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The Catechism in Questions & Answers

614. What was divine service like in the Old Testament?

In Old Testament times, the divine service consisted primarily of the sacrificial service, in which the priests would bring gifts to God. They also had the commission to impart the blessing of God to the people (cf. Numbers 6: 22-27).
From the time of King David it is related that singers and musicians also played a role in divine services and praised God with psalms (cf. 1 Chronicles 25: 6).
In the time of the Babylonian captivity— from 597 BC to 539 BC—believing Jews gathered in specially built houses (synagogues) in order to pray and read and interpret Holy Scripture together. This is one of the sources of the later Christian form of divine service.