The Instrument of Gath

Recently I have been studying Hebrews in greater depth. Such an important book. Not only for the 1st Century Hebrew convert to Christianity, but it is deeply significant for the follower of Christ in every generation.

As you dig into Hebrews, one of the things that stands out right from the start is the amount of times the Psalms of David are quoted. These were not simply songs that King David had written in his lifetime, but they were anthem’s pregnant with Messianic hope & expectation. They were prophetic declarations waiting for their fulfillment upon the earth.

King David stewarded his heart in such a way that he was given profound revelation of the character of God and the purposes of God for his generation and beyond. One of his Psalms spoke of the order of Melchizedek, the mysterious priestly order of Jesus. Abraham encounters the Priest King Melchizedek in the book of Genesis, 1000 years after Abraham, David writes Psalm 110 giving even greater insight into this eternal priestly order. 1000 years after King David, the writer of the book of Hebrews (whom I believe is the Apostle Paul), gives even more insight into this priestly order of Jesus.

Psalm 110 & Psalm 2 are two of the Psalms mentioned with frequency in Hebrews, and they are no “small potato” Psalms. John Calvin or Martin Luther made the comment that Psalm 110 was probably the most important Psalm. They speak of an expectation, a hope, David knew God was committed to bringing to pass on the earth. Paul’s use of these Psalms in this letter to the Hebrews is more than just him finding something helpful in ancient Jewish literature to back up his point. He is saying in Jesus’ life, death, resurrection & ascension these Psalms have gone to a totally different level in reaching there ultimate fulfillment. His intention is to inspire within his reader tremendous confidence in who Jesus is and their identity in Jesus. And also to inspire the Hebrew Christians to confidently embrace their role in Jesus’ ongoing mission.

Among the other Psalms Paul quotes in Hebrews is Psalm 8;

Hebrews 2

6 “What is man that You are mindful of him,
Or the son of man that You take care of him?
7 You have made him a little lower than the angels;
You have crowned him with glory and honor,
And set him over the works of Your hands.
8 You have put all things in subjection under his feet.

Why Psalm 8? The quote in Hebrews is followed by this statement “For in that He put all in subjection under him, He left nothing that is not put under him. But now we do not yet see all things put under him.” It is a reminder of man’s cultural mandate to subdue the earth & confirmation that it has gone to another level.

Psalm 8 is one of three Psalm’s (8, 81, 84) that are to be played on a specific instrument. If you look at the heading of these Psalms instruction is given that they be played on the Instrument of Gath (some translations read the Gittith). Gath was a Philistine stronghold city during the time of King David. The giant Goliath and his brothers came from Gath. During the 16 month period of exile from Israel in Philistia David spent time in Gath. Some have thought that David was in a backslidden state during this time, not trusting God for protection and fleeing from Saul. But the scriptures are clear that David was faithful to the Lord in all things except the matter of Uriah the Hittite (1 Kings 15:5). An alternate suggestion has been made that while he was in Philistia David was protecting the Southern border of Israel from it’s enemies. King Saul’s obsession with David had left the territory vulnerable to its real enemies.

In addition to protecting Israel, I believe David used this time to learn to play the instrument of Gath. Why would this warrior learn to play the instrument of his enemies? And why were specific instructions given that these Psalms be played on that instrument?

David understood the connection between victory & Praise. His conflicts were high stakes, his life was at stake as well as the lives of his men were affected by his choices. For this Warrior King, worship was a non-negotiable part of his existence & survival. Seven times a day he would intentionally praise God(Psalm 119:164). David was at least as disciplined in worship as he was as a soldier. It was not just preparation for warfare, it was the warfare. I believe he understood how vital praise, thanksgiving & music were for accomplishing the Father’s ultimate purposes of subduing the earth. He understood the battle was the Lord’s. The King of Glory, strong, & mighty in battle. Later when David became King over all Israel, the Tabernacle of David (Distinct from Tabernacle of Moses and Temple of Solomon) was a place of unbroken place of Worship Intercession. 24 hours a day & 365 days a year for 33 years – 5000 full time musicians were dedicated to releasing heaven’s anthems upon the earth in Israel. David had a revelation of his identity as a Priest-King on the earth. He made whole hearted worship a priority of his reign. He pursued the heart of his Father, God (Heb 1:5; 2 Sam 7:14) and was a student of his purposes & ways. Praise & Thanksgiving – Worship was indispensable. So before he came to power, during this difficult season in Gath he pressed into God, using the instrument of his foe. It was prophetic foreshadowing. It was ahead of its time. It was & is the way forward. God’s adversaries & their instruments turned into worshippers. Every knee would bow and tongue confess, it was a matter of time.

Gath incidentally means winepress. In this 16 month winepress of exile, this heavenly anthem known as Psalm 8 began to flow from the heart of David. David did not play the songs of Gath on the instrument of Gath, instead David released the anthem’s of heaven on this gentile instrument. Can you imagine what this did in the hearts of the warriors of Israel as their Warrior King began to play this Philistine instrument? No doubt it had a unique and easily distinguishable tone. When that sound broke the airwaves it would have struck such a chord in these Israelite warrior’s hearts. David who had slain the Philistine Giant; and eventually established an Israelite garrison in Philistia (1 Chron 18:1) was now releasing this heavenly anthem on this instrument that had he failed would have been used to gloat over his destruction. In the unseen realm the terror that would grip the heart’s of unseen forces of wickedness as they observed the son’s of men begin to embrace their identity upon the earth and refuse to bow to the intimidation of those assigned to bring their destruction. The audacity of this act of worship on enemy instruments, possess greater significance than we may really understand. It stands as a prophetic foreshadowing  the kingdoms of this world becoming the kingdoms of our Lord and of his Christ.

If you continue to dig into the significance of the Instrument of Gath, you will find that while Psalm 8 was written by David & played on the instrument of Gath, Psalm 81 & 84 are not written by him but are to be played on the same Philistine instrument.  So David, understanding the trans-generational cultural promise given to Abraham and waiting for fulfillment, must have taught Israel to play this instrument and as it was played it must have stirred  deep confidence that God who had triumphed in the past, will ultimately be victorious upon the earth.