Let’s take a quick look at a couple of verses that mention praise and worship, then we will discuss them as well as a few dictionary definitions to try and find the difference between praise and worship – when we look at it from a music perspective in church.
That is from4 verses on praise. However praise is mentioned 351times in the Bible and gives us a lot more ways to praise God. The reason for this is because of our English language. The english language has one word, praise, for 7 Hebrew words – each giving a different definition for praise. They are:
Hallal: “to laud, boast, rave, to celebrate” – It is used approximately one hundred times in the Old Tes tament.
Yadah: “to worship with extended hands, to throw out the hands” – It is used over ninety times in the Old Testament. (Yad means “hand.”)
Barak: “to bless, to declare God the origin of power for success, prosperity, and fertility” – It is used approximately seventy times in the Old Testament as praise to God.
Tehillah: “to sing or laud” – It is derived from hallal and is generally accepted to mean “the singing of hallals.” It is used over fifty times in the Old Testament.
Zamar: “to pluck the strings of an instrument, to praise with song” – It is used almost exclusively in the Psalms and occurs approximately forty times in the Old Testament.
Todah: “to extend the hands in thanksgiving, a thank-offering” – It is used only a few times when trans lated “praise” but occurs many other times in connection with thanksgiving.
Shabach: “to commend, address in a loud tone, to shout” – This is the exclamatory form of praise in a special sense and is found only about seven times in the Old Testament.
You will notice ‘Yadah’ which actually means to worship with extended hands. Does this mean that worship as we know it is actually just a form of praise?
As we continue to discuss the difference between praise and worship lets take a look what the Bible has to say about worship.
