Cornelius a Lapide
Table of Contents
Synopsis of the Chapter
David, having placed the ark in the tabernacle of Zion, offers sacrifices; then he blesses the people and gives them a feast. Next he distributes to the Levites their ministries around the ark, and in verse 8, praises God with a canticle.
Vulgate Text: 1 Paralipomenon 16:1-43
1. So they brought the ark of God, and set it in the midst of the tabernacle that David had pitched for it: and they offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before God. 2. And when David had finished offering the burnt offerings and peace offerings, he blessed the people in the name of the Lord. 3. And he distributed to every one, from man to woman, a loaf of bread, and a portion of roasted buffalo meat, and fine flour fried in oil. 4. And he appointed certain of the Levites before the ark of the Lord to minister, and to commemorate His works, and to glorify and praise the Lord God of Israel: 5. Asaph the chief, and Zechariah second to him; then Jaaziel, and Shemiramoth, and Jehiel, and Mattithiah, and Eliab, and Benaiah; and Obed-edom: Jeiel was over the instruments of the psaltery and the lyres: and Asaph was to sound the cymbals: 6. and Benaiah and Jaaziel the priests were to blow the trumpets continually before the ark of the covenant of the Lord. 7. On that day David first appointed Asaph and his brethren to give thanks to the Lord. 8. Give thanks to the Lord, and call upon His name: make known His deeds among the peoples. 9. Sing to Him, and sing psalms to Him: and tell of all His wonders. 10. Praise His holy name: let the heart of those who seek the Lord rejoice. 11. Seek the Lord, and His strength: seek His face always. 12. Remember His wonders which He has done: His signs, and the judgments of His mouth. 13. O seed of Israel His servant: O sons of Jacob His chosen ones. 14. He is the Lord our God: His judgments are in all the earth. 15. Remember His covenant forever: the word which He commanded for a thousand generations, 16. Which He made with Abraham, and His oath to Isaac. 17. And He established it for Jacob as a precept: and for Israel as an everlasting covenant. 18. Saying: To you I will give the land of Canaan, the portion of your inheritance. 19. When they were few in number, small and strangers in it. 20. And they passed from nation to nation, and from one kingdom to another people. 21. He permitted no one to oppress them, but rebuked kings for their sake. 22. Do not touch My anointed ones: and do not harm My prophets. 23. Sing to the Lord, all the earth: proclaim from day to day His salvation. 24. Declare His glory among the nations, His wonders among all peoples. 25. For great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised: and He is terrible above all gods. 26. For all the gods of the peoples are idols: but the Lord made the heavens. 27. Praise and magnificence are before Him: strength and joy are in His place. 28. Give to the Lord, O families of peoples, give to the Lord glory and power. 29. Give to the Lord the glory due His name, bring a sacrifice, and come into His presence: and worship the Lord in holy splendor. 30. Let all the earth tremble before Him: for He established the world immovable. 31. Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad, and let them say among the nations: The Lord reigns. 32. Let the sea roar, and all its fullness: let the fields rejoice, and all that is in them. 33. Then the trees of the forest shall praise before the Lord: for He comes to judge the earth. 34. Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good: for His mercy endures forever. 35. And say: Save us, O God our Savior: and gather us together, and deliver us from the nations, that we may give thanks to Your holy name, and glory in Your praises. 36. Blessed be the Lord God of Israel from everlasting to everlasting; and let all the people say: Amen, and a hymn to the Lord. 37. So he left there before the ark of the covenant of the Lord, Asaph and his brethren, to minister before the ark continually, day by day, and in their turns. 38. And Obed-edom and his brethren, sixty-eight: and Obed-edom the son of Jeduthun, and Hosah, he appointed as gatekeepers; 39. and Zadok the priest, and his brethren the priests, before the tabernacle of the Lord in the high place that was at Gibeon, 40. to offer burnt offerings to the Lord on the altar of burnt offering continually, morning and evening, according to all that is written in the law of the Lord, which He commanded Israel. 41. And with him Heman and Jeduthun, and the rest who were chosen, each one designated by name, to give thanks to the Lord: for His mercy endures forever. 42. And Heman and Jeduthun sounding trumpets and clashing cymbals, and all the instruments of music, for singing to God; and the sons of Jeduthun he made to be gatekeepers. 43. And all the people returned each to his own house; and David returned to bless his own household.
Verse 8: Give Thanks to the Lord
8. GIVE THANKS TO THE LORD. — David ordered Asaph and his companions to sing this hymn to God in thanksgiving, because he had transferred the ark (and God dwelling in it) to his own citadel of Zion, so that he might have God, as it were, always present, protecting, directing, and strengthening him, near him. This hymn is compiled from Psalm 104 up to verse 23, where it continues compiled from Psalm 95. It is recounted here somewhat differently from what is contained in those psalms, because David seems to have first dictated it here in rough form, and then to have polished and refined it more in the Psalter. It is a psalm and belongs to the Psalter; therefore I will explain it there, as in its proper place. In the meantime I will briefly note here those points in which it differs from the cited psalms.
Verse 11: Seek the Lord and His Strength
11. SEEK THE LORD AND HIS STRENGTH. — The translator reads azzo, that is, His strength or His might, that is, the ark in which God displayed His power, by overthrowing Jericho and the Canaanites through it. For David invites all to come to the ark and worship God before it. But the Septuagint, reading with different vowel points azu in the Cal imperative, translate Psalm 104:5 as: Be strengthened, that is, you will be strengthened. For God will strengthen and fortify you, so that no enemy, no adversity, no temptation may prevail against you.
Verse 21: He Permitted No One to Oppress Them
21. HE PERMITTED NO ONE TO OPPRESS THEM. — Vatablus: to do violence to them; for the Hebrew azar means both to oppress and to do violence. Hence the Septuagint, Psalm 104:15, translate: He did not allow any man to harm them.
Verse 27: Praise and Magnificence Before Him
27. PRAISE AND MAGNIFICENCE ARE BEFORE HIM: STRENGTH AND JOY ARE IN HIS PLACE. — Vatablus: Celebration and magnificence is before Him, power and gladness in His place. But in Psalm 95:6, the Septuagint translates: Praise and beauty in His sight; holiness and magnificence in His sanctuary. In Hebrew, in His sanctuary, namely in the ark, and in the tabernacle of the ark erected by David.
Verse 28: Give to the Lord Glory and Power
28. GIVE TO THE LORD GLORY AND POWER. — The Hebrew: and strength. The meaning of these two verses is, as if to say: Offer to God in this tabernacle before the ark confession, that is, praise and magnificence, that is, a magnificent proclamation of His magnificent works; which magnifies God, that is, demonstrates Him to be great, indeed the greatest; likewise strength and joy, so that you may celebrate His mighty deeds, by which He fought for Israel; and thus He has given us cause for rejoicing and triumph.
Verse 29: Worship the Lord in Holy Splendor
29. WORSHIP THE LORD IN HOLY SPLENDOR. — The Hebrew: in the splendor of holiness, that is, of the holy ark. Vatablus: in the splendid and magnificent sanctuary; but Psalm 95:9: "Worship," it says, "the Lord in His holy court."
Verse 32: Let the Sea Roar
32. LET THE SEA ROAR, AND ALL ITS FULLNESS. — Vatablus: Let the sea resound, and whatever is in it, namely all fish, gems, pearls, etc.; for the waves of the sea in a storm, crashing against each other, produce a roar and something like thunder. But in Psalm 95:12, it reads: "Let the sea be moved (let it tremble before the majesty and omnipotence of God) and all its fullness." Again, the sea thunders when it sends up vapors on high, which, enclosed in clouds and crashing together, when they break out by force, produce thunder and lightning. Let the sea therefore thunder, to display the power of God its Creator, and strike the ungodly with fear of Him.
Verse 39: Zadok the Priest
39. AND ZADOK THE PRIEST (the High Priest) AND HIS BRETHREN THE PRIESTS (the lesser priests) BEFORE THE TABERNACLE OF THE LORD WHICH WAS AT GIBEON. — Zadok had served in the pontificate under Saul, after Saul had killed Ahimelech the High Priest. For at that time the son of Ahimelech, namely Abiathar, fled to David. Therefore the High Priest with Saul was Zadok; but with David, Abiathar. After Saul's death, David did not wish to abolish Zadok's pontificate, but divided it between them so that Abiathar would serve as Pontiff in Jerusalem where the ark was; and Zadok in Gibeon, where the tabernacle made by Moses was.