2 To fteer our dangerous courfe between
The rocks on either hand,
And fix us in our golden mien,
And bring our charge to land.
3 Made apt by thy fufficient grace,
To teach as taught by thee,
We come to train in all thy ways'
Our rifing progeny.
4 Their felfish will in time fubdue,
And mortify their pride;
And lend their youth a facred clew
To find the Crucify'd!
5 We would in ev'ry step look up, By thy example taught,
T'alarm their fear, excite their hope,
And rectify their thought.
4
6 We would perfuade their heart t' obey,
With mildeft zeal proceed;
And never take the harsher way,
When love will do the deed.
7 For this we afk, in faith fincere,
The wifdom from above;
To touch their hearts with filial fear,
And pure ingenuous love:
8 To watch their will to fenfe inclin'd,
With-hold the hurtful food;
And gently bend their tender mind,
And draw their fouls to God.
A MASTER's PRAYER.
HYMN CCXXVII.
I
MASTER fupreme, I look to thee
1 For grace and wisdom from above;
Vefted with thy authority,
Endue me with thy patient love.
2 That, taught according to thy will To rule my family aright, may the appointed charge fulfil, With all my heart and all my might.
İ
3 Inferiors, as a facred truft,
I from the fov'reign Lord receive,
That what is fuitable and just,
Impartial I to all may give:
4 O'erlook them with a guardian eye; From vice and wickednefs reftrain: Miftakes and leffer faults pafs by,
And govern with a loofer reign. 5 The fervant faithfully discreet,
Gentle to him, and good, and mild, Him I would tenderly entreat,
And fcarce diftinguish from a child. 6 Order if fome invert, confound,
Their Lord's authority betray,
I hearken to the gospel-found,
And trace the providential way,
7 As far from abjectnefs as pride,
With condefcending dignity,
Jefus, I make thy word my guide,
And keep the poft affign'd by thee. 8 O could I emulate the zeal
Thou doft to thy poor fervants bear; The troubles, griefs, and burdens feel Of fouls intruited to my care: 9 In daily pray'r to God commend
The fouls whom God expir'd to fave; And think how foon my fway may end, And all be equal in the grave.
HYMN CCXXVIII.
ALL hail! happy day,
When enrob'd in our clay,
The Redeemer appear'd upon earth:
How can we refrain
For to join the glad ftrain, And to hail our Immanuel's birth?
2 How boundless that love,
First begotten above,
And through Jefus to finners made known!
Lift, lift up your voice,
And exulting rejoice,
For Jehovah to earth is come down.
Sound his praifes abroad,
And acknowledge him JAH, the I AM.
We also will join
In a hymn fo divine,
Giving glory to God and the Lamb.
To Chrift we will fing,
As our High Priest and King,
And our Prophet to teach us the road:
But more than all this,
For Almighty he is,
And we own him our crucify'd God!
5 To Jefus's praise
Let us fpend all our days,
For 'tis he that our furety has ftood;
He fojourned below,
That his mercy might flow,
And he purchas'd our pardon with blood!
6
O
may the return
Of this once bleffed morn
Be for ever remember'd with joy;
Sweet accents of praise
All our voices fhall raife,
Hallelujahs fhall be our employ.
7 Let echo prolong
8
The harmonious fong,
Hallelujahs again and again :
He kindles the fire,
Whom the nations defire,
And to him we devote the glad ftrain.
Bleft Jefus while we
Pay our tribute to thee,
Let us worship, admire, and adore,
Accept as thy crown,
What before was thine own,
Hallelujahs and praife evermore.
HYMN CCXXIX,
■ HARK! the herald-angels fing,
"Glory to the new-born King;
"Peace on earth, and mercy mild
"God and finners reconcil'd.”
Joyful, all ye nations, rife,
Join the triumphs of the fkies,
With the angelic hoft proclaim,
"Christ is born in Bethlehem."
2 Chrift, by highest heav'n ador'd,
Chrift, the everlating Lord;
Late in time behold him come,
Offspring of a virgin's womb:
Veil'd in flesh, the Godhead fee,
Hail the incarnate Deity!
Pleas'd as man with men t' appear,
Jefus our Immanuel here.
1
3 Hail, the heav'n-born Prince of Peace,
Hail, the Sun of Righteousness !
Light and life to all he brings,
Ris'n with healing in his wings;
Mild he lays his glory by,
Born, that man no more may die,
Born to raise the fons of earth,
Born to give them fecond birth.
4 Come, defire of nations, come,
Fix in us thy humble home;
Rife, the woman's conqu'ring feed,
Bruife in us the ferpent's head:
Adam's likeness now efface,
Stamp thine image in its place;
Second Adam from above,
Reinftate us in thy love.
7.
HYMN CCxxx.
I THE Lord of earth and sky,
The God of ages praife!
Who reigns enthron'd on high,
Ancient of endless days;
Who lengthens out our trial here,
And fpares us yet another year.
2 Barren and wither'd trees,
We cumber'd long the ground;
No fruit of holiness
On our dead fouls was found;
Yet doth he us in mercy fpare,
Another, and another year.
3 When justice bar'd the fword,
To cut the fig-tree down;
The pity of our Lord,
Cry'd," Let it ftill alone;"
The Father mild inclines his ear,
And fpares us yet another year.
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