5 To those blest paths thy servants lead,
That they from all their sorrows freed,
Fulness of joy, in heaven may share,
And everlasting pleasures there.
SECOND VERSION.
Applied to Christ.
I "I SET the Lord before my sight,"
The dying Saviour said,
"Near my right hand my Guardian stands, When sinking 'midst the dead.
2 "My heart is glad, my soul exults, My flesh in hope shall rest;
Soon shall my frame triumphant wake
With life and glory blest!
"Not hell detains my raptured soul,
His love shall set me free;
Thy Just, thy Holy One, shall rise
Nor e'er corruption see.
Up from the tomb! the path of life,
My faithful God shall show;
At thy right hand, before thy face,
Eternal pleasures flow!"
ARISE, my gracious God,
And make the wicked flee,
They are but thy chastising rod,
To drive thy saints to thee.
Behold the sinner dies!
His haughty words are vain;
Here in this life his pleasure lies,
And all beyond is pain.
Then let his pride advance,
And boast of all his store;
The Lord is my inheritance,
My soul can wish no more.
Let me behold the face
Of my forgiving God;
And stand complete in righteousness,
Wash'd in my Saviour's blood.
There's a new heaven begun, When I awake from death; Drest in the likeness of thy Son, And draw immortal breath.
SECOND VERSION.
1 LORD, I am thine; but thou wilt prove
My faith, my patience, and my love;
When spiteful men against me join,
They are the sword, the hand is thine.
2 Their hope and portion lie below,
'Tis all the happiness they know,
'Tis all they seek they take their shares,
And leave the rest among their heirs.
3 What sinners value, I resign,
Lord 'tis enough that thou art mine;
I shall behold thy blissful face,
And stand complete in righteousness.
4 This life's a dream, an empty show,
But the bright world to which I go,
Hath joys substantial and sincere;
When shall I wake and find me there?
5 O glorious hour! O blest abode!
I shall be near, and like my God;
And flesh and sin no more controul
The sacred pleasures of the soul.
6 My flesh shall slumber in the ground
Till the last trumpet's joyful sound;
Then burst the chains with sweet surprise,
And in my Saviour's image rise !
PSALM XVIII.
OLD VERSION.
God appearing in majesty to avenge his own elect.
1 O GOD, my strength and fortitude,
Of force I must love thee:
Thou art my castle and defence,
In my necessity.
2 My God, the rock in whom I trust,
The worker of my wealth,
My refuge, buckler, and my shield,
The horn of all my health.
3 The Lord descended from above,
And bow'd the heavens most high;
And underneath his feet he cast
The darkness of the sky.
4 On cherub and on cherubim,
Full royally he rode;
And on the wings of mighty winds
Came flying forth abroad.
5 When thou, O Lord, with great rebuke
Thine anger dost declare;
The springs and the foundations of
The world discover'd are.
6 And from above the Lord sent down,
To fetch me from below;
And pluck'd me out of waters great,
That would me overflow.
7 He brought me forth in open place,
That so I might be free;
And kept me safe, because he had
A favour unto me.
8 He sat serene upon the floods,
Their fury to restrain;
And He as sovereign Lord and King
For evermore shall reign.
1 WE love thee, Lord, and we adore, Now is thine arm reveal'd;
Thou art our strength, our heav'nly tower,
Our bulwark and our shield.
2 We fly to our eternal rock,
And find a sure defence;
His holy Name our lips invoke,
And draw salvation thence.
3 When God our leader shines in arms,
What mortal heart can bear
The thunder of his loud alarms,
The lightning of his spear?
He rides upon the winged wind,
And angels in array,
In millions wait to know his mind,
And swift as flames obey.
5 He speaks, and at his fierce rebuke
Whole armies are dismay'd;
His voice, his frown, his angry look,
Strikes all their courage dead.
6 He arms our captains to the fight,
Though there his name's forgot;
He girded Cyrus with his might,
Though Cyrus knew him not.
7 Oft has the Lord whole nations blest,
For his own Church's sake:
The powers that give his people rest,
Shall of his care partake.
1 JUST are thy ways, and true thy word,
Great rock of my secure abode;
Who is a God beside the Lord?
Or where's a refuge like our God?
2 'Tis he that girds me with his might,
Gives me his holy sword to wield;
And while with sin and hell I fight,
Spreads his salvation for my shield.
3 He lives (and blessed be my rock,)
The God of my salvation lives:
The dark designs of hell are broke,
Sweet is the peace my Father gives!
4 Before the scoffers of the age,
I will exalt my Father's name,
Nor tremble at their mighty rage,
But meet reproach, and bear the shame.
5 To David and his royal seed,
Thy grace for ever shall extend,
Thy love to saints, in Christ their head,
Knows not a limit nor an end.
As the Sun in the firmament outshines the lesser lights, so is the Bible among books-or as the excellence of gold and honey above other metals or meats.
BEHOLD the morning sun
Begins his glorious way,
His beams through all the nations run
And life and light convey.
But where the Gospel comes,
It spreads diviner light,
It calls dead sinners from their tombs,
And gives the blind their sight.
3 How perfect is thy word!
And all thy judgments just :
For ever sure thy promise, Lord,
And men securely trust.
I hear thy word with love,
And I would fain obey;
Send thy good Spirit from above,
To guide me lest I stray.
Warn me of every sin,
Forgive my secret faults;
And cleanse this guilty soul of mine,
Whose crimes exceed my thoughts.
While with my heart and tongue,
I spread thy praise abroad,
Accept the worship and the song,
My Saviour and my God.
SECOND VERSION.-PART I.
1 THE spacious firmament on high,
With all the blue ethereal sky,
And spangled heavens, a shining frame,
Their great original proclaim.
2 Th' unwearied sun from day to day,
Does his Creator's power display,
And publishes to every land,
The work of an Almighty hand.
3 Soon as the evening shades prevail,
The moon takes up the wond'rous tale
And nightly to the list'ning earth
Repeats the story of her birth:
|