MUSIC. 
Syrian, and brother to Rebecca, Ifaac’s wife; fo that 
the tabret and the harp fliould be ranked among Affy- 
rian inftruments. 
After this time the facred text furriiflies no mufical 
incident till the year 1491 before Chrift, when we have 
the firffc hymn, or pfalm, to the Supreme Being, upon 
record. It contains the pious effufions of Mofes, after 
the paflage of the Red Sea, at the head of the whole peo¬ 
ple of Ifrael, juft efcaped from bondage. Then Jang 
Mofes and the children of Ijrael this fong unto the Lord, and 
Jpalte, faying, 1 will fing unto the Lord, for he hath tri¬ 
umphed glorioufy, &c. Exod. xv. Mofes is feconded on 
this occafion by Miriam, the prophetefs, and filter of 
Aaron, who took a timbrel in her hand, ver. 20 ; and all the 
women went out after her with timbrels and with dances. 
And Miriam anfwered them, Sing ye to the Lord, Sec. 
Here is an early inftance of women being permitted to 
bear a part in the performance of religious rites; as well 
as of vocal mufic being accompanied by inftrumental, 
and by dancing. 
On fome occafions, one of the choirs fung a,fingle 
verfe of a hymn, which was anfwered by the other by a 
verfe in fome refpedl correfpondent to the find. The 
133th Pfalm is obvioufly adapted to three choirs; the 
high prieft with the houfe of Aaron conftituting the 
fir ft; the Levites, the J'econd; and the congregation, the 
third; each having its diftindt part, and all at dated in¬ 
tervals uniting in full chorus. From an analyfis of this 
pfalm it might ealily be fhown, that the Hebrew hymn is 
a compofition not lefs regular than the Grecian ode. One 
cannot but obferve too, that it was from the Jewifli that 
the Chriftian church derived the cuftom of finging in al¬ 
ternate chorus. Pliny (lib. x. epift. 97.) obferves of the 
primitive Chriftians, that “ they repeat alternate verfes to 
Chrift, as to a god.” And the remains of this ancient 
cuftom are yet evident in the alternate or refponfive parts 
of the liturgy of the eftabliftied church. See Bingham’s 
Antiq. xiv. 1. 
St. Stephen tells us, (Adis vii. 21, 22.) that Mofes, 
having been educated by Pharoah’s daughter “ as her 
own l’on, was learned in all the wifdom of the Egyp¬ 
tians.” And Clemens Alexandrinus particularizes his 
acquirements, by affirming that “ he was inftrudted in his 
maturer age by the Egyptians in all liberal fciences, as 
arithmetic, geometry, rhythm, harmony, but, above all, 
medicine and mufic.” However, in the infancy of dates, 
a nation has but little leifure for cultivating mufic any 
otherwife than as it is connedled with religious rites and 
the military art. Accordingly we find no other mufical 
inftrument mentioned during the adminiftration of the 
great Hebrew legiflator, than trumpets, except the tim¬ 
brel ufed by Miriam. Mofes (Num.x. 2.) is ordered, by 
divine command, to make two trumpets of filver, of a whole 
piece, for ajfembling together the people, and for journeying 
the camps. And in the eight following veries all the fig- 
nals to be founded by one and by two trumpets are regu¬ 
lated. But thefe inftruments feem to differ from that of 
the jubilee in nothing but the materials of which they 
•were made ; as the Hebrew text, and the feveral verfions, 
agree in calling all by one name, 
Th efeajl of trumpets inftituted by Mofes, Numb. xxix. 
1. in the month of September, is imagined to have been 
the celebration of the harveft-home. Inthe feventh month, 
on the firfi day of the month, ye /hall have a holy convocation ; 
■yejhall do no fervile work; it is a day of blowing of trumpi ts 
unto you. The rigid obfervance of the fabbath upon every 
feventh day, rendered feven a facred number among the 
Hebrews. Hence, not only the feventh day, but the feventh 
week, the feventh month, the feventh year, and the feven 
times feventh year/were kept holy : And on the fiftieth year 
thouJhalt eaufe the trumpet of the jubilee to found, throughout 
the land. Lev. xxv. 9. 
No further mention is made of mufic, till the fong of 
Deborah and Barak, (Judges v.) which feems to have 
been fung in dialogue, and wholly without inftruments. 
VOL. XVI. No. 1x12. 
289 
It was about fifty years after this period, 1143 years be¬ 
fore Chrift, that the unfortunate daughter of Jephtha, 
upon hearing of her father’s viftory over the Ammonites, 
went out to meet him with timbrels and with dances. Judges 
xi. 34. From this time till Saul was chofen king, B. C. 
1095. the facred text is wholly filent about every fpecies 
of mufic, except that of the trumpet in military expedi¬ 
tions. 
But here an incident occurs, which feems to merit par¬ 
ticular attention. It appears from many paffages in ferip- 
ture, that mufic was as nearly allied to prophecy as to 
poetry. When Samuel, after fecretly anointing Saul king, 
inftru&s the new monarch in the meafures he is to purfue 
for eftablifhing himfelf on the throne, he fays. And itjhall 
come to pafs, when thou art come to the city, (Bethel,) that 
thou Jhalt meet a company of prophets coming down from the 
high place, with a pfaltery and tabret, and a pipe, and a harp 
before them; and they /hall prophefy. And the fpirit of the 
Lord will come upon thee, and thou Jhalt prophefy with them. 
1 Sam. x. 5, 6. 
The examples in feripture of this union of mufic and 
prophecy are numerous. “ Moreover David, and the 
captains of the hoft, feparated to the fervice of the fons of 
Alaph, and of Heman, and of Jeduthun, who fliould^ro- 
phefy with harps, with pfalters, and with cymbals. Of the 
fons of Afaph, four, who prophejied according to the order 
of the king. Of Jeduthun, fix, who prop/icjied with a 
harp, to give thanks, and to praife the Lord. And of the 
fons of Heman, the king’s feer, in the word of God, 
fourteen, to lift up the horn.” 
Thefe prophejyings are now, however, underftood to 
mean, not the foretelling of future events, but merely: 
celebrating the praifes of God with mufic and fong, un¬ 
der the influence of divine infpirat-ion : but we cannot 
permit ourfelves to doubt that events were fometimes 
foretold during thefe infpired fongs. The inoft ftriking 
example of the cuftom pra&ifed by the prophets, of tran¬ 
quillizing their minds, and exciting in themfelves divine 
infpiration, by means of mufic, is in the Second Book of 
Kings. The three fovereigns of Ifrael, Judah, and Edom, 
marching with their armies through a wildernefs, were all 
upon the point of being deftroyed by thirft, as there was 
no water to be found in their paflage, either for man or 
beaft: “And the king of Ifrael faid, Alas! that the 
Lord hath called thefe three kings together, to deliver 
them into the hand of Moab. But Jehofliaphat faid. Is 
there not here a prophet of the Lord, that we may enquire 
of the Lord by him? And one of the king of Ifrael’s 
fervants anfwered and faid, Here is Eliflia, the fon of 
Shaphat. So the king of Ifrael and Jehofhaphat, and the 
king of Edom, went down to him. And Eliflia faid. 
Bring me a minjlrel. And it came to pafs, when the min- 
ftrel played, that the hand of the Lord came upon him, and 
he faid, Thus faith the Lord, Make this valley full of 
ditches,” &c. 2 Kings iii. 11—15. 
The royal pfalmift, Who was poffeffed of the fpirit of 
prophefy, cultivated mufic early in life, and his pfalms 
give ample teftimony of his poetical abilities. He ufed to 
confole himfelf with his harp or lyre, when his foul was 
in heavinefs, and to fing the praifes of the Lord. He 
was firft fent for by Saul, who had heard of his Ikill in 
mufic, to adminifter relief to him by the power of his 
harp, when he was afflicted with an evil fpirit: Audit 
came to pafs, when the evil fpirit from God was upon Saul, 
that David took a harp and played ; fo Saul was refre/hed, and 
was well, and the evil fpirit departed from him. 1 Sam. xvi. 
23. When David became king, we find him giving the 
greateft encouragement to this facred art; his uniform 
attachment to the ftudy and practice of it, and the great 
number of performers he kept for the purpofe of attending 
religious ceremonies, extended its influence, and was the 
means of its being held in the higheft eftimation. In the 
fervice of the ark, he appointed four thoufand of the 
Levites to praife the Lord with inftruments. 1 Chron. 
xxiii. When he removed the ark from the houfe of 
4 - E Obed- 
