1 SAFELY through another week
God has brought us on our way,
Let us now his blessing seek,
Waiting in his courts to-day:
Day of all the week the best-
Emblem of eternal rest.
2 While we seek supplies of grace Through the dear Redeemer's name, Show thy reconciling face,
Take away our sin and shame.
From our worldly cares set free,
May we rest this day in thee.
3 Here we come thy name to praise :
Let us feel thy presence near;
May thy glory shed its rays
Every waiting soul to cheer;
Here afford us, Lord, a taste
Of our everlasting feast.
4 May the gospel's joyful sound
Conquer sinners, comfort saints;
Make the fruits of grace abound;
Bring relief from all complaints.
Thus let all our sabbaths prove,
Till we join the church above.
1 WHEN, as returns this solemn day,
Man comes to meet his Maker, God,
What rites, what honors, shall he pay?
How spread his Sovereign's praise abroad?
2 From marble domes and gilded spires
Shall curling clouds of incense rise?
And gems and gold and garlands deck
The costly pomp of sacrifice?
3 Vain, sinful man! creation's Lord
Thy golden offerings well may spare;
But give thy heart, and thou shalt find
Here dwells a God who heareth prayer.
1 SWEET is the work, my God, my King,
To praise thy name, give thanks, and sing;
To show thy love by morning light,
And talk of all thy truth at night.
2 Sweet is the day of sacred rest!
No mortal cares shall seize my breast.
O may my heart in tune be found,
Like David's harp of solemn sound.
3 My heart shall triumph in the Lord,
And bless his works and bless his word:
Thy works of grace, how bright they shine!
How deep thy counsels, how divine!
4 And I shall share a glorious part,
When grace hath well refined my heart,
And fresh supplies of joy are shed,
Like holy oil to cheer my head.
5 Soon shall I see, and hear, and know,
All I desired or wished below;
And every power find sweet employ
In that eternal world of joy.
1 BLESS to us, Lord, this sacred day,
Come, bear our thoughts from earth away:
Now, let our noblest passions rise
With ardor to their native skies.
2 Come, Holy Spirit, all divine,
With rays of light upon us shine;
And let our waiting souls be blest
On this sweet day of sacred rest.
3 Then, when our sabbaths here are o'er,
And we arrive on Canaan's shore,
With all the ransomed, we shall spend
A sabbath which shall never end.
1 LORD of the worlds above,
How pleasant and how fair
The dwellings of thy love,
Thine earthly temples, are!
To thine abode
My heart aspires, with warm desires,
To see my God.
2 To spend one sacred day
Where God and saints abide,
Affords diviner joy
Than thousand days beside.
Where God resorts,
I love it more to keep the door
Than shine in courts.
3 O happy souls that pray
Where God appoints to hear!
O happy men that pay
Their constant service there
They praise thee still;
And happy they who love the way
To Zion's hill!
4 They go from strength to strength,
Through this dark vale of tears,
Till each arrives at length,
Till each in heaven appears:
O glorious seat!
When God, our King, shall thither bring Our willing feet!
1 FREQUENT this day, O God, returns
To shed its quickening beams;
And yet how slow devotion burns!
How cold our worship seems!
2 Accept our faint attempts to love;
Our frailties, Lord, forgive:
We would be like thy saints above,
While here on earth we live.
3 Increase, O Lord, our faith and hope, Till we at length ascend
Where worship never shall break up-
The sabbath never end;
4 Where we shall purer altars rear,
With heavenly lústre shine—
Before thy throne, O God, appear,
And feast on love divine.
1 WE bless thee for this sacred day,
Thou, who hast every blessing given,
Which sends the dreams of earth away,
And yields a glimpse of opening heaven.
2 Rich day of holy, thoughtful rest!
May we improve thy calm repose,
And, in God's service truly blessed,
Forget the world, its cares and woes.
3 Lord! may thy truth, upon the heart,
Now fall and dwell, as heavenly dew,
And flowers of grace in freshness start,
Where once the weeds of error grew.
4 May prayer now lift her sacred wings,
Contented with that aim alone
Which bears her to the King of kings,
And rests her at his sheltering throne.
1 How pleased and blest was I
To hear the people cry,
Come, let us seek our God to-day!'
Yes, with a cheerful zeal,
We haste to Zion's hill,
And there our vows and honors pay.
2 Zion, thrice happy place,
Adorned with wondrous grace,
And walls of strength embrace thee round!
In thee our tribes appear,
To pray, and praise, and hear
The sacred gospel's joyful sound.
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