Paraphrase Upon the Books of the Psalms, Book 1
THE BOOK OF PSALMS.a
BOOK of Psalms] The Hebrew foreign from foreign which in Piel signifies to praise, or celebrate, a foreignor depraedicate, doth import no more, than hymnes or lauds, accordingly the singing them is Mat. xxvi. 30. exprest by foreign, having sung an hymn. But being, as they generally were, set to be sung to Musical instruments (see Psal. CL.) i. e. sung and plai'd together, which is the notion of foreign (foreign, saith Hesychius, and foreign a Psalterie, was, we know, a Musical instrument, and foreign and foreign are in the antient Glossaries rendred foreign and foreign gently to touch, and move, as the Musician touches the Lute or Harp) therefore the Lxxii have not unfitly rendred it foreign, and thence the Latine and we Psalmi, Psalms, and the Syriack, foreign from foreign to modulate either with voice or instrument, to sing or play;; and this title is made use of by S. Luke in the New Testament Luke 20.42. foreign, the Book of Psalms. The Lxxii now read not the word foreign book, but either simply foreign Psalms, or foreign Psalterie (which yet properly signifies the instrument to which the Psalms were sung, sometimes called foreign from whence the Latine nablium, sometimes foreign a decachord or instrument of ten strings) but the Syriack as well as the Hebrew reteining that title, foreign foreignand foreign book of Psalms, and S. Luke citing it in that style, there is little reason to doubt, but this was the antient Greek inscription of it. But this without question prefixt here by†Esdra, quantum creditur, Psalmos post captivitatem in unum librum colligente &c. Hilar. Prolog. in Psal. p. 333. Esdras, or whosoever else it was, that made this Collection of divine hymns. For it is sure that all these Psalms are not the fruit or product of one inspired brain. David indeed was the composer of many, if not most of them, who is therefore called the sweet Psalmist of Israel foreign sweet in Psalms, or the composer of such sweet melodies, by whom the Spirit of the Lord spake, and his word was in his tongue. 11 Sam. xxiii. 1, 2. that man very highly valued, and advanced by God, a King, and the source of the Jewish Monarchie, as it was to spring from the tribe of Judah, and withall a Prophet by God inspired (and accordingly as these Psalms contein many signal predictions of the Messias, who was to spring from Davids loins, and so of Gods dealings under the Gospel both with his faithful servants, and obstinate enemies, so in the Syriack inscription of them, to the Hebrew title, the book of Psalms, is added foreign of David the King and Prophet.) Unto other his titles,*De Civ. Dei l. 17. c. 14. S. Austin from the authority of 11 Sam. xxiii. 2. addes, vir in Canticis eruditus, qui harmoniam Musicam non vulgari voluptate sed fidei voluntate dilexerat, that he was eminently skilled in canticles as one that loved musical harmony with the will of faith (thereby to glorifie his Creator and Redeemer) and not from any sensual pleasure, such as men vulgarly take in Musick. So*ad Paulin. S. Hierome also, David Simonides noster, Pindarus, & Alcaeus, Flaccus quoque, Catullus, & Serenus, Christum lyra personat, & decachordo Psalterio ab inferis suscitat resurgentem. Simonides, Pindar, and Alcaeus among the Greeks, and Horace, and Catullus, and Serenus among the Latines, were famous for their Odes or Poetick songs, but David to us supplies abundantly the place of all them, sounds Christ upon the harp, and with the ten stringed Psalterie raiseth or celebrates his rising from Hades. But the most illustrious title of this Psalmist is, that he was the Father of that line from whence our Saviour Christ sprang, and so was fitted above any other, by being the first King of that line, to be, in a signal manner, a type of him. But beside David, some other there were, who composed some of these Psalms; of Moses there can be no question, the title as well as matter of the ninetieth Psalm assuring us it was written by him. For Asaph also there is some probability, when of Hezekiah we read, that he commanded the Levites to sing praise unto the Lord with the words of David, and of Asaph the Seer, 2 Chron. 29.30. where Asaph is set down to be, as a Prophet, so a Psalmist also, and joyned with David as such; and agreeably the fiftieth Psalm inscribed foreign foreignto Asaph, is by the Chaldee affirmed to be foreign by the hand of Asaph, and so some others also. And although foreign being a note of the dative case, may possibly signifie no more than that the Psalm was committed to him, as to a singer, or player on instruments, as Psalms are frequently inscribed foreign to the Prefect of his Musick, and then the Chaldee foreign may also refer to that, according to that of 1 Chron. xvi. 7. where David delivered the cv Psalm into the hand of Asaph and his brethren, (and so 'tis evident the thirty ninth Psalm which is exprest to be Davids, is yet inscribed foreign to Jeduthun, who as well as Asaph is called the Kings Seer 11 Chron. XXXV. 15.) yet when 'tis remembred, that this is the form of inscribing Davids Psalms, foreign (foreign being there taken for of, not to) and that of the several Psalms, cv.xcvi.cvi. which are in part recited, 1 Chron. xvi. 8. &c. 23. &c. 34.35, 36, 37. and said to have been delivered into the hand of Asaph, not one of them is now inscribed foreign, it still remains probable from the force of 11 Chron. xxix. 30. that foreign denotes Asaph the Composer or Author of those Psalms. As for the others, which are found named in the titles of the Psalms, the sons of Coreh, Eman, Ethan, Jeduthun, it cannot be concluded, that those Psalms were composed by them, it being more probable, that they were to be sung by them, as of the sons of Coreh seems clear, or that it is upon some other account, that their names are there mentioned, of which something shall be said, when we come to those Psalms. Of some other Psalms there is little doubt, but they were composed long after David, some in time of the captivity (particularly Psal. cxxxvii. which mentions their sitting by the waters of Babylon) and some at, and after their return, (to which purpose the Syriack understands all the Psalms foreign of degrees, i. e. of ascending from Babylon) the authors of which being not specified, there is no ground for any conjecture in that matter.
Of other mens various opinions concerning the Authors of the Psalms, the reader may resort to Sixtus Senensis on the one side, who from the authority of Athanasius and Cyprian &c. ascribes but seventy three to David, those which have his name in their Title, and the rest to Moses, Solomon, Asaph, Ethan, Eman, Jeduthun, and three sons of Coreh; and to Jacobus Peres, who from Origen, Ambrose, Augustine, Hilarie, Cassiodore, makes David the sole author of them all. Of which also see Ludovicus Vives on S. Augustine de Civit. Dei l. XVII. c. 14. Between these two extremes, the middle opinion seems to me most probable, upon the grounds which are here premised, and upon several prejudices, which lie against each extreme, which I shall not here inlarge to insert; but onelyonly adde, that if there were any (asaDe Civ. Dei l. xvii. c. 14. S. Augustine saith there were) which would allow David to be the Author of none of those Psalms, which were inscribed ipsi David in the dative case, they of all others were most worthy refuting, there being no other form of mentioning David in any of the Psalms, but that of foreign foreignwhich is by the Latine indifferently rendred, sometimes Psalmus David, sometimes ipsi David, who yet sure, if we will believe our Saviour Luk. xx. 42. was the Author of some of them.
Of this foreign book of Psalms, there is, among some of the Hebrews, a division into five parts, every of which is called foreign also, foreign, the second book, beginning at Psal. XLII. foreign: the third book, beginning at Psal. LXXIII. foreign: the fourth book beginning at Psal. XC. foreign the fifth book beginning at Psal. CVII. And every of these five solemnly concluding with some special form of praising God, Amen and Amen, the three former, Amen Hallelu-jah, the fourth, every thing that hath breath Hallelu-jah, praise the Lord, the last. How antient this division is appears no otherwise, than that it is observed in the Syriack translation, foreign the second book follows, and so in the rest, but neither in the Chaldee nor LXXII. And the New-Testament, which useth those other forms of citation, the book of Psalms, Luk. XX. 42. Act. 1.10. the Psalms Luk. XXIV. 44. taking notice also of the more minute division into several Psalms, the second Psalm, Act. XIII. 33. and another Psalm v. 35. doth not acknowledge this partition. Of which also it is S. Hilaries affirmation, that it was received but of some of the Jewish writers. Aliqui Hebraeorum eos in quinque libros divisos volunt esse, some of the Hebrews will have them divided into five Books, Others, it seems, not so dividing them. Of these Books, see note on Ps. XL. 6.
In that lesser division (introduced, faithbProlōg. in Psal. p. 334. Hilary, by the LXXII. and owned by S. Luke in the New-Testament) into the first, second, and other Psalms, some variety also there is, the ninth and tenth Psalms, which are several in the Hebrew, and Chaldee, and Syriack, being united and conjoyned, in the translation, at least the copies which we now have of the LXXII. and so in the Latine and Arabick and Aethiopick, which follow the LCXXII. And so from that tenth Psalm forward, the numbers differ, the eleventh in the Hebrew being but the tenth in the Greek, &c. and so in the rest to Psal. CLVII. which being by the Lxxii divided into two, their cxLvi. and cxLvii. (the latter of which begins at v. 12. Praise the Lord, O Jerusalem, and iscNihil horum in authenticis Lxxii. translatorum libris ita editum reperitur Hil. Pro…. in Psal. p. 332. now in our copies inscribed, as some others, foreign, Haggaee's and Zacharie's Allelujah) by this means the number of CL. is compleated by the Lxxii and those that follow them; as also by the Syriack, who though they joyne not the tenth to the ninth Psalm, yet unite CXIV. and CXV. and so would come short of the number also, if they did not, with the Lxxii. divide the cxLvii. After the number of CL. thus made up, some Greek copies have xii more, but the Syriack sets this mark upon them, there are some who have added xii. others, foreign we want them not; yet sets down the first of them, as being inscribed to David, and written as in his person, foreign, when he entred the lists with Goliah: But this is acknowledged by the Greek inscription (foreign) to be without the number, not at all taken notice of by the Latine; (probably the addition of some Greek) and so comes not into our present consideration.
Other divisions there are of the Psalms, as into Poenitential, and Eucharistical, but all will not be comprized under this, or the like divisions. The Syriack take notice, in their Postscript to the Psalms, as of the number of the CL. Psalms, and five books, so of the fifteen Psalms of Degrees, and sixty Lauds. Of which somewhat will be said in their proper places.