4 What though it pierc'd my fainting heart,
I bless thine hand that caus'd the smart ;
It taught my tears a while to flow,

But say'd me from eternal wo.

5 Oh! hadst thou left me unchastis'd,
Thy precept I had still despis'd;
And still the snare in secret laid,
Had my unwary feet betray'd.

6 I love thee, therefore, O my

my God,
And breathe towards thy dear abode ;
Where in thy presence fully blest,
Thy chosen saints for ever rest.

XVIII. C. Temptation.

1 THE billows swell, the winds are high,
Clouds overcast my wintry sky;

Out of the depths to thee I call,
My fears are great, my strength is small.

2 O Lord, the pilot's part perform,

And guide and guard me through the storm;
Defend me from each threat'ning ill,
Control the waves, say, "Peace, be still."

3 Amidst the roaring of the sea,
My soul still hangs her hopes on thee;
Thy constant love, thy faithful care,
Is all that saves me from despair.

4 Dangers of ev'ry shape and name
Attend the followers of the Lamb,
Who leave the world's deceitful shore,
And leave it to return no more.

5 Though tempest-toss'd, and half a wreck,
My Saviour through the floods I seek;
Let neither winds nor stormy main
Force back my shattered bark again.

XIX. C. Looking upwards in a Storm.

1 GoD of my life, to thee I call,
Afflicted at thy feet I fall;

When the great water-floods prevail,
Leave not my trembling heart to fail* !

2 Friend of the friendless, and the faint!
Where should I lodge my deep complaint?
Where, but with thee, whose open door
Invites the helpless and the poor ?

3 Did ever mourner plead with thee,

And thou refuse that mourner's plea ?
Does not the world still fix'd remain,
That none shall seek thy face in vain?

4 That were a grief I could not bear,
Didst thou not hear and answer pray'r ;
But a pray'r-hearing, answ'ring God,
Supports me under ev'ry load.

5 Fair is the lot that's cast for me;
Í have an advocate with thee;
They whom the world caresses most,
Have no such privilege to boast.

6 Poor though I am, despis'd, forgott,
Yet God, my God, forgets me not ;
And he is safe, and must succeed,
For whom the Lord vouchsafes to plead.

* Psalm Ixix. 15.

Psalm xl. 17.

XX. C. The Valley of the Shadow of Death

1 My soul is sad and much dismay'd;

See, Lord, what legions of my foes, With fierce Apollyon at their head,

My heav'nly pilgrimage oppose!

2 See, from the ever-burning lake,

How like a smoky cloud they rise! With horrid blasts my soul they shake, With storms of blasphemies and lies,

3 Their fiery arrows reach the mark*,

My throbbing heart with anguish tear; Each lights upon a kindred spark,

And finds abundant fuel there.

4 I hate the thought that wrongs the Lord; Oh! I would drive it from my breast, With thy own sharp two-edged sword, Far as the east is from the west.

5 Come then, and chase the cruel host, Heal the deep wounds I have receiv'd Nor let the pow'rs of darkness boast, That I am foil'd, and thou art griev'd!

XXI. The Storm Hushed.

1 'Tis past the dreadful stormy night
Is gone, with all its fears!

And now I see returning light,
The Lord, my Sun, appears.
* Eph. vi. 16.

2 The tempter, who but lately said,
I soon shall be his prey,

Has heard my Saviour's voice, and fled
With shame and grief away.

3 Ah! Lord, since thou didst hide thy face,
What has my soul endur'd?
But now 'tis past, I feel thy grace,
And all my wounds are cur'd!

4 Oh wondrous change! but just before
Despair beset me round,

I heard the lion's horrid roar,

And trembled at the sound.

5 Before corruption, guilt, and fear,
My comforts blasted fell;
And unbelief discover'd near

The dreadful depths of hell.

6 But Jesus pity'd my distress,
He heard my feeble cry,
Reveal'd his blood and righteousness,
And brought salvation nigh.

7 Beneath the banner of his love
I now secure remain;

The tempter frets, but dares not move,
To break my peace again.

8 Lord, since thou thus hast broke my bands; And set the captive free,

I would devote my tongue, my hands,
My heart, my all, to thee.

XXII. Help in the Time of Need.

1 UNLESS the Lord had been my stay, (With trembling joy my soul may say,) My cruel foe had gain'd his end:

But he appear'd for my relief,

And Satan sees, with shame and grief,
That I have an Almighty Friend,

2 Oh! 'twas a dark and trying hour,
When harass'd by the tempter's pow'r
I felt my strongest hopes decline!
You only who have known his arts,
You only who have felt his darts,
Can pity such a case as mine.

3 Loud in my ears a charge be read,
(My conscience witness'd all he said,)
My long black list of outward sin;
Then bringing forth my heart to view,
Too well what's hidden there he knew,
He show'd me ten times worse within.

4 'Tis all too true, my soul reply'd,
But I remember Jesus dy'd,

And now he fills a throne of grace;
I'll go, as I have done before,
His mercy I may still implore,

I have his promise, "Seek my face."

5 But as when sudden fogs arise,
The trees and hills, the sun and skies,
Are all at once conceal'd from view;
So clouds of horror, black as night,
By Satan rais'd, hid from my sight
The throne of grace and promise too.
VOL. III.
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