she apprehended the Churches Ioy in the natiuitie of Christ By her fruitfulnesse and the weakenesse of Peninnah shee was informed how the spirituall Ofspring of the Church should be multiplied and the children of the Synagogue decrease Yea raising her meditations aboue the first and second obiects she prophetically personates the Spouse of Christ and deliuers a most excellent confession of her Redeemer Jn whom all these things are come to passe as appeared at and since his manifestation For the blessed Virgin Mary in her Magnificat acknowledgeth many particular sayings of this Song to be euen then fulfilled Moreouer this Hymne may be sung in our reformed Churches to comfort vs against the pride and arrogancie of the Romish Strumpet For though shee Peninnah-like lately vaunted the multitude of her issue and vpbraided the true Church as Mother onely of a few poore and obscure Children Thanks be to God she that had so many is now growne feebler And our holy Mother hath had seauen Children euen many that are aduanced to be Kings and to sit vpon the most eminent thrones of glory in the earth according to this Prophecy The Song And Hannah prayed and said NOw in the Lord my heart doth pleasure take My horne is in the Lord aduanced high Vnto my foes an answere will I make Be-cause in thy saluation ioy had I. Like thee there is not any holy one For other Lord without thee there is none Nor with our God may any God compare So proudly vaunt not then as heretofore But let your tongues hereafter now forbeare From all presumptuous words for euermore For why the Lord 's a God that each thing knowes And all that is intended doth dispose Their bow is broken now who were so stout Girt round with vigor those who stumbled are The full themselues for bread haue hyred out Which they haue left to doe that hungry were The barren now doth seauen children owne And she that had so many weake is growne The LORD doth slay and he reuiues the slaine He to the graue doth bring and backe he beares The LORD makes poore and rich he makes againe He throweth downe and vp on high he reares He from the dust and from the dunghill brings The begger and the poore to sit with Kings He reares them to inherit glories throne Because the LORD' 's the earth's supporters be He hath the world erected thereupon The footing of his Saints preserueth He. And dumbe in darkenesse sinners shall remaine For in their strength are all men strong in vaine The LORD will to destruction bring them all Eu'n eu'ry one that shall with him contend The LORD from heauen thunder on them shall And iudge the world vnto the farthest end He shall his King with strength enough supply And raise the power of his Annointed high THE Prayer of NEHEMIAH Nehem. 1.5 The Argument and Vse NEhemiah being in Babilon and hauing receiued intelligence by one of his brethren that came from Iudea of the miserable estate wherein Ierusalem and the house of God then stood The Text saith he wept at the reâ—ation fasted and made this prayer vnto God in behalfe of the Israelites In which Prayer first acknowledging the Maiestie Justice and mercy of God he humbly desireth his importunate suit may haue fauourable audience And the sooner to obtaine it he renouncing all worthinesse in his owne or his peoples merits confesseth the hainousnesse both of his and their offences Secondly he vrgeth Gods promised mercies vpon repentance Thirdly he is earnest in regard they are his owne elected people for whom he prayes and thereupon renewes againe his petition The effect whereof is that God would be pleased to prosper him in the affaires he had in hand and graunt him fauour in the Kings sight whom as by the sequell in the story it appeared he then intended to solicite touching the re-edifying of the Cittie and house of God This Prayer may be in a literall sence said or sung by the Church of God when in any affaire of hers she needeth the fauour of some temporall Prince Or by any member of hers in her person vpon a publike occasion Yea for his particular necessitie and in his owne person also he may vse it when he would desire the good-will of man in such things as nearely concerne him and his family And me thinkes it should not onely beget in vs a great hope of good-speed when we come to God with those words whereunto he hath giuen 〈◊〉 prosperous successe as he did to these but we may be the more confident also in our prayers when we vse those formes of speech which the holy-spirit hath inuented Moreouer this Prayer leauing out the two last lines will serue for a confession of our sinnes before any suit which we would present vnto the Maiestie of God Or if we will but alter according to our seuerall necessities it will serue for a Hymne in many other occasions As for example if thou wouldest vse it before thou and thy family beginne their labour in stead of the last Disticke sing thus And be thou pleas'd Oh LOLD to blesse Our labours with a good successe If thou with others hast any iourney in hand change it thus And LORD all dangers keepe vs from Both going forth and comming home If thou be a commander and leading thy company to the battell alter it thus And be thou pleased in the fight To make vs victors by thy might If it be in a time of great famine turne it thus And LORD vouchsafe thou in this need Our soulâ—s and bodiâ—s both to feed If thou be a Diuine or Schoolemaster imployed aboâ—t the instruction of others and wouldest beginne thy exercises with this Hymne end it thus And grant that we LORD in thy feare Mâ—y to our profit speake and heare And thus you may due vpon many other occasions according as your necâ—ssities and deuotion shall moue you But lest the ignorant may thinke the Title of the Sons of Jsrael will be improperly applied to vs Christians Or lest they may imagine that the mentioning of Gods threatning a dispersion with his promise of gathering his people againe vnto his house will be impertinent to vs or our occasions For the first let them read Saint Paul and he will tell them who are true Iewes and Israelites Romans 2.28 and Romans 9.6.7.8 And as for the last supposition They must know that euery Childe of God may be in a spirituall sence said to be dispersed among the heathen whensoeuer by his sinnes he is driuen from the presence of God and distracted by the seuerall vanities of the world And as often as he returnes by repentance with hearty prayer he is brought backe from his wandâ—ings to be more setled in the Church which is the place God hath chosen for his Name And so no part of this Hymne will seeme impertinent to vs. The Song LOrd God of heauen thou that art The mighty God and full of fearâ— Who neuer
thereon shall tread Their way is right that righteous are Whose path thou well dost heed Vpon thy Course of iudgements wee Oh LORD attending were And to record thy Name and Thee Our soules desirous are On thee my minde with strong desires Is fixed in the night And after thee my heart enquires Before the morning light For when thy righteous Iudgements are Vpon the earth discern'd By those that doe inhabite there Vprighnesse should be learn'd Yet sinners for no terror will Iust dealing vnderstand But they continue doing ill Eu'n in the righteous land Vnto the glory of the LORD They will not heedfull be Thy hand aduanc't on high oh LORD They will not daigne to see But they shall see and see with shame That doe thy people spight Yea from thy foes shall rise a flame That will deuoure them quite Then LORD for vs thou wilt procure That wee in peace may be Because that eu'ry worke of our Is wrought for vs by thee And LORD our God though we are brought To other Lords in thrall Of thee alone shall be our thought Vpon thy name to call They are deceast and neuer shall A farther life obtaine They die and shall not rise at all To tyrannize againe For to that end thou visited And wide dispers't them hast Vntill their fame was perished And vtterly defac'st But LORD encrea'st thy people are Encrea'st they are by thee And thou art glorified as farre As any lands there be For LORD in their distresses when Thy chast'ning on them lay They vnto thee did hasten then And without ceasing pray As she with Childe is pain'd when as Her throwes of bearing be And cryes in pangs before thy face Oh LORD so fared We. We haue conceiu'd beene pain'd and all Was for a windie birth The world no safetie yeeld's nor fall The dwellers of the earth Thy dead shall liue they rise againe With my dead body shall Oh you that in the dust remaine Awake and sing you all For as the dewe doth hearbs renewe That buried seem'd before So earth shall through thy heau'nly dewe Her dead aliue restore My people to thy Chambers fare Shut close the dore to thee And stay a while a moment there Till past the furie be For loe the LORD doth now arise He commeth from his place To punish their impieties Who doe the world possesse And now the earth no longer shall The blouds in her conceale But shee shall be compelled all Her murthers to reueale THE Prayer of HEZEKIAH Esay 37.15 The Argument and the Vse IT is recorded in the 36. and 37. of Esay that Senacharib King of Asiria sent an army against Ierusalem and that Rabshakah his principall commander not onely threatned to take it but blasphemed also against the power of God Which when Hezekiah receiued notice of it is said he repaired vnto the house of the LORD and made this Prayer there Wherein hauing by the attributes there giuen him acknowledged how able God was to be auenged he desires the LORD both to heare him and to consider the blasphemy of his aduersarie Then to manifest the necessitie of assistance He vrgeth the power of that foe ouer those that serued not the true God And as it seemes desireth deliuerance not so much in regard of his owne safetie as that the blasphemer and all the world may know the difference betweene the power of the LORD and the arrogant braggs of Man This Prayer may be vsed by the Church whensoeuer her powerfull and open aduersarie the Turke or any other Aduersarie whom God hath suffered to preuaile against false worshippers shall thereupon growe proud and threaten Her also as if in despight of God he had formerly preuailed by his owne strength And the name of Senacharib may be mistically applied to any such enemy Moreouer it may serue any of vs Christians for a prayer against those secret blasphemies which the Deuill whispers vnto our soules Or when by temptations he seekes to make vs dispaire and threatens to be our ruine maugre our Redeemer laying before our eyes how many others he hath destroyed who seemed to be in as good estate as we For this is indeed the Enemie who hath ouerthrowne whole Countries and Nations and he doth at this day ruine many thousands with their gods euen the meanes whereby they trusted to be safe for strength temporall power riches superstitious worships the wisedome of flesh and bloud vnsanctified Moral vertues worldly policie Idols such like wherein many put their trust are the works of mens hands and may he rightly termed the gods which that misticall Asirian Prince and our aduersarie hath power to destroy The Song And Hezâ—kiah prayed vnto the LORD saying O Lord of hoasts and God of Isra-el Thou who betweene the Cherubins dost dwell Of all the world thou God alone art King And heau'n and earth vnto their forme did'st bring Lord bow thine eare to heare attentiue be Lift vp thine eyes and daigne oh LORD to see What words Senacharib hath cast abroad And his proud message to the liuing God Truth LORD it is that lands and kingdomes all Haue to the Kings of Ashur beene a thrall Yea they their Gods into the fire haue throwne For Gods they were not but of wood and stone Mens work they were men therfore spoil'd them haue Then from his power vs LORD our God now saue That all the kingdomes of the earth may see Thou art the LORD and onely thou art hee Hezekiahs song of Thanksgiuing Esay 38.10 The Argument and Vse WE finde this Song in the 38. Chapter of Esay where is set before it this Title The writing of Hezekiah King of Iuda when he had beene sicke and was recouered of his sicknesse By which you may perceiue the occasion of it And if you consider the Song it selfe many particular circumstances are remarkable whereby the Author sheweth Gods mercy to haue beene exceeding great vnto him First in respect that he should else haue beene cut off in the best of his Age and perhaps when his sinnes might haue made him ripe aswell for hell as the graue Secondly in regard he should neuer haue seene againe the Temple of the Lord to praise him there with the rest of his people Thirdly if he had beene then taken away His dwelling that is his posteritie had beene cut off for at that time he had no children and so he had not lost his life onely but the hope of the Messias his Redeemer Fourthly his disease was so violent and vnsufferable that he thought not to haue liued out one day Fiftly God deliuered him when he was not tormented in body onely but when he suffered also extreame agonies of the Soule Lastly the greatnesse of Gods mercy is here praised in that when be deliuered him from the terrors of death he forgaue him also his sinnes which were the cause of that sickenesse Then seeming to haue entered into a serious consideration of all this He confesseth who they are
Isra'l through those Countries all In which they far or nigh dispersed be Because of that transgression wherewithall They haue transgressed and offended thee To vs our Kings our Dukes and Fathers doth Disgrace pertaine oh LORD for angring thee Yet mercy LORD our God and pardon both To thee belongs though we rebellious be For as for vs we sore haue disobey'd The Lord our God his voyce and would not heare To keepe his lawes which he before vs laid By those his seruants which his Prophetâ— were Yea all that of the race of Isra'l be Against thy law extreamely haue misdone And that they might not â—isten vnto thee They from thy voice oh LORD are backward gone Which makes both Curse and Oth on them descend That in the Law of Moses written was The seruant of that God whom we offend And now his speeches he hath brought to passe On vs and on our Iudges he doth bring That plague wherewith he threatned vs and them For vnder heau'n was neuer such a thing As now is acted on Ierusalem As Moses written Law doth beare record Now all this mischiefe is vpon vs brought And yet we prayed not before the LORD That leauing sinne we might his Truth be taught For this respect the LORD in wait hath laid That he inflict on vs this mischiefe might And seeing we his voyce haue disobay'd In all his workes the LORD our God's vpright But now oh LORD our God who from the land Of cruell Aegypt brought thy people hast And by the power of thine almighty hand Atchieu'd a name which to this day doth last Though we haue sinned and committed ill Yet LORD by all that righteousnesse in thee From thy Ierusalem thy holy hill Oh let thy wrath and anger turned be For by those wicked things which we haue don And through our fathers sinnes Ierusalem Yea thine owne people haue the hatred won And the reproach of all that neighbour them Now therefore to thy Seruant's suite encline His prayer heare our God and let thy face Eu'n for the LORDS deare sake vouchsafe to shine Vpon thy now forsaken holy place Thine eares encline thou oh my God and heare Lift vp thine eyes and vs oh looke vpon Vs who forsaken with thy Citty are The Citty where thy name is called on For we vpon our selues presume not thus Before thy presence our request to make For any righteousnesse that is in vs But for thy great and tender Mercies sake LORD heare forgiue oh LORD and weigh the same Oh LORD performe it and no more deferre For thine owne sake my God for by thy name Thy Citty and thy people called are THE Prayer of IONAH Ionah 2. The Argument and Vse AS Ionah fled from the presence of the LORD he was followed by a tempest whose furie would not be allayed vntil the offender was cast into the Sea where God had mercie on him and sent a Fish to preserue him Which in humane reason seemed a more terrible danger then that he was deliuered from But the safetie which at his first entrance hee found in so vnsafe a place made him sensible of Gods fauour and begat in him a firme beliefe that he should be totally deliuered And thereupon being yet in the Fishes belly made this Prayer to praise God for deliuering him in so great an extremity And he did it as speaking of a thing already done the better to shew vs the soundnesse of his faith The things remarkeable are these The place where he prayed the terrible and vnauiodable danger that compassed him the dispaire he was nigh falling into the timely application of Gods mercy the comfort it infused into him the occasions which draw men into these perils the vowe made vpon this deliuerance and lastly the reason of that vowe Now this buriall of Ionas in the fishes belly and his deliuery from thence was a signe of the buriall and resurrection of our blessed Sauiour Mat. 12.40 And therefore we must not thinke he made this Prayer onely in his owne person but in the misticall body of Iesus Christ also For by contemplating the circumstances of his danger and deliuerance and hauing the spirit of prophecie he apprehended the misteries of our Redemption By the ship ready to be sunke through that tempest in which he was cast away he conceiued the wrath of God against the world for sinne and that it would not be appeased without satisfaction By his owne offence he foresaw hâ—w Christ hauing taken our sinne vpon him should to bring peace vnto the world be deliuered ouer vnto the rage of Pilate and the Iewes By his being receiued into the fishes belly and there preserued aliue he foresaw how Christ should be swallowed vp of the graue and yet remaine vncorrupted And by the fore-sight he had of his owne comming safe to the shore againe he apprehended that ioyful resurrection of our Redeemer whose misticall body the Church lay all that while as it were in the very Jawes of death and hell These things Ionah apprehended through the spirit of prophecie and by the obiects aforesaid composed this Prayer to set forth the mercies of God and to expresse in what a fearefull estate mankinde was vntill Christ was risen againe in victory And therefore J thinke as it will become vs Christians often to sing it in memory thereof so especially vpon that day which we celebrate in memoriall of our Sauiours Resurrection The Song IN my distresse I cry'd to thee oh Lord And thou wert pleased my complaint to heare Out from the bowels of the grauâ— I roar'â— and to my voyce thou didst encline thine eare For I amid the Sea was cast And to the bottome there thou plung'd me hast The flouds about me rowling circles made Thy waues and billowes ouer-flow'd me quite Wherewith alas vnto my selfe I said I am for euer-more depriu'd thy sight Yet once againe aduance shall I Vnto thy holy Temple-ward mine eye Eu'n to my soule the waters clos'd me had Or'e-swallow'd by the deepes I there was pent About my head the weedes a wreath had made Vnto the hils foundation downe I went And so that forth I could not get The earth an euer-lasting barre had set Then thou oh LORD my God oh thou wert he That from corruption didst my life defend For when my soule was like to faint in me Thou didst oh LORD into my thoughts descend My prayer vnto thee I sent And to thy holy Temple vp it went Those who giue trust to vaine and foolish lies Despisers of their owne good safetie be But I will offer vp a sacrifice Of singing praises with my voice to thee And will performe what vow'd I haue For it belongs to thee oh LORD to saue THE Song of HABAKKVK Habak 3. The Argument and Vse BEfore the following Song is vsually this TITLE A Prayer of the PROPHET Habakkuk vpon Sigionoth or as most Translations haue it For the ignorances that is for the comfort and better information of the people
of Isr'ell prayse LORD when thou wentst from Seir When thou lef'st Edom field Earth shooke and heauen dropped there The Clouds did water yeeld LORD at thy sight a trembling fright Vpon the Mountaines fell And at thy looke Mount Sinai shooke LORD God of Jsrael Erewhile in Shamghar's dayes Old Anah's valiant sonne And late in Jaels time the wayes Frequented were of none The passengers were wanderers In crooked pathes vnknowne And none durst dwell through Jsrael But in a walled towne Vntill I Deborah ' rose I rose a mother here In Jsr'el when new Gods they chose That fil'd their gates with warre And they had there nor shield nor speare In their possession then To arme for fight one Israelite 'Mong forty thousand men My hearts affection set On Israels Leaders is Who with the willing people met Oh praise the LORD for this Sing all of yee who vsed be To ride on Asses gray All you that yet in Middin siâ— Or trauaile by the way Where they their water drew Those places being cleare From noyse of Archers Let them shew The LORD's vprightnes there Through Jsrael all the hamlets shall His righteousnesse record And downe vnto the gates shall goe The people of the LORD Rise Deborah arise Rise rise and sing a song Abinoams sonne oh Barak rise Thy Captiues lead along By him made thrall their Princes all To the Suruiuer be To triumph on the mightie one The LORD vouchsafed me A root from Ephraim Gainst Amaleck arose And of the people next to him The Beniamites were those From Machir where good leaders are Came well experienc't men And they came downe from Zabulon That handle well the penne With Deborah did goe The Lords of Isachar Eu'n Isachar and Barak to Was one among them there Who forth was sent and downe he went On foote the lower way In Ruben there diuisions were Great thoughts of heart had they The bleating flockes to heare Oh wherefore didst thou stay In Ruben there diuisions were Great thoughts of heart had they And why did they of Gilead stay On Iordan's other side Or what was than the reason Dan Did in his Tents abide Among his harbours nigh The sea there Asher lay But Zabulon nor Nepthali Did keepe themselues away These people are who fearelesse dare Their liues to death expose And would not yeeld the hilly-field Yet Kings did them oppose The Cananitish Kings At Tana'ch fought that day Close by Megiddoes water-springs Yet bore no prize away The Starres from out the heauens fought Gainst Sisera they stroue They in their course and some with force Away brocke Kishon droue Old Kishon that was long A famous Torrent knowne Oh thou my soule oh thou the strong Hast brauely trodden downe Their horses by their prauncing high Their broken hoofes did wound Those of the strong that kickt and flung And fiercely beat the ground A curse on Meroz lay Curst let her dwellers be The Angell of the LORD doth say Extreamely curse it yee The cause of this accursing is They came not to the fight To helpe the LORD to help the LORD Against the men of might But Iael Hebers Spouse The Kenite blest be she More then all women more then those That vse in Tents to be To him doth she giue milke when he Doth but for water wish She butterfets and forth it sets Vpon a Lordly dish Her left hand reacht a Nayle A workmans hammer streight Her right hand takes and therewithall She Sisera doth smite His head she tooke when she had strooke His pierced temples through He fell withall and in the fall Hee at her feete did bow He at her feete did bow Whom falling life forsooke And Sisera his mother now Doth from her window looke Thus cries she at the lattice grate Why staies his Charr'ot so Returning home oh wherefore come His Charr'ot wheeles so slowe There-with her Ladies wise To her an answere gaue Yea to her selfe her selfe replies Sure sped saith she they haue And all this while they part the spoile A damzell one or twaie Each homeward beares and Sisera shares A particolour'd pray A pray discolour'd trimme And wrought with paintings rare Wrought through and for the necke of him That taketh spoiles to weare So LORD still so thy foes ore'throw But who in thee delight Oh let them be Sunne-like when he Ascendeth in his might THE Song of HANNAH 1 Samuel 2. The Argument and Vse HAnnah the wife of Elkanah being barren and therefore vpbraided and vexed by Peninnah her Husbands other wife prayeth vnto the LORD for a Sonne And hauing obtained him as you may read in 1 Sam. and the second chapter praiseth God in this Song for being so gratious vnto her And therein diuers things are obseruable First she reioyceth in God her Sauiour for strengthning her and giuing her the vpper hand of her Aduersary Secondly she declareth the holinesse the singularitie and the vnequal'd power of God at a reason why her enemie should be no more so arrogant Thirdly she proceeds to shew how vaine her aduersaries presumption must needs be by further demonstrating her Redeemers knowledge his strength with the certaintie of his decrees and by declaring in some particulars the workes of his Mercy and Justice Fourthly she foretelleth the confusion of sinners the weakenesse of humane â—ssiâ—tance the destruction of those that resist God and the glorious exaltation of him whose aduancement the LORD hath decreed The Song euery good Christian may sing in a literall sence with respect to his owne afflictions and the goodnesse of God whensoeuer by reason of his pouerty or any oppression the vncharitable proud and malitious worldling shall insult ouer him If so be he finde himselfe either outwardly deliuered or inwardly comforted by the spirit of God But thâ— Hymne doth most properly appertaine to the whole Congregation to be sung in the person of the Church And we shall much iniure the meaning of the holy-spirit if we imagine that in this Song of the holy Prophetesse there is no other cause of it considerable then the vnkindnesse betweene her and Peninnah and the Joy she receiued by the birth of Samuel We must then know that Annah which signifieth Grace or Gracious was a type of the Church ef Christ and that Peninnah which is interpreted Forsaken or Despised was a figure of the Iewish Synagogue Seeing without this knowledge we loose the principall consolations which the Song affordeth vs. For when Annah had obtained her sonne of God and entred into consideration of those particulars which had befallen her She did by contemplating them not onely foresee what other things should come to passe concerning her Sonne the Common-wealth of the Iewes and her owne Family but being further enlightned prophecied also of the Kingdome of Christ By contemplating how Peninnah had triumphed on her barrennesse she foresaw hâ—w the Sinagogue of the Iewes should boast her selfe against the Gentiles in their first conuersion By her comfort in the birth of Samuel