is the proper way to worship? The Bible does not mandate a particular form for our worship together as the body of Christ. Probably the closest we have for instruction in the New Testament comes from 1 Corinthians 14:26-33. In the Old Testament, we can find David designating groups of Levites as singers and instrumentalists. But when and how they played and sang is vague.
But we do get insight into what their worship may have looked like in this passage. Hezekiah’s father, Ahaz, had served many other gods and had used the Temple to worship those gods, thereby desecrating the Temple. When Hezekiah became king, one of the first things he did was to have the temple cleansed and put back into operation. And when that was complete, he gathered the city officials together for a dedication service.
At the heart of this service was a burnt offering. The burnt offering was an act of worship. The animal sacrificed was entirely consumed on the altar. It was given fully to God. Not as a sacrifice for sin, but simply as an offering.
And while the burnt offering was being consumed, the people worshipped, the singers sang, and the instrumentalists played. The people did not worship sitting sedately in their pews. They were bowing down as they worshipped. And there was more than just a piano accompanying the singers. They had trumpets, harps, lyres, and cymbals (1 Chron. 15:16). It was like a modern ‘worship team’.
The Right Way to Worship
There is no ‘right way’ to worship, so long as we worship in spirit and truth (John 4:24). We might sit quietly, raise our hands, or bow with our faces to the ground. We might sing choruses, hymns, or be quiet. And we might be accompanied by a variety of instruments. What is important is that we worship; that we come before God in adoration and praise. And whatever will enhance our worship is good.
