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Saying of the Amen, Clapping, and Hand-raising in Worship 4

by | Mar 9, 2015 | Worship

In my previous posts in this series I have made the point that saying the amen has all the hallmarks of a required part of worship.  In contrast I have shown that there is no reason to regard clapping in the same way.  It is at best (and most sympathetically viewed) a permitted circumstance of worship.

In this final post we come to consider hand-raising in worship; and here we confront a practice that seems to occupy a kind of middle ground in worship between saying the amen (a clear duty) and clapping (a possible circumstance).  Here is the biblical data.

I.       The Biblical Occurrences of Raising Hands in Formal Worship

The following texts speak to hand-raising in worship in the Bible.

Leviticus 9:22:  “Then Aaron lifted up his hands toward the people and blessed them, and he stepped down after making the sin offering and the burnt offering and the peace offerings.”  Here Aaron lifts his hands in order to pronounce the priestly blessing in the context of formal Old Testament worship.

Deuteronomy 32:40:  “Indeed, I lift up My hand to heaven, And say, as I live forever.”  Here God is presented in a formal act of oath-taking in which He swears by Himself.  I think the swearing of solemn oaths and vows suggests formal worship, although they are not always taken in the context of the formal worship of God.

Nehemiah 8:6:  “Then Ezra blessed the LORD the great God. And all the people answered, ‘Amen, Amen!’ while lifting up their hands; then they bowed low and worshiped the LORD with their faces to the ground.”  Here all the people are gathered in circumstances that remind one very much of New Covenant worship.  All the people lift up their hands while saying the amen.  The lifting up of their hands is clearly an act which indicates their agreement and participation with Ezra in blessing the Lord.  They also bow low and worship the Lord with faces to the ground.

Psalm 28:2:  “Hear the voice of my supplications when I cry to You for help, When I lift up my hands toward Your holy sanctuary.”  Lifting up hands toward the holy sanctuary is clearly a way of speaking of prayer.  The context of verse 1 confirms this.  The reference to the holy sanctuary suggests formal worship.

Psalm 63:4:  “So I will bless You as long as I live; I will lift up my hands in Your name.  Lifting hands is here parallel to and explanatory of blessing God.”  Note the reference to praising God in verse 3 and seeing God in the sanctuary in verse 2.  Lifting up of hands, then, is not just indicative of prayer, but also of praise and blessing God.

Psalm 134:1-3:   “Behold, bless the LORD, all servants of the LORD, Who serve by night in the house of the LORD!  Lift up your hands to the sanctuary And bless the LORD.  May the LORD bless you from Zion, He who made heaven and earth.”  Again, lifting up hands is indicative according to verse 2 of blessing the Lord, and this takes place according to verse 1 in the house of the Lord.

Psalm 141:2:  “May my prayer be counted as incense before You; The lifting up of my hands as the evening offering.”  Here lifting up hands is indicative of prayer.  This is seen in the parallel between the first and second halves of the verse.  The second half of the verse has an interesting reference to the temple worship when David wishes that the lifting up his hands would be viewed by God as the evening offering.  This verse is interesting when compared with Malachi 1:11 and 1 Tim. 2:7-8.   It shows perhaps how Paul arrived at his interpretation and application of Malachi 1:11.

Lamentations 2:19:   “Arise, cry aloud in the night At the beginning of the night watches; Pour out your heart like water Before the presence of the Lord; Lift up your hands to Him For the life of your little ones Who are faint because of hunger At the head of every street.”  Again, crying out to the Lord is associated with lifting up hands to Him.

Lamentations 3:41:  “We lift up our heart and hands toward God in heaven.”  The context shows that lifting up hands is associated (v. 40) with returning in prayer and repentance to the God of heaven.

Luke 24:50:  “And He led them out as far as Bethany, and He lifted up His hands and blessed them.”  We are to understand that Jesus is here blessing His disciples with His high priestly blessing on the occasion of departing from them.

1 Timothy 2:8:  “Therefore I want the men in every place to pray, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and dissension.”  The context here is the formal worship and prayers of the church.  I have already pointed out the OT background of this statement in Malachi 1:11 and Psalm 141:2.  [Lifting up of hands is here limited to adult males, but this is probably because Paul is speaking of leading in prayer and does not believe women should be permitted to do this in the assembled church.  The idea that only adult males may lift their hands and only when they are leading in prayer is not supported by the parallel passages in the Old Testament.  Cf. Nehemiah 8:6; Lamentations 2:19; 3:41.]

James 4:8:  “Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded.”  There is a possible reference to the lifting up of hands in worship.  They must be cleansed before and with them one draws near to God.

Revelation 10:5-6:  “Then the angel whom I saw standing on the sea and on the land lifted up his right hand to heaven,  and swore by Him who lives forever and ever, WHO CREATED HEAVEN AND THE THINGS IN IT, AND THE EARTH AND THE THINGS IN IT, AND THE SEA AND THE THINGS IN IT, that there will be delay no longer.”  Lifting up the hand is here associated with the solemn act of swearing an oath.  Cf. Deut. 32:40 in which God is pictured as lifting up His hand in order to swear by Himself.

II.      The Proper Conclusions about Raising Hands in Formal Worship

A.      Lifting up of the hands is associated with solemn acts of devotion to God including swearing oaths, giving benedictions, saying the amen, offering prayer including prayers of repentance, and praising and blessing God.

B.      It is done and, thus, given biblical precedent in the context explicitly of the formal and corporate worship of God both in the Old and New Testaments.  In Leviticus 9:22 Aaron blesses the people in the midst of formal worship.  In Nehemiah 8:6 in the midst of formal worship the people say the amen.  In Psalm 134:1 the servants of God serving in the house of the Lord lift up their hands in blessing God.  In 1 Timothy 2:8 the men in the context of the worship of the church lift up their hands while leading the church in prayer.

C.      This is quite different than the biblical references to clapping.  While clapping in a few references is associated with joy and praise and even with praising God, it is never explicitly mentioned in conjunction with the formal, corporate worship of God in either the Old or New Testaments.  Neither is it associated explicitly with solemn acts like swearing oaths, giving benedictions, saying the amen, and offering prayer.

D.      While I am not prepared to say that lifting up of the hands is an element of worship, it is very closely associated with several elements of worship.  In such a case it would be difficult and even wrong in my estimation for elders to forbid the people of God to raise their hands in worship.  I suppose that some might abuse this and wave their hands in a showy or distracting way.  Such would be an abuse of the biblical teaching to be dealt with on an individual basis and not by a general prohibition of hand-raising.

E.      While clapping is never mentioned in the context of formal worship in the Bible, in contrast there are many mentions of the raising of hands in formal worship.  Does this mean, then, that the raising of hands in worship is a required part of worship?  I do not think this conclusion follows.  We are dealing here with a matter of outward expression—like clapping.  This suggests that hand-raising in worship must not as an external matter be given the status of a required part of worship.  I think we must class it still as a circumstance of worship.  On the other hand, we are dealing with an outward expression or gesture that seems to have a special propriety in worship.  Did you hear that word—propriety?  While I would not say that raising hands is a part of worship, I would say that it is sometimes proper in worship.  It is not commanded, but it is proper.  Do you understand the difference between something that is commanded and something that is proper?  It is proper to greet someone by smiling and extending your hand to shake their hand.  Not to do so would usually be improper.  It is not a sin to fail to do this, but it may be improper.  It is proper to dress up to attend a wedding.  Not to do so would usually be improper.  It is not a sin to fail to do this, but it may be improper.  What I want to say—to repeat myself—is that while hand-raising is not a part of worship, it is sometimes the proper thing to do.  It is not merely a permitted circumstance of worship.  It is a proper circumstance of worship.

Let me repeat, then, what I said about these three matters of saying the amen, clapping, and hand-raising in formal worship.  There is clear duty in saying the amen, a circumstantial possibility in clapping, and an occasional propriety in hand-raising.

What kind of atmosphere for formal worship do we see through the lens of this study into saying the amen, clapping, and hand-raising in the formal worship of the Bible?  I think it is one which is fitted to call the unresponsive, silent traditionalist and the uncontrolled and judgmental progressivist to serious reflection and, even I think, repentance.  I think it is one which presents a lively, expressive, responsive, reverent, and theocentric form of worship.

Saying of the Amen, Clapping, and Hand-raising in Worship 3

by | Mar 2, 2015 | Worship

In this series I have set out to examine the issue of the atmosphere of worship especially as it is formed by the contemporary practices of clapping and hand-raising in worship.  But before addressing those practices, I addressed the matter of saying the amen in worship.  Using the confessional categories provided by to us by the confessional distinction between parts and circumstances, I have argued in my last post that saying the amen at appropriate points in formal worship is actually a required part of worship.  It is the clear duty of Christians to say “amen” in worship.

Using the same confessional categories, we now come to examine clapping and hand-raising. Are they also perhaps required parts of worship?  Or are they permitted circumstances of worship?  Or are they perhaps an actual violation of the regulative principle and neither a required part or permitted circumstance of worship?

Now granted, the subjects of clapping and raising hands in worship cause deep visceral reactions.  Some see such things as the sign that a church is really alive.  Others want to flee in horror from any place where such things are allowed.  What seldom happens is for either the devotee of contemporary worship or the supporter of traditional worship to actually ask if either clapping or raising hands in worship have any biblical basis or precedent.

Let’s look at the biblical status of clapping in worship.

I.       Its Various Meanings in the Bible

Clapping has a variety of uses and meanings in the Bible.  Let me quickly survey the passages where it is mentioned so you can see this.  These are the 12 places where clapping is mentioned in the NASB—every last one of them!

2 Kings 11:12 Then he brought the king’s son out and put the crown on him and gave him the testimony; and they made him king and anointed him, and they clapped their hands and said, “Long live the king!”  Literally, the text says that these people “struck palms.”  It is apparent that this clapping was the expression of joy.

Job 27:23 “Men will clap their hands at him And will hiss him from his place.”  Literally, the text says that men will strike their hands.  Context suggests that the meaning of this is strong derision.

Job 34:37 “‘For he adds rebellion to his sin; He claps his hands among us, And multiplies his words against God.'”  Literally the Hebrew means to “clap or slap.”  Context suggests that this expresses anger against God.

Psalm 47:1 For the choir director. A Psalm of the sons of Korah. “O clap your hands, all peoples; Shout to God with the voice of joy.”  Literally, the text calls people to strike their hand. The context suggests that this clapping expresses joy and praise to God.

Psalm 98:8 “Let the rivers clap their hands, Let the mountains sing together for joy.” Literally, the psalm says that the rivers clap their hands.  Context suggests joy and praise to God.

Isaiah 55:12 “For you will go out with joy And be led forth with peace; The mountains and the hills will break forth into shouts of joy before you, And all the trees of the field will clap their hands.”  Literally, the Hebrew speaks of striking or clapping hands.  Context suggests that clapping expresses joy and praise.

Lamentations 2:15 “All who pass along the way Clap their hands in derision at you; They hiss and shake their heads At the daughter of Jerusalem, ‘Is this the city of which they said, “The perfection of beauty, A joy to all the earth”?'” Literally the Hebrews says they slap or clap hands.  Context suggests that clapping expresses derision.

Ezekiel 6:11 “Thus says the Lord GOD, ‘Clap your hand, stamp your foot and say, “Alas, because of all the evil abominations of the house of Israel, which will fall by sword, famine and plague!”‘”  Literally, the Hebrew says strike in your hands.  Context suggests that this is an expression of sorrow and grief.

Ezekiel 21:14 “You therefore, son of man, prophesy and clap your hands together; and let the sword be doubled the third time, the sword for the slain.” It is the sword for the great one slain, which surrounds them,  Literally the Hebrew reads smite palm.  Context suggests that this is an expression of sorrow and grief.

Ezekiel 21:17 “I will also clap My hands together, and I will appease My wrath; I, the LORD, have spoken.”  Literally, the Hebrews says, I will smite hand to hand.  The context suggests that this an expression of anger.

Ezekiel 25:6-7 “For thus says the Lord GOD, ‘Because you have clapped your hands and stamped your feet and rejoiced with all the scorn of your soul against the land of Israel'”  Literally, the Hebrews says because you have clapped hand.  Context suggests derisive glee or joy or triumph as the meaning of this clapping.

Nahum 3:19 “There is no relief for your breakdown, Your wound is incurable. All who hear about you Will clap their hands over you, For on whom has not your evil passed continually?”  Literally the Hebrews reads, strike hand.  Context suggests derisive glee or joy or triumph.

These various references to clapping in the Bible show that it is a physical expression of strong emotion with reference to something or someone.  As such one might suppose that at least in some cultures it might appropriately and naturally express the strong emotions associated with the worship of God.  This raises the question directly, then, of …

II.      Its Possible Application to the Formal Worship of God

With regard to the possible application of clapping in worship, consider three things:

A.      The Indisputable Fact

Is there any evidence that anyone ever clapped in the context of the formal worship of God in the Old or New Testament?  The simple answer to that question is no!  There is no mention of it with regard to New Testament worship simply because there is no reference to clapping at all in the New Testament.  There is no mention of it with regard to Old Testament worship.  None of the 12 texts we looked is speaking of a formal worship context.  Those are the facts of the case; and the facts are not in dispute!

B.      The Disputed Text

One text is sometimes raised in defense of clapping in worship.  It is Psalm 41:1: “O clap your hands, all peoples; Shout to God with the voice of joy.”  This text is brought forward as proof for clapping in worship.  How shall we think about it?

This call is not a specific call for the nations to clap their hands in the context of formal worship.  This is a general (and poetically stated) call for all the nations to praise God.

This call, if urged as a command to clap in worship, proves far too much.  Why?  If this text obligates Christians to clap in New Covenant worship, then the failure to clap is sin.  It is a violation of the clear command of God for New Covenant worship.  The advocates of clapping with whom I am familiar, while they wish to argue for clapping as almost a duty, are not willing to say that Christians are in sin for not clapping in worship.

This command was not implemented in the formal worship of the Old Covenant.  There is no record or instance of clapping in the formal worship of the Old Testament.

This command, if command it is, so far as we have any record, was never practiced in New Testament worship.  There is no mention of clapping in the New Testament at all.

Psalm 47:1 is a poetically stated call for all the world to praise God.  The clapping mentioned is simply a vivid, poetic way of expressing the call for that praise.  We must not hyper-focus on clapping in a verse that has for its main point a call to universal praise of God.

Clapping is mentioned simply because it is one way in which human beings sometimes expressed the strong emotion of joy.  At most, this text, along with the other texts we have seen, suggests that clapping may sometimes be permitted as a natural and spontaneous circumstance of the joy that should characterize our worship of God.

C.      The Necessary Rules

The above study of clapping in the Bible dictates, however, that certain rules be recognized which must regulate clapping in worship.  If we admit that clapping may sometimes occur in worship as a natural expression of joyful praise, then there are certain necessary rules which must be remembered.

It must, firstly, be spontaneous—not manipulated or commanded.  Clapping is not a part or element of worship.  It is at most a permissible circumstance of worship.  It must never be required or commanded of God’s people.  They must not be berated, criticized, or reprimanded for not practicing it.  I can tell you that you ought to say amen.  It is a required part of worship.  I cannot tell you that you ought to clap.

It must, secondly, be God-centered—not applause for men, but joyful praise to God.  When and if clapping spontaneously occurs in formal worship, the God-centered or theocentric nature of worship must control its use and rationale.  It must definitely not be applause for men, but an expression of joyful praise to God.

It must, thirdly, be appropriate—not disruptive or attention-seeking. It is certainly possible to conceive of a situation where clapping is so lacking in the fruit of the Spirit which is self-control that it becomes disruptive to the worship of God.  It is also possible in today’s context especially that some might clap in a way that is downright attention-seeking.  This would be, of course, profoundly contrary to the God-centered-ness of true worship and, thus, profoundly wrong.

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