Thanks for answering Jeremiah’s question. I agree.

Great question. I’ve been in meetings (and led them) when we sang a chorus over and over for a few minutes. I think the questions I posted remain the same. Kristian Stanfill’s bridge is substantive and can be repeated numerous times without losing its effectiveness. We’re singing about substitutionary atonement and its effect on our lives. Will we ever stop being amazed at that thought? The second example you gave is a little less clear to me. The fact that God’s kingdom reigns forever is certainly a profound thought. But I’d be less prone to repeat that phrase ten (or more) times because I’m not sure that people would be growing in their understanding of or appreciation for God’s reign as we sang it. I’d suspect that they would become increasingly affected by the sound of our singing or an awareness of our singing. I can’t say what was going on in people’s minds at these events. But as a leader I have to do what I think will engage people’s hearts AND minds with God’s truth. If I think we’re saying too much too fast, I repeat. If I think people have “gotten” what we’re singing, then I move on.

Generally, I think repeating a line or bridge more than three or four times ends up being a mixed bag. Some people move on to a more profound encounter with God, some get caught up in the music, and others are distracted by the amount of repetition.

Here’s a related question that I’ve been wanting to ask someone. What about singing the same one or two lines over and over during a bridge? Example: Kristian Stanfill’s rendition of “Jesus Paid It All” on the latest Passion album culminates in a huge, building bridge of, “Oh praise the one who paid my debt and raised this life up from the dead,” repeated about 20 times. [Other examples can be found on the CD. Like "Our God Reigns" which is only "Our God reigns, forever His kingdom reigns" over and over again for 6 minutes]. We’ve done the song (Jesus Paid It All) at our church and repeated the bridge in the same way. Then we’ll go back into the chorus and end. Usually people then start singing the bridge again before we can get into the next song. Anyway, playing the song this way always stirs strong emotions in the body (myself included). Is this method a cheap or unbiblical way of invoking emotion? Should it be avoided? I could go on asking questions about it, but what are your (and other readers’) thoughts? I will say that I do like both of those songs and even the way they’re done, so I’m not trying to bash them at all. The rest of this blog was very helpful and informative. Thanks!

This was so helpful to me this weekend. For years I’ve only known one verse to Mark Altrogge’s “I Stand in Awe.” I recently came across the second verse that talks about the beauty of Christ because He was crushed for our sin. The first time we sang it we used full accompaniment. We then went back and sang it again with very sparse accompaniment, and and an encouragement to focus in on this glorious truth. It was so moving to see people respond to this truth, and was not something I would have done if not for your post. Thanks.

I think many of our songs actually ARE prayers. The rhythm helps us pray together, and the notes allow us to pray passionately. To answer your question about the verse, I think the difference is that they are singing many times so that GOD will hear them, and we are repeating to make sure WE hear the truth.

I appreciate your article. I practice one aspect of repetition that you mentioned: using the same song several weeks in a row. It’s a struggle for some in our church but I see benefit in singing the same song and bringing out different aspects of the same song from week to week. Good worship songs many times lend themselves to drawing out several of God’s attributes.

Another aspect of repetition that I have found to be very affective is to use the same song twice or even three times in the same service. I have a preference for using fewer songs (3 or 4 vs. 7 or in a service and camping out on or repeating a particular song for emphasis.

Thanks for your insight, Bob!

David S. Spaggiari

GREAT additional point! And the most obvious. Other places in Scripture that confirm repetition is a good thing that come to mind are:

* the number of times God’s proclamation of his name to Moses in Ex. 34:6-7Exodus 34:6-7
[6]The LORD passed before him and proclaimed, "The LORD,
the LORD, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and
abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, [7]keeping
steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and
transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the
guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the
children and the children's children, to the third and the
fourth generation." (ESV)

is quoted. It shows up at least 11 times.

* Phil. 3:1Philippians 3:1
[3:1]Finally, my brothers, rejoice in the Lord. To write
the same things to you is no trouble to me and is safe for
you. (ESV)

and 2 Pet. 1:122 Peter 1:12
[12]Therefore I intend always to remind you of these
qualities, though you know them and are established in the
truth that you have. (ESV)

* the amount of repetition in the Pentateuch, including Deuteronomy, where Moses is repeating and explaining the commands given at Mt. Sinai to the Israelites.

* the amount of repetition in the Psalms. For instance, Ps. 108Psalm 108
[108:1]My heart is steadfast, O God!
I will sing and make melody with all my being!
[2]Awake, O harp and lyre!
I will awake the dawn!
[3]I will give thanks to you, O LORD, among the peoples;
I will sing praises to you among the nations.
[4]For your steadfast love is great above the heavens;
your faithfulness reaches to the clouds.
[5]Be exalted, O God, above the heavens!
Let your glory be over all the earth!
[6]That your beloved ones may be delivered,
give salvation by your right hand and answer me!
[7]God has promised in his holiness:
"With exultation I will divide up Shechem
and portion out the Valley of Succoth.
[8]Gilead is mine; Manasseh is mine;
Ephraim is my helmet,
Judah my scepter.
[9]Moab is my washbasin;
upon Edom I cast my shoe;
over Philistia I shout in triumph."
[10]Who will bring me to the fortified city?
Who will lead me to Edom?
[11]Have you not rejected us, O God?
You do not go out, O God, with our armies.
[12]Oh grant us help against the foe,
for vain is the salvation of man!
[13]With God we shall do valiantly;
it is he who will tread down our foes.

is a combining of Ps. 57Psalm 57
[57:1]Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful to me,
for in you my soul takes refuge;
in the shadow of your wings I will take refuge,
till the storms of destruction pass by.
[2]I cry out to God Most High,
to God who fulfills his purpose for me.
[3]He will send from heaven and save me;
he will put to shame him who tramples on me.
Selah
God will send out his steadfast love and his faithfulness!
[4]My soul is in the midst of lions;
I lie down amid fiery beasts--
the children of man, whose teeth are spears and arrows,
whose tongues are sharp swords.
[5]Be exalted, O God, above the heavens!
Let your glory be over all the earth!
[6]They set a net for my steps;
my soul was bowed down.
They dug a pit in my way,
but they have fallen into it themselves. Selah
[7]My heart is steadfast, O God,
my heart is steadfast!
I will sing and make melody!
[8]Awake, my glory!
Awake, O harp and lyre!
I will awake the dawn!
[9]I will give thanks to you, O Lord, among the peoples;
I will sing praises to you among the nations.
[10]For your steadfast love is great to the heavens,
your faithfulness to the clouds.
[11]Be exalted, O God, above the heavens!
Let your glory be over all the earth!

and Ps. 60Psalm 60
[60:1]O God, you have rejected us, broken our defenses;
you have been angry; oh, restore us.
[2]You have made the land to quake; you have torn it open;
repair its breaches, for it totters.
[3]You have made your people see hard things;
you have given us wine to drink that made us stagger.
[4]You have set up a banner for those who fear you,
that they may flee to it from the bow. Selah
[5]That your beloved ones may be delivered,
give salvation by your right hand and answer us!
[6]God has spoken in his holiness:
"With exultation I will divide up Shechem
and portion out the Vale of Succoth.
[7]Gilead is mine; Manasseh is mine;
Ephraim is my helmet;
Judah is my scepter.
[8]Moab is my washbasin;
upon Edom I cast my shoe;
over Philistia I shout in triumph."
[9]Who will bring me to the fortified city?
Who will lead me to Edom?
[10]Have you not rejected us, O God?
You do not go forth, O God, with our armies.
[11]Oh, grant us help against the foe,
for vain is the salvation of man!
[12]With God we shall do valiantly;
it is he who will tread down our foes.

. Ps. 118Psalm 118
[118:1]Oh give thanks to the LORD, for he is good;
for his steadfast love endures forever!
[2]Let Israel say,
"His steadfast love endures forever."
[3]Let the house of Aaron say,
"His steadfast love endures forever."
[4]Let those who fear the LORD say,
"His steadfast love endures forever."
[5]Out of my distress I called on the LORD;
the LORD answered me and set me free.
[6]The LORD is on my side; I will not fear.
What can man do to me?
[7]The LORD is on my side as my helper;
I shall look in triumph on those who hate me.
[8]It is better to take refuge in the LORD
than to trust in man.
[9]It is better to take refuge in the LORD
than to trust in princes.
[10]All nations surrounded me;
in the name of the LORD I cut them off!
[11]They surrounded me, surrounded me on every side;
in the name of the LORD I cut them off!
[12]They surrounded me like bees;
they went out like a fire among thorns;
in the name of the LORD I cut them off!
[13]I was pushed hard, so that I was falling,
but the LORD helped me.
[14]The LORD is my strength and my song;
he has become my salvation.
[15]Glad songs of salvation
are in the tents of the righteous:
"The right hand of the LORD does valiantly,
[16]the right hand of the LORD exalts,
the right hand of the LORD does valiantly!"
[17]I shall not die, but I shall live,
and recount the deeds of the LORD.
[18]The LORD has disciplined me severely,
but he has not given me over to death.
[19]Open to me the gates of righteousness,
that I may enter through them
and give thanks to the LORD.
[20]This is the gate of the LORD;
the righteous shall enter through it.
[21]I thank you that you have answered me
and have become my salvation.
[22]The stone that the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone.
[23]This is the LORD's doing;
it is marvelous in our eyes.
[24]This is the day that the LORD has made;
let us rejoice and be glad in it.
[25]Save us, we pray, O LORD!
O LORD, we pray, give us success!
[26]Blessed is he who comes in the name of the LORD!
We bless you from the house of the LORD.
[27]The LORD is God,
and he has made his light to shine upon us.
Bind the festal sacrifice with cords,
up to the horns of the altar!
[28]You are my God, and I will give thanks to you;
you are my God; I will extol you.
[29]Oh give thanks to the LORD, for he is good;
for his steadfast love endures forever!

contains a good bit of repetition.

* the importance God places on repeated ritual, recitation, and explanation, e.g., the Passover in Ex. 12:24-27Exodus 12:24-27
[24]You shall observe this rite as a statute for you and
for your sons forever. [25]And when you come to the land
that the LORD will give you, as he has promised, you shall
keep this service. [26]And when your children say to you,
'What do you mean by this service?' [27]you shall say, 'It
is the sacrifice of the LORD's Passover, for he passed over
the houses of the people of Israel in Egypt, when he struck
the Egyptians but spared our houses.'" And the people bowed
their heads and worshiped. (ESV)

God seems to have no problem repeating things. With the appropriate restraints, we shouldn’t either.

Thank you for so clearly laying out these categories. My wife and I have had several fruitful conversations regarding repetition, and how it can be helpful. I’d like to share one significant one.

Several years ago, in an article you wrote, you mentioned a student in the PC who had paraphrased something that Piper said at some point. “Right thoughts about God lead to right affections towards God, which lead to right expressions to God.” (I’m probably butchering what was actually said, but this is my fifth-person paraphrase, and I’ve found it pretty helpful.) Anyway. My wife has found at times that repetition can actually help her to engage with the truth in the songs we sing on the affection/expression levels much more.

She’s found that if we sing words like “Arise my soul Arise, shake off your guilty fears, the bleeding sacrifice on my behalf appears…” too quickly, it’s hard enough for her to know what we’ve been singing about, let alone engage with the words. But, if we repeat a verse, she can actually process the words, and then much more easily react to them on the emotion/expression level. If we too quickly fly through songs, we may run the risk of not letting the truth of those words sink in before moving on…

Thanks,
K-

I would add an 8th point to your list. “Use repition as does the scripture.” Like most other aspects of worship, we can find a pattern for repition even within the pages of scripture. Psalm 136Psalm 136
[136:1]Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good,
for his steadfast love endures forever.
[2]Give thanks to the God of gods,
for his steadfast love endures forever.
[3]Give thanks to the Lord of lords,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
[4]to him who alone does great wonders,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
[5]to him who by understanding made the heavens,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
[6]to him who spread out the earth above the waters,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
[7]to him who made the great lights,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
[8]the sun to rule over the day,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
[9]the moon and stars to rule over the night,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
[10]to him who struck down the firstborn of Egypt,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
[11]and brought Israel out from among them,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
[12]with a strong hand and an outstretched arm,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
[13]to him who divided the Red Sea in two,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
[14]and made Israel pass through the midst of it,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
[15]but overthrew Pharaoh and his host in the Red Sea,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
[16]to him who led his people through the wilderness,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
[17]to him who struck down great kings,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
[18]and killed mighty kings,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
[19]Sihon, king of the Amorites,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
[20]and Og, king of Bashan,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
[21]and gave their land as a heritage,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
[22]a heritage to Israel his servant,
for his steadfast love endures forever.
[23]It is he who remembered us in our low estate,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
[24]and rescued us from our foes,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
[25]he who gives food to all flesh,
for his steadfast love endures forever.
[26]Give thanks to the God of heaven,
for his steadfast love endures forever.

repeats the phrase “his steadfast love endures forever” 26 times. Not only does this show us that there is a legitmate use of repetition, but it also gives us a pattern for repitition. The phrase that is repeated is of doctrinal significance regarding God’s unfailing love for His people. The preceding statements include subject matter that give substance to the doctrine. v.23 is one such example, he remembers us in our low estate - this should cause us to praise His never ceasing love.

There is not only doctrinal truth expressed and repeated, but also the manifestation of the truth as seen in real life. Chris Tomlin in his “Forever God is Faithful” seems to reflect this in his lyrics and dealing with this very passage. On a different issue Pat Sczebel’s “Jesus, Thank You” has the same pattern.

Bob, what other Biblical patterns for repition do you see in the scripture?