Music permeates the culture of ancient Israel. In the Iron Age, the place of music in the life of the Israelites cannot be overestimated. The Bible is rich with references to music and the role that music played in the social, political, and religious aspects of ancient Israel. Festive choruses enriched marriage ceremonies with music and dancing, and music expressed the joy and thanksgiving when the sheep were sheared and the grapes were gathered. Victorious armies were met with the songs of women, celebrating the return of Israel's warriors, and apparently, music sprang up spontaneously and effortlessly in day to day life as well.(1) In the religion of the Israelites, musical instruments played meaningful roles in the festivals and in the worship at the temple. In spite of the breadth and depth of music in ancient Israel and the many references to the types of instruments in Jewish texts, the instruments themselves are never explicitly described. Because of the uncertainty that surrounds the nature of ancient Israel's musical instruments, it is difficult to ascertain with certainty the attributes of musical instruments in ancient Israel. In this paper I will survey the references to instruments in ancient Israel and try to reconstruct the attributes of ancient Israel's instruments based on archaeological finds in Palestine, from the information in the texts, and from the knowledge of instruments in surrounding cultures.
Categorizing Instruments
In past few decades the method of classifying instruments has change slightly, but the old method of classifying instruments fits the instruments of ancient Israel much better than the new method. The old method of classification used the external characteristics of instruments in order to classify them. The new method arranges instruments according to the way that the instrument produces a tone. The new method, in effect divides the last of the categories and adds one category that has emerged only recently. While the new method may offer valuable insights into the instruments that we use today, the old method better suits the instruments of ancient Israel. Therefore, in this paper I will use the older method of classifying instruments although this method may be as obsolete as the instruments of ancient Israel. In this paper, the musical instruments of ancient Israel will be divided into three basic categories: stringed instruments, wind instruments, and percussive instruments.
Percussive Instruments
Among the three groups of instruments, the most primitive of the three is undoubtedly the percussion instruments. It is ironic that the first two instruments that the Bible mentions are not percussion instruments, but examples of instruments in the other two groups. (2) Perhaps the reason that underlies this irony is the ambiguous nature of percussive instruments. While the stringed instruments and the wind instruments are meant specifically for making music, percussive instruments often blur the line between religious function, music and dance. The percussion instruments in ancient Israel were simple, but they were also extremely numerous.
The Hebrew term, tof, encompasses most of the percussion instruments in Israel during the Iron Age. Tof probably refers to various hand-held drums and tambourines. Tuppin (the plural form of tof) are usually connected with dancing and with joyous occasions.(3) The tof would have been an easy instrument to play, and would lend itself to rhythmically supporting dancing. Perhaps because of its connection to dancing, the tof is played by women the vast majority of the time. There is possibly one reference to men playing tuppin (4), but this is only an interpretation of the text, whereas Biblical texts clearly document many examples of women playing tuppin. I was recently at a wedding in Dallas, and the groom came from a Syrian family. At the wedding reception, there was Syrian dancing with small drums that kept the beat for the dancers. The groom's aunts and mother alternated between playing drums and dancing. I never saw a man playing the drums all night. The dancing was a great deal of fun and added to the gaiety of the wedding much as it would have in ancient Israel. It is even possible that the tof had a unique connection to marriage ceremonies. The Talmud hints at this connection when it refers to the drum as erush, which means betrothed.
Even though tuppin were probably the most common instrument in ancient Israel, no tuppin have been recovered that I am aware of. There is, however, ample archaeological evidence to support the existence of tuppin in ancient Israel. Many small, pottery figurines have been found with hand-held drums in their hands. (figs 1 & 2) Figurines dating back to the Iron Age were found at Achziv, Shikmona and Megiddo. One of the figurines, the one that was found at Nir-David, dates a little bit later, to the 5th or 4th century. This figurine is unique because it shows a man playing a tof. (fig 2) This artifact reveals that although it was uncommon for a man to play the tof, it was not unheard of.
The second type of percussion instrument is called the tziltzilim, which resembles cymbals. Cymbals were commonly made of brass in ancient Israel, (Josephus, 237) and came in two variations: the first type of cymbals was hit horizontally and the second type was hit vertically. (fig 3 shows the latter) Cymbals are mentioned for the first time in the Bible when the Ark of the Covenant is moved to Jerusalem.(5) Cymbals are thought to have been used in temple worship in order to cue the choir to begin singing. It is even thought that cymbals might have been used for conducting music in a simplistic manner.(6) A percussion instrument that is similar to the cymbals is the metziltayim, or clapper. These are probably similar to the cymbals, only smaller. (fig 4)
Another class of percussion instruments, the menaanaim, is difficult to define. The archaeological information reveals a large number of rattles that this word could be referring to, but Jewish texts are not forthcoming about the attributes of the menaanaim. What we do know is that menaanaim comes from the verb nua, which means "to shake" or "to move about". Rattles have been found at Beit Semesh and Hebron from the Iron Age (figs 5-7) and are consistent with the menaanaim in Biblical texts.(7) An alternate, or possibly additional, meaning of this word would be a sistrum, which the Hebrews brought with them from Egypt.
The last percussive instruments to discuss are various types of bells. Paamonim were attached to the hem of the priest's robe.(8) These bells were on the priests robe so that if he died in the presence of the Lord, those that were outside the tabernacle would know. Another type of bell, the mezillot were hung on horses, and must have been bigger than the paamonim, since they were apparently large enough to have "Holy to the Lord" inscribed on them.(9) These bells are thought to have been used superstitiously to ward off evil spirits. (Sendrey, 385) Bells that have been found in archaeological digs only date back as far as the Roman period, but the Biblical text seems to be very clear about the existence of bells in ancient Israel, and there does not seem to be any compelling reason to doubt the Biblical text in regards to this issue.
Wind Instruments
The wind instruments are the most diverse of the three groups of instruments in ancient Israel. Among the wind instruments, there is a variety of instruments ranging from the delicate music of the khalil to the blaring sound of the shofar. In spite of the variety of wind instruments, they can be divided into two groups: the reed instruments and the horns.
Of the two instruments that the Bible first mentions, the ugav is one. The ugav is undeniably an ancient instrument, but there is very little consensus as to what exactly it is. Ugav is only mentioned four times in the Bible (10) and is often rendered as a flute or a pipe, but there are a great number of discrepancies in the translations of ugav in ancient texts. The Talmud correlates the ugav with the khalil. Ultimately, an understanding of what the ugav is, has not been reached, and will have to await further archaeological evidence.
The most prominent of the reed instruments is probably the khalil. Khalil is "generally, but erroneously, translated as 'flute,' or 'flute-like instruments,'"(Sendrey, 310) and is mentioned in five verses in the Bible.(11) The khalil is similar to the Greek aulos. Both are double reed instruments that are more similar to the modern oboe or bassoon, than to the flute. Archaeologists have uncovered representations of the khalil at Megiddo and at Achziv. The bronze figure playing the khalil that was found at Megiddo is thought to be from around 1300-1200 BCE. (fig 8) At Achiv, a pottery figure playing a khalil was found that dates back to the Iron Age. (fig 9) One reason for the khalil's importance was the importance that it enjoyed in Israel's religion. For twelve days of the year, the khalil was played before the altar in groups with two to twelve instruments. (Polin, 62) The abuv is another oboe-like instrument that was similar the khalil and was used in the second Temple.
Unlike other instruments of ancient Israel, the shofar is still in use today in Jewish ceremony. The Israelites probably took the shofar from the Assyrians, since shofar comes from the Assyrian word for "wild goat." (Sendrey, 343) The shofar received its name because it is made from a ram's horn or an antelope horn with the narrow end flattened for a gold or silver mouthpiece. (fig 10) The shofar is mentioned more times in the Bible than any other Israelite instrument (12), which bespeaks of its importance in the life of the Jewish people. The shofar was used extensively in Israel's religion and military, often as a signal. Religiously the shofar was important to Israelites in its connection to Rosh Hashanah, and other important days. The curved, silver-covered mouthed (male) shofar was blown for the Rosh Hashanah and the two, straight (female) shofars with the golden mouthpiece were to be blown for fast days. (Polin, 64-5) The shofar is used in the Major and Minor Prophets to evoke apocalyptic images in the Bible because of its military uses.(13) The shofar was used as a signal in the military to assemble the troops, attack the enemy, pursue defeated troops, and announce victory. (Sendrey, 361) The shofar was closely linked to the hazozerot in many of its functions.
The hazozerot were a pair of silver trumpets used by the priests. They can be found on the Arch of Titus, which portrays Titus' sack of Jerusalem. (fig 11) The Bible mentions the hazozerot twenty-nine times. Religiously and militarily, the hazozerot was used in conjunction with the shofar. The occasions originally set down for blowing the hazozerot included: gathering the people to the tent of meeting, to sound the call for the camps to go forward, to invite princes for a gathering, to alert the camp of danger, and to signal in warfare.(14)
One last wind instrument, though it is not a reed instrument or a horn, should be briefly mentioned here. At Tell Beit Mirsim, archaeologists found a small whistle, or shrika, from the early Iron Age. (fig 12) Although it does not appear to play a large role in the culture of ancient Israel, it is significant archaeologically that an intact example of a shrika was found.
String Instruments
Of all the instruments in ancient Israel, the stringed instruments were by far the most important to the ancient Israelites. The two stringed instruments that the Bible mentions are the kinnor and the nebel. (Cornill, 110) There are many representations of string instruments in foreign representations of Jews, which shows the importance of string instruments in the daily life of ancient Israel.
The nebel was a bulky, but mobile, instrument that was very similar to a harp. There were probably several variations in the nebel, especially in regards to the number of strings on the instrument. The nebel had anywhere from four to ten strings, which is seen in the headings of a few of the Psalms.(15) The nebel was, "plucked with the fingers or plectrum, the word zamar (to pluck) is used in connection with this, while the word nigen (to play) refers to the kinnor." (Polin, 69) In an Assyrian relief, Semitic captives (possibly Israelites) are shown with harps that appear to be nebels. (fig 13) In spite of the significance of the nebel in Israel's culture, it falls second in importance to the kinnor.
The kinnor is conspicuous among the instruments, not only because it was one of the first two instruments that Jubal contrived, but also because the kinnor was the instrument of King David. We are fortunate to have an authentic depiction of a kinnor on the tomb of Chnumotep, the Prince of Middle Egypt at Beni Hassan in the time of Pharaoh Usurtesen II of the 12th dynasty, which cannot be placed later than 2300 BCE. In the picture, Chnumotep is leading a procession of Semites to Pharaoh, and in that procession is a man carrying an instrument that is unmistakably a kinnor. (fig 14) The kinnor is similar to the lyre, while the nebel bears a closer resemblance to a harp. The kinnor, like the tof, is exclusively associated with joyful occasions. David's laments for Saul and Jonathan, for Abner, for Amnon and Absolom are apparently not accompanied by any instruments.(16) "The kinnor becomes silent when the joy ceases."(17) (Sendrey, 276)
Conclusion
Israelite festivals are rich with music, but the musical life of the Israelites extended far beyond that and overflowed into the rest of their lives. The story of King David provides manifold examples of this. David himself played the kinnor well enough to sooth Saul's temper, and David danced and played music in front of the Ark of the Covenant when it returned to Jerusalem. After David killed Goliath, "the women sang as they played, and said, 'Saul has slain his thousands, And David his tens of thousands.'" (18) Music occupied a prominent position in the secular and religious spheres of Israelite life. Music was a form of expression that they embraced and loved. When the temple was destroyed, the Jewish people gave up the music that they had loved and mourned for the loss of the Temple, with only the shofar to remind them that someday God would redeem his people.
Footnotes:
1) Ps. 69:12; Job 30:9; Lam. 3:14, 63; 1 Sam 18:7
2) Gen. 4:21
3) Exodus 15:20,; Judg.; 11:34; 1 Sam. 18:6; 2 Sam. 6:5; 1 Chron. 13:8; Jer. 31:4; Isa 5:12; 24:8; 30:32; Ps 68:26; 81:3; 149:2,3; 150:3,4
4) 1 Sam 10:5
5) 2 Sam. 6:5 and 1 Chron. 13:8
6) 1 Chron. 15:19
7) 2 Sam. 6:5
8) Exodus 28:33-35
9) Zech. 14:20
10) Gen. 4:21; Job 21:12; 30:31; Ps. 150:4
11) 1 Sam. 10:5; 1 Kings 1:40; Isa. 5:12; 30:29; Jer. 48:36
12) shofar is mentioned seventy-two times (Sendrey, 361)
13) Joel 2:1,15; Ezek. 7:14; Amos 2:2; Isa. 18:3; 27:13; 58:1; Hos. 5:8; 8:1; Zeph. 1:16
14) Numbers 10:2-10
15) Ps. 45, 50, 69, and 80
16) 2 Sam. 1:17; 3:28; 13:31; 19:1
17) Ps. 137:2
18) 1 Sam. 18:7
Go to Pictures of Artifacts (Figures 1-14)
Created: 4/20/98
Modified: 4/23/98
By: David Campbell