the way of his own appointment and complain of it as dull and tedious so Mal. i. 13 Ye said also what a weariness is it and ye snuffed at it And the reason is because the way of God's appointing is always more Spiritual in respect of that which is of Man 's own Invention and therefore it cannot be so easy or agreable to the Carnal minds of Men. 4. It ought therefore to be considered by you when people complain of being dull and unaffected by meer Hearing the Word of God read whether this do not truly proceed from a Carnal and Wicked Heart estranged from the Spirit of God and whether the reason that Sermons please and affect more then a Chapter out of the Bible be not the novelty and outward Ornaments of them rather than the Spiritualness of the discourse We are sure St. Paul supposeth such as are not affected with the Words of God to be meer Natural or Carnal Men 1 Cor. ii 13 where having taken Notice of speaking Not in Words which Man's Wisdom Teacheth but which the Holy Ghost Teacheth he adds but the Natural Man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God For they are foolishness to him neither can he know them for they are spiritually discerned From whence it clearly follows that the reason why Men do not understand or receive the things of God delivered to them in the Words of Scripture dictated by the Holy Ghost is because they are meer Natural Men and want the Spirit of God Whoever therefore is more affected or delights more in a Sermon then in a Chapter of the Bible has reason to look into his Heart and examine himself whether he have the Spirit of God Those mentioned in Scripture that had that Spirit delighted in the Law of God It was the joy of their Hearts they preferred it to all things they meditate in it Day and Night And were so far from turning it out of their Publick Assemblies that the Hearing it read was a great part of their Worship Whoever therefore lays aside this practise have reason to suspect that they want that Temper and Spirit with which those Holy Men were inspired and notwithstanding all their pretences to a more then ordinary Spiritualness and Reformation are little advanced above the Natural Men that neither receive or relish the things of God at least not as they ought I find it alledged as a Sixth pretence for not Reading the Word of God in your Meetings That a Child may read them and perform this Duty and then what need it take up the Ministers time To which there needs no other answer then that the Service of God is not less his or the less to be valued because it is easy On the contrary 't is the more sinfull to neglect it the more easy it is Ministers are not set apart for difficult things only which others cannot perform but they are to execute the Office that God has imposed on them whether it be easy or difficult As for Example God has Commanded his Ministers to Baptise In the Name of the Father c. Now to pour on Water in this Form is no such difficult thing but a Child or any else might perform it Neither is there any greater difficulty in the Sacrament of the Lord's-Supper as to the Essentials of it Yet I suppose it will be granted by all that it belongs only to the Minister's Office to perform these and that they must not delegate them or any part of them to others or omit them because they are easy And that they have a quite different Sacredness Efficacy and Force when performed by a Person Ordained and Authorized to this purpose then when performed by another and the same Rule holds in offering up our Prayers and in Reading the Scriptures A Man may read them at home a Child may read them in Church but they have not the same assurance of Efficacy and a blessing as when they come from the Mouth of a Person set a-part by God's Ordinance for this purpose I make no doubt but the Experience as I have said of most Christians from what they have felt in their own Hearts in Hearing the Word of God publickly read will attest the Truth of this Now if you my Friends know and own this as I hope the generality of you do you must see the unreasonableness of this pretence If any of you do not know it you must give me leave to say that I fear it is from ignorance and not considering the Scriptures And 't is your Teachers Duty to inform you better Reading the Scripture being allowed by their Directory to be a part of God's Publick Worship We have this Rule there in express words That it is requisite that all the Canonical Books be read over in order that the people may be better acquainted with the whole Body of Scriptures Now if you can shew but one Meeting in the last Age in which this has been duly performed we will not accuse you so generally of violating God's Command in this point but if there be not one such Meeting you ought to consider how you will excuse your selves before God And I think it necessary here to observe to you how insignificant general Rules are without descending to a particular Determination of Circumstances Here we have in your Dirâ—ctory a general Rule such as it is for Reading the Scripture but for want of being particular as the Calender in our Common-Prayer-Book is I question if it yet was ever once observed or indeed that it is Practical to observe it And it is so almost in every other general Rule and therefore to leave the Service of God to be Ordered by such general Rules only is in effect to Teach people to neglect it V. These are all the Reasons that I can possibly think of or have heard urged for Your practice in this point I will not say but others may be pretended but I must profess that I do not remember to have met with them if I had I would have given them a due consideration I am perswaded that they cannot be of greater force than those I have examined And that they can never excuse You in this matter from manifest breach of God's Command in preferring Mens Inventions to his Institutions After all I must profess to You That I look on all these to be only Pretences and that the true Reason of Mens Negligence in this Duty is given us 2 Tim. iv 3 For the time will come saith the Apostle when they will not endure sound Doctrine but after their own Lusts shall they heap up to themselves Teachers having itching Ears An itching Ear here can signifie nothing so properly as an Ear that loves Novelty and Variety Because therefore our Church gives the people little that is New in her Prayers or Reading the Scriptures but retains a Form of sound Words in the one and the plain Word of God in the other Hence
direct concerning them particularly Secondly I shall consider the Practice of our Church with relation to those Directions and Examples And Thirdly The Practice of Protestant-Dissenters CHAP. I. Of Praises Sect. 1. What the Holy Scriptures prescribe concerning them I. FIrst then as to the Praises of God The Scriptures both of the Old and New Testaments require the use of the Psalms in offering up Praises to God We find in the Old Testament 2 Chron. xxix 30 Hezekiah the King and the Princes commanded the Levites to sing praises to the Lord with the words of David and of Asaph and they sang with gladness This Command of Hezekiah proceeded from God and was approved by him The same way of praising God continued in the Jewish Church till our Saviour's time And after that we have yet a more positive Command for the use of them by the Apostle Ephes. v. 19 Speaking to your selves in Psalms and Hymns and spiritual Songs And Col. iii. 16 Let the words of Christ dwell in you richly in all Wisdom teaching and admonishing one another in Psalms and Hymns and spiritual Songs singing and making melody with grace in your hearts to the Lord. I think there is no room to doubt but by the Psalms c. in these places is meant the Book of Psalms which the Holy Ghost has left for this purpose to the Church II. Tho' the Scriptures recommend to us singing of Psalms yet in some cases they allow us to say them I will not insist on those places of Scripture that seem to require us to do so such as Psal. cxviii 2 Let Israel now say that his mercy endureth for ever let the House of Aaron now say and let them that fear the Lord now say c. because these Expressions being Poetical may be so interpreted as to mean singing tho' there is no Necessity of restraining the general Command of Saying or Speaking the Praises of God to Singing only We find in Scripture several Sacred Hymns particularly of Hannah the Blessed Virgin Zacharias and Simeon and the Saints in Heaven Rev. vii 12 xi 17 which are said to have been Said by them respectively and the circumstances in the Story do not make it probable that they were sung From all which we may reasonably infer That where People can sing they are obliged to do it in obedience to God's Command But where through any defect of Nature or Art they cannot Sing Decently they may be dispensed with Saying Only People ought not by this Indulgence to be encouraged to neglect singing altogether or to think that God doth not require it of them when by a little pains or industry they may attain to the Art of decently performing it in his Service III. 'T is certain the Word of God recommendeth to us Psalms and Hymns in Prose for our praising God If we look into the Songs of the Blessed Virgin of Zacharias or Simeon we shall find them all in Prose and such are the Songs of the Blessed which they are represented singing in the Revelations particularly Chap. v. 9 Chap. xv 3 As to the Hebrew Psalms 't is evident that they are Poetical but the Poetry of them consists rather in the Style and manner of Expression than in any certain Measures or Verses which those that have searched most narrowly into them have yet been able to discover so as to satisfy an indifferent Reader But whatever Poetry there may be in them we can not find by any of the antient Translations which were made use of by the Church in our Saviour or his Apostles time or in the Ages immediately following that they or the first Christians did sing any thing in Verse but we are sure that they sung Hymns in Prose So that we have no certain Scriptural Warrant for the Use of Verse or Meetre in the Praises of God Perhaps some may fancy that Verse or Measure was not in use in those Countreys and that therefore they sung their Songs in Prose but this is a Mistake Poetry and Verses were then in those places where the Psalms were translated in great request and at the highest perfection when the New Testament was penned and yet we have no Example therein of their Use in the Praises of God And it is very manifest that this proceeded from Choice not Necessity For if the holy Ghost had thought Verse necessary for Divine Psalms we may presume he would have inspired some of the holy Men in Scripture when Extraordinary Gifts were so common either to Translate the Psalms of the Old Testament into Verse or else to Compose some of the other Hymns that are recorded in the New after that way But neither of these having been done 't is at least a presumption that we may praise God as acceptably in Prose as in Verse And there is one thing further to be considered That the Prophets of the Heathen who pretended to be inspired generally wrote their Prophecies and their Hymns to their Gods in Verse We know not but this may be one Reason why the holy Ghost thought fit that such as were inspired by Him should decline that way of Recording their Prophecies or Praises IV. As the Scriptures prescribe us the Use of Psalms in the praises of God so they encourage us to offer those Praises by way of Responses or Answering For this we have the best Examples that can be desired even the blessed Angels and glorified Saints So Isa. vi 3 And one cried unto another Holy Holy Holy is the Lord of Hosts And the Church triumphant through the whole Revelation is I think constantly represented praising God after this manner So Chap. vii 9 where The Multitude that represent the People cried out with a loud voice vers 10. Salvation to our God which sitteth upon the Throne and to the Lamb. And then The Angels and Elders who represent the Clergy perform their part vers 12. saying Amen Blessing and Glory and Wisdom and Thanksgiving and Honour and Power and Might be unto our God They are represented the same way answering one another Chap. xix 1 I heard a great voice of much People in Heaven saying Alleluia this they repeat vers 3. then the Twenty four Elders representing as before the Clergy answer vers 4. Amen Alleluia Then vers 5. a Voice came out of the Throne saying Praise our God Upon which vers 6. the People resume their part and answer Alleluia for the Lord Omnipotent Reigns I make no question but this is taken by Allusion from the manner of the Church's Praising God on Earth and there is nothing in it but what is agreeable to St. Paul's Command of Teaching and Admonishing one another in Psalms and Hymns and Spiritual Songs which supposes every one to have share in them either by turns or by bearing a part It is observable that the Psalms contain many excellent Instructions and Exhortations as well as Praises and Prayers and therefore St. Paul recommends them to Christians
iv 16 When this Epistle is read amongst you cause that it also be read in the Church of the Laodiceans and that ye likewise read the Epistle from Laodicea And it was but reason since the Gospel contained the Christian Law that it should be read in the Christian Assemblies as well as the Law of Moses was in the Synagogues And that it was so read in the first Christian Assemblies I might shew by many instances out of the Antient Fathers if there were occasion IV. This publick Reading the Law was of so great Reputation that it is termed Preaching it as we may see from Acts xv 21 For Moses of old time hath in every City them that preach him being read in the Synagogues every Sabbath day The word Preaching has a peculiar sense in the New Testament and signifies properly to Declare or Proclaim the Word of God as a Herauld or Cryer proclaimes the Laws or Orders of a King Hence only those that Proclaim'd the Gospel to such as had not heard it before or read the Old Testament to the people are said to Preach Preaching is distinguished from Teaching and Exhortation and 't is observable that in the whole New Testament tho' reading the Scriptures is called Preaching yet interpreting them applying them or exhorting the people from them in a Christian Auditory is never called by that name If it be objected that St. Paul is said to preach to the Disciples Acts xx 7 when he only in probability made a Sermon or Exhortation to Believers as is usual now I answer that the Original of this Word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is never translated preach in any other place of the New Testament and should not have been here but discours'd disputed spake or reason'd so it is translated in Acts xvii 2 17. xviii 19 xix 8 9. Heb. xii 5 c. for the Original Words which properly signifie preaching are 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 From all which it is manifest that there are only two ways by which the Word of God is properly preached the first is when it is declared to those that never heard of it before and the second is when the very words of the Scripture are read publickly to the peodle as a Cryer doth a Proclamation which he doth not word himself but reads it in the words in which it is delivered to him In short The Scriptures are Sermons out of the Mouth of God being dictated by his Holy Spirit for the Reading of which to the People for their Conviction and Instruction there is a peculiar Command of God and where this Ordinance is duely observed they are sure of the Word of Life and 't is impossible they should be ignorant of their Duty for the Scriptures are sufficient to mak◠them wise to Salvation and the hearing them with Humility and Attention is a means sufficient to beget Faith in the Hearts of those that hear them for they are profitable for Doctrine for Reproof for Correction for Instruction in Righteousness that the Man of God may be perfect thorowly furnished to all good Works as we see 1 Tim. iii. 16 17. V. We find in Holy Scripture that the Publick Reading of the Word of God was with great Solemnity 'T is observed Nehem. viii 5 When Ezra opened the Book all the people stood up and Ezra blessed the Lord the great God and all the people answered Amen Amen with lifting up their hands and they bowed their heads and worshiped the Lord with their faces to the ground and I find it generally agreed that both the Readers and Hearers stood up whilst the Law was read tho' not when other things were read or taught hence it is observed Luke iv 16 that our Saviour stood up for to read and Vers. 20. after closing the Book that he sat down to teach Hence Rev. v. God is represented in allusion to the High-Priest with a Book in his Right Hand containing the Revelations of his Will and the Lamb as his Minister takes it out of his Hand to declare the Contents of it and Vers. 8. When he had taken the Book the four Beasts and four and twenty Elders fell down before the Lamb And they sung a New Song The Angels joyn with them Vers. 11. and the whole Creation Verse 13. From whence we see the Scriptures teach us to receive the Revelations of God's Will out of the Book of Life with Adoration and Praises And therefore we find that at the Reading the Law Confessions and Praises of God were intermixed and succeeded one another Neh. ix 3 And they stood up in their place and read in the Book of the Lord their God one fourth part of the Day and another fourth part they Confessed and Worshiped the Lord their God VI. We find that the Word of God is to be read in such a Language as the People understand After the Captivity the People being Born and Educated in a strange Land their Language was changed and they did not understand at least Universally the pure Hebrew in which the Law was first written therefore when Ezra read in the Law a certain number of the Priests and Levites interpreted the Words of the Law as Ezra read them to the People Neh. viii 7 And they caused the people to understand the Law and the people stood in their place so they read in the Book in the Law of God distinctly and gave the sence and caused them to understand the reading And this Custom continueth among the Jews to this Day first the Hebrew Text is read and then a Translation or Paraphrase in a Language understood by the Hearers And indeed there may be good reason for reading the Originals in Publick Assemblies such a Custom being an effectual means to preserve the knowledge of them but they cannot be useful to the People without a Translation Therefore St. Paul doth not absolutely forbid speaking in Unknown Tongues in the Church but orders 1 Cor. xiv 27 Let one interpret but if there be no Interpreter let him keep silence in the Church VII We find that after reading the Word of God there was sometimes an Enlargement or Comment on some part of it and an Exhortation to the People Thus when our Saviour had read a portion of Scripture He applied it to the people in a Discourse to that purpose But it doth not appear that this was constantly done on the contrary it is rather probable that it was not For had there been a constant Provision for such Enlargement and Exposition of the Law and Exhortation from it there had been no occasion for the Rulers of the Synagogue Acts xiii 15 to send to St. Paul and Barnabas after the reading of the Law and Prophets that Message we find there Ye Men and Brethren if ye have any Word of Exhortation for the People say on St. Paul supposes him who Teaches and him whose Office it was to Exhort distinct from him that Ruled
Unlawful This Luther did for Germany and Calvin for Geneva and for the French Church whose Liturgyes are still used by them Yet I find this weighs not much with you tho' you seem to me to have little to oppose to it besides a strange fondness and passion you have entertained for the contrary and let me tell you that it is no hard matter to give a reason why the generality of the people are better pleased with such Extemporary Prayers than with Forms For can any one wonder that a prayer which people never heard before and is adapted to the Fancies and Humours of a Party with all the Advantages which Novelty gives shou'd gratifie carnal and itching Ears more than the fixt and settled prayers of a Church or that Form dictated by Christ himself To joyn in these with Devotion requires us duly to prepare our Hearts to strain and lift up our minds with much seriousness and attention or we cannot be affected by them whereas there is a pleasure and a kind of sensual delight in the novelty of the other Prayers and the tone with which they are sometimes delivered makes the Hearers imaginarily Devout tho' they come to them without taking pains to strain their minds to true Devotion But you ought to remember that Images and Relicks and Mediatory Saints had the very same effect on people long ago which made them so fond of them that they brought them into their Worship in spite of the Bishops and Pastors of the Church as you have now brought in Extemporary Prayers But 't is rare to find the generality of Men fond of what is truly Spiritual And therefore people's fondness of your peculiar way of Worship is so far from being an Argument for it as I find some of you use it that on the contrary it is a shrewd presumption that it is not from God Especially since ill people are fond of it as well as good As is manifest from many undeniable Instances which could not be so if it were Truly and of it self Spiritual 3. I would desire you to consider that nothing can generally induce our Clergy to decline these Extemporary Prayers but their Conscience and Conviction that they are not convenient in the Publick Service of God 'T is manifest that Extemporary Prayers would be much more easy to most of us and less burthensome then the Service we use you may think otherwise but assure your selves that you are mistaken And I dare appeal to those that have tryed both whether is most easy There are such both amongst You and Vs who have made the Experiment And I dare referr it to them to declare on their Consciences which of the two Services they look on to be the greater burthen to him that performs them Whatever You may think if we would Indulge our selves it were no hard matter for the meanest of Vs to pass an Extemporary Prayer on our Auditory or to turn the Heads of our Sermons into one Lastly I have one thing which I would more especially request of You that You would believe that I sincerely and heartily desire and study the good of your Souls and that I have in this Treatise endeavoured to promote it and by God's Assistance ever shall in all my Undertakings And if You had the same Apprehensions with Me You would not wonder at my concrn in this matter for how is it possible that any man that has a zeal for the purity of God's Worship should not have his Spirit moved within him to see a well-meaning people so strangely misled as to content themselves to meet together perhaps for some Years with a design to Worship God and yet hardly ever see or hear any thing of God's immmediate Apointment in their Meetings Now to my thoughts this is manifestly the case of many of You since a Man may frequent some Meetings amongst You for some Years and never hear a Prayer a Psalm or Chapter which has been immediately dictated by God and never be called on to bow his knee to God or see either Minister or People address themselves to him in that humble posture Lastly never see any body offer to Administer or desire to receive the food of Life in the Lord's-Supper These are Melancholy Reflections to me who believe that God has required these in his Worship And therefore I hope you will take it in good part that I endeavour to restore them to You. I have only to add my most earnest Prayers to God for You. And to beseech him who is the God of Mercy and Purchaser of his Church by a price Inestimable to vouchsafe his blessing to these my Endeavours for your Souls Instruction That You may reap the benefit and I the comfort of them in the great day of our Lord Jesus Christ who only is the true Teacher of Souls by his Spirit and is able to Seal the Instructions of his Ministers to Your Hearts to open the Eyes of Your Understandings and to guide You into all Truth FINIS Errata PAge 5 l. 20. for words read word pa. 13 l. 10 r. the timbrel p. 14 l. 16 r contrary p. 24 l. 22 for judge it r. judge of it p. 33 ult r. pursuance p. 39 ult Levitical p. 41 l. 15 r. omitted p. 45 l. 11 instead of Exclusive of the use of Forms r promise to furnish us with words in Prayer without the use of Sett and Premeditated Forms p 54 l. 6 r. rashness p. 72 l. 15 and 16 r. people p. 73 l. 3 r. throughly p. 83 l. 16 instead of the first of put in a semi-colon p. 97 l. 7 r. deceive p. 98 l. 25 r. Meditated p. 101 l. 11 r. Calendar p 112 l. 1 after the same r. Person p. 114 l. 16 r. in the next p. 115. l. 4 de which Ibid. p 16 for much deelare r. much more declare p. 118 l. 17 after for ic r. And that p. 120 l. 1. after and r. to p. 127 l. 1 after Scriptures a colon Ib. 3 after Supper a comma p. 131 l. 7 de are 137 l. 16 de their Ib. l. 18 r. receive p. 149 de a. p. 164 l 14. for owning r. own 169 l. 3. after table a comma * Much to this purpose might be urged out of the Rabbins but the Author thinks it fit to confine himself to Scripture See Durel and Knoxes Book of Disc. The Author's Intention is not to assert that the Scriptures require Kneeling at the Lord's-Supper but to shew that it is not contrary to the Institution of Christ or Practise of the Apostles who compare our receiving it with the Jews partaking of their Altar to which they approached with Adoration