"thou art exalted as head above all : "Both riches and honor come of thee, " and thou reigneft over all, and in thy "hand is power and might, and in thy "hand it is to make great, and to give "ftrength unto all: Now therefore our "God we thank thee, and praise thy "glorious name." How delightfully does he here defcribe one great end of finging pfalms. It was to afcribe to the Lord all the glory of his word and works and ways-with voices and inftruments, but chiefly with the mufic of the heart to praise him for his goodness, and to bless him, because his mercy endureth for

ever.

ན

There is another word used, 1 Chron. xvi. 4. The pfalms were to record, and to thank, and to PRAISE (Heb. Hellel) · the Lord God of Ifrael. But this has been treated of in the beginning of the fecond chapter. It is the running title of the pfalms, and fignifies the action of light in the material world, and from thence is applied to the action of the fun of righteoufnefs in the fpiritual world. Singing pfalms was not only to remind us of him, but alfo to lead us to ascribe to him all the bleffings of nature and grace, of earth and heaven. All are from him -the gifts of his free unmerited love,

and

and call for the tribute of constant thankfulness. He created the fun, and ordained it to difpenfe every earthly bleffing, that it might be a lively picture of the true light, who communicates spiritual life, with all its comforts. While the believer looks upon the most glorious Immanuel in this view, and has a warm fense of his obligations to him, how sweet is the exercife of faith! He finds the courts of the Lord to have some of the bleffedness of the palace itself. Such they were to him, who faid, "Bleffed "are they that dwell in thy courts, they "will be ftill praifing thee.

Selah." They will be ftill acknowleging their debt in pfalms and hymns and fpiritual fongs: Which is the very employment of the faints round the throne, and which is the divine ordinance to express our communion with them, and to bring us a foretaft of their happiness.

From this paffage in Chronicles we fee the ufe of the pfalms in the old teftament, and for what end they were then fung in the church. It was to remind believers of the wonderful person and of the divine works of the incarnate Jehovah, that they might admire his matchlefs beauty, and adore him for his moft precious love. With happy and thankful hearts they

ufed

ufed daily to fing of him in the temple fervice. The concert will never be excelled upon this earth, and the effect which accompanied it will only be equalled in heaven. The fubject-the number of voices and inftruments-the excellence of the mufic and of the performance-and the divine approbation which crowned the whole, by a miracle confirming the faith and strengthening the hopes of the congregation, these are most nobly defcribed in 2 Chron. v. 11, 12, &c. Solomon had finished the temple, and had brought the ark of the covenant into the holy of holies: "And it came to pass, "when the priests were come out of the

holy place: For all the priests that "were present were fanctified, and did "not then wait by courfe: Alfo the Le"vites who were the fingers, all of them "of Afaph, of Heman, of Jeduthun, "with their fons and their brethren, be

66

ing arayed in white linnen, having "cymbals, and pfalteries, and harps, "ftood at the east end of the altar, and "with them an hundred and twenty "priests founding with trumpets: It "came even to pafs, as the trumpeters "and fingers were as one, to make one "found to be heard in praising and 66 thanking the Lord. And when they

"lift up their voice with the trumpets "and cymbals, and inftruments of mu"fic, and praised the Lord, faying, For "he is good, for his mercy endureth for "ever: That then the houfe was filled "with a cloud, even the house of the "Lord: So that the priests could not "stand to minister by reason of the cloud: "For the glory of the Lord had filled "the house of God." All Ifrael met upon this occafion, a very great congregation, from the entering in of Hamath, unto the river of Egypt. They came to the dedication of the temple, knowing that it was a type of the body of Christ, and prefigured his coming from heaven to dwell with men on the earth. The filling the temple with glory was to teach them that a perfon in Jehovah was to tabernacle in the manhood of Chrift. In him the fulness of the Godhead was to dwell bodily, and out of his fulness they fhould receive grace for grace. While they were looking forward with joyful hope, and finging the praifes of this most bleffed event, the Lord gave them a fenfible proof, that he would come and inhabit the temple of his body; and would also come and dwell in their hearts by faith. Once in the end of the world God was manifeft in the flesh, but in

every age he has vifited his people with his prefence, and bleffed them with his love, while they have been with thankful hearts afcribing to him all the glory of their falvation. When he has thus difposed them to give him the honor due unto his name, then he has brought them. into a proper temper to receive the greatest communications of his grace. For the moft high and holy one that inhabiteth eternity vouchfafes to dwell in the humble and contrite heart. The King of Kings admits the meek and lowly to the nearest approach, yea to the most intimate familiarity with him. The highest refides with the loweft. With them the almighty fovereign keeps his court, according to his promife" I will dwell "with you, and will walk among you, "and I will be your God, and ye fhall "be my people." When he fmiles upon them with his reconciled countenance, and excites in them holy love and humble. adoration O what an happiness is it to behold the king in his beauty, even here by faith. The foul thus enamoured with him will find it a moft delightful employment to fing his praifes, and cannot help breaking out into pfalms and hymns of thankfulness. These are the appointed means of testifying its facred joy. In

them