When satan's empire vanquish'd fell,
And all the pow'rs of death and hell
Confess'd his sov'reign sway.
HYMN 74. P. M.
COME, join with angel hosts to cry,
Glory to God, to God on high;
Peace on rebellious earth;
To man good will abounds from heav'n ;
The proof of all is richly giv'n
In Christ's mysterious birth!
What things are these which angels say?
A Saviour born! yea, born to day,
In David's native town:
A Saviour, who is Christ the Lord;
For so declares the heav'nly word;
Hear, wonder, and bow down!
The wonderful, the holy child,
The everlasting Father styl'd,
The mighty God art thou;
The Counsellor, the Prince of peace,
Whose glorious kingdom ne'er shall cease,
Nor wars, nor tumults know.
The cloud on our nativity
Dispels in this thy mystery,
Thou holy, undefil'd:
Our sinful nature's born again
In this thy birth, without a stain,
And can no more be spoil'd.
HYMN 75. P. M.
O SIGHT of anguish ! view it near,
What weeping innocence is here,
A manger for his bed ?
The brutes yield refuge to his woe;
Men, the worse brutes, no pity show,
Nor give him friendly aid.
Did he, that infant bath'd in tears,
Call into form the rolling spheres ?
Did seraphs wait his nod?
Helpless he calls-but man delays:
The moral chaos disobeys,
This offspring of a God.
Say. radiant seraphs thron'd in light,
Did love e'er tow'r so high a fight?
Or glory sink so low?
This wonder angels scarce declare,
Angels the rapture scarce can bear,
Or equal thanks bestow.
Redemption! 'tis a boundless theme ;
Thon boundless Mind, our hearts inflame
With ardour from above:
Words are but faint-let joy express ;
Vain is mere joy-Men, Angels bless
This prodigy of love.
JOY to the world! the Lord is come;
Let earth receive her King:
Let ev'ry heart prepare him room,
And Heav'n and nature sing.
Joy to the earth, the Saviour reigns;
Let men their songs employ ;
While fields and floods, rocks, hills, and plains Repeat the sounding joy.
No more let sins and sorrows grow,
Nor thorns infest the ground;
He comes to make his blessings flow
Far as the curse is found.
He rules the world with truth and grace,
And makes the nations prove
The glories of his righteousness,
And wonders of his love.
my soul, with wonder see
Th' incarnate Deity :
Human nature he assumes,
He to ransom sinners comes.
He was not conceiv'd in sin,
He was infinitely clean;
Him no sinful spot disguis'd,
Yet, lo! he was circumcis'd.
He fulfill'd all righteousness,
Standing in our legal place,
From the cradle to the cross,
All he did he did for us.
He did all our woes retrieve,
He expir'd that we might live :
By his stripes our wounds are heal'd,
By his blood our peace is seal'd.
Jesus' pain procures our ease;
Jesus' death is our release ;
Jesus' cross obtains our crown ;
Jesus' sepulchre our throne.
In thy righteousness array'd,
Let us triumph and be glad ;
Let us walk with thee in white,
'Till we see thy face in light.
THIS is the fast that I will choose,
The burdens to undo;
The bands of wickedness to loose,
And let the pris❜ner go:
Let such, who are oppress'd, be freed ;
Break ev'ry yoke in twain,
Gladly supply the brethren's need,
And thus allay their pain:
To hungry souls to deal thy bread,
Nor thrust them from thy door,
But in thine house a table spread,
For all the cast-out poor :
To all the naked cov'ring give,
Their drooping hearts refresh ;
Nor hide thyself, whilst thou dost live
From those who're thine own flesh.
Attentive to the heav'nly word
We stand convicted deep,
That we ourselves, before the Lord,
This fast can never keep :
But up we look unto our Head,
Jesus the fast hath kept;
And us in him through all he did,
The Father doth accept.
Christ kept the fast, which God did choose ;
Our burdens did undo;
Our bands of wickedness did loose,
And let us pris'ners go :
From sin's oppression us he freed,
Brake ev'ry yoke in twain,
Gladly supply'd his brethren's need,
And sav'd us from hell's pain.
To us he deals the living bread,
Nor thrusts us from his door ;
But to his house, and table spread,
He brings us cast-out poor.
Cloth'd with the labours of his cross,
He did our hearts refresh ;
Nor did he hide himself from us,
But calls us his own flesh.
Hail, Alpha and Omega, hail !
All hail, thou first and last! O'er all our foes we shall prevail, For thou hast kept the fast.
Complete in thee, our dearest Lord,
Thy works as ours are known :
We now encourag'd by thy word,
Conclude thy fast's our own.
BEHOLD the blind their sight receivę ! Behold, the dead awake and live!
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