Music in the Old Testament

From the beginning of the first chapter. MUSIC belongs to the inalienable rights of man. It is the effort to make one's self intelligible to his fellow men by means of the stimulation of sounds of all kinds. Music exists wherever men are found upon the earth and everywhere they show a genuine refinement in the discovery of means by which to originate sounds. There is hardly anything which cannot be brought into use for its purposes. We do not intend to lose ourselves here in speculation upon the psychological reasons for this demoniac impulse; we will be content simply to establish the fact and will not enter into it with regard to humanity in general, but only in so far as the ancient people of Israel is concerned. Even with relation to the Old Testament we will limit ourselves to what the Old Testament itself can tell us about music and musical things. Many passages have proved very puzzling to Bible readers. For instance when we read in the heading of Psalm lxxx, "To the chief Musician upon Shoshannim-Eduth, A Psalm of Asaph"; or in the heading of Ps. lx, "To the chief Musician upon Shushan-eduth, Michtam of David, to teach"; or in the heading of Ps. lvi, "To the chief Musician upon Jonath-elem-rechokim, Michtam of David"; or when Psalms viii, lxxxi, and lxxxiv, bear the inscription, "To the chief Musician upon Gittith"; or the three, xxxix., lxii, and lxxvii "to Jeduthun"; we may certainly assume that we have an explanation for these hieroglyphics in considering that they possess some kind of a musical character." Accordingly it will be our task to gather together and to sift out the information given by the Old Testament itself upon music and musical matters and then to see whether we can unite and combine these scattered and isolated features into one comprehensive picture or at least into a comparatively clear idea. It is only scattered and isolated features which the Old Testament offers us and not very much of them nor very abundantly. Not perhaps because music had played a subordinate and inconspicuous part in the life of ancient Israel, - on the contrary they must have been a people of an unusually musical temperament whose daily nourishment was song and sound. On this point the Old Testament itself leaves little room for doubt. Everywhere and at all times were song and music to be found in Ancient Israel. Every festival occasion, every climax of public or private life was celebrated with music and song. Just as Homer called singing and string music "the consecration of the meal," so also in ancient Israel no ceremonial meal could be thought of without its accompaniment of either vocal or instrumental music. Marriage ceremonies took place amid festive choruses with music and dancing, and at the bier of the dead sounded the wail of dirge and flute. The sheep were sheared and the vintage gathered to songs of joy and dancing and tambourine playing. The same was true in public life. The election of a king or his coronation or betrothal were celebrated with music; the victorious warriors and generals were met upon their return home by choruses of matrons and maidens with dance and song. So Miriam spoke from among the chorus of women who after the successful passage through the Red Sea went out "with timbrels and with dances" (Ex. xv. 20); in the same way too, David was received by matrons and maidens after his successful battle with the Philistines (I Sam. xviii. 6); and upon this custom is founded the frightful tragedy of the story of Jephthah, whose daughter hastened in the joy of her heart to offer greeting and praise to her victorious father, only to be met by death as the fulfillment of his vow (Judges xi)....