Thine eye commands with piercing view
My rising and my resting hours,

My heart and flesh, with all their powers. 2 My thoughts, before they are mine own, Are to my God distinctly known;

He knows the words I mean to speak,
Ere from mine opening lips they break.
3 Within Thy circling power I stand;
On every side I find Thy hand;
Awake, asleep, at home, abroad,
I am surrounded still with God.
+ Amazing knowledge, vast and great!
What large extent! what lofty height !
My soul, with all the powers I boast,
Is in the boundless prospect lost.

5 O may these thoughts possess my breast,
Where'er I rove, where'er I rest;
Nor let my weaker passions dare
Consent to sin, for God is there.

92

I

IN

C.M.
Psalm cxxxix.

N all my vast concerns with Thee,
In vain my soul would try

To shun Thy presence, Lord, or flee
The notice of Thine eye.

WATTS.

2 Thine all-surrounding sight surveys
My rising and my rest,

My public walks, my private ways,
And secrets of my breast.

3 My thoughts lie open to the Lord
Before they're formed within ;
And ere my lips pronounce the word,
He knows the sense I mean.

4 O wond'rous knowledge, deep and high !
Where can a creature hide?
Within Thy circling arms I lie,
Beset on every side.

5 So let Thy grace surround me still,
And like a bulwark prove,
To guard my soul from every ill,
Secured by sovereign love.

93

I

C.M. Six lines.

Whither shall I go from Thy spirit?
Psalm cxxxix. 7.

CONDEE

)EYOND, beyond that boundless sea,
Above that dome of sky,

BEY

Farther than thought itself can flee,
Thy dwelling is on high;

Yet dear the awful thought to me,
That Thou, my God, art nigh:

2 Art nigh, and yet my labouring mind
Feels after Thee in vain,

Thee in these works of power to find,
Or to Thy seat attain ;

Thy messenger, the stormy wind ;
Thy path, the trackless main :

3 These speak of Thee with loud acclaim;
They thunder forth Thy praise,
The glorious honour of Thy name,
The wonders of Thy ways;
But Thou art not in tempest-flame,
Nor in day's glorious blaze.

4 We hear Thy voice, when thunders roll
Through the wide fields of air;
The waves obey Thy dread control;
Yet still Thou art not there.
Where shall I find Him, O my soul,
Who yet is everywhere?

5 O! not in circling depth or height,
But in the conscious breast,
Present to faith, though veiled from sight,
There doth His Spirit rest.
O come, Thou Presence Infinite!
And make Thy creature blest.

4,8; 10, 8.

JOHN BOWRING

94 Am I a God at hand...and not a God afar

I

Οι

off?-Jeremiah xxiii. 23.

UR God is nigh;

He watches all we think or do; Roll's o'er all time His penetrating eye, And tracks the round our steps pursue.

2

By night, by day,

Waking or sleeping-o'er the sea,

Up to the heaven-where'er thou take thy way, Down to the grave-He follows thee.

From Him thy weakness or thy strength ; His guardian angel tarries at thy side,

And guides thee to thy home at length.

4

The joys, the cares

Which crowd our earthly being here,
He portions in His wisdom, and forbears
When heavier than our strength can bear.
All we possess,

5

Is His, and all we hope for, His;

Pilgrims of earth, His holy name we bless,
And look to heaven for peace and bliss.

C.M.

WATTS.

95 Blessed be Thy glorious name.—Neh. ix. 5.

I

THE

HE glories of my Maker, God,
My joyful voice shall sing,

And call the nations to adore

Their Former and their King.

2 Thy glories blaze all nature round,
And strike the wondering sight,
Through skies and seas and solid ground,
With terror and delight.

3 Infinite strength and equal skill

Shine through the worlds abroad,
Our souls with vast amazement fill,
And speak the Builder, God.

4 With His right hand He shaped our clay,
And wrought this human frame,

But from His own immediate breath

Our nobler spirits came.

5

96

I

We bring our mortal powers to God,
And worship with our tongues;
We claim some kindred with the skies,
And join the angelic songs.

C.M.

Fearful in praises, doing wonders.
Exodus xv. II.

TH

WATTS.*

HE Lord, how fearful is His name!
How wide is His command !
Nature, with all her moving frame,
Rests on His mighty hand.

2 Immortal glory forms His throne,
And light His awful robe;
While with a smile, or with a frown,
He manages the globe.

3 A word of His almighty breath
Can swell or sink the seas;
Build the vast empires of the earth,
Or break them if He please.

4 Now let the Lord for ever reign,
And sway us as He will;

Sick or in health, in ease or pain,
We are His children still.

5 No more shall peevish passion rise,
Our tongues no more complain;
'Tis sovereign love that lends our joys,
And love resumes again.

97

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GIV

IVE to the Lord, ye sons of fame,
Give to the Lord renown and power;

Ascribe due honours to His name,
And His eternal might adore.