صور الصفحة
PDF
النشر الإلكتروني

Days.

December have One-and-thirty days apiece; It is ordered, that the same Psalms shall be read the last day of the said months, which were read the day before: So that the Psalter may begin again the first day of the next month ensuing.(5)

(5) For the Rubric when there are proper Psalms or Lessons appointed for any feast, see post, p. 104, &c.

The following table, shewing the number of Psalms used daily in each service, was in the old Prayer Books, and is here introduced, (with the addition of the number of verses,) as it may be found interesting.

[blocks in formation]
[merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][ocr errors][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][ocr errors][merged small]

Verses.

And, whereas the 119th Psalm is divided into twenty-two portions, and is over-long to be read at one time; it is so ordered, that at one time shall not be read above four or five of the said portions.

And at the end of every Psalm, and of every such part of the 119th Psalm, shall be repeated this Hymn,

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son: and to the Holy Ghost;

As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.(6)

Note, that the Psalter followeth the Division of the Hebrews, and the

(6) Though the Psalter be here appointed to be read, yet must it be interpreted according to the ancient practice, that is, by way of response; the Priest one verse, and the people another, as Moses and Miriam sang their triumphant Hymn-Exod. xv. 1. 21. The people always bear a part in these Psalms, else the "Venite" were to little purpose; though the mode did sometimes vary, one while echoing all together, with the Priest, another while returning by way of antiphones, as Philo in his Essenes. Sometimes answering the acrostics, extremities or feet of the verses: or else repeating the same again, as it is supposed by Musculus and Calvin the Apostles did to our Saviour at his last Hymn.-" In duas partes divisi alternatim sibi invicem canunt,” saith the first of the Christians of his age, Disposed into two divisions they sing by course one to another—“ Ecclesia stridet responsoriis Psalmorum," saith the second, The temple roars and rings again with the responsories of the Psalms.-Chrysostom represents the practice of his times-he who singeth, singeth alone, and though all the congregation echo out the close of the verse, the voice and sound seemeth to proceed as from one mouth, Somewhat correspondent hereunto was that which antiquity called Aiávaλua, which answered the Hebrew no (Selah) for where in the Psalmist there occurreth Selah in the original, there the Septuagint, Theodosion, and Symmachus, constantly render it Aiavarua; (and the Latin Semper. Ed.) the word importing (as St. Hierom conceiveth) a connexion of antecedent and subsequent matter together; the mode whereof, St. Augustine tells us, was for the reader to bear his part, and the people theirs. Sometimes, says that father in the 142d Psalm, the verse itself is set after the fashion of a Dia Psalm, so that it might be begun by the reader, and returned by the people. (L'Estrange, 55.)

(7) Before the last alteration was this remark, "which, from the 9th Psalm "unto the 148th Psalm, following the division of the Hebrews, doth vary " in number from the common Latin translation."-That is, the 9th and 10th Psalms in the Hebrew are made but one- -(the 9th,) in the Septuagint, and Vulgate. The order then proceeds regularly till the 147th of the Hebrew which is, in the Septuagint, and Vulgate, the 146th and 147th.-The 148th is then alike in both, as are the two remaining Psalms.

Translation of the great English Bible,(7) set forth and used in the time of King Henry the Eighth, and Edward the Sixth.(8)

(8) This was called "the great English Bible" because it was printed in a bulky volume, published by authority in Henry the Eighth's time, being afterwards revised under Edward the Sixth. The first essay of translating the Bible into English, was made by William Tyndal, a good scholar, and one of the first Protestants of note in Henry the Eighth's reign. He translated the New Testament into English about the year 1525. And after that the five books of Moses; writing Prefaces before each book, wherein the Popish Tenets were exposed with no little sharpness. At the desire of Cromwell, Vicar-General of the King, Coverdale reviewed Tyndal's translation, examining it by the best Hebrew copies, and translations. It was first printed at Paris in 1540, and reprinted at London in 1541, and was called "The Bible of the Larger Volume," or "The Great Bible." To this was prefixed an excellent Preface of Archbishop Cranmer. It was countenanced by a Proclamation of the King, commanding it to be fixed up, so as to be read by the people in all Churches; with a penalty of 40s, a month upon every Parish which did not procure one. This Bible was again revised, at the beginning of Edward the Sixth's reign, in 1549, at the direction of Archbishop Cranmer and another edition was published in 1551. There was another translation, or revision in Queen Elizabeth's time, called "the Bishops' Bible;" because the Queen, by her Letters-Patents, had empowered several Bishops to review it. The last translation was made in the 5th of King James the First, 1607. The Psalms annexed to the CommonPrayer Book, are not taken out of either of these two last translations, but out of "the Great Bible" translated by Tyndal and Coverdale, and revised by Cranmer, neither of these two last translations being extant when the Common-Prayer was compiled in 1548. The translation is plain and easy, and fitter for devotion, as the Hebraisms are not so much retained as in the others. Yet as Coverdale was a good Orientalist, he had not much fewer advantages than those who followed him. He had the Hebrew text of the Psalms, with St. Jerome's translation called "Hebraica Veritas," published in Erasmus's edition of St. Jerome's works, which this translation very much follows: besides, Pagnin's Interlineary Version was extant before the Great Bible was printed: for Arias Montanus speaks of three editions of that translation before that published by him and Pagnin died in 1541, the very year the Great Bible was published. These translations had likewise before them the version of Munster, published at Basil, 1534, which in many places they follow. (Nicholls.)

:

N

¶ The Order how the rest of Holy Scripture (1) is appointed to be read.

THE Old Testament is appointed for the first Lessons at Morning and Evening Prayer,(2) so as the most part thereof (3) will be read every year once, as in the Calendar is appointed. (4)

(1) This Book of the Law shall not depart out of thy mouth, but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayst observe to do according to all that is written therein.—(Joshua, i. 8.)—Think not that I am come to destroy the Law or the Prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.—(Matt. v. 17.)—When this Epistle is read amongst you, cause that it be read also in the Church of the Laodiceans.--(St. Paul, Coloss. iv. 16.)

Between the two Covenants there is neither repugnance, nor contrariety of meaning: the difference is merely verbal.—I have repeatedly said, that two Covenants, two handmaids, and two sisters, are the attendants on one Lord. Christ is announced by the Prophets, Christ is preached in the New Testament. The Old declared beforehand the things of the New, and the New interpreted those of the Old. (Chrysostom's Hom. Book 6.)

(2) The times of worshipping God in Public among the Jews, were Morning and Evening, by God's own appointment; the Morning and Evening Sacrifice drawing the people together for that purpose. "Thou shalt offer “upon the Altar two Lambs of the first year, DAY BY DAY continually: the one “Lamb thou shalt offer in the MORNING, and the other Lamb thou shalt offer "at EVEN,”—Exod. xxix. 38. Which precept was constantly observed, as long as the City and Polity of the Jews stood. Josephus says, "Twice a “ day, in the Morning, and at the ninth hour, they offer sacrifice.” Lib. xiv. c. 8. And that this was the hour of Prayer, for devout people to go to the Temple, to perform their devotions there, is plain from Acts iii. 1. “Peter and “John went up together into the Temple, at the hour of prayer, being the ninth “ hour.” The primitive Christians constantly observed these two solemn times of prayer; and very early added a third. For, as some devout Jews had a third hour, which they devoted to Prayer, (viz. our twelve o'clock), when they retired to some private place, as we see in the example of Peter, who “went “up upon_the_house-top to pray, about the sixth hour." Acts x. 9. so the primitive Christians turned this into a settled hour of public devotion. The monks were for more hours of stated Prayer: and, in St. Basil's time, they amounted to seven. At last these were established by decree of Pope Pelagius the Second,

The New Testament is appointed for the second Lessons at Morning and Evening Prayer, and shall be read over orderly every year thrice, besides the Epistles and Gospels; except the Apocalypse, out of which there are only certain Proper Lessons appointed upon divers Feasts.

And to know what Lessons shall be read every day, look for the day of the Month in the Calendar following, and there ye shall find, the Chapters (5) that shall be read for the Lessons both at Morning and Evening Prayer; except only the Moveable Feasts, which are not in the Calendar, and the

66

and the Psalms appointed for each hour; which was the rise of what they call CANONICAL HOURS" in the Church of Rome. Our Church, in her Reformation, has brought back the solemn times of Prayer, to the most ancient institntion; and enjoined only MORNING and EVENING Prayer to be used. (Nicholls.) (3) To omit what is in-edifying our Church hath good warrant from that rule of the Apostle, "Let all things be done to edification." (L'Estrange, 56.) (4) Both the length and number of the Lessons appear to have been different in different places. Sometimes a portion of Scripture, equal to three or four ordinary chapters, was recited as one Lesson: and four, three, or at least two Lessons, were always read in the course of the service. Of these, some were taken out of the Old Testament, and some out of the New. To this general practice the ancient Church of Rome afforded a singular exception. From old Roman ritualists, Stillingfleet has maintained that for upwards of 400 years after Christ, no part of Scripture was read in that Church, but the epistles of St. Paul, and the four Gospels. Afterwards the Psalms, or, at least, selections from the Psalms, were recited; and, in process of time, Lessons taken from the Old and New Testament were introduced. This practice, Stillingfleet thinks was borrowed from the Gallic Church, as other enlargements of the Romish offices confessedly were. (1 Shepherd's Elucidation, 168.)

(5) The division of the Bible into Sections has very much varied. Amongst the Jews these Sections were called "Parasha's," and which are marked on the sides of the Bibles, DDD. They are in all 54, in order to suit the Sabbaths of the Jewish year, which consisted of lunar months. The Bible was anciently divided into Titles, of which there were in St. Matthew 355-in St. Mark 335 -in St. Luke 343-in St. John 332, &c. Some have thought that the distinction of chapters as now used was by Lanfranc Archbishop of Canterbury, A. D. 1060; but others say by Stephen Langton Archbishop of Canterbury, about A. D. 1224. The division of chapters into verses was the work of Robert Stephens, the learned Paris printer, A. D. 1550, according to the testimony of his son, Henry Stephens, in his Epistles before the Greek Concordance.

« السابقةمتابعة »