1 Crónicas 16

VBL · Chapter 16/29

1Trajeron el Arca de Dios y la colocaron en la tienda que David había preparado para ella. Presentaron holocaustos y ofrendas de amistad a Dios.

2Cuando David terminó de presentar los holocaustos y las ofrendas de amistad, bendijo al pueblo en nombre del Señor.

3Luego repartió a cada israelita, a cada hombre y a cada mujer, una hogaza de pan, una torta de dátiles y una torta de pasas.

4David asignó a algunos de los levitas para que sirvieran de ministros ante el Arca del Señor, para recordar, agradecer y alabar al Señor, el Dios de Israel.

5Asaf era el encargado, Zacarías era el segundo, luego Jeiel, Semiramot, Jehiel, Matatías, Eliab, Benaía, Obed-edom y Jeiel. Tocaban arpas y liras, y Asaf tocaba los címbalos,

6y los sacerdotes Benaía y Jahaziel tocaban continuamente las trompetas delante del Arca del Pacto de Dios.

7Este fue el día en que David instruyó por primera vez a Asaf y a sus parientes para que dieran gracias al Señor de esta manera:

8Denle gracias al Señor, adoren su naturaleza maravillosa, ¡hagan saber lo que ha hecho!

9Cántenle, canten sus alabanzas; cuéntenle a todos las grandes cosas que ha hecho.

10Enorgullézcanse de su carácter santo; ¡alégrense todos los que se acercan al Señor!

11Busquen al Señor y su fuerza; busquen siempre estar con él.

12Recuerden todas las maravillas que ha hecho, los milagros que ha realizado y los juicios que ha pronunciado,

13descendientes de Israel, hijos de Jacob, su pueblo elegido.

14Él es el Señor, nuestro Dios, sus juicios cubren toda la tierra.

15Él se acuerda de su acuerdo para siempre, la promesa que hizo dura mil generaciones

16el acuerdo que hizo con Abraham, el voto que hizo a Isaac.

17El Señor lo confirmó legalmente con Jacob, hizo este acuerdo eterno con Israel

18diciendo: “Les daré la tierra de Canaán para que la posean”.

19Dijo esto cuando sólo eran unos pocos, un pequeño grupo de extranjeros en la tierra.

20Iban de un país a otro, de un reino a otro.

21No permitió que nadie los tratara mal; advirtió a los reyes que los dejaran en paz:

22“¡No toquen a mi pueblo elegido, no hagan daño a mis profetas!”

23¡Cántenle al Señor! ¡Que toda la tierra le cante al Señor! ¡Que cada día todos oigan de su salvación!

24Anuncien sus actos gloriosos entre las naciones, las maravillas que hace entre todos los pueblos.

25Porque el Señor es grande y merece la mejor alabanza. Él debe ser respetado con temor por encima de todos los dioses.

26Porque todos los dioses de las demás naciones son ídolos, pero el Señor hizo los cielos.

27Suyos son el esplendor y la majestuosidad; en su santuario hay poder y gloria.

28Reconozcan al Señor, naciones del mundo, dénle la gloria y el poder.

29Dénle al Señor la gloria que se merece; traigan una ofrenda y preséntense ante él. Adoren al Señor en su magnífica santidad.

30Que todo el mundo en la tierra tiemble ante su presencia. El mundo se mantiene unido con firmeza; no puede romperse.

31Que los cielos canten de alegría, que la tierra se alegre. Digan a las naciones: “¡El Señor está al mando!”

32¡Que el mar y todo lo que hay en él griten de alabanza! Que los campos y todo lo que hay en ellos celebren;

33Que todos los árboles del bosque canten de alegría, porque él viene a juzgar la tierra.

34Denle gracias al Señor, porque es bueno. Su amor es eterno.

35Griten: “¡Sálvanos, Señor, Dios nuestro! Reúnenos de entre las naciones, rescátanos, para que podamos darte gracias y alabar lo magnífico y santo que eres”.

36¡Qué maravilloso es el Señor, el Dios de Israel, que vive por los siglos de los siglos! Entonces todo el pueblo dijo: “¡Amén!” y “¡Alaben al Señor!”.

37Entonces David se aseguró de que Asaf y sus hermanos ministraran continuamente ante el Arca del Pacto del Señor, realizando los servicios que fueran necesarios cada día,

38así como Obed-edom y sus sesenta y ocho parientes. Obed-edom, hijo de Jedutún, y Hosa, eran porteros.

39David puso al sacerdote Sadoc y a sus compañeros sacerdotes a cargo del Arca del Señor en el lugar alto de Gabaón

40para que presentaran holocaustos al Señor en el altar de los holocaustos, por la mañana y por la tarde, según todo lo que estaba escrito en la ley del Señor que él había ordenado seguir a Israel.

41Los acompañaban Hemán, Jedutún y el resto de los elegidos e identificados por su nombre para dar gracias al Señor, porque “su amor confiable es eterno”.

42Hemán y Jedutún usaron sus trompetas y címbalos para hacer música que acompañara los cantos de Dios. Los hijos de Jedutún custodiaban la puerta.

43Luego todo el pueblo se fue a su casa, y David fue a bendecir a su familia.

📖 Chapter study

Summary

The ark is placed in a special tent in Jerusalem, and David arranges sacrifices, distributes food to the people, and appoints Levites to minister with music before the ark continually. He also composes a psalm of praise and thanksgiving to God.

Explanation

This chapter shows David establishing a permanent, organized routine of worship, with Levites specifically assigned to sing and play before the ark every day, not only on special occasions. The psalm David delivers to be sung, made up of passages that also appear in other biblical psalms, is a sweeping call for all the nations of the earth to acknowledge the greatness of God, contrasting him with the empty idols of other religions. David's generosity in distributing bread, meat, and wine to all the people, men and women alike, reinforces that true worship should be accompanied by inclusive, communal celebration.

Fun facts

  • The thanksgiving psalm David composes in this chapter is a combination of parts of Psalms 105, 96, and 106, showing how these songs were composed, rearranged, and reused over time in Israelite worship.
  • Asaph, appointed here as the chief musician, gives his name to a family of Levitical singers who would continue serving in the temple for generations, and several psalms in the book of Psalms are attributed directly to him or his lineage.

Verse-by-verse explanation

  1. 1 Crónicas 16:1The ark finally arrives at its place, inside the tent David had prepared, and the celebration continues with burnt offerings and peace offerings — the happy ending that the first attempt, back in chapter 13, never got.
  2. 1 Crónicas 16:2Once the sacrifices are finished, David himself blesses the people in the name of the LORD — the king acting almost like a priest in this moment of national celebration.
  3. 1 Crónicas 16:3David has food handed out to everyone in Israel, men and women alike: a loaf of bread, a good piece of meat, and a flask of wine — the king footing the bill for the whole nation’s feast.
  4. 1 Crónicas 16:4The Levites chosen here do not sacrifice animals — their job is ‘to record, and to thank and praise’ the LORD, in other words liturgical and musical work, separate from the priests’ work at the altar.
  5. 1 Crónicas 16:5A detailed list of musicians forms around the ark, with Asaph as leader and several others playing lutes, harps, and cymbals — the musical structure of worship takes definitive shape.
  6. 1 Crónicas 16:6Two priests, Benaiah and Jahaziel, are put in charge of sounding trumpets continually before the ark — a permanent sound marking God’s presence in the camp.
  7. 1 Crónicas 16:7On that same day, David hands over a psalm of praise for Asaph to sing for the first time — the text that follows is a blend of passages that also appear in Psalms 105, 96, and 106.
  8. 1 Crónicas 16:8The psalm opens with a direct invitation: praise the LORD, call on His name, tell other peoples what He has already done — a call to spread God’s fame, not keep it to oneself.
  9. 1 Crónicas 16:9The invitation continues: sing, play, and speak thoughtfully about God’s wonders — three different ways of expressing the same gratitude.
  10. 1 Crónicas 16:10The next line speaks of taking pride in God’s holy name, and of how the heart of whoever truly seeks Him grows glad.
  11. 1 Crónicas 16:11A simple invitation repeated in several psalms: seek the LORD and His strength, seek His presence without ceasing.
  12. 1 Crónicas 16:12It calls for remembering the wonders God has already done, the miracles and the judgments He made throughout the people’s history.
  13. 1 Crónicas 16:13Here the psalm turns directly to Israel, called the ‘seed’ of a servant and the chosen ‘children’ of Jacob — a reminder of exactly who this song is addressed to.
  14. 1 Crónicas 16:14A central statement: He is the LORD, the God of Israel, and His judgments reach the whole earth, not just the chosen people.
  15. 1 Crónicas 16:15It calls for always remembering God’s covenant, a promise made to last a thousand generations — a poetic way of saying ‘forever.’
  16. 1 Crónicas 16:16It recalls the specific covenant with Abraham and the oath made to Isaac — the first two patriarchs of the promise.
  17. 1 Crónicas 16:17The same covenant later confirmed with Jacob, called here an ‘everlasting covenant’ — the promise passing from father to son across three generations.
  18. 1 Crónicas 16:18The content of the promise: the land of Canaan, given as an inheritance — the underlying reason behind the whole story of Israel up to this point in the book.
  19. 1 Crónicas 16:19It recalls that Israel started out small, just a few men, and strangers besides in their own promised land — a contrast with the great kingdom David is building now.
  20. 1 Crónicas 16:20It speaks of the time when the people wandered from nation to nation, with no fixed home — the days of the patriarchs, even before Egypt.
  21. 1 Crónicas 16:21God let no one oppress this small, landless people, and even rebuked kings on their account — protection even while they were weak.
  22. 1 Crónicas 16:22A famous line: ‘Touch not mine anointed, and do my prophets no harm’ — a reference to the protection God gave the patriarchs, treated here almost like anointed prophets.
  23. 1 Crónicas 16:23The tone shifts: now it is an invitation for the whole earth, not just Israel, to sing to the LORD and proclaim His salvation every day.
  24. 1 Crónicas 16:24It calls for declaring God’s glory among the nations — the psalm widens its audience from Israel to the whole world.
  25. 1 Crónicas 16:25A declaration of greatness: the LORD is great, greatly to be praised, and more to be feared than any other god worshiped anywhere.
  26. 1 Crónicas 16:26It explains the reason for the comparison: the gods of the other nations are nothing but idols, while the LORD is the One who truly made the heavens.
  27. 1 Crónicas 16:27It describes the atmosphere around God: majesty, splendor, strength, and gladness — qualities of the very ‘place’ where He dwells.
  28. 1 Crónicas 16:28It summons the families of the nations to acknowledge the glory and strength of the LORD — again widening the reach of praise beyond Israel.
  29. 1 Crónicas 16:29It calls for offerings and worship in ‘the beauty of holiness’ — a poetic phrase that appears in several psalms to describe true worship.
  30. 1 Crónicas 16:30It speaks of the trembling before God that should grip the whole earth, and affirms that the world stands firm because of Him.
  31. 1 Crónicas 16:31A call to cosmic joy: heaven and earth rejoicing, and the nations proclaiming ‘the LORD reigneth’ — one of the most repeated lines in the psalms of praise.
  32. 1 Crónicas 16:32It extends the joy to the sea and the field — all of nature taking part in this poetic celebration.
  33. 1 Crónicas 16:33Even the trees of the forest are invited to rejoice, because God is coming to judge the earth — an ending that points forward, beyond the present moment of celebration.
  34. 1 Crónicas 16:34One of the most repeated lines in the entire Bible: give thanks to the LORD because He is good, and His mercy endures forever — a refrain that comes back near the end of the psalm.
  35. 1 Crónicas 16:35The psalm turns into a request: ‘save us, gather us together, deliver us from the heathen’ — a verse that sounds more like the prayer of a people in exile than immediate celebration, showing how Chronicles reuses this psalm centuries later.
  36. 1 Crónicas 16:36The psalm ends with a final blessing, and all the people answer ‘Amen’ — the same kind of closing used at the end of several books of Psalms.
  37. 1 Crónicas 16:37At this point there are two places of worship at once: the ark sits in a simple tent in Jerusalem, while Moses’ old tabernacle and its altar of sacrifice keep functioning in Gibeon, with a separate team of priests. It is a temporary arrangement, since the permanent temple has not even begun to be built yet.
  38. 1 Crónicas 16:38After the feast, Obed-edom — the same man who kept the ark in his house for three months — gains a permanent post as gatekeeper, along with sixty-seven more relatives.
  39. 1 Crónicas 16:39Zadok the priest is put in charge of the other center of worship, Moses’ old tabernacle, which keeps functioning in Gibeon even with the ark already in Jerusalem.
  40. 1 Crónicas 16:40Zadok’s job in Gibeon is to keep the daily sacrifices, morning and evening, exactly as the law of Moses required — traditional worship running side by side with the new celebration around the ark.
  41. 1 Crónicas 16:41More musicians are appointed to give thanks, with the repeated phrase ‘his mercy endureth for ever’ — the same refrain that closed the psalm sung earlier.
  42. 1 Crónicas 16:42Heman and Jeduthun, with trumpets and cymbals, round out the musical structure of this second center of worship in Gibeon — showing that organized music was there too, not just sacrifice.
  43. 1 Crónicas 16:43With the whole celebration over, everyone goes back home, and David returns to bless his own household — a simple, domestic ending after a full day of national festivity.

Chapters

Our apps

Our apps →

Bible in Stories

The Bible told as a story, with audio and videos.

📱 Get the app

World in Stories

True stories of humanity that sound made up.

Feito! Pequenas Vitórias

A light daily routine for people who lose track of the day.