In the book of Exodus, God is creating Israel as a new nation. He uses Moses to give Israel its new laws. First, He lays the foundation, the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20:1-17). Then He builds on those ten with hundreds of detailed laws. Many of these laws show exactly how to conduct the formal worship of God.
- There are the priests, with precise regulations for their qualifications, their induction, their clothes and their duties.
- There are the sacrifices, with specifics about the animals, their purposes and their procedures.
- There are the required gifts with their amounts and times.
- There is the place of worship (the sacred tent or “tabernacle”) with meticulous, exhaustive particulars as to its design, its materials, its functions and much more.
- There are the utensils used in worship, every piece and every position.
- There is the incense, described even down to the correct fireplace and recipe (reserved strictly for the priests alone).
- But where are the instruments for music?
Here is a hint of mystery. When God gets down to such details as cooking pans, surely He can mention such things as harps, flutes and drums, or at least the tambourines so recently at hand.
Historical records prove that instruments are common in Egypt, where Moses and the Israelites have long lived. Surely music moves people then just as it moves us now. The law given at Mount Sinai is a new start for Israel. After so many centuries with so little mention, here is God’s chance to show that He values music as much as we humans do. Here, while God is specifying so much, is the perfect place to establish the importance of music. Surely God can include something of a musical nature.