od and the Father by
him._ Jam. 5. 13. _Is any among you afflicted, let him pray: Is any
merry, let him sing Psalms_. Rev. 5. 9. _And they sing a new Song,
saying, Thou art worthy to take the Book and to open the Seals thereof,
for thou wast slain and hast redeemed us to God by thy Blood_. Rev. 14.
3. _And they sung as it were a new Song before the Throne_. Rev. 15. 3.
_And they sing the Song of Moses, the Servant of God, and the Song of
the Lamb, saying, Great and marvellous are thy Works_, &c. To all these
I might add Acts 4. 24, &c. Where it is suppos'd the Disciples met
together and sung; for _they lift up their Voice to God with one
accord, and said, Lord! thou art our God, which hast made Heaven and
Earth, and the Sea, and all that in them is: Who by the Mouth of thy
Servant David hast said, Why did the Heathen rage, and the People
imagine a vain thing. The Kings of the Earth stood up, and the Rulers
were gathered together against the Lord, and against his Christ. For of
a Truth, against thy holy Child Jesus whom thou hast anointed, both
Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the People of Israel,
were gathered together for to do whatsoever thy Hand and thy Counsel
determined before to be done, &c.

{236} If we turn over the New Testament, and search out all the Songs
that are there written, we shall find the Matter or Subject of them as
various as the Occasions upon which they were sung or spoken: Such
are the Song of the Virgin _Mary_, Luke 1. 46, &C. They Song of
_Zecharias_, ver. 67. The Song of the Angels, _Luke_ 2. 13. And of
_Simeon_, ver. 29. Besides many others in the Book of the _Revelations.
The three chief Words used to express the Matter of Singing, are
_Psalmoi, _Humnoi kai Odai_: _Psalms, Hymns and Songs_, as the three
Verbs from which these are derived are generally used to express the
Act of Singing, _psallo, humneo, i ado_. Now if it were lawful after so
many learned Contentions about these Words, I would give my Sense of
them thus:

1. I think no Man hath better explain'd the original Meaning of these
Words than _Zanchy_. A Psalm, _Psalmos_, is such a Song as usually is
sung with other Instruments besides the Tongue. Hymns, _Humnoi_, such
as are made only to express the Praises, and set out the Excellencies
of God. Songs, _Odai_, such as contain not only Praises, but
Exhortations, Prophesies, Thanksgivings; and these only sung with the
Voice.

2. The Scripture doth not always confi