L. M.

138.

SPIRIT OF THE PSALMS.

Eternity of God. Psalm 90.

1 ERE mountains reared their forms sublime,
Or the fair earth in order stood,
Before the birth of ancient time,
From everlasting thou art God.

2 A thousand ages in their flight,
With thee are as a fleeting day;
Past, present, future, to thy sight
At once their various scenes display.

3 But our brief life 's a shadowy dream,
A passing thought, that soon is o'er,
That fades with morning's earliest beam,
And fills the musing mind no more.

4 To us, O Lord, the wisdom give
So every precious hour to spend,

That we at length with thee may live,
Where life and bliss shall never end.

1 BEYOND, beyond that boundless sea,
Above that dome of sky,

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 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?

3 O not in circling depth, or height,
But in the conscious breast,

Present to faith, though veiled from sight,
There does his spirit rest.

O come, thou Presence Infinite,

And make thy creatures blest!

L. M.

140.

STERLING.

The Love of God.

1 O SOURCE divine, and Life of all,
The Fount of being's wondrous sea!
Thy depth would every heart appall,
That saw not Love supreme in thee.

2 We shrink before thy vast abyss,

Where worlds on worlds unnumbered brood;
We know thee truly but in this,
That thou bestowest all our good.

3 And so, 'mid boundless time and space,
O, grant us still in thee to dwell,

And through the ceaseless web to trace
Thy presence working all things well!

4 Nor let thou life's delightful play
Thy truth's transcendent vision hide;
Nor strength and gladness lead astray
From thee, our nature's only guide.

5 Bestow on every joyous thrill
A deeper tone of reverent awe;
Make pure thy children's erring will,
And teach their hearts to love thy law!

1 ETERNAL Wisdom! thee we praise; Thee the creation sings;

With thy loud name rocks, hills, and seas, And heavens high palace, rings.

2 Thy hand, how wide it spread the sky!
How glorious to behold!

Tinged with a blue of heavenly dye,
And starred with sparkling gold!

3 The noisy winds stand ready there
Thy orders to obey;

With sounding wings they sweep the air,
To make thy chariot way.

4 There, like a trumpet loud and strong,
Thy thunder shakes our coast,
While the red lightnings wave along, -
The banners of thine host.

5 The rolling mountains of the deep
Observe thy strong command;

Thy breath can raise the billows steep,
Ör sink them to the sand.

6 Thy glories blaze all nature round,
And strike the gazing sight,

Through skies, and seas, and solid ground,
With terror and delight.

7 Infinite strength and equal skill

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

C. M.

142.

STERNHOLD.

The Majesty of God. Psalm 18.

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

2 On cherub and on cherubim
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.

C. M.

143.

FAWCETT.

The Ways of God inscrutable.

1 THY way, O God! is in the sea;
Thy paths I cannot trace,
Nor comprehend the mystery
Of thine unbounded grace.

2 Here the dark veils of flesh and sense
My captive soul surround;
Mysterious deeps of providence
My inward thoughts confound.

3 As, through a glass, I dimly see
The wonders of thy love,

How little do I know of thee,
Or of the joys above!

4 Though but in part I know thy will,
I bless thee for the sight:
Soon will thy love the whole reveal
In glory's clearer light.

5 In rapture shall I then survey
Thy providence and grace;
And spend an everlasting day
In wonder, love, and praise.

1 WITHIN thy circling power I stand;
On every side I find thy hand:
Awake, asleep, at home, abroad,
I am surrounded still with God.

2 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.

3 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.

Power and Majesty of God. Psalm 89.

1 WITH reverence let the saints appear, And bow before the Lord;

His high commands with reverence hear, And tremble at his word.