Introduction:

• The Bible is filled with examples of people

worshipping the Lord through a wide variety of

different types of praise.

• Praise lifts our hearts and spirits and helps us focus

on something bigger than the mundane problems

that plague our daily lives.

• Praises helps us give honor to the Lord, who is the

only one worthy to be praised.

• Praise reminds us that the God who worked miracles

in the Bible is still working today.

Introduction:

• But sometimes we can get confused about how we

should praise the Lord because we see so many

differences between the churches we may attend at

different times.

• Part of that confusion is caused by the fact that

various English versions of the Bible use the single

word praise to mean many different things from

what was originally written in the Bible.

Introduction:

• Though there are a handful of words that we cannot

translate as well as we would like, most of the time

the word praise refers to one of SIX Hebrew words

or one of THREE Greek words.

• To fully understand what it means to praise the

Lord, we need to look at each of those Hebrew and

Greek words.

Introduction:

• Each of these Hebrew and Greeks words has a

slightly different meaning and it takes all of them

together for us to get the whole picture of what real

praise is.

• Because these were different words in the original

scriptures, the early readers of the Bible knew what

was meant when one of those words were used. But

we have lost that understanding unless we take time

to learn what those words mean.

1. Halal

• Halal is the primary Hebrew word for praise.

• Our word "hallelujah" comes from this word.

• It means "to be clear, to shine, to boast, to rave, or to

celebrate."

• Psalms 113:1-3 -Praise (halal) the Lord, praise

(halal) O servants of the Lord, praise (halal) the

name of the Lord.

• Psalms 150:1 - Praise (halal) the Lord! Praise

(halal) God in his sanctuary; Praise (halal) him in his

mighty expanse.

1. Halal

• This type of praise tends to include speaking

some word that gives glory to God.

• Saying “Amen,” “Hallelujah,” “Praise the

Lord,” or “Glory to God” would be examples

of how this aspect of praise could be used.

• Halal praise is not necessarily loud, nor does it

need to draw attention to itself.

• It tends to be spontaneous and wells up from

deep within us in response to something the

Spirit reveals to us in the moment.

1. Halal

• Though anyone can participate in Halal praise

by speaking a word of praise to the Lord,

because it tends to include verbal expression,

people who are less self conscious about

speaking in front of others tend to find this

type of praise more comfortable then those

who have a more quiet personality.

• But since it does not have to be loud, or in a

group, it can be practiced even by those who

are more quiet in nature.

2. Shabach

• Shabach is a Hebrew word that means, "to shout, to

address in a loud tone, to command, or to triumph."

• Psalms 145:4 - One generation shall praise

(shabach) Your works to another and declare Your

mighty acts.

• Isaiah 12:6 - Cry aloud and shout (shabach) for joy,

O inhabitant of Zion, For great in your midst is the

Holy One of Israel.

2. Shabach

• This aspect of praise is similar to Halal, but it

is never quiet. It is always loud!

• Though some people’s personalities are quiet

and therefore they may not use this aspect of

praise often, for those who tend to have loud

personalities anyway, this helps them channel

their energy toward the Lord instead of

worldly things.

• After all, better to SHOUT for the Lord than to

shout for the world!

2. Shabach

• One danger in this type of praise is that it is easy to

make it about ourselves instead of the Lord.

• We must ask ourselves, are we shouting for the Lord

or just to bring attention to ourselves.

• When our motive is to be heard by people, God will

not bless our Shabach praise. And typically, those

around us can tell when it is fake.

3. Yadah and Towdah

• Yadah is a Hebrew word which means, "to extend

a hand, or to throw out the hand."

• Towdah comes from the word Yadah and means

the same thing but is specifically focused on

adoration or worship of God.

3. Yadah and Towdah

• Psalms 107:15 - Oh that men would praise (yadah)

the Lord for his goodness, and for his wonderful

works to the children of men.

• Psalms 63:1 - So I will praise You as long as I live;

I will (yadah) lift up my hands in Your name.

• Jeremiah 33:11 – Praise (towdah) the LORD of

Hosts, for the LORD is good; His faithful love

endures forever.

3. Yadah and Towdah

• This aspect of praise focuses on lifting our hands in

recognition of the greatness of the one being praised.

• While Yadah praise could apply to either the Lord,

or to a person of prominence, Towdah praise can

ONLY be applied to the Lord.

• That is why we sometimes see people lift their hands

up at a non-Christian concert, they are offering

Yadah praise to the singer. But Towdah praise can

only be given to God.

3. Yadah and Towdah

• While some people may never feel comfortable

lifting their hands to the Lord, for those who do, it is

a very freeing experience.

• There is something about lifting our hands to the

Lord that makes us feel like we are opening our

whole selves to the Lord in praise.

• Again, this type of praise can be abused if we try to

make it about drawing attention to ourselves.

(Where people sit says a lot.)

4. Barak

• Barak is a Hebrew word that means "to kneel down

and bless God as an act of adoration.”

• Psalms 95:6 - O come let us worship and bow

down; let us kneel (barak) before the Lord our

maker.

• 1 Chronicles 29:20 - Then David said to all the

assembly, "Now praise (barak) the Lord your God."

And all the assembly praised (barak) the Lord, the

God of their fathers, and bowed low and did homage

to the Lord.

4. Barak

• This aspect of praise is similar to Yadah and Towdah

in that it involves using our bodies to praise the

Lord.

• But this aspect of praise is not just lifting a hand to

the Lord, but it uses the whole body to kneel or bow

before Him.

• Though the attitude of our hearts is more important

than the position of our bodies, sometimes we just

feel closer to the Lord when we kneel before Him.

4. Barak

• This can be done privately at home when one kneels

to pray.

• This can be done publicly at a kneeling bench.

• This can be done spontaneously by kneeling

anywhere at anytime.

• The point of this type of praise is that we humble

ourselves before the King of Kings by kneeling

before Him in acknowledgement that He is greater

than we are and deserves honor.

5. Zamar

• Zamar is a Hebrew word that means "to pluck the

strings of an instrument.”

• It was mostly used in connection with playing

musical instruments in joyful expressions of

worship.

• Psalms 57:8-9 - Awake my glory; awake harp and

lyre, I will awaken the dawn! I will give thanks to

You, O Lord among the peoples; I will sing praises

to You among the nations.

• This refers to the harp & lyre singing, not voices.

5. Zamar

• Spirit filled people who play musical instruments to

the Lord are praising Him in with this very special

Zamar praise.

• People who play musical instruments in worship are

not “performing.” At least not if their hearts are in

the right place! They are praising God with the

instruments they play.

• Sadly, some of us will never get to praise the Lord in

this way because we lack the skills, but for those

who do, let it flow outward and upward in praise the

King of Kings!

6. Tehillah

• Tehillah is a Hebrew word that means "to sing,

especially singing hymns of the Spirit.”

• Just as Zamar praise uses instruments to praise,

Tehillah uses voices engaged in song.

• Psalms 22:3 - Yet You are holy, You are enthroned

upon the praises (tehillah) of Israel.

• Psalms 33:1 - Rejoice in the Lord, o you righteous,

for praise (tehillah) is appropriate for the upright.

6. Tehillah

• Though we may not all be able to give God zamar

praise through playing an instrument, we can all

give the Lord tehillah praise through singing.

• Obviously those with better voices will lead the

singing, but all of us should join in singing.

• Singing to the Lord is not about hitting all the right

notes, it is about expressing our hearts to the Lord

through music.

6. Tehillah

• Music is a powerful force in our lives and should be

a significant part of our relationship with the Lord.

Whether in private or in group settings, we should

be willing to lift our voices in song to the Lord.

• Just because our voice may not be perfect is not a

reason to miss out on this powerful aspect of praise.

• The Lord loves hearing us sing, and we should all

learn to praise Him in this way.

7. Agalliao

• Agalliao is a Greek word that means “to jump for

joy, to leap, or to exult”.

• It is sometimes translated as “rejoice” in English

Bibles.

• Acts 16:34 - And then the jailer brought them into

his house and set food before them, and rejoiced

greatly, having believed in God with his whole

household.

7. Agalliao

• Sometimes we are so overjoyed with what God is

doing in our lives that we just cannot sit still.

• We feel the need to move in some joyful expression

of praise.

• Maybe we tap a foot.

• Maybe we sway.

• Maybe we dance.

• Maybe we jump.

• However we move, we do it unto the Lord.

8. Proskuneo

• Proskuneo is a Greek word that means “to prostate

oneself in worship; to reverence.” It is also

sometimes translated as “worship.”

• Revelation 5:11-14 - Then I looked, and I heard the

voice of many angels around the throne and the

living creatures and the elders . . . saying with a loud

voice, "Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive

power and riches and wisdom and might and honor

and glory and blessing.” . . . And the elders fell

down and worshiped.

8. Proskuneo

• Just as we are sometimes so full of joy that we want

to dance, other times we become so overwhelmed

with God’s holiness that we want to fall to the

ground in humility before God.

• This aspect of praise is similar to the Hebrew Barak,

but instead of just bowing or kneeling, we take this

type of praise further and lay prostrate before God.

This can be in private or in public but the point is

total humility before God.

9. Thriambeuo

• Thriambeuo is a Greek word that means “to

celebrate a victory or to triumph.”

• 2 Corinthians 2:14 - Now praise be unto God, who

always causes us to triumph in Christ, and makes

manifest the knowledge of the Savor through us in

every place we go.

• This aspect of praise focuses on acknowledging a

victory or triumph in our lives.

9. Thriambeuo

• It usually includes sharing a testimony of how God

did something great in our lives.

• The purpose of this type of praise is so that the

knowledge of Christ might be spread.

• It is not about showing people how great OUR faith

is. It is about showing them how great JESUS is.

• This is the only aspect of praise that is more

effective in a group (of at least two) setting than in

private (though it can be private).

Conclusion:

• God made many types of praise so we can all worship

in ways that work for us as individuals.

• Each aspect of praise can help us grow in our

relationship with the Lord so we should not be afraid to

experience them, but it is okay that some work better

for us than others.

• No one should look down anyone else for not using any

particular aspect of praise since all the words are used

interchangeably in scripture, demonstrating that they are

all equal before God.

• However we praise Him, we must keep our hearts

focused on God, not on ourselves, so that we do not

make it a “look at me” show.

Conclusion:

• Most of these aspects of praise can be done by

anyone, though a few may be limited by skill or

personality type.

• All of them can be done privately or in a group,

though one type of praise (thriambeuo) is more

effective in a group than in private.

• The key to all of these various aspects of praise is to

keep the focus on the Lord, not on ourselves.