i ON THE IMPROVEMENT OF PSALMODY. ritual songs ; singing and making melody in your hearts to the Lord, giving thanks always for all things to God and the Father, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Col. iii. 16, 17. " Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, in all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns, and spiritual songs ; singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord : And whatsoever ye do in word or in deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him. James v. 13. as Is any among you afflicted, let bins pray : Is any merry, let him sing psalms." Rev. v. 9. " And they. sung a new song, saying, 1'hou art worthy to take the book and to open the seals thereof, for thou west slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood." Rev. xiv. 3. " And they sung as it were a new song before the throne." Rev. xv. 3. " And they sing the song of Moses the servant Of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, great and marvellous are thy works, &c." To all these I might add Acts iv. 24. &c. where it is supposed the disciples met to- gether and sung; for they lift up their voice to God with one accord, and said, " Lord ! thou art our God, which hast made heaven and earth, and the sea, and all that in them is: Who by the mouth of thy servant David hast said, Why did the hea- then rage, and the people imagine a vain thing. The kings of the earth stood up, and the rulers were gathered together against the Lord, and against his Christ. For of a truth; against thy holy child Jesus whom thou hast anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the gentiles and the people of Israel, were gathered together for to do whatsoever thy hand and thy counsel determined before to be done, &c." If we turn over the New Testament, and search all the songs that are there written, we shall find the matter or subject of them as various as the occasions upon which they were sung or spoken: Such are the song of the Virgin Mary; Lukei. 46, &c. The song of Zecharias ; ver. 67. The song of the angels ; Luke ii. 13. And of Simeon, ver. 29. Besides many others in the book of Revelation. The three chief words used to express the matter of singing, are .Largos, vpvoy ass nlm : Psalms, hymns, and songs, as the three verbs from which these are derived are generally used to express the act of singing, +La1Aw, Upv[w, L. Now if it were lawful after so many learned contentions about these words, I would give my sense of them thus : 1. I think no man bath better explained the original mean - ing of these words than Zanchy. A psalm, TaXpoó, is such a song as usually is sung with other instruments besides the tongue. Hymns, vpros, such as are made only to express the praises, and set out the excellencies of God. Songs, stags, such as contain not only praises, but exhortations, prophecies, thanksgivings; and these only sung with the voice.
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