1255

MRS. C. F. ALEXANDER. 1853.

8.8.8.4.

He that keepeth thee, will not slumber.-Ps. 121. 3.

1 THE radiant morn hath passed away,
And spent too soon her golden store;
The shadows of departing day
Creep on once more.

2 Our life is but a fading dawn;
Its glorious noon how quickly past!
Lead us, O Christ! when all is gone,
Safe home at last.

3 0 by Thy soul-inspiring grace,
Uplift our hearts to realms on high,
Help us to look to that bright place
Beyond the sky;

4 Where light and life and joy and peace In undivided empire reign,

And thronging angels never cease

Their deathless strain.

5 Where saints are clothed in spotless white And evening shadows never fall;

Where Thou, eternal Light of light,
Art Lord of all!

O enter, my soul, at the glorious gates; The silence and smile of His love are the token,

Who now for all comers invitingly waits. 3 We come to be soothed with His merciful healing, [of the day; The dews of the night cure the wounds We come, our life's worth and its brevity feeling, [we pray. With thanks for the past; for the future

1257

6.4.6.6.

At evening time it shall be light.-Zech. 14. 7. The daylight dies;

1 HE sun is sinking fast,

Let love awake, and pay
Her evening sacrifice.

2 As Christ upon the Cross
In death reclined,
Into His Father's hands
His parting soul resigned,
3 So now herself my soul
Would wholly give
Into His sacred charge
In whom all spirits live;
4 So now beneath His eye
Would calmly rest,
Without a wish or thought
Abiding in the breast,

Save that His will be done
Whate'er betide;

Dead to herself, and dead
In Him to all beside.

6 Thus would I live; yet now
Not I, but He

In all His power and love
Henceforth alive in me.

7 One sacred Trinity!

One Lord Divine!
Myself for ever His,
And He for ever mine!

1258

1

THO

LATIN HYMN.

TR. BY E. CASWALL.

L.M.

I will both lay me down in peace and sleep.-Ps. 4. 8.

HOU who hast known the careworn breast,

The weary need of sleep's deep balm, Come, Saviour, ere we go to rest, And breathe around Thy perfect calm. 2 Thy presence gives us childlike trust, Gladness and hope without alloy; The faith that triumphs o'er the dust, And gleamings of eternal joy.

3 Stand in our midst, dear Lord, and say, "Peace be to you, this evening hour;' Then all the struggles of the day Vanish before Thy loving power. 4 Blest is the pilgrimage to heaven, A little nearer every night: Christ, to our earthly darkness given, Till in His glory there is light. G. RAWSON. 1864.

1259

10s.

Thou makest the outgoings of the... evening to rejoice.-Ps. 65. 8.

THE

1 THE day is gently sinking to a close, Fainter and yet more faint the sunlight glows;

O brightness of Thy Father's glory, Thou Eternal Light of light, be with us now; Where Thou art present darkness cannot be;

Midnight is glorious noon, O Lord, with Thee.

2 Our changeful lives are ebbing to an end, Onward to darkness and to death we tend; O Conqueror of the grave, be Thou our guide, [tide,

Be Thou our light in death's dark evenThen in our mortal hour will be no gloom, No sting in death, no terror in the tomb.

3 Thou who, in darkness, walking didst appear

Upon the waves, and Thy disciples cheer, Come, Lord, in lonesome days when [fail; storms assail, And earthly hopes and human succours When all is dark, may we behold Thee nigh, [is I!"

And hear Thy voice-" Fear not, for it

4 The weary world is mouldering to decay, Its glories wane, its pageants fade away; In that last sunset, when the stars shall fall,

May we arise, awakened by Thy call.
With Thee, O Lord, for ever to abide
In that blest day which has no eventide.

1260

1

C. WORDSWORTH. BISHOP OF LINCOLN. 1865.

7.6.8.8.

The night also is Thine.
Ps. 74. 16.

THE day is past and over:

All thanks, O Lord, to Thee! We pray Thee now that sinless The hours of dark may be. O Jesus, keep us in Thy sight, And guard us through the coming night!

2 The joys of day are over:

We lift our hearts to Thee; And ask Thee that offenceless The hours of dark may be. O Jesus, keep us in Thy sight, And guard us through the coming night!

3 The toils of day are over:

We raise the hymn to Thee; And ask that free from peril The hours of dark may be. O Jesus, keep us in Thy sight,

And guard us through the coming night!

4 Be Thou our soul's preserver,
O God, for Thou dost know
How many are the perils
Through which we have to go.
O loving Jesus, hear our call,

And guard and save us from them all!

1261

1

B

ANATOLIUS. 450.

TR. BY J. M. NEALE.

7.6.

I will lay me down in peace and sleep.-Ps. 4. 8.

QENEATH Thy wings, Lord Jesus,
We lay us down to rest,

For in their blessed shadow,

No foe will dare molest
The evening clouds have gathered,
There is no ray of light,

O Jesus, be our shelter,

And keep us through the night.

2 The toil of day is over,
And gone is all its care,
And in Thee calmly trusting,
We lift our evening prayer.
If we from Thee have fallen
By any act of sin,

O Jesus, now restore us,

And make us pure and clean.

3 From bitter pangs of conscience,
In mercy give release,
Then our poor weary spirits

Shall rest in perfect peace;
And when the morning dawneth,
If such Thy will should be,
O Jesus, be our shelter,

And keep us close to Thee.

4 And as the last night cometh,
And life's short day shall end;
We'll fall asleep in Thee, Lord,
The sinner's only Friend;
And at the throne of judgment,
Where each must take his place,
O Jesus, be our shelter,

And save us by Thy grace.

How sad and cold, if Thou be absent, Lord,

The evening leaves me, and my heart how dead!

But if Thy presence grace my humble board,

I seem with heavenly manna to be fed; 4 Fraught with rich blessing, breathing sweet repose,

The calm of evening settles on my breast;

If Thou be with me when my labours close,

No more is needed to complete my rest.

5 Come, then, O Lord, and deign to be my guest,

After the day's confusion, toil, and din ; O come to bring me peace, and joy, and rest,

To give salvation, and to pardon sin!

6 Bind up the wounds, assuage the aching

smart

Left in my bosom from the day just past, And let me on a Father's loving heart Forget my griefs, and find sweet rest at last.

C. J. P. SPITTA. 1843. TR. BY RICHARD MASSIE.

1263

1

6.6.4.6.6.6.4.

I am the Good Shepherd.

John 10. 14.

SHEPHERD of tender youth,
Guiding, in love and truth,
Through devious ways;
Christ, our triumphant King,
We come Thy name to sing,
And here our children bring,
To shout Thy praise.

2 Thou art our Holy Lord,
The all-subduing Word,
Healer of strife:

Thou didst Thyself abase,
That from sin's deep disgrace
Thou mightest save our race,
And give us life.

3 O wisdom's Great High Priest, Thou hast prepared the feast Of holy love;

And in our mortal pain,
None calls on Thee in vain;
Help Thou dost not refrain-
Help from above.

4 Be ever near our side,

Our Shepherd and our Guide,
Our staff and song:
Jesus, Thou Christ of God,
By Thy perennial word,

Lead us where Thou hast trod;
Make our faith strong.

5 So now, and till we die,
Sound we Thy praises high,
And joyful sing.

Infants, and the glad throng
Who to Thy Church belong,
Unite, and swell the song
To Christ our King.

1264

1

JESU

6 5.

He shall feed IIis flock like a shepherd.-Isa. 40. 11.

TESUS is our Shepherd,
Wiping every tear;

Folded in His bosom,
What have we to fear?
Only let us follow
Whither He doth lead,
To the thirsty desert,
Or the dewy mead.

2 Jesus is our Shepherd;
Well we know His voice,
How its gentlest whisper
Makes our heart rejoice!
Even when He chideth,
Tender is His tone:
None but He shall guide us;
We are His alone.

3 Jesus is our Shepherd;

For the sheep He bled;
Every lamb is sprinkled
With the blood He shed;
Then on each He setteth
His own secret sign-
"They that have My Spirit,
These," saith He, "are Mine."

4 Jesus is our Shepherd;
Guarded by His arm,
Though the wolves may raven,
None can do us harm;

When we tread death's valley,
Dark with fearful gloom,
We will fear no evil,

Victors o'er the tomb.

Numb. 28. 26.

TR. BY H. M. DEXTER.

In Canaan's pleasant land,

2

When full of joy, some shining morn,

Went forth the reaper-band.

To God, so good and great,

Their cheerful thanks they pour, Then carry to His temple-gate

The choicest of their store.

3 For thus the holy word,

4

5

6

Spoken by Moses, ran

"The first ripe ears are for the Lord, The rest He gives to man."

Like Israel, Lord, we give
Our earliest fruits to Thee,

And pray that, long as we shall live,
We may Thy children be.

Thine is our youthful prime,
And life and all its powers;
Be with us in our morning time,
And bless our evening hours.

In wisdom let us grow

As years and strength are given,

That we may serve Thy Church below, And join Thy saints in heaven.

In strength or weakness may we see
Our heavenward path, O Lord, through
Thee.

3 0 Truth, before whose throne we bow,
Thou priceless pearl for all who seek,
To Thee our earliest strength we vow,
Thy love will bless the pure and meek;
When dreams or mist beguile our sight,
Turn Thou our darkness into light.

4 O Life, the well that ever flows

To slake the thirst of those who faint,
Thy power to bless what seraph knows?
Thy joy supreme what words can paint?
In earth's last hour of fleeting breath
Be Thou our Conqueror over death.

5 O Light, O Way, O Truth, O Life,
C Jesus, born mankind to save,
Give Thou Thy peace in deadliest strife,
Shed Thou Thy calm on stormiest wave;
Be Thou our hope, our joy, our dread,
Lof the living and the dead!

E. H. PLUMPTRE. 1808.

1267

1

7.6.

Love is of God.-1 John 4. 7. OW dearly God must love us,

HOW And this poor world of ours,

To spread blue skies above us,
And deck the earth with flowers!
There's not a weed so lowly,

Nor bird that cleaves the air,
But tells, in accents holy,

His kindness and His care.

2 He bids the sun to warm us,
And light the path we tread;
At night, lest aught should harm us,
He guards our welcome bed;
He gives our needful clothing,
And sends our daily food;
His love denies us nothing
His wisdom deemeth good.

3 The Bible, too, He sends us,
That tells how Jesus came,
Whose word can save and cleanse us
From guilt and sin and shame.
O may God's mercies move us
To serve Him with our powers!
For, O how He must love us,
And this poor world of ours!

1268

1

S. W. PARTRIDGE. 1841. 7.6.

The holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation. 2 Tim. 3. 15.

E love the good old Bible,

WE The glorious Word of God:

The lamp for those who travel
O'er all life's dreary road;
The watchword in life's battle,
The chart on life's dark sea;
The beautiful, dear Bible,

It shall our teacher be.

2 Who would not love the Bible,
So beautiful and wise?
Its teachings charm the simple,
And all point to the skies;
Its stories all so mighty,

Of men, so brave to see:
The beautiful, dear Bible,
It shall our teacher be.

3 But most we love the Bible,

For there we children learn
How Christ for us became a child,
Our hearts to Him to turn;
And how He bowed to sorrow,
That we His face might see;
The Bible, yes, the Bible,
It shall our teacher be.

1269

1

E. PAXTON HOOD. 1870.

6.6.8.4.

There shall come a star out of
Jacob.-Numb. 24. 17.

THE star of morn has risen:
Lord, to Thee we pray;

O uncreated Light of light
Guide Thou our way.

2 No room for Thee, dear Jesus -
Nor for Thy mother poor,
No love to bid Thee welcome,
And open wide the door;
But in a manger-cradle,
Where once the cattle fed,
On Thy first day of sorrow,
Did rest Thy little head."

3 No room for Thee, dear Jesus-
Throughout Thy loving life;
No kindly hand to cheer Thee,
Nor help Thee in the strife;
Alone in God's own armour,

Thou didst maintain the fight, Didst nobly scorn the shameful, And didst uphold the right.

4 No room for Thee, dear Jesus-
And so Thy Cross was made;
Men would not love Thy beauty,
So death was on Thee laid:
Room, room they had for evil,
Where it might freely be,
But oh! Thou loving Saviour,
They had no room for Thee.

5 No room for Thee, dear Jesus-
This shall not now be true,
My heart doth bid Thee welcome,
Its portals enter through;
Though all the world despise Thee,
If Thou wilt only come,
With joy beyond expression,
I'll find for Thee a home.

WALTER J. MATHAMS. 1875,