1001

7.6.

Thou art the same, and Thy years shall have no end.-Ps. 102. 27. GOD, the Rock of Ages,

Who evermore hast been,
What time the tempest rages,
Our dwelling-place serene :
Before Thy first creations,

O Lord, the same as now,
To endless generations
The Everlasting Thou!

2 Our years are like the shadows
On sunny hills that lie,
Or grasses in the meadows
That blossom but to die:
A sleep, a dream, a story
By strangers quickly told,
An unremaining glory

Of things that soon are old.

3 0 Thou, who canst not slumber,
Whose light grows never pale,
Teach us aright to number
Our years before they fail.
On us Thy mercy lighten,
On us Thy goodness rest,
And let Thy Spirit brighten
The hearts Thyself hast blest.

4 Lord, crown our faith's endeavour
With beauty and with grace,
Till, clothed in light for ever,
We see Thee face to face:
A joy no language measures;
A fountain brimming o'er;
An endless flow of pleasures;
An ocean without shore.

E. H. BICKERSTETH. 1870.

1002 8.8.6.

So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.-Ps. 90. 12.

GOD of glory, God of grace,

From age to age our dwelling-place,
Before Thy throne we bow.

Ere the vast mountains rose of yore,
When they and earth shall be no more,
The same, O Lord, art Thou.

2 Man's generations rise and pass
Like morning flowers or summer grass,
The creatures of Thy breath:
Our life runs onward like a stream;
We come, and vanish, as a dream,
The prey of sin and death.

3 Unnumbered ills beset our path,
Our days are darkened 'neath Thy wrath,
And yet how heedless we!

O touch with grace each erring heart,
True wisdom to each soul impart,
And win us all to Thee.

4 We sink, we perish 'neath Thy frown
O send Thy healing mercy down
To light our coming years:
Then, be they many, be they few,
Thy grace will bear us safely through
Beyond the reach of tears.

1003 L.M.

1

H. F. LYTE. 1834.

The high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity.-Isa. 57. 15.

ETERNAL Power, whose high abode

Becomes the grandeur of a God; Infinite length beyond the bounds Where stars revolve their little rounds:

2 Thee while the first Archangel sings,
He hides his face beneath his wings;
And ranks of shining ones around
Fall worshipping, and spread the ground.

3 Lord, what shall earth and ashes do?
We would adore our Maker too:
From sin and dust to Thee we cry,
The Great, the Holy, and the High.

4 Earth from afar has heard Thy fame,
And we have learned to lisp Thy name;
But, oh the glories of Thy mind
Leave all our soaring thoughts behind.
5 God is in heaven, and men below;
Be short our tunes, our words be few;
A sacred reverence checks our songs,
And praise sits silent on our tongues.
ISAAC WATTS. 1709.

1004

1

C.M.

This God is our God, for ever and ever.-Ps. 48. 14.

THROUGH endless years Thou art the

Thou eternal God!

[same, Ages to come shall know Thy Name, And spread Thy praise abroad

2 The strong foundations of the earth
Of old by Thee were laid,

By Thee the beauteous arch of heaven
With matchless skill was made.

3 Soon shall this goodly frame of things,
Formed by Thy powerful hand,
Be like a vesture laid aside,
Or changed at Thy command.

4 But Thine eternal state, O Lord,
No length of time shall waste;

Thy power and goodness, truth and grace,
From age to age shall last.

5 Thou to the children of Thy saints
Shalt endless blessings give;
They in their fathers' God shall trust,
And in Thy presence live.

1005

TATE AND BRADY. 1696.

10.10.10.10.11.11.

The Lord reigneth; He is clothed with majesty.-Ps. 93. 1. HE Lord of Glory reigns, He reigns on high; [majesty;

1THE

His robes of state are strength and This wide creation rose at His command, Built by His word, and 'stablished by His hand;

Long stood His throne ere He began [tion. creation, And His own Godhead is the firm founda

2 God is the eternal King; Thy foes in vain Raise their rebellions to confound Thy reign;

1006

1

C.M.

Thy right hand, O Lord, is
glorious in power.-Exod. 15. 6.
GOD! Thy power is wonderful,
Thy glory passing bright;

Thy wisdom, with its deep on deep,
A rapture to the sight.

2 Thy justice is the gladdest thing
Creation can behold;

Thy tenderness so meek, it wins
The guilty to be bold.

3 Yet more than all, and evermore,
Should we, Thy creatures, bless,
Most worshipful of attributes,
Thine awful holiness.

4 There's not a craving in the mind
Thou dost not meet and still;
There's not a wish the heart can have
Which Thou dost not fulfil.

5 All things that have been, all that are,
All things that can be dreamed,
All possible creations, made,
Kept faithful, or redeemed,-

6 All these may draw upon Thy power,
Thy mercy may command;
And still outflows Thy silent sea,
Immutable and grand.

7 O little heart of mine! shall pain
Or sorrow make thee moan,
When all this God is all for thee,
A Father all thine own?

F. W. FABER. 1840.

The Lord is a great God, and a great King above all gods.-Ps. 95. 3.

1 MY God, how wonderful Thou art!

Thy majesty hov bright! How beautiful Thy mercy-seat, In depths of burning light!

2 How dread are Thine eternal years,

O everlasting Lord,

By prostrate spirits day and night
Incessantly adored.

3 How wonderful, how beautiful,
The sight of Thee must be,

Thine endless wisdom, boundless power,
And awful purity!

4 Yet I may love Thee, too, O Lord,
Almighty as Thou art,

For Thou hast stooped to ask of me
The love of my poor heart.

5 No earthly father loves like Thee,
No mother, e'er so mild,

Bears and forbears as Thou hast done
With me, Thy sinful child.

6 Father of Jesus, love's Reward,
What rapture will it be
Prostrate before Thy throne to lie,
And gaze and gaze on Thee!

1008 L.M.

10

F. W. FABER. 1840.

Hereby perceive we the love of God.-1 John 3. 16.

LOVE of God! how strong and true,
Eternal and yet ever new;
Uncomprehended and unbought,
Beyond all knowledge and all thought.
2 O love of God, how deep and great!
Far deeper than man's deepest hate;
Self-fed, self-kindled, like the light,
Changeless, eternal, infinite.

3 O heavenly love, how precious still,
In days of weariness and ill!
In nights of pain and helplessness,
To heal, to comfort, and to bless!
4 O wide-embracing, wondrous love!
We read thee in the sky above;
We read thee in the earth below,
In seas that swell and streams that flow.
5 We read thee best in Him who came
To bear for us the cross of shame;
Sent by the Father from on high,
Our life to live, our death to die.

6 We read thy power to bless and save
E'en in the darkness of the grave;
Still more in resurrection light
We read the fulness of thy might.
7 O love of God! our shield and stay,
Through all the perils of our way;
Eternal love, in thee we rest,
For ever safe, for ever blest!

H. BONAR. 1857.

And one cried unto another, and said, Holy, holy holy, is the Lord of hosts. Isa. 6. 3.

ROUND the Lord in glory seated,

Cherubim and Seraphim

Filled His temple and repeated
Each to each the alternate hymn

"Lord, Thy glory fills the heaven; Earth is with its fulness stored; Unto Thee be glory given,

Holy, Holy, Holy Lord!"

2 Heaven is still with glory ringing, Earth takes up the angels' cry, "Holy, Holy, Holy," singing, "Lord of hosts, the Lord most high." "Lord, Thy glory fills the heaven; Earth is with its fulness stored; Unto Thee be glory given,

Holy, Holy, Holy Lord!"

3 With His seraph train before Him,
With His holy Church below,
Thus conspire we to adore Him,
Bid we thus our anthem flow;
"Lord, Thy glory fills the heaven;
Earth is with its fulness stored;
Unto Thee be glory given,
Holy, Holy, Holy Lord!"

1010

1

RICHARD MANT. 1837.

L.M.

The earth is full of the goodness of the Lord.-Ps. 33. 5.

TRIUMPHANT, Lord, Thy goodness
Through all the wide celestial plains;
And its full streams redundant flow
Down to the abodes of men below.

2 Through nature's works its glories shine.
The cares of providence are Thine;
And grace erects our ruined frame
A fairer temple to Thy name.

3 O give to every human heart
To taste and feel how good Thou art;
With grateful love, and reverend fear,
To know how blest Thy children are!"
4 Let nature burst into a song,

Ye echoing hills, the notes prolong,
Earth, seas, and stars, your anthems raise,
All vocal with your Maker's praise.

5 Ye saints, with joy the theme pursue,
Its sweetest notes belong to you;
Called by your condescending King,
For ever round His throne to sing.

1011

PHILIP DODDRIDGE. 1755.

L.M.

For the Lord God is a sun and shield: the Lord will give grace and glory: no good thing will He withhold from them that walk uprightly.-Ps. 84. 11.

1 LORD of all being, throned afar,

Thy glory flames from sun and star: Centre and soul of every sphere, Yet to each loving heart how near! 2 Sun of our life, Thy quickening ray Sheds on our path the glow of day; Star of our hope, Thy softened light Cheers the long watches of the night.