Selected quad for the lemma: spirit_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
spirit_n	according_a	act_n	act_v	509	4	7.6801	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A44281	Gospel musick, or, The singing of Davids psalms, &c. in the publick congregations, or private families asserted, and vindicated, against a printed pamphlet, entitled, Certain reasons by way of confutation of singing psalms in the letter, objections sent in, in writing, scruples of some tender consciences by thy loving brother, N.H., D.D., M.M.S. ; vnto which is added, the iudgement of our worthy brethren of New-England touching singing of psalms, as it is learnedly and gravely set forth in their preface to the Singing psalms, by them translated into metre.	Homes, Nathanael, 1599-1678.	1644 (1644)	Wing H2567; ESTC R13654	26,991	33

sea By singing we present unto our sences and minds the lively type of heavenly joyes whether to be acted by the Church triumphant in Heaven or under Heaven at the great restauration when the spirituall Pharaohs the Antichrists of the world shall be drowned in the Red sea of their own blood In three verses of foure it is said three times Allelujah by the Church seeing the fall of Antichrist Revel 19.1 2 3 4. Singing of Psalms according to the Apostles prescript is a making or acting the Word to dwell richly in us Colos 3.16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisedom teaching and admonishing one another in Psalms A filling of us in publick with the spirit or an acting the graces of the spirit a prevention of drunken idle songs and mirth in private Ephes 5.18 19. Be not drunk with wine but be filled with the spirit speaking to your selves in Psalms c. or by * Tho Gr. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 will bear it compared with ver 18. speaking to your selves in Psalms To burthen you with no more of mine own observations touching the usefulnesse of singing I will now refresh you with the notions of others upon this point so far as they speak according to the rule Rabanus Manrus whose name and parts and time you have chronicled afore saith that into grosser and heavier minds whom bare words do not so easily move the sweetnesse of melodie makes some entrance for good things So he So in Saul Basil 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 c. Basil in Psal of whom also you heard afore saith Whereas the holy Spirit saw that mankind is unto vertue hardly drawn and that righteousnesse is the lesse accounted of by reason of the pronnesse of our affections to that which delighteth it pleaseth the wisdom of the same Spirit to borrow from melodie that pleasure which mingled with heavenly mysteries causeth the smoothnesse and softnesse of that which toucheth the eare to conveigh as it were by stealth the treasure of good things into mans mind To this purpose were those harmonious tunes of Psalms devised for us that which are in eares but young or touching perfection of vertue as yet not grown to ripenesse might when they think they sing learn O the wise conceit of that heavenly teacher which hath by his skill found out a way that doing those things wherein we delight we may also learn that whereby we profit So Basil And experience speaks for it For when we can hardly draw young people to other duties they cheerfully learn and sing Psalms And those that are ancient who cannot go abroad to and among the secular and civill joyes of men can sit at home and praise God with a Pialme And every well minded family by singing can make themselves a little Church And everie Church make themselves a little Heaven Hooker saith That musicall harmonic if but by voice consisting of high and lowe sounds is of that force and hath such pleasing effects in that very part of man which is most divine that some have been thereby induced to think that the soul it self by nature is or hath in it harmony A thing which delighteth all ages and beseemeth all states A thing as seasonable in grief as in joy as decent being added to actions of greatest weight and solemnitie as being used when men most sequester themselves from action The reason hereof is an admirable facilitie which Musick hath to expresse and represent to the mind more inwardly then any other sensible mean the very standing rising and falling the steps and inflections every way the turns and varieties of all passions whereunto the mind is subject yea so to imitate them that whether it resemble unto us the same state wherein our minds already are or a clean contrary we are not more contentedly confirmed by the one then changed and led away by the other In harmonie the very image and character even of vertues and vice is perceived the mind delighted with their resemblances and brought by having them often iterated into a love of the things themselves Yea although we lay altogether aside the consideration of dittie or matter the verie harmonie of sounds being framed in due sort and carried from the eare to the spirituall faculties of our souls is by a native puissance and efficacie greatly available to bring to a perfect temper whatsoever is there troubeld a part as well to quicken the spirits as to allay that which is too eager soveraigne against melancholie and despaire forcible to draw forth tears of devotion if the mind be such as can yeeld them Able both to move and moderate all affections The Prophet David therefore having singular skill not in Poetrie alone but in Musick also judged them both to be things most necessarie for the house of God left behind him to that purpose a number of Divinitie endited Poems for the raising mens hearts and the sweetning of their affections towards God In which considerations the Church of Christ doth retain it to this day Thus far Hooker To all which if not proceeding from a learned man professing Christianitie but from the mouth of an Heathen Christian experience may seal to as most true Zanchie saith Much and manifold is the use of this Musick viz. of singing Psalms 1. The glorie of God is held forth more illustrious because by this means the praises of God contained in Psalms and Hymnes are celebrated more magnificently and gloriously with greater attention and admiration of the auditorie then if they were recited with a lower voice without singing Which was the cause why the Levites in setting forth the great benefits of God to the people did do it with sweet harmonie So before the building of the Temple when they carried the Ark they sang with a shrill voice Let God arise and let his enemies be scattered And when they returned conquerours they also sung that thereby the benefits of God might be better understood more attentively heard and more princelike admired As on the other side hereby the enemies were terrified There is no Prince but thinks himself more honoured by singing forth his praise then by recitall of the bare voice 2. Use is the manifold profit 1 Mans spirit is much cheered by the sweetnesse of the harmonie As like is delighted with like For the mind of man is all harmonie and therefore is much recreated with Musick Which the Heathens understood in their parables of Orpheus and Arion alluring the stones after them by the harmonie of the Harp to build Thebans But those stories in the sacred Scripture of Elisha fitted for prophesie and Saul pacified in spirit by Musick are most certain 2 The Spirit of God is stirred up in us by singing So Ephes 5 Be filled with the Spirit speaking to your selves with Psalms And therefore it is apparent that this Musick in the Churches is not onely lawfull but necessarie Adde to all that it is oft read that

compose severall spirituall songs upon all varieties of occasions the strong would be forced to spend much time in metricall composalls and yet not have one in a readinesse sutable to a new emergent occasion when the cause and the cheerful mind call for it and the weak shall never sing because they can compose none at all For a generall close to all that is objected of singing with the spirit and worshipping in spirit Joh. 4. We say That we may sing Davids Psalmes and yet sing with the spirit As preaching the text of the Gospel is a ministery of the Spirit 2. Cor. 3. And so in using Scripture forms of baptizing and holy Supper the Spirit doth come in with it the more we say or pray or sing the words of the Spirit the more do we those according to the mind of the Spirit All what the Spirit suggests is what it hath already written and for us to use as Rom. 15.4 Whatsoever was written afore time was for our learning that we through patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope 3. Objection from the matter is this Is not say the reasons against singing this a confused praising God when we shall offer to him the exhortations of praise This is giving to God his exhortation again and leaving the duty undone Is not this sinfull to answer God in his own words God commands his people to praise him Now for us to take those words God speakes to us and speak them to God again and thereby think we have done the duty when indeed we leave the duty undone This is sinfull Answ Why may we not as well sing to God what God sayes to us as well as pray that in prayer which God saith to us David did both Psal 27. Thou Lord saydst seek ye my face My heart answered Thy face Lord will I seek David thinks he praiseth God in song by singing exhortations to praise Psal 136. See the first three verses and the last verse So Psal 148. Psal 149. Psal 150. As Luther said Praying is the best preparation to prayer for then we set upon it in Gods strength But in meditation in our own strength So sure singing exhortations to prayer is an excellent preparation to sing praises And therefore David begins many of his Psalms with exhortations to praise 2 sort of Objections are from the Form 1 Obj. Set forms in singing Psalms are invented by men So the Certain Reasons 1 Answ If turning Davids Psalms into English Meeter be humane invention when the matter is purely divine Scripture how much more may that be said to be humane invention when the matter and form is composed by you that make this Objection 2 By the same Argument you may call composing of Sermons humane inventions 2 Obj. From the Form is That the singing of Davids Psalms in our English Meeter is an imposition imposed by men So the Certain Reasons 1 Answ There was never any Law or Canon or c. extant that I know to impose our English Meeter on the Churches All that is said is in the Title to the singing Psalms viz. Set forth and allowed to be sung in Churches and private Families to prevent ungodly Balads Here is no imposition but onely permission men may sing them and not sing them and yet not be punished For in all the prelaticall persecutions men were never persecuted for omitting to sing them publickly or privately 2. That were a farre greater imposition if as we have seen instance men shall compose Psalms or spirituall Songs for matter and form and read them to the Church upon the sudden to sing without the advise of the Church whether they were orthodox or no and without their allowance and leave that they should be used by the Church and so causing men to offer up to God instantly that which they did not well know what it was and so could not sing with that faith and affection as they ought doubting what might follow in the next line not having any sight of it in their books nor any impression of it in their memories whether it were warrantable or no to the great offence of some of the Congregation 3 Obj. From the Form is that it is Liturgicall and Cathedrall as in Pauls and Westminster c. So those Reasons Ans Davids Psalms sung some phrases in our English Meeter differ much from Cathedrall singing which is so abominable in which is sung almost every thing unlawfull Letanies and Creeds and other prose not framed in Meeter fit for singing Besides they do not let all the Congregation neither sing nor understand what is sung battologizing and quavering over the same words vainly Yea nor do all they sing together but first one sings an Anthem then half the Chore then the other tossing the Word of God like a Tenice-ball Then all yelling together with confused noise Hieron on 5. Bphes Aug. Confes This we utterly dislike as most unlawfull As Hieronius of old declaimed justly against it calling it Musicam Theatralem Stage play singing And Augustine A studying of Musick rather then heavenly melodie and devotion And the glosse quipping it with two verses Non vox sed votum non musica cordula sed cor Non clamor sed amor psallit in aure Dei Soul vows not ayrie voice Not Art but heart God hears Not loud noise but love joyes Make Musick in Gods eares 3 Obj. from the form The Prophets Christ or his Apostles never praised God by any form invented by man but upon all occasions by the powerfull operation of the Spirit 2 Pet. 2.21 Holy men of God spake as they were moved by the holy Ghost So those Reasons 1 Answ This text is not meant of singing and expressing what we find penned in the Word of God But of the extraordinarie inspiration of the Spirit directing infallibly some few extraordinarie men Prophets Apostles c. to pen the divine texts of Scriptures Among which we find in other Scriptures that they penned some Psalms and spirituall Songs and sang them themselves and there expresly left them to the Churches to sing Exod. 15.1 Then sang Moses and the Children of Israel this Song 2 Chron. 35.25 And Jeremiah lamented Josiah and all the singing men and singing women spake of Josiah in their lamentations to this day and made them an ordinance in Israel and behold they are written in the Lamentations That is in the Lamentations of Jeremiah penned with great varietie of meeter as they that can but read Hebrew may see somewhat of it And what is the meaning of the titles of the Psalms which are very Text To the chief Musitian A Psalme for Asaph A Psalm for the sons of Korah A Psalme for the Sabbath day A Psalm of degrees of which there are many which being excellent Psalms were appointed to be sung upon the stairs of the Temple in the beginning of their publick worship and therefore some translate Psalms of or for the stairs I