BELMONT. C. M.

4

SAMUEL WEBBE.

Thy strengthening hands up hold the

weak, And raise the

poor that fall.

154

Goodness and mercy.

1 LET every tongue thy goodness speak, Thou sovereign Lord of all;

Thy strengthening hands uphold the weak,
And raise the poor that fall.

2 When sorrows how the spirit down,
When virtue lies distressed,
Beneath the proud oppressor's frown,
Thou giv'st the mourner rest.

3 Thou know'st the pains thy servants feel, Thou hear'st thy children's cry;

And their best wishes to fulfill,
Thy grace is ever nigh.

4 Thy mercy never shall remove
From men of heart sincere:

Thou sav'st the souls whose humble love Is joined with holy fear.

5 My lips shall dwell upon thy praise, And spread thy fame abroad;

Let all the sons of Adam raise

The honors of their God.

3 Angels, where'er we go, attend Our steps, whate'er betide;

With watchful care their charge defend,
And evil turn aside.

4 Our lives those holy angels keep
From every hostile power;
And, unconcerned, we sweetly sleep,
As Adam in his bower.

5 And when our spirits we resign,
On outstretched wings they bear,
And lodge us in the arms divine,
And leave us ever there.

156

Charles Wesley.

The twenty-third Psalm.

1 THE Lord's my Shepherd, I'll not want. He makes me down to lie

In pastures green; he leadeth me
The quiet waters by.

2 My soul he doth restore again;
And me to walk doth make
Within the paths of righteousness,
E'en for his own name's sake.

3 Yea, though I walk through death's dark vale,

Yet will I fear no ill;

For thou art with me, and thy rod
And staff me comfort still.

4 A table thou hast furnished me
In presence of my foes;

My head thou dost with oil anoint,
And my cup overflows.

5 Goodness and mercy all my life
Shall surely follow me;

And in God's house for evermore
My dwelling-place shall be.

Francis Rous

157

Rejoicing in deliverance.

1 O THOU, who, when we did complain, Didst all our griefs remove,

O Saviour, do not now disdain

Our humble praise and love.

2 Since thou a pitying ear didst give.
And hear us when we prayed,
We'll call upon thee while we live,
And never doubt thy aid.

3 Pale death, with all his ghastly train,
Our souls encompassed round;
Anguish, and sin, and dread, and pain.
On every side we found.

4 To thee, O Lord of life, we prayed, And did for succor flee:

"O save," in our distress we said, "The souls that trust in thee."

2 The least and feeblest there may bide Uninjured and unawed;

While thousands fall on every side,
He rests secure in God.

3 The angels watch him on his way,
And aid with friendly arm;
And Satan, roaring for his prey,
May hate, but cannot harm.

4 He feeds in pastures large and fair
Of love and truth divine:

O child of God, O glory's heir,
How rich a lot is thine!

5 A hand almighty to defend,
An ear for every call,
An honored life, a peaceful end,
And heaven to crown it all!

Henry F. Lyte.

159 The only source of blessing.

1 JEHOVAH, God, thy gracious power On every hand we see;

O may the blessings of each hour

Lead all our thoughts to thee.

2 If on the wings of morn we speed,
To earth's remotest bound,
Thy hand will there our footsteps iead,
Thy love our path surround.

3 Thy power is in the ocean deeps
And reaches to the skies;
Thine eye of mercy never sleeps,
Thy goodness never dies.

4 From morn till noon-till latest eve Thy hand, O God, we see;

And all the blessings we receive,
Proceed alone from thee.

John Thomson.

1 WHEN all thy mercies, O my God,
My rising soul surveys,
Transported with the view, I'm lost
In wonder, love, and praise.

2 O how can words with equal warmth The gratitude declare,

That glows within my ravished heart? But thou canst read it there.

3 To all my weak complaints and cries, Thy mercy lent an ear,

Ere yet my feeble thoughts had learned
To form themselves in prayer.

4 When in the slippery paths of youth,
With heedless steps I ran,
Thine arm, unseen, conveyed me safe,
And led me up to man.

5 Through hidden dangers, toils, and deaths,

It gently cleared my way;

And through the pleasing snares of vice,
More to be feared than they.

6 Through every period of my life
Thy goodness I'll pursue;
And after death, in distant worlds,
The pleasing theme renew.

7 Through all eternity to thee
A grateful song I'll raise;
But O, eternity's too short
To utter all thy praise.

Joseph Addison.

161 Verily, thou art a God that hidest thyself.

Isa. 45: 15.

1 GOD moves in a mysterious way
His wonders to perform;
He plants his footsteps in the sea,
And rides upon the storm.

2 Deep in unfathomable mines
Of never-failing skill,

He treasures up his bright designs,
And works his sovereign will.

3 Ye fearful saints, fresh courage take:
The clouds ye so much dread
Are big with mercy, and shall break

In blessings on your head.

4 Judge not the Lord by feeble sense.
But trust him for his grace;
Behind a frowning providence__
He hides a smiling face.

5 His purposes will ripen fast,
Unfolding every hour:

The bud may have a bitter taste,
But sweet will be the flower.

6 Blind unbelief is sure to err,
And scan his work in vain:
God is his own interpreter,
And he will make it plain.

Doxology.

William Cowper

To Father, Son, and Holy Ghost,

The God whom we adore, Be glory, as it was, is now,

And shall be evermore!

Tate and Brady

162

Crowning God with praise.

1 KINGDOMS and thrones to God belong;
Crown him, ye nations, in your song:
His wondrous names and powers rehearse;
His honors shall enrich your verse.

2 He shakes the heavens with loud alarms;
How terrible is God in arms!
In Israel are his mercies known,
Israel is his peculiar throne.

3 Proclaim him King, pronounce him blest;
He's your defense, your joy, your rest:
When terrors rise and nations faint,
God is the strength of every saint.
163

Isaac Watts.

God's presence with his people.
1 WHEN Israel, of the Lord beloved,
Out from the land of bondage came,
Her fathers' God before her moved,

An awful guide, in smoke and flame.
2 By day, along the astonished lands
The cloudy pillar glided slow;
By night, Arabia's crimsoned sands

Returned the fiery column's glow.
3 Thus present still, though now unseen,
When brightly shines the prosperous day,
Be thoughts of thee a cloudy screen,

To temper the deceitful ray.

4 And O, when gathers on our path, In shade and storm, the frequent night, Be thou, long-suffering, slow to wrath, A burning and a shining light. 164

Sir Walter Scott.

The great Provider.

1 PEACE, troubled soul, thou need'st not fear; Thy great Provider still is near;

Who fed thee last, will feed thee still:
Be calm, and sink into his will.

2 The Lord, who built the earth and sky.
In mercy stoops to hear thy cry;
His promise all may freely claim:
Ask and receive in Jesus' name.

3 Without reserve give Christ your heart;
Let him his righteousness impart;
Then all things else he 'll freely give;
With him you all things shall receive.
4 Thus shall the soul be truly blest,
That seeks in God his only rest;
May I that happy person be,
In time and in eternity.

Samuel Ecking.

1 THE tempter to my soul hath said, "There is no help in God for thee:" Lord, lift thou up thy servant's head; My glory, shield, and solace be.

2 Thus to the Lord I raised my cry.
He heard me from his holy hill;
At his command the waves rolled by;

He beckoned, and the winds were still. 3 I laid me down and slept,-I woke ; Thou, Lord, my spirit didst sustain ; Bright from the east the morning broke, Thy comforts rose on me again.

4 I will not fear, though arméd throngs Surround my steps in all their wrath; Salvation to the Lord belongs;

His presence guards his people's path.

James Montgomery.

166 God a mighty fortress.

2 Did we in our own strength confide,
Our striving would be losing;
Were not the right man on our side,
The man of God's own choosing.
Dost ask who that may be?
Christ Jesus, it is he;
Lord Sabaoth is his name,
From age to age the same,

And he must win the battle.

3 And though this world, with devils filled, Should threaten to undo us;

We will not fear, for God hath willed
His truth to triumph through us.

167 2 They come to watch around us here, God's messengers of love. To soothe our sorrow, calm our fear: Ye heavenly guides, speed not away, God willeth you with us to stay. 3 But chiefly at its journey's end 'Tis yours the spirit to befriend, And whisper to the faithful heart, "O Christian soul, in peace depart."

4 Blest Jesus, thou whose groans and tears

Have sanctified frail nature's fears,

To earth in bitter sorrow weighed,
Thou didst not scorn thine angel's aid.

5 An angel guard to us supply,
When on the bed of death we lie;
And by thine own almighty power
O shield us in the last dread hour.
Robert Campbell