"Oh, give thanks to the LORD! Call upon His name; Make known His deeds among the peoples! Sing to Him, sing psalms to Him; Talk of all His wondrous works!" 1 Chronicles 16: 8-9 (NKJV)
"Declare His glory among the nations, His wonders among all peoples." 1 Chronicles 16: 24 (NKJV)
"Give to the LORD the glory due His name;" 1 Chronicles 16: 29 (NKJV)
In the Hebrew language repetition was the method they used to make something they said or wrote important. In the English language we use exclamation points or bold fonts or the raising of our voice etc. In David's song of thanksgiving found here in Chronicles, he repeats the theme of giving credit to God for what He has done 3 times, which is the typical amount of repetition. Thus, we know that he was trying to nail down a point. In the first mention of giving credit to God he says "MAKE KNOWN His deeds among the peoples!". David says to tell others of all that God has done, he says to talk of all his wondrous works. People need to hear what God has done, not what luck has done, or coincidence has done, mother nature, karma, etc. the list goes on. We need to give God credit.
In the second mention David specifically mentions giving God credit among the "heathens" as it is put in the Kings James version:
"Declare his glory among the heathen; his marvelous works among all nations. "
He here again repeats the fact that even those who reject God, those who are from a different land, still need to hear the marvelous works of God. But I would assume the real question we should be asking is why? Why do we need to do this? Why can't we just give our testimony on a Sunday morning and that be good enough?
I don't think God just does stuff because He can, He does stuff for a purpose, He does things because He knows best, He does things so that all men might come to know Him. We know that God's heart is that none should perish. We know that God is a God of blessing and love. And what better testimony to His greatness is what He has done in your life, sometimes your best witness are the acts that God has made in your life. The "heathens" who do not know the greatness of God need to learn about it from the Christians who experience it.
Think of it like this. If I tried to build a jet engine it would be a huge mess. Why? Because I don't have the knowledge of how to build one. I don't know the parts inside of it, or how they fit all together. I would have to learn how to. The same goes for God. How are people going to know God if they don't learn. And I couldn't think of a better way for them to learn then for you, as a Christian, to tell them about God and all that HE does.
God is a God who blesses and cares. who delivers and saves, redeems and sets free. So I leave you with the words of David:
"Give to the LORD the glory due His name."
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