We introduce the possibility of less formal settings because we are about to discuss the master musician David. Picture in your mind the young David with his sheep. What do you see? If David is guiding or guarding his sheep, what is in his hand? A shepherd’s staff, most likely. Perhaps the scene is more restful: The sheep graze beside still waters, and David relaxes in the shade. Now what do you see in David’s hand? It may well be a harp, or a similar instrument, a lyre. After all, David is both a shepherd and an accomplished musician. Perhaps he is composing the songs that will later become famous as his “psalms.” You can almost see young David viewing the quiet scene, then lighting up with the sudden inspiration: God is to him what he is to his sheep.
The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for His name’s sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and your staff, they comfort me. (Psalm 23:1-4)
David’s tribe is Judah, so he cannot be a priest. Even later, as a king, he cannot enter the sacred sections of the tabernacle (Numbers 3:10; 2 Chronicles 26:16- 21). Those spaces are reserved for priests, who come only from the tribe of Levi. Thus, David’s songs and tunes must arise in places that, for convenience in this discussion, we are calling informal settings. It is no surprise that God’s people pray to Him and praise Him in informal ways. After all, they spend much more time in their homes and places of work than at the tent for formal worship. But David is about to introduce a surprising change.