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of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.

Of him alfo fang Nehemiah, as mentioned in Chap. xii. He repaired the wall of Jerufalem, and ended it with praifing, and giving thanks to the Lord God of Ifrael, finging pfalms unto him with voices and inftruments of mufic, according to the commandment of David the man of God. From thefe inftances it is plain that the general subject of the pfalms was to afcribe to the incarnate Jehovah all the honor of faving finners. The sweet pfalmift of Ifrael frequently calls upon the church to fing pfalms to the Saviour's praife, particularly in pfalm xcii. which was conftantly fung on the fabbath, the day of praife, in pfalms xcv, xcvi, xcviii, &c. And he does this very remarkably in pfalm c, wherein he calls upon believers to join in this delightful work, and affigns feveral reafons for their encouragement to do it with the warmest gratitude of their hearts. The title is

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A pfalm of confeffion, viz. to God for his goodness, and for the wonders which he hath done for the children of men.

I. O all the earth, make the air ring with the praises of Jehovah. 2. Serve

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2. Serve ye Jehovah with heart-felt joy-Come ye into his prefence with the highest praises you can give.

3. Be ye certain, that Jehovah is the very Alehim, he hath made us, and not we ourselves, we are his people, and the flock under his paftoral care:

4. Enter ye into his gates with confeffion, into his courts with afcribing to him the praife of giving you every thing ufeful, pay ye homage to him, blefs ye

his name:

5. For Jehovah is good, his mercy is for ever, and his faithfulness is from generation to generation.

When believers in their church fervice ufed to fing this pfalm, they acknowleged in it the goodness of God to them, and had in their hearts fentiments of his loving kindness, such as these

1. O all ye inhabitants of the world, who have found redemption through faith in the blood of the lamb, join together to make his praife to be heard: Sing unto Jehovah a new fong, fing praises unto him luftily with a good courage:

2. Serve ye Jehovah with a free spirit, finging and making melody in your hearts unto him: Come ye into his prefence, C

having

having now accefs with confidence, and let the high praises of God be in your mouth, afcribing to him all the glory of your falvation:

3. Be ye certain, that Jehovah is the very Alehim, the three in covenant to fave finners: For he has made us, and not we ourselves, we neither made ourfelves creatures, nor new creatures in Chrift Jefus he gave us our being, and our well being-we have nothing of our own, but fin: And he has made us his free fubjects by redeeming us from the bondage of fin, yea we are his beloved flock, and he is our good fhepherd, who will give grace and glory to his people, and to the fheep of his pasture:

4. O come ye then into his gates with thankful acknowlegement, of his infinite goodness to your fouls-meet him in the great congregation, and join all the redeemed, who in earth and heaven are with one heart giving bleffing and honor, and glory and power to God and the lamb.

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5. For Jehovah is good and doeth good, his mercy is to be celebrated in his church militant from age to age, and his never failing faithfulness is to be your fubject of never ending praise in the church triumphant.

O for fuch holy affections as this pfalm requires. Reader, art thou acquainted with the fubject, and art thou indeed a partaker of that thankfulness, of which it treats. O beg of him then to give thee a growing fenfe of thine utter unworthiness of the leaft mercy. This is gofpel-poverty of fpirit, and this will lead thee to pray for a more thankful acknowlegement of the goodness of God, flowing from the happy experience of its bleffings, and influencing the whole man to praise him for them. To this grateful temper the very reading of the pfalm will be as an ordinance, and the finging of it with the melody of the heart will be a feast.

From these authorities of the old teftament it is plain, that the fubject of the book of pfalms, and the finging them were intended to excite in believers the warmest fentiments of gratitude. The love of God manifefted in faving finners through Jefus Chrift is herein described with the true fublime both of style and fentiment; and when any pfalm was fung, if the heart felt the fubject, and made harmony there, then it became a delightful, as well as an acceptable fervice. But we fhall fee clearer evidence of this matter, if we attend to

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CHAP. IV.

Some paffages in the new testament concern ing the book of pfalms.

THE quotations are very numerous. Chrift and his apoftles often refer to the pfalms, and make a direct application of them: For they all treat of him, as indeed the whole volume of revelation does. He is the spirit and life of all the bible: But there is no part fo particularly, and fo frequently applied to him, as the book of pfalms. We know the fubject of the cxth from infallible authority

it is the heavenly government of kingmediator, who is David's fon, and yet David calleth him his Lord: For he was God and man in one Chrift. His own ufe of the pfalms is very remarkable: He fung them, and quoted them. At his laft paffover he joined with his apoftles in the pfalms commonly used upon that occafion. St. Matthew fays, "When

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they had fung an hymn," which is fuppofed to be part of the grand hallelujah, beginning at the cxiiith, and ending with the cxviiith pfalm. Hereby our Lord not only made ufe of, but also ap

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