AMES. L. M.

Sigismund Neukomm. (1778 -1858,) 1837. Arr. by Lowell Mason '1792 -1872.) 1840.

of mirth.

2 Might I enjoy the meanest place

Within Thy house, O God of grace,
Not tents of ease, nor thrones of power,
Should tempt my feet to leave Thy door.
3 God is our Sun, He makes our day;

God is our Shield, He guards our way
From all the assaults of hell and sin,
From foes without and foes within.
All needful grace will God bestow,
And crown that grace with glory too;
He gives us all things, and withholds
No real good from upright souls.

5 O God, our King, whose sovereign sway
The glorious hosts of heaven obey,
And devils at Thy presence flee;
Blest is the man that trusts in Thee.
Rev. Isaac Watts. (1674-1748.) 1719.

985 The Church the Birth place of the Saints.

Ps. lxxxvii.

I GOD in His earthly temple lays
Foundations for His heavenly praise;
He likes the tents of Jacob well,
But still in Zion loves to dwell.

2 His mercy visits every house
That pays its night and morning vows;
But makes a more delightful stay
Where churches meet to praise and pray.
3 What glories were described of old,
What wonders are of Zion told!

IO THOU to whom, in ancient time,

The lyre of Hebrew bards was strung, Whom kings adored in songs sublime, And prophets praised with glowing tongue; 2 Not now on Zion's height alone

Thy favored worshipper may dwell;
Nor where, at sultry noon, Thy Son
Sat weary by the patriarch's well.
3 From every place below the skies,

The grateful song, the fervent prayer,
The incense of the heart, may rise
To heaven, and find acceptance there.
4 O Thou to whom, in ancient time,
The lyre of prophet-bards was strung,
To Thee, at last, in every clime,
Shall temples rise, and praise be sung.
Rev. John Pierpont. (1785-1866.) 1824.

William Croft. (1677-1727.) 1703.

With long de - sire my spirit

987

The Pleasures of public Worship.
Ps. lxxxiv.

2 My flesh would rest in Thine abode,
My panting heart cries out for God;
My God, my King, why should I be
So far from all my joys and Thee?

3 Blest are the saints who sit on high,
Around Thy throne of majesty;
Thy brightest glories shine above,
And all their work is praise and love.

4 Blest are the souls who find a place
Within the temple of Thy grace;
There they behold Thy gentler rays,
And seek Thy face, and learn Thy praise.

5 Blest are the men whose hearts are set
To find the way to Zion's gate;
God is their strength, and, through the road,
They lean upon their helper, God.

6 Cheerful they walk with growing strength,
Till all shall meet in heaven at length;
Till all before Thy face appear,
And join in nobler worship there.

989

I "WHERE two or three, with sweet accord,
Obedient to their sovereign Lord,
Meet to recount His acts of grace,
And offer solemn prayer and praise;

2 "There," says the Saviour, "will I be,
Amid this little company;

3

To them unveil My smiling face,

And shed My glories round the place."
We meet at Thy command, dear Lord,
Relying on Thy faithful word:
Now send Thy Spirit from above,
Now fill our hearts with heavenly love.
Rev. Samuel Stennett. (1727-1795.) 1778.

994

"The festal Morn is come."
Ps. cxxii.

2 With holy joy I hail the day,
That warns my thirsting soul away;
What transports fill my breast;
For lo, my great Redeemer's power
Unfolds the everlasting door,

And leads me to His rest.

3 E'en now, to my expecting eyes,
The heaven-built towers of Salem rise;
E'en now, with glad survey,

I view her mansions, that contain
Th' angelic forms, an awful train,
And shine with cloudless day.
Hither, from earth's remotest end,
Lo, the redeemed of God ascend,

Their tribute hither bring;
Here, crowned with everlasting joy,
In hymns of praise their tongues employ,
And hail th' immortal King.

5 Mother of cities, o'er thy head
Bright peace, with healing wings outspread,
For evermore shall dwell:

Let me, blest seat, my name behold
Among thy citizens enrolled,

And bid the world farewell.

Rev. James Merrick. (1720-1769.) 1765. ab. and alt.

1 WELCOME, sweet day, of days the best, The time of holy mirth and rest:

To God's own house repair,
To hear His word and see His face,
To learn His will and sing His grace,
To join in praise and prayer.

2 This is employment all divine;
My soul, the blest assembly join,
And from the world retire;
Go, bow before thy Maker's throne,
Thy risen Saviour's glories own,
And fan devotion's fire.

3 Forget the trifles here below,
The shining heap, the gaudy show,
Vain mirth and worldly cares:
On wings of strong devotion rise,
Pass every cloud, pass all the skies,
And soar above the stars.

4 To God direct thy steady flight,
Great Fund of bliss, and Source of light,
And there delight thine eyes;
View every shining wonder o'er,
With glad transported heart adore,
And feast in paradise.

Rev. Simon Browne. (1680-1732.) 1720. alt,

HOSANNA. L. M.

Charles Zeuner. (1795-1857. 1832.

B.

996

"Hosanna to the living Lord."

2 "Hosanna, Lord!" Thine angels cry,
"Hosanna, Lord!" Thy saints reply;
Above, beneath us, and around,
The dead and living swell the sound.

3 O Saviour, with protecting care,

Return to this, Thy house of prayer, Assembled in Thy sacred name, Where we Thy parting promise claim. 4 But chiefest in our cleanséd breast, Eternal, bid Thy Spirit rest,

And make our secret soul to be
A temple pure, and worthy Thee.

So, in the last and dreadful day, When earth and heaven shall melt away, Thy flock, redeemed from sinful stain, Shall swell the sound of praise again. Bp. Reginald Heber. (1783-1826.) 1811. "Gott ist gegenwärtig: O lasset uns anbeten.," 997 (Abridged form.) I Lo, God is here: let us adore, And own how dreadful is this place; Let all within us feel His power,

And silent bow before His face.

2 Lo, God is here: Him day and night United choirs of angels sing; To Him, enthroned above all height, Let saints their humble worship bring. 3 Lord God of hosts, O may our praise

Thy courts with grateful incense fill; Still may we stand before Thy face, Still hear and do Thy sovereign will.

1998

Praise waiting in Zion. Ps. lxv.

1 PRAISE, Lord, for Thee in Zion waits;
Prayer shall besiege Thy temple gates;
All flesh shall to Thy throne repair,
And find, through Christ, salvation there.
2 Our spirits faint; our sins prevail;
Leave not our trembling hearts to fail;
O Thou that hearest prayer, descend,
And still be found the sinner's Friend.
3 How blest Thy saints, how safely led,

How surely kept, how richly fed:
Saviour of all in earth and sea,
How happy they who rest in Thee.

4 Lord, on our souls Thy spirit pour;
The moral waste within restore;
O let Thy love our spring-tide be,
And make us all bear fruit to Thee.
Rev. Henry Francis Lyte. (1793--1847.) 1834. ab