6 Break, sovereign grace, O, break the charm,
And set the captive free;
Reveal, almighty God, thine arm,
And haste to rescue me.

474.

C. M

STENNETT.

Pardon implored.

1 DEAR Saviour, prostrate at thy feet
A guilty rebel lies,

And upward to thy mercy-seat
Presumes to lift his eyes.

2 If tears of sorrow would suffice

To pay

the debt I owe,

Tears should from both my weeping eyes
In ceaseless torrents flow.

3 But no such sacrifice 1 plead
To expiate my guilt;

No tears, but those which thou hast shed-
No blood, but thou hast spilt.

4 I plead thy sorrows, gracious Lord;
Do thou my sins forgive:

Thy justice will approve the word
That bids the sinner live.

475.

L. M.

Burden of Guilt.

BEDDOME.

1 LORD, with a grieved and aching heart,
To thee I look, to thee I cry;
Supply my wants, and ease my smart;
O, hear an humble prisoner's sigh.

2 Here on my soul the burden lies;
No human power can ease the load;
My numerous sins against me rise,
And far remove me from my God.

3 Break, break, O Lord, these tyrant chains, And set the struggling captive free; Redeem from everlasting pains,

And bring me safe to heaven and thee.

476.

79.

LUTH. COL.

The penitent Inquirer.

can there be

1 DEPTH of mercy!
Mercy still reserved for me?
Can my God his wrath forbear,
And the chief of sinners spare?

2 I have long withstood his grace ;
Long provoked him to his face;
Would not hear his gracious calls;
Grieved him by a thousand falls.
3 Jesus, answer from above:
Is not all thy nature love?
Wilt thou not the wrong forget?
Lo, I fall before thy feet.

4 Now incline me to repent;
Let me now my fall lament;
Deeply my revolt deplore;
Weep, believe, and sin no more.

477.

7s, 6 L.

HAR. SAC.

Repentance at the Cross of Christ.

1 HEARTS of stone, relent, relent;
Break, by Jesus' cross subdued;
See his body mangled, rent,

Covered with a gore of blood;
Sinful soul, what hast thou done?
Crucified th' eternal Son.

2 Yes, thy sins have done the deed,

Driven the nails that fixed him there,
Crowned with thorns his sacred head,
Plunged into his side the spear,
Made his soul a sacrifice,

While for sinful man he dies.

3 Wilt thou let him bleed in vain?
Still to death thy Lord pursue?
Open all his wounds again?

And the shameful cross renew?
No; with all my sins I'll part;
Break, O, break, my bleeding heart.

478.

C. M.

WATTS.

Conviction by the Law.

1 LORD, how secure my conscience was, And felt no inward dread!

I was alive without the law,

And thought my sins were dead.

2 My hopes of heaven were firm and bright; But since the precept came

With such convincing power and light,
I find how vile I am.

3 My guilt appeared but small before,
Till I with terror saw

How perfect, holy, just, and pure,
Is thine eternal law.

4 Then felt my soul the heavy load;
My sins revived again;

I had provoked a dreadful God,
And all my hopes were slain.

5 My God, I cry with every breath,
Exert thy power to save;

O, break the yoke of sin and death,
And thus redeem the slave.

479.

S. M.

TATE & BRADY.

Pleading for Mercy.

1 HAVE mercy, Lord, on me,

As thou wert ever kind;

Let me, oppressed with loads of guilt,
Thy wonted pardon find.

2 Against thee, Lord, alone,

And only in thy sight,

Have I transgressed; and, though condemned,
Must own thy judgments right.

3 Blot out my crying sins,

Nor me in anger view;

Create in me a heart that's clean,
An upright mind renew.

4 Withdraw not thou thy help,
Nor cast me from thy sight,
Nor let thy Holy Spirit take
His everlasting flight.

5 The joy thy favor gives
Let me again obtain,

480.

And thy free Spirit's firm support
My fainting soul sustain.

S. M.

Confession.

1 ONCE more we meet to pray,
Once more our guilt confess;
Turn not, O Lord, thine ear away
From creatures in distress.

2 Our sins to heaven ascend,

And there for vengeance cry;
O God, behold the sinner's Friend,
Who intercedes on high.

3 Though we are vile indeed,
And well deserve thy curse,
The merits of thy Son we plead,
Who lived and died for us..

4 Now let thy bosom yearn,
As it hath done before;
Return to us, O God, return,
And ne'er forsake us more.

ANON.

VILLAGE HYMNS.

The Prodigal's Return.

1 THE long-lost son, with streaming eyes,
From folly just awake,

Reviews his wanderings with surprise;
His heart begins to break.

2 "I starve," he cries, "nor can I bear
The famine in this land,

While servants of my Father share
The bounty of his hand.

3 "With deep repentance I'll return
And seek my Father's face;
Unworthy to be called a son,
I'll ask a servant's place."

4 Far off the Father saw him move,
In pensive silence mourn,

And quickly ran, with arms of love,
To welcome his return.

5 Through all the courts the tidings flew,
And spread the joy around;

The angels tuned their harps anew
The long-lost son is found!

1 O LORD, thy tender mercy hears
Contrition's humble sigh;

STEELE.

Thy hand, indulgent, wipes the tears
From sorrow's weeping eye.

2 See, low before thy throne of grace,
A sinful wanderer mourn;
Hast thou not bid me seek thy face?
Hast thou not said, "Return"?

3 0, shine on this benighted heart,
With beams of mercy shine;
And let thy healing voice impart
A taste of joys divine.

4 Thy presence only can bestow
Delights which never cloy;
Be this my solace here below,
And my eternal joy.

Mercy implored.

1 THOU Lord of all above,
And all below the sky,

Before thy feet I prostrate fall,
And for thy mercy cry.

BEDDOME