4 Lord! search our thoughts, and try our ways,
And make our souls sincere; Then may we stand before thy face, And find acceptance there.
The Excellency of the Gospel.
1 GOD, who in various methods told
His holy will to those of old,
By his beloved Son, displays
His truth and grace, in latter days.
2 We have the volume which records
Our Saviour's character and words;
And in our rising Lord was given
The pledge of life, the hope of heaven.
3 There, knowledge of the noblest, kind
Expands and elevates the mind;
The heavenly doctrine, plain as true,
Instructs, reproves, and comforts too.
4 How brightly there thy glories shine,
Wisdom, and goodness all divine;
Whate'er can fill the soul with love,
And form it for the joys above!
5 Christians! while grateful songs ye raise,
Improve the gospel which ye praise;
And aid its progress, till the Lord
Hath blessed all nations with his word.
Praise from the Works of God.
1 GREAT Cause of all things! Source of life!
Sovereign of air, and earth, and sea!
All nature feels thy power, and all
A silent homage pay to thee.
2 Waked by thy hand, the morning sun
Pours forth to thee its earlier rays,
And spreads thy glories as it climbs;
While raptured worlds look up and praise.
3 The moon to the deep shades of night
Speaks the mild lustre of thy name;
While all the stars that cheer the scene,
Thee, the great Lord of light, proclaim.
4 And groves, and vales, and rocks, and hills
And every flower, and every tree;
Ten thousand creatures, warm with life,
Have each a grateful song for thee.
5 But man was formed to rise to heaven:
And, b'essed with reason's clearer lil,
He views his Maker thro1h his works,
And glows with rapture at the sight.
6 Nor can the thousand songs that rise,
Whether from air, or earth, or sea,
So well repeat Jehovah's praise,
Or raise such sacred harmony.
39. L. M.
Man's Dependance upon God.
1 GREATEST of beings! Source of life,
Sovereign of air, of earth, and sea!
All nature owns thy power, but man
A grateful tribute pays to thee.
2 Subject to wants, to thee he looks,
And from thy goodness seeks supplies:
And when, oppressed with guilt, he mourns,
Thy mercy lifts him to the skies.
3 Children, whose infant minds, unformed, Ne'er raised a tender thought to heaven; And men, whom reason lifts to God, Though oft by passion downward driven; and care,
4 Those too, who bend with age
And faint and tremble near the tomb;
Who, sickening at the present scenes,
Sigh for that better world to come;—
5 All, great Creator! all are thine;
All feel thy providential care;
And through each changing scene of life,
Alike thy constant pity share.
6 And whether grief oppress the heart;
Or whether joy elate the breast;
Or life still keep its varying course;
Or death invite the heart to rest:
7 All are thy messengers, and all
Thy sacred pleasure, Lord! obey;
And all are training man to dwell
Nearer to bliss, and nearer thee.
God the Creator and Preserver.
1 GREAT First of beings! mighty Lord!
We praise thy glorious name;
Produced by thy creating word,
Arose this wondrous frame.
2 Thy voice sent forth the high command; 'Twas instantly obeyed;
And through thy goodness all things stand, Which by thy skill were made.
3 By thee, through fields of azure, roll
Unnumbered worlds above;
Thy mighty hand sustains the whole;
Each creature shares thy love.
4 By thee the sun dispenses heat,
And beams of cheering day;
By thee, the stars, in order set,
At night thy power display.
5 By thee the earth its product yields,
And countless myriads live;
And trees and plants adorn the fields,
And their rich treasures give.
6 To thee, all-gracious Power! we bow,
And would ourselves resign;
Accept the praise, accept the vow,
And make us wholly thine.
41. L. P. M.
The Works and Word of God. Ps. xix.
1 GREAT GOD! the heaven's well ordered frame
Declares the glories of thy name;
There thy rich works of wonder shine:
A thousand starry beauties there,
A thousand radiant marks appear
Of boundless power, and skill divine.
2 From night to day, from day to night,
The dawning and the dying light
Lectures of heavenly wisdom read;
With silent eloquence, they raise
Our thoughts to the Creator's praise,
And neither sound nor language need.
3 Yet their divine instructions run Wide as the circuit of the sun,
And every nation knows their voice; The sun, in robes of splendor dressed, Breaks from the chambers of the east,
Moves round, and makes the earth rejoice. 4 Where'er, he spreads his beams abroad, He speaks the majesty of God:
All nature joins to show thy praise: Thus God in every creature shines, Bright in the book of nature's lines, But brighter in the book of grace.
42. L. M.
For the Lord's Day Morning.
1 GREAT GOD! this sacred day of thine Demands our souls' collected powers; May we employ in work divine
These solemn, these devoted hours!
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