fruitful trees and all cedars ; 10 Beafts and all cattle: worms and feathered fowls; 11 Kings of the earth and all people: princes and all judges of the world; 12 Young men and maidens, old men and children, praise the Name of the Lord: for his Name only is excellent, and his praise above heaven and earth. 13 He fhall exalt the [horn] of his people, all his faints fhall praise him: even the children of Ifrael, even the people that ferveth him. See Title of Halelujah, or, Praise ye the Lord. Pfal. CVI, CXI. on occafion of some great Victory, and contains the eminent Favour of God to his Church, and the Conqueft of the Chriftian Faith over the Heathen Powers. Cantate Domino. Pfal. CXLIX. 3 + Which was usual with the Ancients. See Exod. XV. 20. 2 Sam. yi. 14, 16. Sing unto the Lord a new fong: let the : let the congregation of faints praise him. 2 Let Ifrael rejoyce in him that made him: and let the children of Sion be joyful in their King. 3 Let them Praise his Name in the dancet: let them fing praifes unto him with tabret and harp. 4 For the Lord hath pleasure in his people: and helpeth the meek-hearted. s [Let s [In time of peace Let the faints be joyful with glory: let them rejoyce let God's People rejoyce and triumph in Religiin their beds.uptilbora ous Songs, which they may use even during the time of repofe, as being fecure of the Divine protection, and haying a juft fence of fo great mercy.] 6 [Let the praifes of God be in their mouth: and a two-edged fword in their hands;] 6 [In time of War, field arm'd, not only let them go into the with a two-edg'd fword in their hand, but with Pfalms and Hymns in their Mouths; and thefe latter (may prove more fuccefsful Weapons than the former, a Chron. XX. 21, 22. my barpo 7. To be avenged of the hea then: and to rebuke the people; 8 To bind their kings in chains: and their nobles with links of iron †. 9 [That they may be avenged of them, as it is written : fuch honour have all his faints.] 8+ As in Ages paft. 9 [That fo we may make Examples, of mies of God, and the thefe profefs'd Ene Truth, as our Forefathers did in ancient times, of which we read in Holy Scripture. This privilege God has given his People of all Ages, if they keep close to him, and their duty.] Praise ye the Lord. See Pfal. CVI. CXI. To be used on any great occafion of joy, wherein those words [Praife God, or, the Lord,] are repeated eleven times, and eight fort af Inftruments are called for to excite the Devotion of the People. Laudate Dominum. Pfal. CL. Praise God in his holinefs praise him in the firmament of his power.] I [Set forth the Praifes of God in an humble acknowledgement of the eternal Holiness of his Nature, whereby he is preferved from all mixture of Evil: Set forth his Praises in admiring the Heavenly Firmament, wherein his Power has in an extraordinary manner display'd itself, and whereof his Tabernacle in Sion is but a faint resemblance, Hebr. ix. 23, 24.] 2 Praise 2 Praise him in his noble acts: praise him according to his excellent greatness. 3 Praise him in the found of the trumpet: praise him upon the lute and harp. 4 Praife him in the cymbals and dances praise him upon the ftrings and pipe. Praife him upon the welltuned cymbals: praise him upon the loud cymbals. 6 Let every thing that hath breath: praife the Lord. The End of the Pfalms. T Hofe Holy and Learned Men, by whose means the Church of England was happily Reformed from the Corruptions of Popery, did not in any thing thew more Piety and Judgment than this, That they es fpoufed no Doctrine, but what might be proved from any Edition, or Tranflation of the Bible, and even from the Vulgar Latin itfelf. They did not take the courfe of Schifmaticks and Hereticks, who commonly endeavour to defend their Errors by fome particular Texts of Scripture, wrefted by artificial gloffes to their own mistaken fence; but made good their Caufe by a great cloud of Teftimonies from thofe Holy Books, and d ther Ancient Monuments of Chriftianity, or rather from the main fcope, and tenor of both: So that if they had had none to pleafe but themselves, and thofe pious Souls who had a holy thirst after divine Truth, the Tranflating of Scripture had been a work of no very great difficulty; for the fum and substance of our Religion was to be found in every Bible, and every Tranflation of it, and did not depend on any Conjectures or Subtilties of Linguifts. But then, on another account, they had reason to make use of the greateft Caution and Prudence in this matter, I mean, Because the Eyes of their Enemies, the fierce Papifts, were upon them, who, they might be fure, would make ufe of all their skill and diligence to difcredit an English Bible, how faithfully foever Tranflated. And in this refpet 'twas very difficult for our Tranflators to avoid the giving offence; for as well they who Tranflated the Bible, as they who Inferted the Pfalter out of it into the Liturgy, were no doubt fully perfwaded, that the Hebrew of the Old Te A ·nament ftament was the very Original Text, and that therefore all Tranflations ought to be made from that; but on the contrary, the Romanifts look'd on the Vulgar-Latin as the most authentic Text, and would not admit of any Variation from it: And further, they were fenfible, that this Vulgar-Latin Tranflation, was done from the LXX, which had had a great refpect paid to it by the Church in all Ages, for which reafons it feem'd dangerous, wholly to depart from it,therefore they took a middle way by complying with the Vulgar-Latin, and LXX, fo far as they could, without contradicting their own Judgment, which was for the Hebrew. But all the care and temper in the World cannot fecure things of this Nature from the Cenfures of Men, when they are refalved to find fault. Tis no wonder that the Papifts should Condemn, and Burn this Tranflation, this was expected before hand; but the hard Treatment, which this Pfalter has met with from the Tongues and Pens of Proteftants, is what could fcarce have Which was told for en believ'd, if it had been told to the Men of that Age, in which this Tranflation was made. How Incredible muft it have feend to pious Mr. Tindal, and-Bishop Coverdale, if any one had told them, when they were engaged in this excellent Work, that 'twas to now purpofe for them to go on with it, nay, that they had better let it alone, for that if the Scriptures were kept Seal'd up in the Learned Tongues, this could only caufe a departure from that Church, that was guilty of fuch Barbarous ufage toward the Peoples but that their Tranflation would one day be an occafion of making a Divifion betwixt Proteftants them: felves? There is reafon to believe that nothing has more difcouraged the Ruling part of Foreign Churches in Gommunion with that of Rome, from Tranflating the Bible into the Vulgar Tongues, than the Experience they have had of the illufe made of it here in England, and how much more muft they be confirmed in their Averfion to this work, when by Reading the Books of our Diffenters, they may learn, that we have many amongst us, whofe Stomachs turn at that Bible, by which our Reformation was first wrought, to fuch a degree, that they think the use of that part of it, which is yet retain'd, unlawful. And 'tis natural for them to conclude that their Fore-fathers in the time of Henry VIII. were not to blame for burning Tindal's Bible, fince Proteftants themfelves do now charge it with Mis-tranflations and Blafphemy: fo that the fierceft Papifts could not more feverely Condemn it then, than those who would be thought the foundest Proteftants have done fince: But this is but one particular of a great many, wherein Papists and Diffenters are United against the Church of England; they feem to wheel off from each other, and to be at the greateft diftance, when in reality they meet again at the oppofite part of the Circle. See Idolat. of mon. 3 If |