Are not thy mercies large and free?
May not a sinner trust in Thee?
2 My crimes are great, but not surpass
The power and glory of thy grace:
Great God, thy nature hath no bound,
So let thy pardoning love be found.
3 0 wash my soul from every sin,
And make my guilty conscience clean;
Here on my heart the burden lies,
And past offences pain my eyes.
4 My lips with shame my sins confess,
Against thy law, against thy grace;
Lord, should thy judgment grow severe,
I am condemn'd, but Thou art clear.
5 Should sudden vengeance seize my breath,
I must pronounce Thee just in death;
And if my soul were sent to hell,
Thy righteous law approves it well.
6 Yet save a trembling sinner, Lord,
Whose hope, still hovering round thy word,
Would light on some sweet promise there,
Some sure support against despair.
The Penitent Pleading.
1 O LORD, on whom I do depend!
Behold my careful heart;
And when thy will and pleasure is,
Release me of my smart.
2 Thou seest my sorrows, what they are,
My grief is known to Thee;
And there is none that can remove
Or take the same from me,
3 But only Thou, whose aid I crave,
Whose mercy still is prest
To ease all those that come to Thee
For succour and for rest.
4 And since Thou seest my restless eyes,
My tears and grievous groan,
Attend unto my suit, O Lord!
Mark my complaint and moan.
5 Though sin doth hinder me a while,
When Thou shalt see it good,
I shall enjoy the sight of Him
Who shed for me his blood!
6 And as thy angels and thy saints
Do now behold the same;
So trust I to possess that place,
With them to praise thy name.
7 But whilst I live here in this vale,
Where sinners do frequent,
Assist me ever with thy grace,
My sins still to lament;
8 Lest that I tread the sinner's path,
And give them my consent,
To dwell with them in wickedness,
Whereto nature is bent.
9 Only thy grace must be my stay ;
Let that with me remain;
For if I fall, then of myself
I cannot rise again.
10 Wherefore this is yet once again
My suit and my request,
To grant me pardon for my sin,
That I in Thee may rest.
The Sinner's Lamentation.
10 LORD, turn not thy face away
From him that lies prostrate,
Lamenting sore his sinful life,
Before thy Mercy-gate;
2 Which Thou dost open wide for those That do lament their sin:
O shut it not against me, Lord,
But let me enter in.
3 Call me not to a strict account,
How I have lived here;
For then, I know right well, O Lord,
Most vile I shall appear.
4 I need not to confess my life,
For surely Thou canst tell
What I have been; and what I am,
Thou knowest very well.
5 So come I to the throne of grace,
Where mercy doth abound;
Desiring mercy for my sins,
To heal my deadly wound.
Hoping for Grace. Moravia.
1 My soul before Thee prostrate lies;
To Thee, her source, my spirit flies;
My wants I mourn, my chains I see;
O let thy presence set me free!
2 Lost and undone, for aid I cry;
In thy death, Saviour, let me die!
Grieved with thy grief, pain'd with thy pain,
Ne'er may I feel self-love again.
3 Jesus, vouchsafe my heart and will,
With thy meek lowliness to fill;
No more her power let nature boast,
But in thy will, may mine be lost!
4 In life's short day, let me yet more
Of thy enlivening power implore;
My mind must deeper sink in Thee,
My foot stand firm, from wandering free.
5 One only care my soul should know,
Father, all thy commands to do:
Ah! deep engrave it on my breast,
That I in Thee alone am blest.
The example of Christ in Prayer.
1 My dear Redeemer and my Lord,
I read my duty in thy word;
But in thy life the law appears
Drawn out in living characters.
2 Such was thy truth, and such thy zeal,
Such deference to thy Father's will,
Such love, and meekness so divine,
I would transcribe and make them mine.
3 Cold mountains, and the midnight air,
Witness'd the fervour of thy prayer:
The desert thy temptations knew,
Thy conflict and thy victory too.
4 Be Thou my pattern; make me bear
More of thy gracious image here:
Then God the Judge shall own my name
Amongst the followers of the Lamb.
Humble Profession.
1 My blessed Saviour, is thy love
So great, so full, so free?
Behold, I give my love, my heart,
My life, my all to Thee.
2 I love Thee for the glorious worth
In thy great Self I see:
I love Thee for that shameful cross
Thou hast endured for me.
3 No man of greater love can boast,
Than for his friend to die;
But for thy enemies Thou wast slain;
What love with thine can vie?
2 Though in the very form of God,
With heavenly glory crown'd,
Thou wouldst partake of human flesh,
Beset with troubles round.
5 Thou wouldst like wretched man be made,
In every thing but sin;
That we as like Thee might become,
As we unlike have been:
6 Like Thee in faith, in meekness, love,
In every beauteous grace;
From glory thus to glory changed,
As we behold thy face.
7 O Lord, I'll treasure in my soul
The memory of thy love;
And thy dear name shall still to me
A grateful odour prove.
8 Thy friends, the excellent on earth,
Shall be my chief delight;
And when alone, I'll make thy law
My study day and night.
9 Where Thou dost pitch thy tent, and where
Thy Honour deigns to dwell,
There I'll fix mine, and there reside,
There thy love's wonders tell.
Fervent Vows and Petitions.
I THEE will I love, my strength and tower,
Thee will I love, my joy and crown;
Thee will I love with all my power,
In all my works, and Thee alone!
Thee will I love, till that pure fire
Fill my whole soul with chaste desire.
2 In darkness willingly I stray'd;
I sought Thee, yet from Thee I roved;
For wide my wandering thoughts were spread,
Thy creatures more than Thee I loved;
And now, if more at length I see,
'Tis through thy light, and comes from Thee. 3 I thank Thee, uncreated Sun,
That thy bright beams on me have shined:
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