Angelo Neves
Puritan Board Freshman
Considering some commentaries on 1Co14.15 and 1Co14.26 as Dickson and Gill Commentaries, does Exclusive Psalmody allows to sing other inspired musics from the bible?
David Dickson
David Dickson
Matthew HenryVers. 15. What is it then? I will pray with the Spi∣rit, and will pray with understanding also: I will sing with the spirit, and I will sing with the under∣standing also.
Hence hee draws forth his exhortation, because a∣mongst those who had the gift of strange tongues, some had the faculty miraculously to reason in divine mysteries, some had the faculty of praying, others did sing in those strange tongues, and others gave thanks; these gifts were divers, and for divers uses; hee commands them so to use them all, that they may bee understood by the hearers; for if any one pray by the Spirit, or from the gift of the Spirit, what profit shall it bee to the Church, unless hee pray also with understanding, i. e. so that the hearers may understand him?
Vers. 26. How is it then, Brethren? when yee come together▪ every one of you hath a Psalm, hath a Do∣ctrine, hath a Tongue, hath a Revelation, hath an Interpretation; let all things bee done unto edi∣fying.
The other part of the Chapter, in which hee gives se∣ven Precepts concerning good order.
The first is, that if the Spirit shall suggest to any one of the Prophets any godly Psalm to the praise of God, or any Doctrine, or expression of a strange Tongue for the use of the Church, or revelation of a thing to come, or of a mystery not observed before, or the interpretation of a strange Tongue, or of the Scripture; Hee commands that the exercise of all these bee fitted to the edification of the Church, that all may go out of the Assembly better than they came.
John GillThe apostle here sums up the argument hitherto, and,
I. Directs them how they should sing and pray in public (v. 15): What is it then? I will pray with the spirit, and I will pray with the understanding also. I will sing with the spirit, etc. He does not forbid their praying or singing under a divine afflatus, or when they were inspired for this purpose, or had such a spiritual gift communicated to them; but he would have them perform both so as to be understood by others, that others might join with them. Note, Public worship should be performed so as to be understood.
I will sing with the Spirit;
meaning also not with the spirit, or breath, singing vocally only; nor with his own Spirit, with his heart engaged in the work, with grace in it, in the lively exercise of faith, hope, and love, with much spiritual light, knowledge, experience, and judgment, which are very necessary to the due discharge of this duty; nor merely with the ordinary aid of the Spirit of God, which yet is greatly needful to excite attention, assist meditation, enlighten the understanding, raise the affections, strengthen faith, and make a comfortable application of what is sung; but as before, with the extraordinary gift of the Spirit, by which the apostle was capable of delivering out a psalm, or hymn, extempore, and that in an unknown tongue: but then he also determines,
everyone of you hath a psalm;
not that everyone had this, or any other gift here mentioned, but that there were some among them that had one or other of these several gifts: some of them had a gift of composing and singing a psalm extempore; they delighted in psalmody, and were forward to promote it, and fond of spending the time wholly in it.