1G0xxeB

The Problematic Power of Musical Instruments in the Bible2 4 57. ConclusionI have tried to show in this article that the Bible contains a sophisticatedteaching regarding the problematic power of musical instruments. Thatteaching comes to light when the biblical narrative is read globally, fromGenesis through Samuel and complemented by Chronicles. That teachingalso comes to light when the Bible is read as a book of reason. In short, theBible teaches that although the origins of musical instruments are highlyproblematic, they can aid in creating community, shaping character, andserving God. In delineating the low origin but elevated end of musicalinstruments, the Bible carves a middle path between those who would banmusical instruments altogether, as in the Muslim Salafi tradition, and thosewho romanticize music making. 49In addition, important figures in the classical political-philosophicaltradition, such as Plato, Aristotle, Rousseau, and Nietzsche, also treatedthe problematic power of musical instruments, and I believe that the Bibledeserves to be brought into dialogue with this tradition. I hope that thisarticle will contribute to that end.That said, much work remains to be done in fully explicating the Bible’steaching. For instance, what is the Bible’s teaching regarding the role of particularmusical instruments? In this article I treated the case of the framedrum (tōᵽ). But, to take one thought-provoking example, what about thenēbel, often translated as “harp” or “lyre”? As Braun notes, “The Hebrew andAkkadian derivative nāḇāl can mean ‘to degenerate; ritually impure, wicked,obscene; villain; carcass,’ as well as ‘flame.’” Braun also notes that “such associationsbetween musical instruments and idioms of scorn or disparagementoccur in other contexts as well,” but one is left to wonder how the Bible understandsthis strangely named instrument that played an important role in theLevitical musical service. 50Lastly, I claim that the biblical model can shed light on our contemporarycontext. It is an amazing fact and a cause for wonder that in the Bible,49See Eva Mary Grew, “Martin Luther and Music,” Music & Letters 19, no. 1 (1938): 67–78. Grewquotes Luther as saying, “Music is a fair gift of God, and near allied to divinity.” See also Arthur WareLocke and E. T. A. Hoffmann, “Beethoven’s Instrumental Music,” Musical Quarterly 3, no. 1 (1917):123–33. Hoffmann writes: “That inspired composers have raised instrumental music to its presentheight is certainly not due to the improvement in the medium of expression, the perfecting of theinstruments, or the greater virtuosity of the performers, but comes rather from the deeper spiritualrecognition of the peculiar nature of music” (127).50Braun, Music in Ancient Israel/Palestine, 22. The term appears eleven times in Chronicles 1 and 2.