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What the Bible Says About Psaltery

Overview

The Bible addresses psaltery across 21 verses, drawn from both the Old and New Testaments. These passages cluster most in Psalms, 1 Chronicles and Daniel. Closely related themes include Music, Praise, Coercion, Religious and Sackbut. Figures whose stories touch this theme include David and Nebuchadnezzar.

Key Bible verses about psaltery

Old Testament

1 Chronicles

1 Chronicles 13:8

And David and all Israel played before God with all their might, and with singing, and with harps, and with psalteries, and with timbrels, and with cymbals, and with trumpets. singing: Heb. songs

1 Chronicles 16:5

Asaph the chief, and next to him Zechariah, Jeiel, and Shemiramoth, and Jehiel, and Mattithiah, and Eliab, and Benaiah, and Obededom: and Jeiel with psalteries and with harps; but Asaph made a sound with cymbals; with psalteries: Heb. with instruments of psalteries and harps

1 Chronicles 25:1

Moreover David and the captains of the host separated to the service of the sons of Asaph, and of Heman, and of Jeduthun, who should prophesy with harps, with psalteries, and with cymbals: and the number of the workmen according to their service was:

1 Chronicles 25:5

All these were the sons of Heman the king's seer in the words of God, to lift up the horn. And God gave to Heman fourteen sons and three daughters. words: or, matters

1 Chronicles 25:6

All these were under the hands of their father for song in the house of the LORD, with cymbals, psalteries, and harps, for the service of the house of God, according to the king's order to Asaph, Jeduthun, and Heman. according: Heb. by the hands of the king

Psalms

Psalms 33:2

Praise the LORD with harp: sing unto him with the psaltery and an instrument of ten strings.

Psalms 57:8

Awake up, my glory; awake, psaltery and harp: I myself will awake early.

Psalms 71:22

I will also praise thee with the psaltery, even thy truth, O my God: unto thee will I sing with the harp, O thou Holy One of Israel. the psaltery: Heb. the instrument of psaltery

Psalms 81:2

Take a psalm, and bring hither the timbrel, the pleasant harp with the psaltery.

Psalms 92:3

Upon an instrument of ten strings, and upon the psaltery; upon the harp with a solemn sound. the harp: or, the solemn sound with the harp a solemn: Heb. Higgaion

Psalms 108:2

Awake, psaltery and harp: I myself will awake early.

Psalms 144:9

I will sing a new song unto thee, O God: upon a psaltery and an instrument of ten strings will I sing praises unto thee.

Psalms 150:3

Praise him with the sound of the trumpet: praise him with the psaltery and harp. trumpet: or, cornet

Daniel

Daniel 3:5

That at what time ye hear the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, dulcimer, and all kinds of musick, ye fall down and worship the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king hath set up: dulcimer: or, singing: Cald. symphony

Daniel 3:7

Therefore at that time, when all the people heard the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, and all kinds of musick, all the people, the nations, and the languages, fell down and worshipped the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up.

Daniel 3:10

Thou, O king, hast made a decree, that every man that shall hear the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, and dulcimer, and all kinds of musick, shall fall down and worship the golden image:

Daniel 3:15

Now if ye be ready that at what time ye hear the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, and dulcimer, and all kinds of musick, ye fall down and worship the image which I have made; well: but if ye worship not, ye shall be cast the same hour into the midst of a burning fiery furnace; and who is that God that shall deliver you out of my hands?

People in the Bible and psaltery

Biblical figures whose stories intersect with this theme.

In the Bible dictionary

Studying psaltery for yourself

  • Begin with 2 Samuel 6:5, then read the passages below in canonical order.
  • Compare how Psalms, 1 Chronicles and Daniel each treat the theme.
  • Consider the lives of David and Nebuchadnezzar and how their stories intersect with it.
  • Widen the study to related themes: Music, Praise, Coercion, Religious and Sackbut.

Frequently asked questions

What does the Bible say about psaltery?

The Bible addresses psaltery across 21 verses, drawn from both the Old and New Testaments. These passages cluster most in Psalms, 1 Chronicles and Daniel. Closely related themes include Music, Praise, Coercion, Religious and Sackbut. Figures whose stories touch this theme include David and Nebuchadnezzar.

How many Bible verses are about psaltery?

The Bible references psaltery in 21 verses (King James Version).

Where does the Bible first mention psaltery?

In canonical order, the first of these passages is 2 Samuel 6:5: “And David and all the house of Israel played before the LORD on all manner of instruments made of fir wood, even on harps, and on psalteries, and on timbrels, and on cornets, and on cymbals.”

Which people in the Bible are associated with psaltery?

David and Nebuchadnezzar.

Preach & teach

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