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him. Let thefe be examined with freedom. Not the most rigid feverity, if fair and honeft, in fuch examination, can difpleafe me. But let not little, undifciplined, unfledged, ignorant fciolifts, erter into thefe matters, which are really above them; who, by pretending to criticize, and explain, and alter the fenfe of ancient paffages, do but betray their own vanity and folly; and who, though the throw the charge of bigotry upon others, for not renouncing all the venerable principles of revelation, are themselves the weakest and moft credulous bigots, they know not way nor wherefore, to all the abfurdities of the moft irrational infidelity. The objections of fober men deserve confideration, and no decency towards them can be too great in the answers that are given to them; and let the actions of David be fairly fcrutinized, as they are recorded by the biblical writers, and allowances be made, as in equity they ought to be made, for the times and circumftances, the manners and cuftems, private and publick, of the age he lived in; and I am in hopes he will yet appear to fuch, to be a great and good man; and that though we are not to fuppofe that the heighth of purity is intended, yet that the chriftian world, without being afhamed of it, or afraid of the charge of impiety to the majesty of heaven, will continue to regard and honour him, in the genuine fenfe of the expreffion,, as THE MAN AFTER GOD'S OWN HEART.'

A regular abstract of this work will not be expected from us; it is indeed, in a great measure, rendered unneceflary by what the Author has already written on the fubject, and which the generality of our readers cannot be fuppofed to be unacquainted with. We cannot however deny ourselves the pleafure of inf rting the Doctor's paraphrafe of the fixty-eighth Palm, which he has illuftrated in a mafterly manner, and, by the divifion he has made of it into its feveral parts, rendered the whole a regular, well connected compofition,

The learned are fenfible of the difficulties attending this Pfalm, and will be highly pleafed, we doubt not, with our Author's critical notes and obfervations upon it, which are followed by a fhort paraphrafe.

I hope my Reader, fays he, will not be difpleafed, if I give him a fhort and eafy paraphrafe of this excellent compofure.

When the Ark was taken up on the fhoulders of the Levites.

Ver. 1. Arife, O God, of Ifrael, and in thy just displeafure execute thy vengeance upon the enemies of thy people, and let all who hate them be put to flight, and never prevail against them.

2. Drive

2. Drive them before thee, and fcatter them, as fmoke is difperfed by the violence of the wind, and let all their power and strength die away and diffolve, as wax melts away before the fire.

3. But let thy righteous people be glad, exult in the prefence and under the protection of thee their God, and in the triumph of their joy cry out:

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Sing pfalms of thanksgivings to God. Celebrate his name and glory with fongs of praife. Prepare ye his way, and let all oppofition ceafe before him, who rode through the deferts, and guided his people with the cloud by day, and the flame of fire by night. His name is JAH, the tremendous being. And O exult with joy before him.

5. "He is the orphan's father, who will protect and provide for him. He is the judge and avenger of the widow, will vindicate her caufe, and redrefs her injuries, even that God, who is prefent with us in his holy fanctuary.

6. "He it is who increases the folitary and defolate into numerous families, restores to liberty, and blefles with an abundance those who are bound in chains, but makes those who are his refractory implacable enemies, dwell as in a dry and defert land, by deftroying their families and fortunes, and utterly blafting their profperity.'

7.

When the proceffion began.

How favourably didft thou appear, O God, for thy people in ancient times! How powerful was that protection, which thou didst graciously afford them! when thou didst march before them at their coming out of Egypt, and guideft them through the wilderness!

8. The earth fhook, the very heavens diffolved at thy prefence, even Sinai itself feemed to melt, the fmoke of it afcending as the fmoke of a furnace, when thou the God of Ifrael didft in thine awful majefty defcend upon it.

9. Thou, O God, didft rain down, in the moft liberal manner, during their paffage through the defert, bread and flesh as from heaven, and didft thereby refrefh, fatisfy, and confirm thine inheritance, fatigued with their marches, and in the utmoft diftrefs for want of food.

10. Such was the abundance provided for them, that they dwelt in the midst of the manna and quails, in heaps furrounding them on every fide. Thy poor and diftreffed people were thus liberally fupplied by thy wonderful and never-failing goodnefs.

11. And not only were they thus miraculously fed by thy benevolent hand, but made to triumph over all their enemies, who molefted and oppofed them. For thou gavest for the order

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to attack. Thou didst affure them of fuccefs, leddeft them forth against their adversaries, and their victories were celebrated by large numbers of matrons and virgins, who fhouted aloud, and fang these joyful tidings.

12. "The kings of armies fled away. They fled away utterly discomfited, and they who abode with their families in their tents, received their fhares in the fpoils of their conquered

enemies.

13. "Though when you were flaves to the Egyptians, and employed in the fervile drudgery of attending their pots and bricks, you appeared in the most fordid and reproachful habits, and took up your dwellings in the most wretched and miferable huts; yet now you are inriched with the gold and filver of your conquered enemies, poffeffed of their tents, and arrayed with garments fhining and beautiful, you refemble the dove's feathers, in which the gold and filver colours mixed with each other, give a very pleating and lovely appearance."

14. When the Lord thus fcattered and overcame kings for the fake of his inheritance, how were thy people refreshed ! how great was the joy thou gavest them in Salmon, where they obtained, beheld, and celebrated the victory!

When the proceffion came in view of Mount Sion.

15. Is Bafhan, that high hill, Bafhan with its rough and craggy eminences, is this the hill of God, which he hath chofen for his refidence, and where his fanctuary shall abide hereafter for ever?

16. Why look ye, O ye craggy hills, with an envious impatience? See, there is the hill, which God hath chosen and defired to dwell in. Affuredly the Lord will inherit it for

ever.

17. The angels and chariots of God, who attend this folemnity, and encompass the ark of his prefence, are not only, as at the giving of his law, ten thoufand, but twice ten thoufands, and thousands of thoufands. God is in the midst of them, as formerly on thee, O Sinai, and will conftantly refide in his fanctuary on Mount Sion, and as the guardian of it, by his almighty power continue to defend it.

When the Ark afcended Sion, and was depofited in David's tabernacle.

18. Thus haft thou now, O God, afcended the heights of n's hill, and taken poffeffion of it, as thy future favourite lling, after having fubdued our adverfaries, and delivered r captive brethren from the power of their enflavers. Thou aft received gifts from men, even from our inveterate enemies, by inriching us with their fpoil, fubjecting them as tributaries

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to my crown, and enabling me by them to provide an habitation for our God, and in this joyful manner to attend thine entrance into it.

19. O bleffed be. Jehovah. From day to day he fupports his people, and like a father bears them up, and protects them from all all deftructive evils.

20. He is that God, to whom we owe all our past salvations, and from whom alone we can expect all we may hereafter need. For under his direction are all the outgoings of death, fo that he is able to preserve his people from the approaches of it, when their inveterate enemies meditate and resolve their deftruction.

21. But vain and impotent fhall be their power and malice. God will avenge himself on their devoted heads, and their ftrength and craft fhall not be able to protect them from his indignation, if they continue wickedly to difturb me in the poffeffion of that kingdom, to which he hath advanced me.

22, 23. For this end he raifed me to the throne, and affured me that I should deliver his people from the Philiftines, and from the hand of all their enemies. Let them therefore begin their hoftilities when they pleafe, God will appear for me, as he did in former times for our forefathers, and my victories over them fhall be as fignal and compleat, as that over Pharaoh and his army, who were destroyed in the fea, through which he fafely led his people; or as over Og the king of Bafhan, the flaughter of whofe army was fo great, as that our victorious troops were forced to trample over their flaughtered and bloody bodies, and even our very dogs licked up their blood, and feafted on the carnage.

PART V.

Whilst the facrifices were offering, which concluded the whole folemnity, they clefed the anthem with the following verfes.

24. Thy people have now, O God, feen thy marches, the triumphant marches of my God and king, prefent in his holy. fanctuary, into the tabernacle prepared for it, amiḍft the loudest acclamations of the whole affembly.

25. The proceffion was led by a chofen band of fingers, the players on inftruments came behind them, and in the midft of them a virgin train, who accompanied their timbrels with the harmony of their voices, and fung:

26. O celebrate the praifes of God in this united congregation of our tribes. Celebrate the praifes of Jehovah, all you who are defcended from Ifrael, your great and fruitful progenitor."

27. Even Benjamin himself was prefent, who, though the fmalleft of our tribes, had fo far the pre-eminence over the reft

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as to give the first king and ruler to the people; even he was prefent, and rejoiced to fee the honour done to Jerufalem, and the crown eftablished on my head. Here the p inces of Judah attended, with the fupreme council of that powerful tribe; with the princes of Zebulon, and thofe of Naphthali; who from their diant borders joined the proceffion, all unanimously confeting that Jerufalem fhould become the feat of worship, and capital of my kingdom.

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28. It is thy God, O Ifrael, who hath thus advanced thee, as a nation, to thy prefent ftate of dignity and power. Strengthen, O God, the foundation of our happiness, and by thy favour render it perpetual.

29. As the ark of thy prefence is now fixed in Jerufalem, protect it by thy power, and let the kings of the earth bring their gifts, prefent their offerings, and pay their adoration at thy altar.

30. O rebuke and break the power of the Egyptian crocodile, his princes and nobles, who pay homage to their bulls, and all his people, who ftupidly worship their calves, and dance in honour of them to the tinkling founds of inftruments and bells. Trample under feet their filver plated idols, and utterly difperfe the people who delight in war.

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31. Let the princes of Egypt come and worship at thy fanctuary, and the far diftant Ethiopia accuftom herself to lift up her hands in adoration of thy majefty.

32. O may all the kingdoms of the earth celebrate, in facred fongs, the majefty of our God. Let all fing the praises of our Jehovah.

33. He is the omniprefent God, the proprietor and Lord of the heavens of heavens, which he fpread out of old. He makes the clouds his chariot when he rides through the heavens, and ftorms and tempefts, thunders and lightnings, the inftruments of his vengeance against his enemies. When he fends forth his voice in the mighty thunder, how awful and aftonishing that voice!

34. Afcribe to him that almighty ftrength which belongs to him. Though his empire is univerfal, his kingdom is peculiarly exalted over Ifrael, by whom alone he is acknowledged as the true God, and who manifefts the greatnefs of his power in the clouds of heaven.

35. O God, the God of Ifrael, how terrible is thy maiefly, when thou comeft forth from thy heavenly and earthly anctuaries, for the deftruction of thine enemies, and the defence of thy people. It is he who infpires them with strength nd courage, and renders them a mighty and powerful nation. Eternal bleffing and praise be afcribed unto our God.'

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