ated
out of the _Hebrew_ as they are for reading, every Psalm must be set
through to music, and every Syllable in it must have a particular
musical Note belonging to itself, as in Anthems {242} that are sung in
Cathedrals: But this would be so exceeding difficult to practise, that
it would utterly exclude the greatest part of every Congregation from a
Capacity of obeying God's Command to sing. Now, in reducing a _Hebrew_
or a _Greek_ Song to a Form tolerably fit to be sung by an _English_
Congregation, here and there a Word of the Original must be omitted,
now and then a Word or two superadded, and frequently a Sentence or an
Expression a little alter'd and chang'd into another that is something
a-kin to it: And yet greater Alterations must the Psalm suffer if we
will have any thing to do with Rhime; those that have labour'd with
utmost Toil to keep very close to the Hebrew have found it impossible;
and when they have attain'd it most, have made but very poor Music for
a Christian Church. For it will often happen, that one of the most
affectionate and most Spiritual Words in the Prose will not submit to
its due Place in the Metre, or does not end with a proper Sound, and
then it must be secluded, and another of less proper Sense be put in
the Room of it: Hereby some of the chief Beauties and Excellencies of
_David_'s Poetry will be omitted and lost, which if not reviv'd again,
or recompenc'd by some lively or pathetic Expression in the _English_,
will necessarily debase the Divine Song into Dullness and Contempt: And
hereby also it becomes so far different from the inspired Words in the
Original Languages, that it is very hard for any Man to say, {243} that
the Version of _Hopkins_ and _Sternhold_, the _New-England_ or the
_Scots_ Psalms, are in a strict Sense the Word of God. Those Persons
therefore that will allow nothing to be sung but the words of
inspiration or Scripture ought to learn the Hebrew Music, and sing in
the Jewish Language; or at least I can find no Congregation with which
they can heartily join according to their own Principles, but the
Congregation of _Choristers_ in Cathedral Churches, who are the only
_Levites_ that _sing Praise unto the Lord with the Words of_ David
_and_ Asaph _the Seer_, 2 Chron. 29. 30.

_Secondly_, Another Reason why the Psalms ought not to be translated
for Singing just in the same manner as they are for Reading, is this,
that the Design of these two Duties is very different: