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PSALM CXXX.

OUT of the depths of wo
To Thee, O Lord! I cry;
Darkness surrounds me, but I know
That Thou art ever nigh.

Then hearken to my voice,

Give ear to my complaint;

Thou bidst the mourning soul rejoice,
Thou comfortest the faint.

I cast my hope on Thee,

Thou canst, Thou wilt forgive; Wert Thou to mark iniquity,

Who in Thy sight could live?

Humbly on Thee I wait,

Confessing all my sin;

Lord! I am knocking at thy gate;
Open, and take me in!

Like them, whose longing eyes
Watch, till the morning star

(Though late, and seen through tempests) rise, Heaven's portals to unbar :

Like them I watch and pray,

And, though it tarry long,

Catch the first gleam of welcome day

Then burst into a song.

Glory to God above!

The waters soon will cease;

For, lo! the swift returning dove
Brings home the sign of peace.

Though storms his face obscure,
And dangers threaten loud,
Jehovah's covenant is sure,
His bow is in the cloud.

PSALM CXXXI.

LORD! for ever at thy side
Let my place and portion be;
Strip me of my robe of pride,
Clothe me with humility.

Meekly may my soul receive

All thy Spirit hath reveal'd;
Thou hast spoken,-I believe,
Though the prophecy were seal'd.

Quiet as a weaned child,

Weaned from the mother's breast;

By no subtilty beguiled,

On thy faithful word I rest.

Saints! rejoicing evermore,
In the Lord Jehovah trust;

Him in all his ways adore,

Wise, and wonderful, and just.

PSALM CXXXII.-No. 1.

GOD in his temple let us meet,

Low on our knees before Him bend; Here hath He fix'd his mercy-seat, Here on his Sabbath we attend.

Arise into thy resting-place,

Thou, and thine ark of strength, O Lord! Shine through the veil, we seek thy face; Speak, for we hearken to thy word.

With righteousness thy priests array;
Joyful thy chosen people be;

Let those who teach and those who pray,
Let all be holiness to Thee!

PSALM CXXXII.-No. 2.

LORD! for thy servant David's sake,
Perform thine oath to David's Son ;-
Thy truth Thou never wilt forsake ;—
Look on thine own Anointed One!
The Lord in faithfulness hath sworn

His throne for ever to maintain;
From realm to realm, the sceptre borne
Shall stretch o'er earth Messiah's reign.

Zion, my chosen hill of old,

My rest, my dwelling, my delight,
With loving-kindness I uphold,
Her walls are ever in my sight.

I satisfy her poor with bread,

Her tables with abundance bless, Joy on her sons and daughters shed,

And clothe her priests with righteousness.

There David's horn shall bud and bloom,
The branch of glory and renown;
His foes my vengeance shall consume;
Him with eternal years I crown.

PSALM CXXXIII.

How beautiful the sight

Of brethren who agree

In friendship to unite,

And bonds of charity!

'Tis like the precious ointment, shed

O'er all his robes, from Aaron's head.

'Tis like the dews that fill

The cups of Hermon's flowers; Or Zion's fruitful hill,

Bright with the drops of showers.

When mingling odours breathe around,
And glory rests on all the ground.

For there the Lord commands
Blessings, a boundless store,
From his unsparing hands;
Yea, life for evermore;

Thrice happy they who meet above
To spend eternity in love!

PSALM CXXXIV.

BLESS ye the Lord with solemn rite,
In hymns extol his name,
Ye who, within his house by night,
Watch round the altar's flame.

Lift up your hands amid the place
Where burns the sacred sign,
And pray, that thus Jehovah's face
O'er all the earth may shine.

From Zion, from his holy hill,
The Lord our Maker send
The perfect knowledge of his will,
Salvation without end!

PSALM CXXXVII.

WHERE Babylon's broad rivers roll,
In exile we sat down to weep,
For thoughts of Zion o'er our soul
Came, like departed joys, in sleep,
Whose forms to sad remembrance rise,
Though fled for ever from our eyes.

Our harps upon the willows hung,

Where, worn with toil, our limbs reclined; The chords, untuned and trembling, rung With mournful music on the wind; While foes, insulting o'er our wrongs, Cried," Sing us one of Zion's songs." How can we sing the songs we love, Far from our own delightful land? -If I prefer thee not above

My chiefest joy, may this right hand, Jerusalem! forget its skill,

My tongue be dumb, my pulse be still!

PSALM CXXXVIII.

THEE will I praise, O Lord! in light, Where seraphim surround thy throne; With heart and soul, with mind and might, Thee will I worship, Thee alone.

I bow toward thy holy place;

For Thou, in mercy still the same, Hast magnified thy word of grace O'er all the wonders of thy name.

In peril, when I cried to Thee,

How did thy strength renew my soul! Kings and their realms might bend the knee, Could I to man reveal the whole.

Thou, Lord! above all height art high,
Yet with the lowly wilt Thou dwell;

The proud far off, thy jealous eye
Shall mark, and with a look repel.

Though in the depth of trouble thrown,
With grief I shall not always strive;
Thou wilt thy suffering servant own,

And Thou the contrite heart revive.

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