7 Hebrew Words for Praise.
HEY WORSHIP LEADERS!
One of our primary roles in serving the local church is to teach our congregations how to worship. More than just providing art that focuses their attention on Jesus and space in which to be able to express praise and worship corporately, we need to give our churches tools that increase their knowledge, understanding and hunger for their own personal expression of thanksgiving, adoration and surrender.
As we give people fresh vocabulary to articulate their worship or teach them on physical postures that they can use to express their praise, we can sometimes find ourselves looking for modernized explanations in order to keep our expression relevant to people with little or no Biblical knowledge. But let’s not forget, just as with the study of the ancient languages, texts and cultures that give so much more depth and beauty to our communicating, there are Biblical precedents for the ways that we express ourselves in worship. Words that are descriptive of how the people of God worshipped throughout the Old Testament. Words that can give fresh life, or even permission, to our congregations to legitimize physical postures as an integral part of our expression of worship. Equipped with this knowledge and understanding that takes our focus off of our own preferences and towards God’s, we can lead our churches into a truer and deeper place of praise and worship.
“Just as with the study of the ancient languages, texts and cultures that give so much more depth and beauty to our communicating, there are Biblical precedents for the ways that we express ourselves in worship.”
Check out these 7 terms, translated from Ancient Hebrew and used through the Old Testament to describe how the people of God worshipped Him.
NOTE: If you’re looking for more info OR a great Podcast on these exact terms check out this MESSAGE from Bethel Church with Eric, Brian and Jenn Johnson.
BARAK
To kneel down, to bless God as an act of adoration.
Barak occurs 330 times in the Old Testament.
Examples in Scriptures include:
‘And Ezra baraked (blessed) the Lord, the great God, and all the people answered, “Amen, amen,” lifting up their hands. And they bowed their heads and worshipped the Lord with their faces to the ground.’ (Nehemiah 8:6, ESV).
‘My foot stands on level ground, in the great assembly I will barak (bless) the Lord.’ (Psalm 26:12, ESV).
‘Barak (bless) our God, O peoples; let the sound of His praise be heard.’ (Psalm 66:8, ESV).
YADAH
To throw out the hand, to worship with the extended hand.
Yadah occurs 114 times in the Old Testament.
Examples in Scriptures include:
‘And she conceived again and bore a son, and said, “This time I will Yadah (praise) the Lord.” Therefore, she called his name Judah.’ (Genesis 29:35a, ESV).
‘And it was the duty of the trumpeters and singers to make themselves heard in unison in praise and Yadah (thanksgiving) to the LORD, and when the song was raised, with trumpets and cymbals and other musical instruments, in praise to the LORD, “For He is good, for his steadfast love endures forever,” the house, the house of the LORD was filled with a cloud.’ (2 Chronicles 5:13, ESV).
‘The Lord is my strength and my shield, in him my heart trusts, and I am helped; my herat exults and with my song I give Yadah (thanks) to Him.’ (Psalm 28:7, ESV).
TOWDAH
An extension of the hand in adoration or acceptance.
Towdah 32 times in the Old Testament.
Examples in Scripture include:
‘And when you sacrifice a sacrifice of Towdah (thanksgiving) to the LORD, you shall sacrifice it so that you may be accepted.’ (Leviticus 22:29, ESV).
‘Enter his gates with Towdah (thanksgiving), and his courts with praise! Give thanks to Him, bless His name!’ (Psalm 100:4, ESV).
‘But I with the voice of Towdah (thanksgiving) will sacrifice to you; what I have vowed I will pay. Salvation belongs to the LORD!’ (Jonah 2:9, ESV).
SHABACH
To address in a loud tone, to triumph, glory, shout!
Shabach occurs 11 times in the Old Testament.
Examples in Scripture include:
‘Because Your steadfast love is better than life, my lips will Shabach (praise) You.’ (Psalm 63:3, ESV).
‘One generation shall Shabach (commend) your works to another, and shall declare your mighty acts.’ (Psalm 145:4, ESV).
‘Praise the Lord, all nations! Shabach (extol) Him, all peoples!’ (Psalm 117:1, ESV).
HALAL
To be clear, to shine, to boast, celebrate, be clamorously foolish.
Halal occurs 165 times in the Old Testament.
Examples in Scripture include:
‘And when the people saw, they Halal[ed] (praised), their God. For they said, “Our God has given our enemy into our hands, the ravager of our country, who has killed many of us.’ (Judges 16:24, ESV).
‘Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, from everlasting to everlasting! Then all the people said, “Amen! And Halal[ed] (praised) the Lord.’ (1 Chronicles 16:36, ESV).
‘I will thank you in the great congregation, in the mighty throng I will Halal (praise) You.’ (Psalm 25:18, ESV).
ZAMAR
To touch the strings, to pluck the strings and sing along.
Zamar occurs 45 times in the Old Testament.
Examples in Scripture include:
‘For this I will praise You, O Lord, among the nations, and sing Zamar (praises) to Your name.’ (2 Samuel 22:50, ESV).
‘Sing to him, sing Zamar (praises) unto Him, tell of all his wondrous works!’ (1 Chronicles 16:9, ESV).
‘Zamar (sing) praises to the LORD, for He has done gloriously: let this be made known in all the earth.’ (Isaiah 12:5, ESV).
TEHILLAH
To sing, to laud; praise that God inhabits.
Tehillah occurs 45 times in the Old Testament.
Examples in Scripture include:
‘Let them give glory to the LORD, and declares His Tehillah (praise) in the coastlands.’ (Isaiah 42:12, ESV).
‘Heal me, O LORD, and I shall be healed; save me, and I shall be saved; for You are my Tehillah (praise).’ (Jeremiah 17:14, ESV).
‘Enter His gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with Tehillah (praise). Give thanks to Him; bless His name!’ (Psalm 100:4, ESV).
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What do you think? Does one of these words resonate with you in a special way? Maybe a way that you’ve always felt led to express in worship but never fully understood why?
That was my experience with a couple of these words and when I first learnt them it dramatically changed my personal expression of worship. Let me know in the comments below!
