6 On what has now been sown,

Thy blessing, Lord, bestow;
The pow'r is thine alone,

To make it, spring and grow :
Do thou the gracious harvest raise,
And thou alone shalt have the praise.

XXVII. We are Ambassadors for Christ. 2 Cor. V. 20.

1 Thy message by the preacher seal,

And let thy pow'r be known,
That ev'ry sinner here may feel

The word is not his own.
2 Amongst the foreinost of the throng,

Who dare thee to thy face,
He in rebellion stood too long,

And fought against thy grace.
3 But grace prevaild, he mercy found,

And now by thee is sent;
To tell his fellow-rebels round,

And call them to repent.
4. In Jesus, God is reconcild,

The worst may be forgiv'n;
Come, and he'll own you as a child,

And make you heir of heav'n.
5 Oh! inay the word of Gospel truth

Your chief desires engage!
And Jesus be your guide in youth,

Your joy in hvary age.
6 Perhaps the year that's now begun

May prove to some their last;
The sands of life may soon be run,

The day of grace be past..

• 7 Think, if you slight this embassy,

And will not warning take,
When Jesus in the clouds you see,

What answer will you make?

XXVIII. Paul's farewel Charge. Acts, xx. 26, 27. 1 When Paul was parted from his friends

· It was a weeping day;
But Jesus made them all amends,

And wip'd their tears away.
2 Ere long they met again with joy,

Secure no more to part,
Where praises ev'ry tongue employ,

And pleasure fills each heart.

Sa

3 Thus all the preachers of his grace

Their children soon shall meet;
Together see their Saviour's face,

And worship at his feet.

4 But they who heard the word in vain,

Though oft and plainly warn'd,
Will tremble, when they meet again

The ministers they scorn'd.
5 On your own heads your blood will fall,

If any perish here;
The preachers who have told you all,

Shall stand approv'd and clear.

6 Yet, Lord, to save themselves alone,

Is not their utmost view;
Oh! hear their pray'r, thy message own,

And save their hearers too.

XXIX. How shall I put thee among the Children?

Jer. iii. 19.

1 ALAS! by nature how deprav'd,

How prone to ev'ry ill !
Our lives to Satan how enslav'd,

How obstinate our will !
2 And can such sinners be restor'd,

Such rebels reconcild !
Can grace itself the means afford

To make a foe a child? 3 Yes, grace has found the wondrous means

Which shall effectual prove,
To cleanse us from our countless sins,

And teach our hearts to love. 4 Jesus for sinners undertakes,

And dy'd that they may live;
His blood a full atonement makes,

And cries aloud, “ Forgive.”
5 Yet one thing more must grace provide,

To bring us home to God,
Or we shall slight the Lord, who dy'd,

And trample on his blood. 6 The Holy Spirit must reveal

The Saviour's work and worth;
Then the hard heart begins to feel

new and heav'nly birth.
bought with blood, and born again,
leem'd, and sav'd by grace,
3 in God's own house obtain
son's and daughter's place.

XXX. Winter &

I SEE, how rude winter's icy hand

Has stripp'd the trees and seal'd the ground! But spring shall soon his rage withstand,

And spread new beauties all around. 2 My soul a sharper winter mourns,

Barren and fruitless I remain;
When will the gentle spring return,

And bid my graces grow again? 3 Jesus, my glorious Sun, arise!

'Tis thine the frozen heart to move; Oh! hush these storms, and clear my skies,

And let me feel thy vital love!
4 Dear Lord, regard my feeble cry,

I faint and droop till thou appear;
Wilt thou permit thy plant to die?

Must it be winter all the year ?
5 Be still, my soul, and wait this hour,
With humble pray’r, and patient faith ;
Till he reveals his gracious pow'r,

Repose on what his promise saith.
6 He, by whose all-commanding word

Seasons their changing course maintain,
In ev'ry change a pledge affords,
That none shall seek his face in vain.

• Book iii. Hymn 31.

* Genesis, viii. 22,

XXXI. Waiting for Spring.

i Though cloudy skies, and northern blasts,

Retard the gentle spring a while;
The sun will conqu’ror prove at last,

And nature wear a vernal smile. 2 The promise which, from age to age, i

Has brought the changing seasons round,
Again shall calm the winter's rage,

Perfume the air, and paint the ground. 3 The virtue of that first command,

I know still does and will prevail,
That while the earth itself shall stand,
The spring and summer shall not fail.

4. Such changes are for us decreed;

Believers have their winters too;
But spring shall certainly succeed,

And all their former life renew.
5 Winter and spring have each their use,

And each, in turn, his people know;
One kills the weeds their hearts produce,

The other makes their graces grow. 6 Though like dead trees a while they seem,

Yet having life within their root,
The welcome spring's reviving beam

Draws forth their blossoms, leaves, and fruit. 7 But if the tree indeed be dead,

It feels no change, though spring return;
Its leafleys, naked, barren head,
Proclaims it only fit to burn.