WHEN these wars were happily ended, and David was in perfect peace, both at home and abroad, and in a fair profpect of continuing fo for the rest of his life, he then revised and published the laft edition of the eighteenth Pfalm; which contains a fummary of God's fignal mercies and deliverances wrought for him; with fuch an overflowing of gratitude for the divine goodness to him, as infinitely furpaffes all other compofitions, of all other men, upon this head. And what is very fingular, and I hope not unworthy the reader's notice, he hath found the fecret of moft effectually perpetuating his own praise, by perpetuating that of his Maker: whilft he labours to make the praises of GoD glorious, he makes his own eminent, above all other mortals! A fingle inftance will evince this. We never fhould have known, that David was the fwifteft and the strongest of all mankind, if his own thanksgivings had not told us fo; if he had not bleffed GOD for giving him the fwiftness of the hart, and the strength to break a bow of fteel.

THE critical reader will, I hope, not deem it beneath his curiofity, to fee a few paffages

paffages in this Pfalm, published in David's youth, compared with the corrections of his more advanced years: the firft, as they are found in the book of Pfalms; and the last, as they are published in the twenty-fecond chapter of the second book of Samuel.

* As his deliverances were now multiplied, his gratitude feems, as it were, exaggerated, and makes new efforts to exert itself, when every idea, that would exprefs it, feems exhaufted.

a

EVERY eye

will difcern to what infinite advantage this expreffion, The forrows of death, is changed into The waves of death. Nothing can be a finer emblem of an hoft of men, in their feveral ranks, than the waves of the sea, fucceeding one another in their natural order. And when we confider them preffing forward to the deftruction of their adverfaries, they may very properly be termed waves of death.

PSALMS.

Then the

VER. 7. earth fhook and trem

bled, the foundations alfo of the hills moved and were fhaken, becaufe he was wroth.

SAMUEL.

VER. 8. Then the earth fhook and trembled, the foundations of heaven moved and fhook, because he was wroth.

THE hills, fhaking from the foundation at the wrath of GOD, is a noble idea but the foundations of heaven, fhaking at it, is a much nobler! The thought too is strictly juft; for as the eye of the fpectator is toffed to-and-fro, in an earthquake, the heavens muft alfo appear to him to be agitated in the fame manner.

AL

ALTHOUGH David's main purpose in publishing these divine hymns, fetting them to fuited mufic, and finging them in the public worship of GoD, was, to publish to the whole world, his endless gratitude, for the various and wonderful mercies of GOD, bestowed upon him; yet had he a further, and, if poffible, a nobler purpose, in this conduct; I mean, to difperfe true religion throughout every part of his dominions; to inspire the hearts of his people with a true and lively sense of gratitude to GOD, their Benefactor, Protector, and Saviour, as well. as his. David well knew, that true gratitude to GoD is the fureft fource of true religion, and every duty injoined by it. And when it is poured out for public bleffings, in which all partake, naturally mixes with every focial affection, and blends them, as it were, into its own being; and by this means, becomes the very best bond of fociety. And therefore David, by perpetually pouring out the praises of GOD, in the most exalted and heavenly compofitions, and taking all occafions to recount his endless mercies and deliverances wrought for his people from the beginning, took the most effectual means to

fill their hearts with gratitude to their great Benefactor; and, in confequence of that, to render them religiously obfervant of his laws; to render them humane, friendly, and affectionate to one another, and conscientiously faithful and dutiful to their fovereign.

THE wifeft and most eminent of the antients have left many encomiums, both upon the separate and joint power of music and poetry, towards foftening, civilizing, and mending the manners of mankind; and the candid reader will, I am fure, pardon, if not thank, me for tranfcribing a passage to this purpose from Mr. Rollin, one of the most polite and truly valuable authors of this or any age; the greatest lover of truth, and of mankind! Vol. iv. of his Antient History, P. 323, 324. Mufic was cultivated with no lefs application and fuccefs. The antients afcribed wonderful effects to it. They believed it very proper to calm the paffions, foften the manners, and even humanize peòple naturally favage and barbarous. Polybius, a grave and ferious hiftorian, and who is certainly worthy of belief, attributes the extreme difference between two people of Arcadia, the one infinitely beloved and

esteemed