1 Chronicles 15:1-3,14-16,25-29
We did not enquire of him about how to do it in the prescribed way.’
We did not enquire of him about how to do it in the prescribed way.’
In the OT, ideally worship is focused at the sanctuary appointed by God. It follows the rituals laid down by God and is facilitated by the priesthood he has ordained.
But this cultic activity is not honouring to the LORD unless it leads to obedience and praise in every sphere of life. In the NT, the same terminology of worship is used in a transformed way to portray the work of Christ and the response that pleases God.
Jesus as Son of God and high priest of the new covenant fulfils and replaces the whole system of approach to God that was at the heart of the old covenant. His incarnation, death, resurrection and ascension make possible an engagement with God ‘in spirit and truth’, which culminates in the unceasing worship of the new creation.
Biblical terms for worship
Worship as homage or grateful submission to God
The Hebrew verb most commonly translated ‘to worship’ (hištaḥawâ) literally means ‘bend oneself over at the waist’.
It is regularly translated by proskynein in the Greek Bible. From earliest times, this term expressed the oriental custom of bowing down or casting oneself on the ground, kissing the feet, the hem of a garment or the ground, as a total bodily gesture of respect before a great one (*e.g. Gen. 18:2; Exod. 18:7; 2 Sam. 14:4).
At an early stage, it also came to be used for the inward attitude of homage or respect which the outward gesture represented.
But the gesture was meaningful only if it expressed a recognition of God’s majesty and holiness and a desire to acknowledge him as king.
אָבַד (ʾābad) perish, be destroyed; Piel and Hiphil destroy.
Derivatives
The verb ʾābad is a common word for to die, or, in the case of things, reputation, etc., to pass away. (The cognates in Akkadian, Arabic, and Ugaritic express similar ideas.) In the Piel and Hiphil it is used transitively in the sense of kill or break down (houses, idols, kingdoms). Egypt was destroyed (Ex 10:7; KJV, NASB; “ruined,” RSV, NIV) though Pharaoh would not admit it.
Probably the main theological question about this root is whether it refers merely to physical death or also to eternal punishment.
Obviously the word usually refers to some great loss, in most cases death. Esther’s famous self-dedication, “If I perish, I perish” (4:16), had her self sacrificing death in view—only that.
These verses, like many others, can be interpreted to refer only to death of the body. But they are in a context of consideration of the hereafter.
Worship as service to God
Another biblical term often translated ‘to worship’ is the Hebrew ‘āḇaḏ, which literally means ‘to serve’. When this verb refers specifically to the service offered to God, it is often rendered by latreuein in the LXX. The purpose of Israel’s redemption from slavery in Egypt was to release the people for exclusive service to the LORD (*e.g. Exod. 3:12; 4:23; 8:1).
A complex system of sacrifices and rituals was instituted by God so that Israel could serve him appropriately at his chosen sanctuary. For example, the Passover was a ‘service’ to be observed in remembrance of the LORD’s saving work at the time of the Exodus (12:25–27; 13:5). The
A complex system of sacrifices and rituals was instituted by God so that Israel could serve him appropriately at his chosen sanctuary. For example, the Passover was a ‘service’ to be observed in remembrance of the LORD’s saving work at the time of the Exodus (12:25–27; 13:5). The
Sacrifice and other rituals were clearly a way of expressing reverence for God, but faithfulness and obedience to the covenant demands of God in every sphere of life were also the distinguishing marks of true religion (*e.g. Exod. 18:21; Ps. 25:14; Mal. 3:16; 4:2).
Revelation and redemption: the means of acceptable worship
In various ways the Bible makes it plain that worship is acceptable to God only if it is based on a true knowledge of God and of his will. Worship outside this framework is idolatrous.
Origin of the Name
The Rabbis have a curious conceit about the originof the name Jerusalem, which is commonly taken to mean, ‘the foundation,’ ‘the abode,’ or ‘the inheritance of peace.’ They make it a compound of Jireh and Shalem, and say that Abraham called it ‘Jehovah-Jireh,’ while Shem had named it Shalem, but that God combined the two into Jireh-Shalem, Jerushalaim, or Jerusalem.