VIII.

THE PSALTER, CALENDAR AND LECTIONARY.

"That by patience and comfort of Thy holy Word, we may embrace, and ever hold fast, the blessed hope of everlasting life, which Thou hast given us in our Saviour, Jesus Christ." -The Collect for the Second Sunday in Advent.

"And let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years."-Genesis i. 14.

THE

HE PSALTER was the authorized Hymnal of the ancient Jewish Church. Nearly one-half of the Psalms have been attributed to King David, and about one-third are anonymous; a few are ascribed to Moses, Solomon, Asaph, Ethan, the sons of Korah, etc. They are the work of many ages and authors, and their formation stretches over several hundred years. The first collection of them was made by Solomon for the worship of the Temple, and their systematic use was begun at its dedication. Before his day Psalms had been written, like those of Moses and Miriam, Deborah and Hannah; and of much later date were those by Hezekiah, Ezra, Nehemiah, etc. The entire collection which now bears David's name was in liturgical use for four hundred years before Christ, and had been a gradual growth for still six centuries preceding that. Our Lord quotes from them in the Greek Septuagint version, and they were never used in the

Hebrew by the early Christian Church, in which they had a very high place.

St. Jerome, the translator of the Vulgate, or Latin version of the Bible, left three versions of the Psalms; and his Gallican version, 389 A. D., taken from the Septuagint, has since been and is now that used by the Roman Church. The Prayer Book version is nearly seventy years older than that of King James, and much better adapted to liturgical use. It is here separated into sixty nearly equal portions, one for each morning and evening of the month, the thirtieth day being always read for the thirtyfirst as well. It is from the first authorized edition of the Great Bible, which was founded on Wickliffe and translated from St. Jerome. It is, therefore, "in Hebrew and Greek and Latin," as well as in English, having Hebrew divisions, from the Greek vernacular, through a Latin translation. It is printed after the Occasional Offices, at the end of the Prayer Book proper.

This being a Prayer Book manual and not a Bible commentary, only a very brief analysis of the contents of the Psalter can be given. It is usually separated into fivesections, each of which closes with a Doxology. The original Psalter, composed almost entirely by David, constitutes the first section (Ps. 1-41). The second, ascribed to David and the Levites, includes thirty-one more, ending with Ps. 72. The third (Ps. 73–89) shows the work of other authors, and was perhaps collected by Hezekiah. The Temple Liturgy constitutes the fourth section, mostly anonymous in authorship, and comprising Ps. 90-106. Many of these probably belong to a later date, as well as those of the fifth, which is generally ascribed to the period of the Res

toration from the Babylonian captivity. The latter (Ps. 107-150) includes the Great Hallel, or Passover Hymn (113-118), the long 119th, and the Songs of Degrees (120134) or goings up to the Temple after the Exile.

The 14th and 53d Psalms are virtually the same, as are the 70th and the latter part of the 40th; while the 108th repeats most of the 57th and 60th. Several of them have the same caption in the Latin. Many of the Psalms are David's own personal history, and the extraordinary vicissitudes of his career adapt them wonderfully to the needs of all sorts and conditions of men. The 104th is a Psalm of nature, the 107th a Psalm of life, and the 78th, 105th and 106th are Psalms of history. The 69th, 139th and 140th contain imprecatory or cursing clauses, which need to be read as viewing the speaker in the light merely of God's representative. The 136th is pure thanksgiving, and the 84th dwells on the delights of public worship. Ps. 44 was written in time of national disaster, and Ps. 45 was written for Solomon's wedding, and is highly typical of the marriage of Christ and the Church; hence it is one of the Proper Psalms for Christmas Day.

Seven of the Psalms are called Penitential: Nos. 6, 32, 38, 51, 102, 130 and 143. Seven are especially adapted to sick-beds Nos. 23, 27, 42, 91, 103, 121 and 139. The 4th, 31st (first six verses), 91st and 134th are known as the Compline (or bed-time) Psalms, and form the Second Selection, often used at Evensong. The 119th is an acrostic, being in twenty-two sections of eight verses each, each section begun by a letter of the Hebrew alphabet, in consecutive order. Its subject is the reading of the Scriptures, and each verse but one (the 122d) has a reference to God's Word. As

used in the Service, its sections are not interrupted by the Gloria, as it constitutes but a single Psalm. The 150th and last refers to the perfect praise of Heaven. Ten Psalms are distinctly and pointedly Messianic in their reference (Nos. 2, 16, 22, 40, 41, 45, 69, 72, 110 and 118), a characteristic which pervades the whole Book to an astonishing degree.

Moses, David and Solomon were all marked types of the Messiah, and Christ constantly quotes from the Psalms with such an application to Himself. His last act with His disciples, before He suffered, was to sing the Hallelujah Hymn of the Passover, as they went out to the Mount of Olives; and He quoted from the 22d and 31st Psalms upon the Cross. In the New Testament, two-fifths of all the quotations from the Old are from the Psalms, and the Apostles at first looked to the Psalter for their written Gospel. We apply the same principle in our Proper Psalms for special Days, and have increased the number of Days so emphasized from six (as in the English Book) to sixteen. Twenty Selections of Psalms are added, in groups or otherwise, which may, except on these Days, be substituted for the consecutive daily portions for the month, at the discretion of the Minister. These may all be found immediately preceding the Psalter, as well as among the preliminary Tables. Most of the Canticles are taken from the Psalter.

The Psalms are not metrical, like modern poetry, but lyrical; and are full of primitive parallelisms and recurrences of expression which conduce greatly to their universal use, and make them household words. They easily lend themselves, however, to metrical versions, such as abound in hymnody. Unlike spiritual books of the older religions,

they never confuse God and nature, as do those of the Egyptians, which abound in witchcraft and like superstitions. Their application is as many-sided as human experience. They abound in historical reference and in moral teaching. They are lofty summaries of praise, and glow with prophetic allusions to the Christian Church. As solace to the spiritual life, they are invaluable; and they served as a manual of prayer to Our Lord Himself. Some of their tones are adapted to private meditation, others to personal confession, and all to public praise.

The LECTIONARY, or TABLES OF LESSONS FROM HOLY SCRIPTURE, forms a large part of the preliminary matter in the Prayer Book. The Lessons, or Lections, are read from the Lectern, the Minister facing the congregation, who sit for instruction from the Word. Lecterns are often made after the figure of an angel, or in the form of an eagle bearing the Bible on its outspread wings; the eagle being the special symbol of St. John, the author of the last Gospel. The practice of reading the Scripture Lessons in worship is extremely ancient, and was followed by Our Lord Himself in the synagogue. Christ is thus preached, even if there be no Sermon. The English rubric quaintly says, "shall be read distinctly with an audible voice, he that readeth so standing and turning himself as he may best be heard of all such as are present." It would be well if this rubric were always explicitly obeyed. In the First Book the Lessons were intoned, as also the Epistles and Gospels. There are two Lessons at each ordinary Service, the First always from the Old Testament, except rarely from the Apocrypha, and the Second invariably from the New; each always introduced and closed with a dignified