Chapter II: Introduction (2)

3 Though in a bare and rugged way,
Through devious, lonely wilds I stray,
His bounty shall my pains beguile;
The barren wilderness shall smile,
With lively greens and herbage crowned,
And streams shall murmur all around.

4 Though in the paths of death I tread,
With gloomy horrors overspread,
My steadfast heart shall fear no ill,
For thou, O Lord! art with me still;
Thy friendly crook shall give me aid,
And guide me through the dismal shade.

71 L. M.
Who is like unto thee, O Israel?
Deut. 33:29.

With Israel’s God, who can compare?
Or who, like Israel, happy are?
O, people saved by the Lord,
He is our shield and great reward.

2 Upheld by everlasting arms,
We are secure from foes and harms;
In vain their plots, and false their boasts—
Our refuge is the Lord of hosts!

72 L. P. M.
Psalm 146.

I’ll praise my Maker while I’ve breath,
And when my voice is lost in death,
Praise shall employ my nobler powers:
My days of praise shall ne’er be past,
While life and thought and being last,
And immortality endures.

2 Happy the man whose hopes rely
On Israel’s God: he made the sky,
And earth, and seas, with all their train.
His truth for ever stands secure:
He saves th’ oppressed, he feeds the poor,
And none shall find his promise vain.

3 The Lord pours eyesight on the blind;
The Lord supports the fainting mind,
He sends the laboring conscience peace:
He helps the stranger in distress,
The widow and the fatherless,
And grants the prisoner sweet release.

4 I’ll praise him while he gives me breath,
And when my voice is lost in death,
Praise shall employ my nobler powers:
My days of praise shall ne’er be past,
While life, and thought, and being last,
And immortality endures.

73 C. M.
God of Bethel.
Gen. 20:19-22.

O God of Bethel, by whose hand
Thy people still are fed;
Who through this weary pilgrimage
Hast all our fathers led—

2 Our vows, our prayers we now present
Before thy throne of grace;
God of our fathers, be the God
Of their succeeding race.

3 Through each succeeding path of life,
Our wandering footsteps guide;
Give us each day our daily bread,
And raiment fit provide.

4 O spread thy covering wings around,
Till all our wanderings cease,
And at our Father’s loved abode
Our souls arrive in peace.

74 C. M.
God the trust of his saints.

O thou my light, my life, my joy,
My glory and my all!
Unsent by thee, no good can come,
Nor evil can befall.

2 Such are thy schemes of providence,
And methods of thy grace,
That I may safely trust in thee
Through all this wilderness.

3 ’Tis thine outstretched and powerful arm
Upholds me in the way;
And thy rich bounty well supplies
The wants of every day,

4 For such compassion, O my God!
Ten thousand thanks are due;
For such compassion I esteem
Ten thousand thanks too few.

75 C. M.
Our dwelling place in all generations.
Psalm 90.

Our God, our help in ages past,
Our hope for years to come,
Our shelter from the stormy blast,
And our eternal home!

2 Under the shadow of thy throne
Thy saints have dwelt secure:
Sufficient is thine arm alone,
And our defense is sure.

3 Before the hills in order stood,
Or earth received her frame,
From everlasting thou art God,
To endless years the same.

4 A thousand ages in thy sight
Are like an evening gone;
Short as the watch that ends the night
Before the rising sun.

5 Time, like an ever-rolling stream,
Bears all its sons away;
They fly forgotten as a dream
Dies at the opening day.

6 Our God, our help in ages past,
Our hope for years to come,
Be thou our guard while troubles last,
And our eternal home.

76 C. M.
The goodness of God.

Sweet is the memory of thy grace,
My God, my heavenly King;
Let age to age thy righteousness
In songs of glory sing.

2 God reigns on high, but ne’er confines
His goodness to the skies:
Through the whole earth his bounty shines,
And every want supplies.

3 With longing eyes thy creatures wait
On thee for daily food,
Thy liberal hand provides their meat,
And fills their mouths with good.

4 How kind are thy compassions, Lord!
How slow thine anger moves!
But soon he sends his pardoning word
To cheer the souls he loves.

5 Creatures, with all their endless race,
Thy power and praise proclaim:
But saints that taste thy richer grace,
Delight to bless thy name.

77 C. M.
Your heavenly Father feedeth them.
Matt. 6:25-34.

O why despond in life’s dark vale?
Why sink to fears a prey?
Th’ almighty power can never fail,
His love can ne’er decay.

2 Behold the birds that wing the air,
Nor sow nor reap the grain;
Yet God, with all a father’s care,
Relieves when they complain.

3 Behold the lilies of the field:
They toil nor labor know;
Yet royal robes to theirs must yield,
In beauty’s richest glow.

4 That God who hears the raven’s cry,
Who decks the lily’s form,
Will surely all your wants supply,
And shield you in the storm.

5 Seek first his kingdom’s grace to share:
Its righteousness pursue:
And all that needs your earthly care
He will bestow on you.

78 C. M.
Gratitude.

When all thy mercies, O my God,
My rising soul surveys,
Transported with the view I’m lost
In wonder, love, and praise.

2 Unnumbered comforts on my soul
Thy tender care bestowed,
Before my infant heart conceived
From whom those comforts flowed.

3 When in the slippery paths of youth
With heedless steps I ran,
Thine arm, unseen, conveyed me safe,
And led me up to man.

4 Ten thousand thousand precious gifts
My daily thanks employ,
Nor is the least a cheerful heart,
That tastes those gifts with joy.

5 Through every period of my life
Thy goodness I’ll pursue;
And after death, in distant worlds,
The glorious theme renew.

6 Through all eternity, to thee
A joyful song I’ll raise;
But O! eternity’s too short
To utter all thy praise!

79 C. M.
Thy judgments are a great deep.
Psalm 36:6.

God moves in a mysterious way
His wonders to perform;
He plants his footsteps on the sea,
And rides upon the storm.

2 Deep in unfathomable mines
Of never-failing skill,
He treasures up his bright designs,
And works his gracious will.

3 You fearful saints, fresh courage take;
The clouds you so much dread
Are big with mercy, and shall break
In blessings on your head.

4 Judge not the Lord by feeble sense,
But trust him for his grace;
Behind a frowning providence
He hides a smiling face.

5 His purposes will ripen fast,
Unfolding every hour;
The bud may have a bitter taste,
But sweet will be the flower.

6 Blind unbelief is sure to err,
And scan his work in vain:
God is his own interpreter,
And he will make it plain.

80 C. M.
My God, how wonderful thou art.

My God, how wonderful thou art,
Thy majesty how bright!
How glorious is thy mercy-seat,
In depths of burning light!

2 Yet I may love thee too, O Lord,
Almighty as thou art;
For thou hast stooped to ask of me
The love of my poor heart.

3 No earthly father loves like thee,
No mother half so mild
Bears and forbears, as thou hast done
With me, thy sinful child.

4 My God, how wonderful thou art,
Thou everlasting Friend!
On thee I stay my trusting heart,
Till faith in vision end.

81 C. M.
The God of my life.

Father of mercies! God of love!
My Father and my God!
I’ll sing the honors of thy name,
And spread thy praise abroad.

2 In every period of my life
Thy thoughts of love appear;
Thy mercies gild each transient scene,
And crown each passing year.

3 In all thy mercies, may my soul
A Father’s bounty see;
Nor let the gifts thy grace bestows
Estrange my heart from thee.

4 Teach me, in times of deep distress,
To own thy hand, O God!
And in submissive silence learn
The lessons of thy rod.

5 Then may I close my eyes in death,
Redeemed from anxious fear:
For death itself, my God, is life,
If thou be with me there.

82 C. M.
In the winds.
Isaiah 27:8.

Great Ruler of all nature’s frame,
We own thy power divine;
We hear thy breath in every storm
For all the winds are thine.

2 Wide as they sweep their sounding way,
They work thy sovereign will;
And, awed by the majestic voice,
Confusion shall be still.

3 Thy mercy tempers every blast
To them that seek thy face,
And mingles with the tempest’s roar,
The whispers of thy grace.

4 Those gentle whispers let me hear,
Till all the tumult cease;
And gales of paradise shall lull
My weary soul to peace.

83 C. M.
His tender mercies are over all his works.
Psalm 145:9.

Thy goodness, Lord, our souls confess;
Thy goodness we adore:
A spring whose blessings never fail;
A sea without a shore.

2 Sun, moon, and stars thy love attest
In every golden ray;
Love draws the curtains of the night,
And love brings back the day.

3 Thy bounty every season crowns
With all the bliss it yields,
With joyful clusters loads the vines,
With strengthening grain the fields.

4 But chiefly thy compassion, Lord,
Is in the gospel seen;
There, like a sun, thy mercy shines,
Without a cloud between.

5 There, pardon, peace, and holy joy,
Through Jesus’ name are given;
He on the cross was lifted high,
That we might reign in heaven.

84 C. M. 6 lines.
Seeing him who is invisible.

Beyond, beyond that boundless sea,
Above that dome of sky,
Further 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 laboring 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 honor of thy name,
The wonders of thy ways:
But thou art not in tempest flame
Nor in the noontide blaze.

4 We hear thy voice when thunders roll
Through the wide fields of air;
The waves obey thy dread control;
But still, thou art not there:
Where shall I find him, O my soul!
Who yet is everywhere?

5 O! not in circling depth or hight,
But in the conscious breast,
Present to faith, though vailed from sight;
There doth his Spirit rest:
O, come, thou Presence infinite!
And make thy creature blest.

85 C. M.
Just and true are thy ways.
Rev. 15:3.

Since all the varying scenes of time
God’s watchful eye surveys,
O, who so wise to choose our lot,
Or to appoint our ways!

2 Good when he gives—supremely good—
Nor less when he denies;
E’en crosses, from his sovereign hand,
Are blessings in disguise.

3 Why should we doubt a Father’s love
So constant and so kind?
To his unerring, gracious will
Be every wish resigned.

86 C. M.
God is love.
1 John 4:8.

I can not always trace the way
Where thou, almighty One, dost move;
But I can always, always say,
That God is love.

2 When fear her chilling mantle flings
O’er earth, my soul to heaven above,
As to her native home, upsprings;
For God is love.

3 When mystery clouds my darkened path,
I’ll check my dread, my doubts reprove;
In this my soul sweet comfort hath,
That God is love.

4 O may this truth my heart employ,
And every gloomy thought remove;
It fills my soul with boundless joy,
That God is love!

87 C. M.
Thou hast taught me from my youth.
Psalm 71.

Almighty Father of mankind!
On thee my hopes remain;
And when the day of trouble comes,
I shall not trust in vain.

2 In early years, thou wast my guide,
And of my youth the friend;
And, as my days began with thee,
With thee my days shall end.

3 I know the Power in whom I trust,
The arm on which I lean;
He will my Saviour ever be,
Who has my Saviour been.

4 Thou wilt not cast me off, when age
And evil days descend;
Thou wilt not leave me in despair,
To mourn my latter end.

5 Therefore, in life I’ll trust in thee;
In death I will adore;
And after death will sing thy praise,
When time shall be no more.

88 C. M.
All things are yours.
1 Cor. 3:21.

Since God is mine, then present things
And things to come are mine;
Yea, Christ, his word, and Spirit, too,
And glory all divine.

2 Since he is mine, then from his love
He every trouble sends;
All things are working for my good,
And bliss his rod attends.

3 Since he is mine, I need not fear
The rage of earth and hell;
He will support my feeble power,
Their utmost force repel.

4 Since he is mine, let friends forsake,
Let wealth and honors flee:
Sure, he who giveth me himself,
Is more than these to me.

5 Since he is mine, I’ll boldly pass
Through death’s dark, lonely vale:
He is my comfort and my stay,
When heart and flesh shall fail.

6 And now, O Lord, since thou art mine,
What can I wish beside?
My soul shall at the fountain live,
When all the streams are dried.

89 C. M.
Providence.

Let the whole race of creatures lie
In dust before the Lord!
Whate’er his powerful hand has formed,
He governs with a word.

2 Ten thousand ages ere the skies
Were into motion brought,
All the long years and worlds to come
Stood present to his thought.

3 There’s not a sparrow, or a worm,
O’erlooked in his decrees:
He raises monarchs to a throne,
Or sinks with equal ease.

4 If light attend the course I go,
’Tis he provides the rays;
And ’tis his hand that hides the sun,
If darkness cloud my days.

5 Trusting his wisdom and his love,
I would not wish to know
What, in the book of his decrees,
Awaits me here below.

6 Be this alone my fervent prayer:
Whate’er my lot may be,
Or joys, or sorrows—may they form
My soul for heaven and thee!

90 C. M.
Majesty of God.
Psalm 18.

The Lord descended from above
And bowed the heavens most high,
And underneath his feet he cast
The darkness of the sky.

2 On cherubim and seraphim
Full royally he rode;
And on the wings of mighty winds,
Came flying all abroad.

3 He sat serene upon the floods,
Their fury to restrain;
And he, as sovereign Lord and King,
For evermore shall reign.

91 S. M.
Now we know in part.
1 Cor. 13:12.

Thy way is in the sea;
Thy paths we can not trace;
Nor solve, O Lord, the mystery
Of thy unbounded grace.

2 Here the dark vails of sense
Our captive souls surround;
Mysterious deeps of providence
Our wandering thoughts confound.

3 As through a glass we see
The wonders of thy love;
How little do we know of thee,
Or of the joys above.

4 In part we know thy will,
And bless thee for the sight;
Soon will thy love the rest reveal
In glory’s clearer light.

5 With joy shall we survey
Thy providence and grace;
And spend an everlasting day
In wonder, love and praise.

92 S. M.
He careth for you.
1 Peter 5:7.

How gentle God’s commands!
How kind his precepts are!
Come, cast your burdens on the Lord,
And trust his constant care.

2 His bounty will provide,
His saints securely dwell;
That hand which bears creation up,
Shall guard his children well.

3 Why should this anxious load
Press down your weary mind?
O, seek your heavenly Father’s throne,
And peace and comfort find.

4 His goodness stands approved,
Unchanged from day to day;
I’ll drop my burden at his feet,
And bear a song away.

93 S. M.
Praise for mercies.

O bless the Lord, my soul!
Let all within me join,
And aid my tongue to bless his name
Whose favors are divine.

2 O bless the Lord, my soul!
Nor let his mercies lie
Forgotten in unthankfulness,
And without praises die.

3 ’Tis he forgives thy sins;
’Tis he relieves thy pain;
’Tis he that heals thy sicknesses,
And gives thee strength again.

4 He crowns thy life with love,
When rescued from the grave;
He that redeemed our souls from death,
Hath boundless power to save.

5 He fills the poor with good;
He gives the sufferers rest:
The Lord hath justice for the proud,
And mercy for the oppressed.

6 His wondrous works and ways
He made by Moses known;
But sent the world his truth and grace
By his beloved Son.

94 S. M.
Psalm 23.

The Lord my shepherd is;
I shall be well supplied:
Since he is mine, and I am his,
What can I want beside?

2 He leads me to the place
Where heavenly pasture grows,
Where living waters gently pass,
And full salvation flows.

3 If e’er I go astray,
He doth my soul reclaim,
And guides me in his own right way,
For his most holy name.

4 While he affords his aid,
I can not yield to fear;
Tho’ I should walk thro’ death’s dark shade,
My shepherd’s with me there.

95 S. M.
His mercy endureth for ever.
Psalm 103.

My soul, repeat his praise
Whose mercies are so great;
Whose anger is so slow to rise,
So ready to abate.

2 High as the heavens are raised
Above the ground we tread,
So far the riches of his grace
Our highest thoughts exceed.

3 His power subdues our sins,
And his forgiving love,
Far as the east is from the west,
Doth all our guilt remove.

4 The pity of the Lord,
To those that fear his name,
Is such as tender parents feel:
He knows our feeble frame.

5 Our days are as the grass,
Or like the morning flower:
If one sharp blast sweeps o’er the field,
It withers in an hour.

6 But thy compassions, Lord,
To endless years endure;
And children’s children ever find
Thy words of promise sure.

96 S. M.
The fountain.

God is the fountain whence
Ten thousand blessings flow;
To him my life, my health, and friends,
And every good, I owe.

2 The comforts he affords
Are neither few nor small;
He is the source of fresh delights,
My portion and my all.

3 He fills my heart with joy,
My lips attunes for praise;
And to his glory I’ll devote
The remnant of my days.

97 7s, double.
Psalm 136.

Let us with a joyful mind
Praise the Lord, for he is kind;
For his mercies shall endure,
Ever faithful, ever sure.
Let us sound his name abroad,
For of gods he is the God
Who by wisdom did create
Heaven’s expanse and all its state;

2 Did the solid earth ordain
How to rise above the main;
Who, by his commanding might,
Filled the new-made world with light;
Caused the golden-tresséd sun
All the day his course to run;
And the moon to shine by night,
’Mid her spangled sisters bright.

3 All his creatures God doth feed,
His full hand supplies their need;
Let us therefore warble forth
His high majesty and worth.
He his mansion hath on high,
’Bove the reach of mortal eye;
And his mercies shall endure,
Ever faithful, ever sure.

98 P. M.
Thou art my hiding place.
Psalm 32:7.

To thee, O God! to thee,
With lowly heart I bend;
Lord, to my prayer attend,
And haste to succor me,
Thou never-failing friend!
For seas of trouble o’er me roll,
And ’whelm with tears my sinking soul.

2 On thee, O God! on thee,
With humble hope I’ll lean;
Thou who hast ever been
A hiding place to me
In many a troubled scene;
Whose heart, with love and mercy fraught,
Back to the fold thy wanderer brought.

99 8s & 7s.
The elder brother.

Yes, for me, for me he careth
With a brother’s tender care;
Yes, with me, with me he shareth
Every burden, every fear.

2 Yes, o’er me, o’er me he watcheth,
Ceaseless watcheth, night and day;
Yes, e’en me, e’en me he snatcheth
From the perils of the way.

3 Yes, for me he standeth pleading
At the mercy-seat above;
Ever for me interceding,
Constant in untiring love.

4 Yes, in me abroad he sheddeth
Joys unearthly, love and light;
And to cover me he spreadeth
His paternal wing of might.

5 Yes, in me, in me he dwelleth;
I in him, and he in me!
And my empty soul he filleth,
Here and through eternity.

6 Thus I wait for his returning,
Singing all the way to heaven:
Such the joyful song of morning
Such the tranquil song of even.

100 10s & 11s.
Jehovah jireh.
Gen. 22:14.

Though troubles assail, and dangers affright,
Though friends should all fail, and foes all unite,
Yet one thing secures us, whatever betide,
The scripture assures us, The Lord will provide.

2 The birds without barn or storehouse are fed;
From them let us learn to trust for our bread:
His saints what is fitting shall ne’er be denied,
So long as ’tis written, The Lord will provide.

3 We may, like the ships, by tempests be tossed
On perilous deeps, but can not be lost:
Though Satan enrages the wind and the tide,
The promise engages, The Lord will provide.

4 His call we obey, like Abrah’m of old,
Not knowing our way, but faith makes us bold:
For though we are strangers, we have a good guide,
And trust, in all dangers, The Lord will provide.

5 No strength of our own, or goodness, we claim;
But since we have known the Saviour’s great name,
In this our strong tower for safety we hide—
The Lord is our power—The Lord will provide.

6 When life sinks apace, and death is in view,
The word of his grace shall comfort us through:
Not fearing or doubting, with Christ on our side,
We hope to die shouting, The Lord will provide.

101 8s & 7s.
Praise the King of heaven.

Praise, my soul, the King of heaven;
To his feet thy tribute bring;
Ransomed, healed, restored, forgiven,
Who like me his praise should sing?
Praise him! praise him!
Praise the everlasting King!

2 Praise him for his grace and favor
To our fathers in distress;
Praise him, still the same for ever:
Slow to chide, and swift to bless;
Praise him! praise him!
Glorious in his faithfulness!

3 Father-like he tends and spares us;
Well our feeble frame he knows;
In his hands he gently bears us—
Rescues us from all our foes;
Praise him! praise him!
Widely as his mercy flows!

4 Angels, help us to adore him:
Ye behold him face to face;
Sun and moon, bow down before him;
Dwellers all in time and space,
Praise him! praise him!
Praise with us the God of grace!

102 10s & 11s.
God glorious.

O, worship the King all-glorious above,
And gratefully sing his wonderful love—
Our shield and defender, the ancient of days,
Pavilioned in splendor and girded with praise.

2 O tell of his might, and sing of his grace,
Whose robe is the light, whose canopy space;
His chariots of wrath the deep thunder-clouds form,
And dark is his path on the wings of the storm.

3 Thy bountiful care what tongue can recite?
It breathes in the air, it shines in the light,
It streams from the hills, it descends to the plain,
And sweetly distills in the dew and the rain.

4 Frail children of dust, and feeble as frail,
In thee do we trust, nor find thee to fail,
Thy mercies how tender! how firm to the end,
Our Maker, Defender, Preserver, and Friend.

5 O Father Almighty, how faithful thy love!
While angels delight to hymn thee above,
The humbler creation, though feeble their lays,
With true adoration shall lisp to thy praise.

103 11s.
Psalm 23.

The Lord is my Shepherd, no want shall I know;
I feed in green pastures, safe folded I rest;
He leadeth my soul where the still waters flow,
Restores me when wandering, redeems when opprest.

2 Through the valley and shadow of death tho’ I stray,
Since thou art my guardian, no evil I fear;
Thy rod shall defend me, thy staff be my stay;
No harm can befall, with my comforter near.

3 In the midst of affliction my table is spread;
With blessings unmeasured my cup runneth o’er;
With perfume and oil thou anointest my head;
O what shall I ask of thy providence more?

4 Let goodness and mercy, my bountiful God!
Still follow my steps till I meet thee above;
I seek, by the path which my forefathers trod,
Through the land of their sojourn, thy kingdom of love.

104 9s & 6s.
Fear not, little flock.
Luke 12:32.

Yes! our Shepherd leads with gentle hand,
Through the dark pilgrim-land,
His flock, so dearly bought,
So long and fondly sought.
Hallelujah!

2 When in clouds and mist the weak ones stray,
He shows again the way,
And points to them afar
A bright and guiding star.
Hallelujah!

3 Tenderly he watches from on high
With an unwearied eye;
He comforts and sustains,
In all their fears and pains.
Hallelujah!

4 Through the parched, dreary desert he will guide
To the green fountain-side:
Through the dark, stormy night,
To a calm land of light.
Hallelujah!

5 Yes! his “little flock” are ne’er forgot;
His mercy changes not:
Our home is safe above,
Within his arms of love.
Hallelujah!

IN REDEMPTION.

105 L. M.
God only wise.

Awake, my tongue; thy tribute bring
To him who gave thee power to sing;
Praise him who is all praise above,
The source of wisdom and of love.

2 How vast his knowledge! how profound!
A depth where all our thoughts are drowned;
The stars he numbers, and their names
He gives to all those heavenly flames.

3 Through each bright world above, behold
Ten thousand thousand charms unfold;
Earth, air, and mighty seas combine
To speak his wisdom all divine.

4 But in redemption, O what grace!
Its wonders, O, what thought can trace!
Here, wisdom shines for ever bright;
Praise him, my soul, with sweet delight.

106 L. M.
Grace.

My God, how excellent thy grace!
Whence all our hope and comfort springs;
The sons of Adam in distress,
Fly to the shadow of thy wings.

2 Life, like a fountain rich and free,
Springs from the presence of my Lord,
And in thy light our souls shall see
The glories promised in thy word.

107 L. M.
Creation and redemption.

Give to our God immortal praise;
Mercy and truth are all his ways:
Wonders of grace to God belong;
Repeat his mercies in your song.

2 Give to the Lord of lords renown,
The King of kings with glory crown:
His mercies ever shall endure,
When lords and kings are known no more.

3 He built the earth, he spread the sky,
And fixed the starry lights on high:
Wonders of grace to God belong;
Repeat his mercies in your song.

4 He fills the sun with morning light,
He bids the moon direct the night:
His mercies ever shall endure,
When suns and moons shall shine no more.

5 He sent his Son with power to save
From guilt, and darkness, and the grave:
Wonders of grace to God belong;
Repeat his mercies in your song.

6 Through this vain world he guides our feet,
And leads us to his heavenly seat:
His mercies ever shall endure,
When this vain world shall be no more.

108 L. M.
The reconciliation.

O love, beyond conception great,
That formed the vast, stupendous plan,
Where all divine perfections meet
To reconcile rebellious man:

2 There wisdom shines in fullest blaze,
And justice all her right maintains—
Astonished angels stoop to gaze,
While mercy o’er the guilty reigns.

3 Yes, mercy reigns, and justice too;
In Christ they both harmonious meet;
He paid to justice all her due;
And now he fills the mercy-seat.

109 L. M.
What is man?
Psalm 8.

Lord, what is man? Extremes how wide
In this mysterious nature join!
The flesh to worms and dust allied,
The soul immortal and divine.

2 Divine at first, a holy flame
Kindled by heaven’s inspiring breath;
Till sin, with power prevailing, came;
Then followed darkness, shame and death.

3 But Jesus, O amazing grace!
Assumed our nature as his own,
Obeyed and suffered in our place,
Then took it with him to his throne.

4 Now, what is man, when grace reveals,
The virtue of a Saviour’s blood?
Again a life divine he feels,
Despises earth and walks with God.

5 And what, in yonder realms above,
Is ransomed man ordained to be!
With honor, holiness, and love,
No seraph more adorned than he.

6 Nearest the throne, and first in song,
Man shall his hallelujahs raise;
While wondering angels round him throng
And swell the chorus of his praise.

110 L. M.
Love—that passeth knowledge.

O love of God, how strong and true!
Eternal and yet ever new:
Above all price, and still unbought;
Beyond all knowledge and all thought.

2 O, wide-embracing, wondrous love,
We read thee in the sky above;
We read thee in the earth below,
In seas that swell and streams that flow.

3 We read thee best in him who came
To bear for us the cross of shame;
Sent by the Father from on high,
Our life to live, our death to die.

4 O love of God, our shield and stay
Through all the perils of the way;
Eternal love, in thee we rest,
For ever safe, for ever blest.

111 C. M.
Nature and grace.

Father! how wide thy glory shines!
How high thy wonders rise!
Known through the earth by thousand signs,
By thousand through the skies.

2 Those mighty orbs proclaim thy power,
Their motions speak thy skill;
And on the wings of every hour,
We read thy patience still.

3 But when we view thy strange design
To save rebellious worms,
Where justice and compassion join
In their divinest forms,

4 Our thoughts are lost in reverent awe,
We love and we adore;
The brightest angel never saw
So much of God before.

5 Here the whole Deity is known;
But thought can never trace
Which of the glories brighter shine,
The justice, or the grace.

6 Now the full glories of the Lamb
Adorn the heavenly plains:
Bright seraphs learn Immanuel’s name,
And try their choicest strains.

7 O! may I bear some humble part
In that immortal song;
Wonder and joy shall tune my heart,
And love command my tongue.

112 C. M.
Heaven and earth are full of his glory.

Eternal Wisdom, thee we praise;
Thee all thy creatures sing:
While with thy name, rocks, hills, and seas,
And heaven’s high palace, ring.

2 Thy hand, how wide it spread the sky;
How glorious to behold!
Tinged with a blue of heavenly dye,
And decked with sparkling gold.

3 Almighty power, and equal skill,
Shine through the worlds abroad,
Our souls with vast amazement fill,
And speak the builder, God.

4 But still the wonders of thy grace
Our warmer passions move;
Here we behold our Saviour’s face,
And here adore his love.

113 C. M.
God is love.

Come, ye that know and fear the Lord,
And raise your souls above;
Let every heart and voice accord
To sing that—God is love.

2 This precious truth his word declares,
And all his mercies prove;
While Christ, th’ atoning Lamb, appears,
To show that—God is love.

3 Behold his loving-kindness waits
For those who from him rove,
And calls for mercy reach their hearts,
To teach them—God is love.

4 O! may we all, while here below,
This best of blessings prove;
Till warmer hearts, in brighter worlds,
Shall shout that—God is love.

114 C. M.
No joy without God.
Psalm 73.

God! my supporter and my hope,
My help for ever near,
Thine arm of mercy held me up
When sinking in despair.

2 Thy counsels, Lord, shall guide my feet
Through this dark wilderness;
Thy hand conduct me near thy seat,
To dwell before thy face.

3 Were I in heaven without my God,
’Twould be no joy to me;
And while this earth is my abode,
I long for none but thee.

4 What if the springs of life were broke,
And flesh and heart should faint?
God is my soul’s eternal rock,
The strength of every saint.

115 8s, 7s & 4.
Jehovah my strength.

Guide me, O thou great Jehovah,
Pilgrim through this barren land;
I am weak, but thou art mighty,
Hold me with thy powerful hand;
Bread of heaven,
Feed me till I want no more.

2 Open thou the crystal fountain
Whence the healing waters flow;
Let the fiery, cloudy pillar,
Lead me all my journey through;
Strong Deliverer,
Be thou still my strength and shield.

3 When I tread the verge of Jordan,
Bid the swelling stream divide;
Death of death, and hell’s destruction,
Land me safe on Canaan’s side!
Songs of praises
I will ever give to thee.

116 8s & 7s.
God is light and love.

God is love; his mercy brightens
All the path in which we move!
Bliss he grants, and woe he lightens;
God is light, and God is love.

2 Chance and change are busy ever;
Worlds decay and ages move;
But his mercy waneth never;
God is light, and God is love.

3 E’en the hour that darkest seemeth,
His unchanging goodness proves;
From the cloud his brightness streameth;
God is light, and God is love.

4 He our earthly cares entwineth
With his comforts from above;
Everywhere his glory shineth;
God is light, and God is love.

CHRIST: THE NATIVITY.

117 L. M.
Luke 2:11.

When Jordan hushed his waters still,
And silence slept on Zion’s hill,
When Bethlehem’s shepherds, thro’ the night,
Watched o’er their flocks by starry light—

2 Hark! from the midnight hills around,
A voice of more than mortal sound,
In distant hallelujahs stole,
Wild murmuring o’er the raptured soul.

3 On wheels of light, on wings of flame,
The glorious hosts of Zion came;
High heaven with songs of triumph rung,
While thus they struck their harps and sung:

4 “O Zion, lift thy raptured eye;
The long-expected hour is nigh;
The joys of nature rise again;
The Prince of Salem comes to reign.

5 “See, Mercy, from her golden urn,
Pours a rich stream to them that mourn;
Behold, she binds with tender care
The bleeding bosom of despair.

6 “He comes to cheer the trembling heart:
Bids Satan and his host depart;
Again the day-star gilds the gloom,
Again the bowers of Eden bloom.”

118 L. M.
Genesis 3:15.

Behold the woman’s promised seed!
Behold the great Messiah come!
Behold the prophets all agreed
To give him the superior room!

2 Abrah’m, the saint, rejoiced of old,
When visions of the Lord he saw;
Moses, the man of God, foretold
This great fulfiller of his law.

3 The types bore witness to his name,
Obtained their chief design, and ceased—
The incense and the bleeding lamb,
The ark, the altar, and the priest.

4 Predictions in abundance join
To pour their witness on his head:
Jesus, we bow before thy throne,
And own thee as the promised seed.

HYMN FOR CHRISTMAS.

119 C. H. M.
Glory to God—good will to men.

In hymns of praise, eternal God,
When thy creating hand
Stretched the blue arch of heaven abroad,
And meted sea and land,
The morning stars together sung,
And shouts of joy from angels rung.

2 Than earth’s prime hour, more joyous far
Was the eventful morn,
When the bright beam of Bethlehem’s star
Announced a Saviour born!
Then sweeter strains from heaven began
“Glory to God—good will to man.”

3 Babe of the manger! can it be?
Art thou the Son of God?
Shall subject nations bow the knee,
And kings obey thy nod?
Shall thrones and monarchs prostrate fall
Before the tenant of a stall?

4 ’Tis he! the hymning seraphs cry,
While hovering drawn to earth;
’Tis he, the shepherds’ songs reply;
Hail! hail! Immanuel’s birth;
The rod of peace those hands shall bear,
That brow a crown of glory wear!

5 ’Tis he! the eastern sages sing,
And spread their golden hoard;
’Tis he! the hills of Zion ring,
Hosanna to the Lord!
The Prince of long prophetic years
To-day in Bethlehem appears!

120 C. M. double.
Song of the angels.

It came upon the midnight clear,
That glorious song of old,
From angels bending near the earth
To touch their harps of gold:
“Peace to the earth, good will to men,
From heaven’s all-gracious King;”
The world in solemn stillness lay
To hear the angels sing.

2 Still through the cloven skies they come
With peaceful wings unfurled;
And still their heavenly music floats
O’er all the weary world:
Above its sad and lowly plains
They bend on heavenly wing,
And ever o’er its Babel sounds
The blesséd angels sing.

3 Yet with the woes of sin and strife
The world has suffered long;
Beneath the angel-strain have rolled
Two thousand years of wrong;
And men, at war with men, hear not
The love-song which they bring:
O! hush the noise, ye men of strife,
And hear the angels sing!

4 And ye, beneath life’s crushing load,
Whose forms are bending low,
Who toil along the climbing way
With painful steps and slow;
Look now! for glad and golden hours
Come swiftly on the wing:
O! rest beside the weary road,
And hear the angels sing!

5 For lo! the days are hastening on,
By prophet-bards foretold,
When with the ever-circling years
Comes round the age of gold;
When peace shall over all the earth
Its ancient splendor fling,
And the whole world send back the song
Which now the angels sing.

121 C. M.
Mortals, awake.

Mortals! awake, with angels join,
And chant the solemn lay;
Love, joy, and gratitude combine
To hail the auspicious day.

2 In heaven the rapturous song began,
And sweet seraphic fire
Through all the shining legions ran,
And swept the sounding lyre.

3 The theme, the song, the joy was new
To each angelic tongue;
Swift through the realms of light it flew,
And loud the echo rung.

4 Down through the portals of the sky
The pealing anthem ran,
And angels flew with eager joy
To bear the news to man.

5 Hark! the cherubic armies shout,
And glory leads the song,
Peace and salvation swell the note
Of all the heavenly throng.

6 With joy the chorus we’ll repeat,
“Glory to God on high!
Good will and peace are now complete—
Jesus was born to die!”

7 Hail, Prince of life! for ever hail!
Redeemer—brother—friend!
Though earth, and time, and life shall fail,
Thy praise shall never end.

122 C. M.
Isaiah 9:6.

To us a child of hope is born,
To us a Son is given;
Him shall the tribes of earth obey,
Him, all the hosts of heaven.

2 His name shall be the Prince of Peace,
For evermore adored,
The Wonderful, the Counsellor,
The great and mighty Lord.

3 His power, increasing, still shall spread;
His reign no end shall know;
Justice shall guard his throne above,
And peace abound below.

123 C. M.
The day-spring from on high.

Calm on the listening ear of night,
Come heaven’s melodious strains,
Where wild Judea stretches far
Her silver-mantled plains.

2 Celestial choirs, from courts above,
Shed sacred glories there,
And angels, with their sparkling lyres,
Make music on the air.

3 The answering hills of Palestine
Send back the glad reply;
And greet, from all their holy hights,
The day-spring from on high.

4 O’er the blue depths of Galilee
There comes a holier calm,
And Sharon waves, in solemn praise,
Her silent groves of palm.

5 “Glory to God!” the sounding skies
Loud with their anthems ring—
“Peace to the earth, good will to men,
From heaven’s eternal King.”

6 Light on thy hill, Jerusalem!
The Saviour now is born!
And bright on Bethlehem’s joyous plains
Breaks the first Advent morn.

124 C. M.
The Advent.

Hark, the glad sound! the Saviour comes!
The Saviour promised long!
Let every heart prepare a throne,
And every voice a song.

2 He comes, the prisoner to release
In Satan’s bondage held;
The gates of brass before him burst,
The iron fetters yield.

3 He comes, from thickest films of vice
To clear the mental ray,
And on the eyeballs of the blind
To pour celestial day.

4 He comes, the broken heart to bind,
The bleeding soul to cure,
And with the treasures of his grace
To enrich the humble poor.

5 Our glad hosannas, Prince of Peace,
The welcome shall proclaim,
And heaven’s eternal arches ring
With thy belovéd name.

125 C. M.
Joy to the world.

Joy to the world; the Lord is come!
Let earth receive her King:
Let every heart prepare him room,
And heaven and nature sing.

2 Joy to the earth, the Saviour reigns!
Let men their songs employ;
While fields and floods, rocks, hills, and plains,
Repeat the sounding joy.

3 No more let sins and sorrows grow,
Nor thorns infest the ground;
He comes to make his blessings flow
Far as the curse is found.

4 He rules the world with truth and grace,
And makes the nations prove
The glories of his righteousness,
And wonders of his love.

126 7s.
Christ is born in Bethlehem.
Luke 2.

Hark! the herald angels sing,
“Glory to the new-born King!
Peace on earth, and mercy mild;
God and sinners reconciled.”

2 Joyful, all ye nations, rise;
Join the triumphs of the skies;
With th’ angelic host proclaim,
“Christ is born in Bethlehem.”

3 See, he lays his glory by;
Born that man no more may die;
Born to raise the sons of earth;
Born to give them second birth.

4 Vailed in flesh the Godhead see!
Hail, th’ incarnate Deity!
Pleased as man with man to dwell,
Jesus, our Immanuel!

5 Hail, the heaven-born Prince of Peace!
Hail, the Son of Righteousness!
Light and life to all he brings,
Risen with healing in his wings.

6 Let us then with angels sing,
“Glory to the new-born King!
Peace on earth, and mercy mild;
God and sinners reconciled!”

127 7s.
The wonderful.

Bright and joyful was the morn
When to us a child was born;
From the highest realms of heaven
Unto us a Son was given.

2 On his shoulder he shall bear
Power and majesty—and wear
On his vesture and his thigh
Names most awful—names most high.

3 Wonderful in counsel he,
Christ th’ incarnate Deity;
Sire of ages ne’er to cease,
King of kings, and Prince of Peace.

4 Come and worship at his feet,
Yield to him the homage meet;
From his manger to his throne,
Homage due to God alone.

128 7s.
Watchman, what of the night?
Isaiah 21:11.

Watchman, tell us of the night,
What its signs of promise are.
Traveler, o’er yon mountain’s hights
See that glory-beaming star!

2 Watchman, does its beauteous ray
Aught of joy or hope foretell?
Traveler, yes: it brings the day,
Promised day of Israel.

3 Watchman, tell us of the night;
Higher yet that star ascends.
Traveler, blessedness and light,
Peace and truth, its course portends.

4 Watchman, will its beams alone
Gild the spot that gave them birth?
Traveler, ages are its own:
See! it bursts o’er all the earth!

5 Watchman, tell us of the night,
For the morning seems to dawn.
Traveler, darkness takes its flight,
Doubt and terror are withdrawn.

6 Watchman, let thy wandering cease;
Hie thee to thy quiet home.
Traveler, lo! the Prince of Peace,
Lo! the Son of God is come!

129 7s.
A Bethlehem hymn.

He has come! the Christ of God;
Left for us his glad abode;
Stooping from his throne of bliss,
To this darksome wilderness.

2 He has come—the Prince of Peace—
Come to bid our sorrows cease;
Come to scatter, with his light,
All the shadows of our night.

3 He, the mighty King, has come!
Making the poor earth his home
Come to bear sin’s heavy load;
Son of David, Son of God.

4 He has come, whose name of grace
Speaks deliverance to our race;
Left for us his glad abode;
Son of Mary, Son of God!

5 Unto us a child is born!
Ne’er has earth beheld a morn
Numbered in the morns of time,
Half so glorious in its prime.

6 Unto us a Son is given!
He has come from God’s own heaven;
Bringing with him from above,
Holy peace and holy love.

130 7s.
Immanuel.

God with us! O glorious name!
Let it shine in endless fame;
God and man in Christ unite—
O mysterious depth and hight!

2 God with us! amazing love
Brought him from his courts above;
Now, ye saints, his grace admire,
Swell the song with holy fire.

3 God with us! O wondrous grace!
Let us see him face to face;
That we may Immanuel sing,
As we ought, our God and King.

131 P. M.
Silent night.

Silent night! hallowed night!
Land and deep silent sleep;
Softly glitters bright Bethlehem’s star,
Beckoning Israel’s eye from afar
Where the Saviour is born.

2 Silent night! hallowed night!
On the plain wakes the strain,
Sung by heavenly harbingers bright,
Fraught with tidings of boundless delight:
Christ the Saviour has come.

3 Silent night! hallowed night!
Earth awake, silence break,
High your anthems of melody raise,
Heaven and earth in full chorus of praise:
Peace for ever shall reign.

132 H. M.
Good tidings of great joy.
Luke 2.

Hark! hark! the notes of joy
Roll o’er the heavenly plains,
And seraphs find employ
For their sublimest strains:
Some new delight in heaven is known;
Loud sound the harps around the throne.

2 Hark! hark! the sound draws nigh—
The joyful host descends;
The Lord forsakes the sky,
To earth his footsteps bends:
He comes to bless our fallen race;
He comes with messages of grace.

3 Bear, bear the tidings round!
Let every mortal know
What love in God is found,
What pity he can show:
Ye winds that blow, ye waves that roll,
Bear the glad news from pole to pole.

4 Strike, strike the harps again,
To great Immanuel’s name!
Arise, ye sons of men,
And all his grace proclaim:
Angels and men, wake every string,
’Tis God the Saviour’s praise we sing!

133 8s & 7s.
Shepherds, hail the wondrous stranger.

Shepherds! hail the wondrous stranger,
Now to Bethlehem speed your way;
Lo! in yonder humble manger,
Christ, the Lord, is born to-day.

2 Bright the star of your salvation,
Pointing to his rude abode;
Rapturous news for every nation:
Now, behold the Son of God.

3 Love eternal moved the Saviour,
Thus to lay his radiance by;
Blessings on the Lamb for ever;
Glory be to God on high.

134 8s & 7s.
Chorus of the angels.
Luke 2:14.

Hark! what joyful notes are swelling
On the quiet midnight air!
’Tis the voice of angels telling,
Jesus comes our sins to bear!
Now the music, in its gladness,
Breaks and swells, and glides along!
Now, earth, waking from her sadness,
Joins the chorus of the song!
Glory in the highest heaven!
Peace on earth, good-will to man!
Let all praise to God be given,
For Redemption’s glorious plan!

2 See all darkness disappearing,
As the star begins to rise!
Sin and death stand trembling, fearing,
As the light falls on their eyes:
Now, again, the earth rejoices,
Satan’s powerful kingdom shakes,
As, from all the heavenly voices,
Louder still the chorus breaks!
Glory in the highest heaven! etc.

3 Rise and shine, Star of Salvation!
Spread thy beams o’er all the earth,
Till each distant land and nation
Owns and speaks thy matchless worth!
Till all tongues, thy praises singing,
Shall thy mighty wonders tell,
Till all heaven with joy is ringing,
As our hearts the chorus swell:
Glory in the highest heaven! etc.

4 When our days on earth are ended,
And we rise to worlds above,
Then our songs shall all be blended
In one song of pardoning love!
Then we’ll tell the wondrous story,
And our blesséd Lord adore;
In our home of bliss and glory
We shall sing for evermore!
Glory in the highest heaven!
Sound aloud the joyful strain!
Glory to the Lamb be given,
Who for sinners once was slain!

135 8s & 7s.
Hark! what mean those holy voices?

Hark! what mean those holy voices,
Sweetly sounding through the skies?
Lo! th’ angelic host rejoices!
Heavenly hallelujahs rise.

2 Hear them tell the wondrous story,
Hear them chant in hymns of joy—
“Glory to the highest, glory!
Glory be to God most high!

3 “Peace on earth, good-will from heaven,
Reaching far as man is found;
Souls redeemed and sins forgiven!”
Loud our golden harps shall sound.

4 “Christ is born, the great anointed;
Heaven and earth his praises sing;
O receive whom God appointed,
For your Prophet, Priest, and King!

5 “Haste, ye mortals, to adore him;
Learn his name, and taste his joy;
Till in heaven ye sing before him—
“‘Glory be to God most high!’”

136 8s & 7s.
Christ, the Saviour, born.

Hail, thou long-expected Jesus!
Born to set thy people free;
From our sins and fears release us,
Let us find our rest in thee.

2 Israel’s strength and consolation,
Hope of all the saints, thou art;
Longdesired of every nation,
Joy of every waiting heart.

3 Born, thy people to deliver—
Born a child, yet Christ, our King—
Born to reign in us for ever—
Now thy gracious kingdom bring.

4 By thine own eternal Spirit,
Rule in all our hearts alone;
By thine all-sufficient merit,
Raise us to thy glorious throne.

137 8s, 7s & 4.
Come and worship.

Angels, from the realms of glory,
Wing your flight o’er all the earth,
Ye who sang creation’s story,
Now proclaim Messiah’s birth:
Come and worship,
Worship Christ, the new-born King.

2 Shepherds, in the field abiding,
Watching o’er your flocks by night,
God with man is now residing,
Yonder shines the infant light;
Come and worship,
Worship Christ, the new-born King.

3 Sages, leave your contemplations,
Brighter visions beam afar;
Seek the great desire of nations;
Ye have seen his natal star!
Come and worship,
Worship Christ, the new-born King.

4 Saints, before the altar bending,
Watching long in hope and fear,
Suddenly, the Lord descending,
In his temple shall appear;
Come and worship,
Worship Christ, the new-born King.

138 11s & 10s.
Hail the blest morn.

Hail the blest morn! when the great Mediator
Down from the regions of glory descends!
Shepherds, go worship the babe in the manger;
Lo! for your guide the bright angel attends!
CHORUS.
Brightest and best of the sons of the morning,
Dawn on our darkness, and lend us thy aid:
Star of the East, the horizon adorning,
Guide where our infant Redeemer is laid.

2 Cold on his cradle the dew-drops are shining,
Low lies his head with the beasts of the stall:
Angels adore him in slumbers reclining,
Maker, and Monarch, and Saviour of all!

3 Say, shall we yield him, in costly devotion,
Odors of Eden, and offerings divine;
Gems from the mountain, and pearls from the ocean,
Myrrh from the forest, and gold from the mine?

4 Vainly we offer earth’s richest oblation
Vainly with gold would his favor secure;
Richer, by far, is the heart’s adoration,
Dearer to God are the prayers of the poor!

139 12s.
Hallelujah to the Lamb.

From the regions of love, lo! an angel descended,
And told the strange news how the babe was attended;
Go, shepherds, and visit the wonderful stranger;
See yonder bright star! there’s your Lord in a manger.
CHORUS.
Hallelujah to the Lamb who has purchased our pardon,
We’ll praise him again when we pass over Jordan!

2 Glad tidings I bring unto you and each nation!
Glad tidings of joy—now behold your salvation;
Then suddenly multitudes raise their glad voices,
And shout hallelujahs, while heaven rejoices!

3 Now glory to God in the highest be given,
All glory to God is re-echoed from heaven;
Around the whole earth let us tell the glad story,
And sing of his love, his salvation, and glory.

4 O Jesus! ride on, thy kingdom is glorious;
Over sin, death, and hell, thou’lt make us victorious!
Thy banner unfurl—let the nations surrender,
And own thee their Saviour, their Lord and Defender!

140 P. M.
Glory to God in the highest.