20 David said to all the assembly, "Now bless Yahweh your God!" All the assembly blessed Yahweh, the God of their fathers, and bowed down their heads and prostrated themselves before Yahweh and the king.
*Minor differences ignored. Grouped by changes, with first version listed as example.
Worshipped the Lord, and the king - The same outward signs of reverence were accorded by the customs of the Jews (as of the Oriental nations generally) to God and to their monarchs (see 1-Kings 1:31). But the application of the terms to both in the same passage, which occurs nowhere in Scripture but here, is thought to indicate a time when a long servitude under despotic lords had orientalized men's mode of speech.
Worshipped the Lord, and the king - They did reverence to God as the supreme Ruler, and to the king as his deputy.
And David said to all the congregation, Now bless the LORD your God. And all the congregation blessed the LORD God of their fathers, and bowed down their heads, and worshipped the LORD, and the (l) king.
(l) That is, revered the king.
And David said to all the congregation,.... Consisting of princes, captains, and officers, 1-Chronicles 28:1.
now bless the Lord your God; as he had done, for putting it into the power of their hands, and into their hearts, to do what they had:
and all the congregation blessed the Lord God of their fathers; some one as the mouth of the rest put up a thanksgiving to God, as David directed, to which they all assented, and in which they all joined:
and bowed down their heads, and worshipped the Lord and the king; the one with religious worship, the other with civil; the Syriac and Arabic versions more plainly distinguish, "they worshipped the Lord, and blessed David the king"; though some think Solomon, now made king, is meant.
This great assembly joined with David in adoring God. Whoever is the mouth of the congregation, those only have the benefit who join him, not by bowing down the head, so much as by lifting up the soul. Solomon sat on the throne of the Lord. Solomon's kingdom typified the kingdom of the Messiah, whose throne is the throne of the Lord.
all the congregation . . . worshipped the Lord, and the king--Though the external attitude might be the same, the sentiments of which it was expressive were very different in the two cases--of divine worship in the one, of civil homage in the other.
Close of the public assembly. - 1-Chronicles 29:20. At the conclusion of the prayer, David calls upon the whole assembly to praise God; which they do, bowing before God and the king, and worshipping. וישׁתּחווּ יקּדוּ, connected as in Exodus 4:31; Genesis 43:28, etc.
Worshipped - The Lord with religious, and the king with civil worship.
*More commentary available at chapter level.