should choose those expressions || or base and impure images, for

these much injure the devotion of our fellow worshippers.-4. We should seek after those ways of expression that are pathetical; such as denote the fervency of affection, and carry life and spirit with them; such as may awaken and exercise our love, our hope, our holy joy, our sorrow, our fear, and our faith, as well as express the activity of those graces. This is the way to raise, assist, and maintain devotion. We should, therefore, avoid such a sort of style as looks more like preaching, which some persons that affect long prayers have been guilty of to a great degree: they have been speaking to the people rather than speaking to God; they have wandered away from God to speak to men: but this is quite contrary to the nature of prayer, for prayer is our own address to God, and pouring out our hearts before him with warm and proper affections.-5. We should not always confine our

that best suit our meaning, that most exactly answer the ideas of our mind, and that are fitted to our sense and apprehension of things.-2. We should use such a way of speaking as may be most natural and easy to be understood, and most agreeable to those that join with us. We should avoid all foreign and uncommon words; all those expressions which are too philosophical, and those which savour too much of mystical divinity; all dark metaphors, or expressions that are used only by some particular violent party-men. We should likewise avoid length and obscurity in our sentences, and in the placing of our words; and not interline our expressions with too many parentheses, which cloud and entangle the sense.-3. Our language should be grave and decent, which is a medium between magnificence and meanness: we should avoid all glittering language and affected style. An excessive fondness of elegance and finery of style in prayer dis-selves to one set form of words covers the same pride and anity of mind as an affection of many jewels and fine apparel in the house of God: it betrays us into a neglect of our hearts, and of experimental religion, by an affectation to make the nicest speech, and say the finest things we can, instead of sincere devotion, and praying in the spirit. On the other hand, we should avoid mean and coarse and too familiar expressions; such as excite any contemptible or ridiculous ideas; such as raise any improper or irreverent thoughts in the mind,

to express any particular request; nor take too much pains to avoid an expression merely because we used it in prayer heretofore. We need not be ever fond of a nice uniformity of words, nor of perpetual diversity of expression in every prayer: it is best to keep the middle between these two extremes. The imitation of those Christians and ministers that have the best gifts will be an excellent direction in this as well as in the former cases.

"As to the voice in prayer: in the first place, our words should

but sitting or other postures of rest and laziness, ought not to be indulged unless persons are aged or infirm, or the work of prayer

be all pronounced distinct, and not made shorter or longer by cutting off the last syllable, nor longer by the addition of hems and o's, of long breaths, affectedbe drawn out so long as to make groanings, and useless sounds, it troublesome to human nature &c.-2. Every sentence should be to maintain itself always in one spoken loud enough to be heard, posture. The head should be kept yet none so loud as to affright or for the most part without motion; offend the ear. Some persons have the whole visage should be comgot a habit of beginning their posed to gravity and solemnity. prayers, and even upon the most The eye should be kept from rovcommon family occasions, so loud, ing, and some think it best to as to startle the company; others keep the eyes closed. The lifting begin so low in a large assembly, up of the hands is a very natural that it looks like secret worship, expression of our seeking help and as though they forbid those from God. As to other parts that are present to join with them. of the body, there is little need of Both these extremes are to be direction. In secret devotion, avoided by prudence and modera-sighs and groans may be allowed: tion.-3. We should observe a due but in public these things should medium between excessive swift-be less indulged. If we use ourness and slowness of speech, for both are faulty in their kind. If we are too swift, our words will be hurried on, and be mingled in confusion; if we are too slow, this will be tiresome to the hearers, and will make the worship appear heavy and dull.

selves to various motions, or noise made by the hands or feet, or any other parts, it will tempt others to think that our minds are not very intensely engaged: or, at least, it will appear so familiar and irreverent, as we would not willingly be guilty of in the presence of our

"As to gesture in prayer: all in-superiors here on earth."

decencies should be avoided. Pros- VI. As to forms of prayer. We tration may be sometimes used in find this has been a matter of secret prayer, under a deep and controversy among divines and uncommon sense of sin; but kneel-Christians, whether such ought to ing is the most frequent posture; be used, or whether extempore and nature seems to dictate and prayers are not to be preferred. lead us to it as an expression of We shall state the arguments on humility, of a sense of our wants, both sides. Those who are advoa supplication for mercy, and ado-cates for forms, observe, that it ration of and dependence on Him before we kneel.

"Standing is a posture not unfit for this worship, especially in places where we have not conveniency for the humbler gestures:

prevents absurd, extravagant, or impious addresses to God, as well as the confusion of extemporary prayer: that forms were used under the Old Testament dispensation; and, in proof thereof, cite

VII. The efficacy of prayer. It has been objected, that, "If what we request be fit for us, we shall have it without praying; if it be not fit for us, we cannot obtain it by praying." But it is answered, that it may be agreeable to perfect | Wisdom to grant that to our prayers which it would not have been agreeable to the same Wisdom to have given us without praying for. But what virtue, you will ask, is there in prayer, which should make a favour consistent with Wisdom, which would not have been so without it? To this question, which contains the whole difficulty attending the subject, the following possibilites are offered in reply: 1. A favour granted to prayer may be more apt on that very account to produce a good effect upon the person obliged. It may hold in the Divine bounty, what experience has raised into a proverb in the collation of human benefits, that what is obtained without asking is oftentimes received without gratitude.-2. It may be consistent with the wisdom of the Deity to withhold his fa yours till they be asked for, as an expedient to encourage devotion in his rational creation, in order thereby to keep up and circulate a

Numb. vi, 24, 26. Numb. x, 35, 36. || delivered with more energy and On the other side it is answered, feeling. that it is neither reasonable nor scriptural to look for the pattern of Christian worship in the Mosaic dispensation, which, with all its rites and ceremonies, is abrogated and done away; that, though forms may be of use to children, and such as are very ignorant, yet restriction to forms, either in public or private, does not seem scriptural or lawful. If we look to the authority and example of Christ and his apostles,|| every thing is in favour of extempore prayer. The Lord's Prayer, it is observed, was not given to be a set form, exclusive of extemporary prayer. See LORD'S PRAYER. It is farther argued, that a form cramps the desires; inverts the true order of prayer, making our words to regulate our desires instead of our desires regulating our words; has a tendency to make us formal; cannot be suited to every one's case; that it looks as if we were not in reality convinced of our wants, when we want a form to express them; and, finally, in answer to the two first arguments, that it is seldom the case that those who are truly sensible of their condition, and pray extempore, do it in an impious and extravagant manner; and if any who have the gift of prayer really do so, and run into the extreme of enthu-knowledge and sense of their desiasm, yet this is not the case with the generality, since an unprejudiced attention to those who pray extempore must convince us, that, if their prayers be not so elegantly composed as that of a set form, they are more appropriate, and

pendency on him.-3. Prayer has a natural tendency to amend the petitioner himself; it composes the mind, humbles us under a conviction of what we are, and under the gracious influence of the Divine Spirit assimilates us into the

Divine image. Let it suffice, therefore, to say, that, though we are certain that God cannot be

ing. Mr. Robinson, in his second volume of Claude's Essay, has prefixed a brief dissertation on this

operated on or moved as a fellow-subject, an abridgment of which

we shall here insert, with a few occasional alterations.

From the sacred records we learn, that, when men began to associate for the purpose of worshipping the Deity, Enoch prophesied, Jude 14, 15. We have a very short account of this prophet and his doctrine; enough, however, to convince us that he taught the principal truths of na

creature may; that, though we cannot inform him of any thing he does not know, nor add any thing to his essential and glorious perfections by any services of ours; yet we should remember that he has appointed this as a mean to accomplish an end; that he has commanded us to engage in this important duty, 1st Thess. v, 17; that he has promised his Spirit to assist us in it, Rom. viii,tural and revealed religion. Con26; that the Bible abounds with numerous answers to prayer; and that the promise still relates to all who pray that answers shall be given, Matt. vii, 7. Psalm 1, 15. Luke xviii, 1, &c. Phil. iv, 6, 7. James v, 16. Wilkins, Henry, Watts on Prayer; Townsend's Nine Sermons on Prayer; Paley's Moral Phil., vol. ii, p. 31; Mason's Student and Pastor, p. 87;|| Wollaston's Rel. of Nat., p. 122, 124; H. Moore on Education, ch. 1, vol. ii; Barrow's Works, vol. i, ser. 6; Smith's System of Prayer; Scamp's Sermon on Family Religion.

viction of sin was in his doctrine, and communion with God was exemplified in his conduct, Gen. v, 24. Heb. xi, 5, 6. From the days of Enoch to the time of Moses each patriarch worshipped God with his family: probably several assembled at new moons, and alternately instructed the whole company.-Noah, it is said, was a preacher of righteousness, 2d Peter ii, 5. 1st Peter iii, 19, 20. Abraham commanded his household after him to keep the way of the Lord, and to do justice and judgment, Gen. xviii, 19; and Jacob, when his house lapsed to idoPREACHER, one who dis- latry, remonstrated against it, and courses publicly on religious sub-exhorted them and all that were jects. See articles DECLAMATION, ELOQUENCE, MINISTER, and SER

MON.

with him to put away strange gods, and go up with him to Bethel, Gen. x. Gen. xxv, 2, 3. MelchisePREACHING is the discours-dec, also, we may consider as the ing publicly on any religious sub- father, the prince, and the priest of ject. It is impossible, in the com- his people, publishing the glad tidpass of this work, to give a com-ings of peace and salvation, Gen. plete history of this article from xviii. Heb. vii. the beginning down to the present day. This must be considered as a desideratum in theological learnVOL. II.

Moses was a most eminent prophet and preacher, raised up by the authority of God, and by ૨૧

whom, it is said, come the law. || Shemaiah preached to Rehoboam,

the princes, and all the people, at Jerusalem, 2d Chro. xii, 5. Azariah and Hanani preached to Asa and his army, 2d Chro. xv, 1, &c. Ch. xvi, 7. Micaiah to Ahab. Some of them opened schools, or houses of instruction, and there to their disciples they taught the pure religion of Moses. At Naioth, in the suburbs of Ramah, there was one, where Samuel dwelt; there was another at Jericho, and a third at Bethel, to

John i, 17. This great man had much at heart, the promulgation of his doctrine; he directed it to be inscribed on pillars, to be transcribed in books, and to be taught both in public and private by word of mouth, Deut. xxviii, 8. Deut. vi, 9. Deut. xxxi, 19. Deut. xvii, 18. Numb. v, 23. Deut. iv, 9. Himself set the example of each; and how he and Aaron sermonized we may see by several parts of his writings. The first discourse was heard with pro-which Elijah and Elisha often refound reverence and attention; the sorted. Thither the people went last was both uttered and received on sabbath days and at new moons, in raptures, Exodus iv, 31. Deut. and received public lessons of pixxxiii, 7, 8. Public preaching does ety and morality, 1st Sam. xix, 18. not appear under this economy to || 2d Kings ii, 3, 5. 2d Kings iv, 2, have been attached to the priest-3. Through all this period there hood: priests were not officially was a dismal confusion of the usepreachers; and we have innumer-ful ordinance of public preachable instances of discourses deli-ing. Sometimes they had no open vered in religious assemblies by vision, and the word of the Lord men of other tribes besides that of was precious or scarce: the peoLevi, Ps. lxviii, 11. Joshua was an ple heard it only now and then. Ephraimite; but, being full of the At other times, they were left spirit of wisdom, he gathered the without a teaching priest, and tribes to Shechem, and harangued without law. And, at other seathe people of God, Deut. xxxiv, sons again, itinerants and princes, 9. Joshua xxxiv. Solomon was a priests, and Levites, were sent prince of the house of Judah, through all the country to carry Amos a herdsman of Tekoa; yet the book of the law, and to teach both were preachers, and one at in the cities. In a word, preachleast was a prophet, 1st Kings ii.ing flourished when pure religion Amos vii, 14, 15. When the ignorant notions of Pagans, the vices of their practice, and the idolatry of their pretended worship, were in some sad periods incorporated into the Jewish religion by the princes of that nation, the prophets and all the seers protested against this apostacy, and they were persecuted for so doing.

grew; and when the last decayed, the first was suppressed. Moses had not appropriated preaching to any order of men: persons, places, times, and manners, were all left open and discretional. Many of the discourses were preached in camps and courts, in streets, schools, cities, and villages, sometimes with great composure and