3 He knows what arguments I'd take
To wrestle with my God;
I'd plead for his own mercy's sake,
And for my Saviour's blood.
4 My God will pity my complaints,
And heal my broken bones;
He takes the meaning of his saints,
The language of their groans.
5 Arise, my soul, from deep distress,
And banish every fear;
He calls thee to his throne of grace,
To spread thy sorrows there.
C.M.-" O that I were as in months past." Job xxix. 2. 1 SWEET was the time when first I felt The Saviour's pardoning blood Applied to cleanse my soul from guilt, And bring me home to God.
2 Soon as the morn the light reveal'd,
His praises tun'd my tongue;
And when the evening shades prevail'd,
His love was all my song.
3 In vain the tempter spread his wiles,
The world no more could charm;
I liv'd upon my Saviour's smiles,
And lean'd upon his arm.
4 In prayer my soul drew near the Lord, And saw his glory shine;
And when I read his holy word,
I call'd each promise mine.
5 Then to his saints I often spoke
Of what his love had done;
But now my heart is almost broke,
For all my joys are gone.
6 Now when the evening shade prevails,
My soul in darkness mourns;
And when the morn the light reveals,
No light to me returns.
7 Now Satan threatens to prevail,
And make my soul his prey;
Yet, Lord, thy mercies cannot fail,
O come without delay.
C.M.-Walking with God. Gen. v. 24.
1 OH! for a closer walk with God,
A calm and heavenly frame;
A light to shine upon the road
That leads me to the Lamb.
2 Where is the blessedness I knew
When first I saw the Lord?
Where is the soul-refreshing view
Of Jesus and his word?
3 What peaceful hours I once enjoy'd!
How sweet their memory still!
But they have left an aching void,
The world can never fill.
4 Return, O holy Dove, return,
Sweet messenger of rest;
I hate the sins that made thee mourn,
5 The dearest idol I have known,
Whate'er that idol be:
Help me to tear it from thy throne,
And worship only thee.
6 So shall my walk be close with God, Calm and serene my frame;
So purer light shall mark the road
That leads me to the Lamb.
L.M.—The holy Soul returning to its rest. Ps. cxvi. 7.
1 RETURN, my soul, and seek thy rest
Upon thy heavenly Father's breast;
Indulge me, Lord, in that repose,
The soul that loves thee only knows.
2 Lodg'd in thine arms, I fear no more
The tempter's howl, the billows' roar;
Those storms must shake the Almighty's seat,
Which violate the saint's retreat.
3 Thy bounties, Lord, to me surmount
The power of language to recount;
From morning-dawn, the setting sun
Sees but my work of praise begun.
4 The mercies, all my moments bring,
Ask an eternity to sing;
What thanks those mercies can suffice,
Which through eternity shall rise?
5 Rich in ten thousand gifts possess'd,
In future hopes more richly bless'd,
I'll sit and sing till death shall raise
A note of more proportion'd praise.
L.M.-The Covenant. Ezek. xxxvi. 25-28.
1 THE Lord proclaims his grace abroad!
Behold I change your hearts of stone,
Each shall renounce his idol god,
And serve henceforth the Lord alone.
2 My grace, a flowing stream, proceeds
To wash your filthiness away;
Ye shall abhor your former deeds,
And learn my statutes to obey.
3 My truth the great design insures,
I give myself away to you;
You shall be mine, I will be your's,
Your God unalterably true.
4 Yet not unsought, or unimplor'd,
The plenteous grace shall I confer;
No-your whole hearts shall seek the Lord,
I'll put a praying spirit there.
5 From the first breath of life divine,
Down to the last expiring hour;
The gracious work shall all be mine,
Begun and ended in my power.
263.
C.M.-Prisoners delivered from the Pit by the Blood of the Covenant.
Zech. ix. 11.
1 YE prisoners who in bondage lie,
In darkness and the pit,
Behold the grace that sets us free,
And to that grace submit.
2 The tidings of deliverance hear,
Confess the covenant good,
And bless the ransom God hath found
In our Immanuel's blood.
3 Justice no more asserts its claim
Your forfeit lives to take;
But smiling mercy quick descends
Your heavy chains to break.
4 We walk at large, and sing the hand,
To which we freedom owe,
And drink those rivers with delight,
Which through this desert flow.
5 He that hath liberty bestow'd,
Will give a kingdom too;
He that hath loos'd the bonds of death,
The path of life will shew.
C.M.-Support in God's Covenant under domestic Troubles.
1 MY God, the covenant of thy love
Abides for ever sure,
And in its matchless grace I feel
My happiness secure.
2 What, though my house be not with thee
As nature could desire?
To nobler joys than nature gives,
Thy servants all aspire.
3 Since thou, the everlasting God,
My Father art become;
Jesus my guardian, and my friend,
And heaven my final home;
4 I welcome all thy sovereign will,
For all that will is love;
And when I know not what thou dost,
I wait the light above.
5 Thy covenant in the darkest gloom
Shall heavenly rays impart,
Which, when my eyelids close in death,
Shall warm my chilling heart.
L.M.-Rejoicing in our Covenant Engagements. 2 Chron. xv. 15.
1 O HAPPY day that fix'd my choice
On thee, my Saviour, and my
Well may this glowing heart rejoice,
And tell its raptures all abroad.
2 O happy bond, that seals my vows
To him who merits all my love!
Let cheerful anthems fill his house,
While to that sacred shrine I move.
3 'Tis done; the great transaction's done:
I am my Lord's, and he is mine;
He drew me, and I follow'd on,
Charm'd to confess the voice divine.
4 Now rest my long-divided heart,
Fix'd on this blissful centre rest;
With ashes who would grudge to part,
When call'd on angel's bread to feast?
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