He expresses his joy by bursting forth into praises Blessed be the Lord c. 3. He lays down the grounds and reasons 1. the deliverance of the Israelites from the hand of the Egyptians 2. the destruction of the Egyptians before the face of Israel v. 11. 4. He offers Sacrifices and Burnt-offerings and so he rejoyces Corde Ore Opere in Heart in Word and in Work v. 12. 5. Aaron and all Israel rejoyce with him in the last part of the 12th verse Doct. Hence we learn That it is a Duty incumbent upon all Jethro and Moses Aaron and Israel Priest and People to bless God and to make his praise to be glorious when he glorifies his mercie in delivering his Church we are then to praise God greatly when he gives us great Deliverances then it is seasonable to sing a Benedictus Blessed be the Lord who hath delivered his people from the hand of the Egyptians c. So Psal 66.8 O bless our God ye people and make the voyce of his praise heard which holdeth our soul in life and suffereth not our feet to be moved for thou O God hast proved us thou hast tried us as â—…lver is tryed thou broughtest us into the net thou layedst affliction upon our loyns that hast caused men to ride over our heads we went through fire and through water c. Here is great affliction the net men riding over their heads passing through fire and through water great Dangers then great Deliverances v. 12. Thou broughtest us out into a wealthy place therefore they sing great praises v. 13. I will go into thy house with burnt-offerings I will pay thee my vows which my lips have uttered when I was in trouble I will offer thee burnt sacrifices of fatlings with the incense of rams I will offer bullocks and goats and then he concludes with a Benedictus Blessed be God v. 20. I might multiply Scriptures for further evidences of this truth but this may suffice Now to come to the Reasons and Arguments of the point Why is this a duty incumbent upon all Why are we then to sing great praises when the Lord gives us great Deliverances 1. Because by so doing we glorifie God Psal 50.23 Whoso offereth praise he glorifieth me Thus did David 1 Chron. 29.10 Benedictus Blessed be thou O Lord God of Israel our father for ever and ever Thine O Lord is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the Majesty for all that is in the heaven and in the earth is thine thine is the kingdom O Lord and thou art exalted as head above all God requires not our Wisdom to direct him nor our strength to assist him nor our dignity to advance him but our thankfulness to adore him Grace requires Gratitude when God extends his bountifulness we are to be inlarged in our thankfulness when Benefits are gotten the Benefactors must not be forgotten we must glorifie God and sing praises to him that is holy and that inhabiteth the praises of Israel Psal 22.4 Secondly Why is it so c. It is because such return of blessing thanks and praises is Gods tribute that pepper-Corn of acknowledgement that all we have we hold in Capite we have it from him from whom every good gift and every perfect gift doth descend even from him who is the father of lights Jam. 1.17 and the detaining of this tribute is no less then God-robbing and the Apostles exhortation is Let him that stole steal no more Ephes 4.28 It is Gods tribute Psal 50.14,15 Offer unto God thanksgiving and pay thy vows to the most high And call upon me in the day of trouble and I will deliver theeâ— and thou shalt glorifie me Thus Melchisedeck King of Salem and Priest of the most high God pays his tribute and returns praise for Abrahams deliverance from the sword of the four Kings that fought against Sodom Benedictus Deus fortis excelsus Blessed be the most high strong God Gen. 14.20 And the Prophet Habakkuk seeing by the perspective of Prophesie the deliverance of the Church from the Captivity of Babel pays his tribute before-hand and blesses God greatly for that great deliverance Hab. 3.17 c. David's Psalmes are so many store-houses of Examples Every Psalm as one notes is either an Hosanna or else an Hallelujah either God bless or God be blessed either Prayers or Praises either Prayers for Mercies or Praises for Mercies Thirdly Because thankfulness for Mercies or Deliverances received is honum jucundum it is fit meet and decent it is a good and pleasant thing Psal 92.1 It is a good thing to give thanks unto the Lord and to sing praises unto thy name O most high to shew forth thy loving kindeness in the morning and thy faithfulness in the night for thou Lord hast made me glad through thy work and I will give thanks for the operation of thy hands It is good and pleasant it is Mel in One Melos in Aure Jubilatio in Corde Honey in the Mouth Musick in the Ear and Melody in the Heart And therefore the Apostle exhorts us Ephes 5.19,20 Speak to your selves in Psalms and Hymns and spiritual songs singing and making melody in your hearts to the Lord giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ and Col. 3.16 Let the word of God 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. Thus did David sing with grace in his heart Psal 108.1 O God my heart is fixed my heart is fixed I will sing and give praise even with my glory I will praise thee O Lord amongst the people and I will sing praises unto thee among the nations For thy mercie is great above the heavens and thy truth reacheth unto the clouds Be thou exalted O God above the heavens and thy glory above all the earth Fourthly The very Dictates of Nature teach us gratuity and thankfulness to our Benefactors All rivers saith the wise man come from the sea and all rivers by way of a thankful Retribution return and empty their waters into the Sea God is the main Ocean the great sea of all blessings all Rivers of blessings flow from him and therefore according to the very dictates of Nature ought to be returned unto him Psal 93.3 The floods have lifted up O Lord the floods have lifted up their voice Ainsworth in locum tells us That the Chaldee hath it thus The floods have lifted up their voice of praises to God and the floods have received the reward of their praises from God Psal 91.1 The heavens declare the glory of God Psal 96.12 Psal 98.7 Psal 148. There is a general summons and invitation not onely of all sorts of men but also all manner of Creatures to this duty and to joyn together in this Harmony to give praises to God and to make
in singing praises with Instruments of musick to make the praises of God to be the more glorious and the more to raise up their spirits to an higher strein that their Soules and all that was within them might eccho forth the goodness of God and praise his holy name and men and women and all the congregation might with more cherefulness joyn together in that harmony so Ex. 15.1 there Moses sets the song is Praecentor of the choire and he all the men of Israel sing separately by themselves I will sing unto the Lord for he hath triumphed gloriously c. and then the women they make an other Choire and sing separately by themselves Miriam the Prophetess beginning the song they sing alternatim as in a Choire and they sing with musical instruments v. 20. And Miriam the Prophetess the Sister of Aaron took a timbrel in her hand and all the women went out after her with timbrels and with dances and Miriam answered them and said sing ye to the Lord for he hath triumphed gloriously c. The Doway translators note upon the beginning of the chapter out of Origen in his 6 Homily upon Exodus that this is the first canticle hat ever we read of either sacred or profane Thus did Deborah and Barak after the deliverance of Israel from the oppression of Sisera they sang their Psalm of thanksgiving Jud. 5.1 And thus wee read that the women sang with musicall instruments alternatim answering one another 1. Sam. 18.6 The women came out of all the Cities of Israel singing and dancing with tabrets with joy and with instruments of musick or three stringed instruments and the women answered one another as they played and said c. Thus when Jehosaphat and the remnant of Juda had received a gracious deliverance from the numerous Army of the Ammonites Moabites and Edomites he and all Juda with him sang Psalmes of thanksgiving to the Lord for that great deliverance with psalteries harps and trumpets 2 Chr. 20.27 they returned saith the text every man of Juda and Jerusalem Jehosaphat in the forefront of them to go again to Jerusalem with joy for the Lord had made them to rejoyce over their enemies And they came to Jerusalem with Psalteryes and Harps and trumpets unto the house of the Lord. Many such examples we have in Davids Psalms as Psalms to be sung on Neginoth upon Nehiloth and upon Sheminith upon Gittith upon Muthlabben c. which were musical instruments used in singing praises such as the flute trumpet cornet organs virginals c. And in particular there are 15. Psalms called gradual psalms psalmes of Ascents or psalmes of degrees which begin with the 120. Psal which are Gratulatory Psalmes made to be sung with musicall Instruments for the deliverance of the Church from the Captivity of Babell and the Jewes in their celebration of the Passeover have of antient time used to sing gratulatory Psalmes or Songs of thanksgiving for the deliverance of the Church from the bondage of Egypt Sic Paulus Burgensis in Psal 113. Buxtorf Lex Talmud page 613. That is Psal 113. 114 115 116 117. and 118. which they call Magnum Hallelujah and this Song or hymn the learned are of opinion was the same which our Saviour and his disciples sung after they had celebrated his last passeover and the text will bear it Mat. 26.30 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that is hymning it or singing the hymn what hymn the hymn 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that hymn which the Jews used to sing at their three greatest feasts and especially at the feast of the passeover and with which hymn they concluded the feast and when our Saviour had celebrated the same feast it may well be he concluded with the same Song a Song of thanksgiving for Israels deliverances Then sixtly in there their Solemnities they stirred up themselves to the more thankfulness by rehersals and repetitions of the manner or means by which they were delivered they did set forth Magnalia Mirifica Dei Jud. 5.11 there is a rehersall of the rightous acts of the Lord towards Israel and the end was that his name onely might have the praise thus when Moses and Israel Sung a Song of praise to Jehova for their deliverance out of the hand of the Egyptians and from the hand of Pharao a principall part of that Song is to set forth Magnalia Dei the great and wonderfull working of the Lord in that deliverance in the manner and the greatness of his Excellency that in his wrath consumed the Egyptians like stubble Ex. 15.7 That with the blast of his nostrills he made the waters stand upon an heape and the depths to be congealed in the heart of the Sea that he did but blâ—w with his winde and the Sea covered them and they sanke as lead 〈◊〉 the mighty waters he did but stretch out his hand his right hand and the earth swallowed them and thereupon they sing who is like unto thee O Lord among the Gods who is like unto thee glorious in holiness fearefull in praises doing wonders v. 11. And the prophet David making a thankfull memoriall of that great deliverance invites all men to come and see and consider Magnalia Mirabilia Dei the wonderfull workings of God in bringing to passe that great deliverance Psal 66.1 Make a joyfull noise unto God all ye Lands sing for the honour of his name make his praise to be glorious Say unto God how terrible art thou in thy works through the greatness of thy power shall thine enemies submit themselves unto thee All the earth shall worship thee and shall sing unto thee they shall sing unto thy name Selah Come and see the works of God he is terrible in his doings toward the children of men he turned the Sea into dry Land they went through the flood on foot there did we rejoyce in him O blesse God ye people and make the voice of his praise to be heard c. Psal 77.16 The waters saw thee O God the waters saw thee and were afraid the depths also weare troubled the clouds poured out water the Skyes sent out a sound thine arrowes also went abroad the voice of thy thunder was in the heaven the lightnings lightned the world the earth trembled and shooke Thy way is in the Sea and thy path in the great waters and thy foot steps are not known Psal 78.12 Marvellous things did he in the sight of their fathers in the land of Egypt in the feild of Zoan He divided the Sea and caused them to passe through and he made the waters to stand as an heap In the day time he led them also with a cloud and all the night with a light of fire c. And Deborah and Barak in their song of thanks-giving set forth Magnalia Mirabilia Dei the wonderfull works of God how the armies of Heaven Earth fought for their rescue and deliverance Jud. 5.20 They fought