TEXT

black diamond   Subscription

19b (For the choir director: This prayer is to be accompanied by stringed instruments.)

NOTES

For the choir director. The closing subscription is one of several musical notations in ch 3 (3:1, 3, 9, 13) that give instructions for the possible use of Habakkuk’s prayer psalm in public worship. While the term shigyonoth [TH7692, ZH8710] in the heading (3:1) appears to be an indication of the musical setting, and the repeated selah [TH5542, ZH6138] (3:3, 9, 13) a note relative to musical interlude, these final instructions are intended for the director of music (cf. 1 Chr 15:21-22; 2 Chr 34:12). All three terms could indicate that such pieces of music were part of the standard repertoire available for congregational worship (Waltke 1991:583-596).