WATTS.

Blessedness of confessing and forsaking Sin. Ps. 32. 10 BLESSED Souls are they,

Whose sins are covered o'er!
Divinely blest, to whom the Lord
Imputes their guilt no more.

2 They mourn their follies past,
And keep their hearts with care;
Their lips and lives, without deceit,
Shall prove their faith sincere.
3 While I concealed my guilt,
I felt the festering wound;
Till I confessed my sins to thee,
And ready pardon found.

4 Let sinners learn to pray,

Let saints keep near the throne;
Our help in times of deep distress
Is found in God alone.

341.

L. M.

DODDRIDGE.

A Wanderer pleading to be reclaimed. 1 LORD! we have wandered from thy way, Like foolish sheep have gone astray; Our pleasant pastures we have left, And of their guard our souls bereft. 2 Exposed to want, exposed to harm, Far from our gentle shepherd's arm; Nor will these fatal wanderings cease, Till thou reveal the paths of peace. 3 O seek thy thoughtless servants, Lord! Nor let us quite forget thy word; Our erring feet do thou restore, And keep us that we stray no more.

342.

L. M. 61.
Imploring Divine Mercy.

DENHAM.

1 OUT of the depths of sad distress,
The gloomy mazes of despair,

To heaven we raise our warm address;
Deign, O our God! to hear our prayer:
O let thine ear indulge our grief,
For thy indulgence is relief.

2 Shouldst thou, O God, minutely scan
Our faults, and as severely chide,
No mortal seed of sinful man
Could such a scrutiny abide :
But mercy shines in all thy ways,
Bright theme of universal praise!

3 With longing eyes we seek the Lord;
Before his throne our souls attend;
Firmly on his eternal word

Our faith is fixed, our hopes depend:
On wings of love our souls shall rise
In contemplation to the skies.

4 Ye pious minds, on God rely;
With full assurance in him trust;
He sends redemption from on high,
And raises sinners from the dust:
He will at length absolve his heirs
From all their guilt and all their fears.

343.

C. M.

S. STREETER.

Humiliation for Sin.

1 HERE in thy temple, Lord, we meet,
And bow before thy throne;
Abased and guilty at thy feet,
We seek thy grace alone.

2 Our sins rise up in dread array,
And fill our hearts with fear;
Our trembling spirits melt away,
But find no helper near.

3 Still, Lord, thy mercy's rich and free,
And runs an endless round;
A boundless, purifying sea,

Where all our sins are drowned. 4 O send thy pity from on high With pardon all divine ;

Bring now thy gracious spirit nigh,
And make us wholly thine.

5 We humbly mourn our follies past,
Each guilty path deplore;
Resolved, while feeble life shall last,
To tread those paths no more.

344.

C. M.

MRS. STEELE.

Rejoicing to return.

1 How oft, alas! this wretched heart
Has wandered from the Lord!
How oft my roving thoughts depart,
Forgetful of his word!

2 Yet sovereign mercy calls, 'Return:'
Dear Lord, and may I come!
My vile ingratitude I mourn;

O take the wanderer home.

3 And canst thou, wilt thou yet forgive,
And bid my crimes remove?
And shall a pardoned rebel live
To speak thy wondrous love?

4 Almighty grace, thy healing power
How glorious, how divine,

That can to life and bliss restore
So vile a heart as mine!

5 Thy pardoning love, so free, so sweet,
Dear Savior, I adore;

O keep me at thy sacred feet,
And let me rove no more.

345.

C. M.

MRS. STEELE..

Desiring to return.

10 THOU, whose tender mercy hears
Contrition's humble sigh;

Whose hand, indulgent, wipes the tears
From sorrow's weeping eye!

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

3 And shall my guilty fears prevail
To drive me from thy feet?
O let not this dear refuge fail,
This only safe retreat.

4 Absent from thee, my guide, my light!
Without one cheering ray,

Through dangers, fears, and gloomy night,
How desolate my way!

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

283

PRAYER AND DEVOUT EXERCISES.

346.

C. M.

WATTS.

Heartless Worship an Abomination.

1 GOD is a spirit just and wise,
He sees our inmost mind;

In vain to heaven we raise our cries,
And leave our souls behind.

2 Nothing but truth before his throne
With honor can appear;

The painted hypocrites are known
Through the disguise they wear.
3 Their lifted eyes salute the skies,
Their bending knees the ground;
But God abhors the sacrifice

Where not the heart is found.

4 Lord, search my thoughts, and try my ways,
And make my soul sincere;

Then shall I stand before thy face,
And find acceptance there.

347.

L. M.

SCOTT.

Forms of Worship vain without Virtue.
1 TH' uplifted eye and bended knee
Are but vain homage, Lord, to thee,