Λ

Fondly I said within my heart,-
"Pleasure and peace shall ne'er depart."
2 But I forgot thine arm was strong,
Which made my mountain stand so long;
Soon as thy face began to hide,

My health was gone, my comforts died.
aff 3 I cried aloud to thee, my God!-
"What canst thou profit by my blood?
Deep in the dust, can I declare

Thy truth, or sing thy goodness there? 4 "Hear me, O God of grace !" I said, "And bring me from among the dead:" m Thy word rebuked the pains I felt, Thy pard'ning love removed my guilt. 5 My groans and tears, and forms of woe, Are turned to joy and praises now; I throw my sackcloth on the ground, And ease and gladness gird me round. 6 My tongue, the glory of my frame, Shall ne'er be silent of thy name;

214

31

m

1

Λ

mf

Thy praise shall sound thro' earth and heaven,
For sickness healed, and sins forgiven.

PSALM 31, First Part, C. M.

Deliverance from Death.

INTO thy hand, O God of truth!
My spirit I commit;

Thou hast redeemed my soul from death,
And saved me from the pit.

2 "My times are in thy hand," I cried,
"Though I draw near the dust;"

Thou art the refuge where I hide,
The God in whom I trust.

aff 3 Oh! make thy reconciled face
Upon thy servant shine;

And save me for thy mercy's sake,
For I'm entirely thine.

mf 4 Thy goodness, how divinely free!
How wondrous is thy grace,
To those who fear thy majesty,
And trust thy promises!

f

p

31

5 Oh! love the Lord, all ye his saints!
And sing his praises loud;

mf 1

31

m

He'll bend his ear to your complaints,.
And recompense the proud.

PSALM 31, Second Part, C. M.
Deliverance from Slander and Reproach.

MY

Y heart rejoices in thy name,
My God, my help, my trust!

Thou hast preserved my face from shame,
Mine honor from the dust.

2 How great deliverance thou hast wrought,
Before the sons of men!

The lying lips to silence brought,
And made their boasting vain!

3 Thy children, from the strife of tongues,
Shall thy pavilion hide;

Guard them from infamy and wrongs,
And crush the sons of pride.

4 Within thy secret presence, Lord!
Let me for ever dwell;

1

No fencéd city, walled and barred,
Secures a saint so well.

MY

PSALM 31, Third Part, C. M.

Trust in God as a Father.

Y God! my Father! blissful name!
Oh! may I call thee mine?

May I with sweet assurance claim
A portion so divine?

2 This only can my fears control,
And bid my sorrows fly:

What harm can ever reach my soul
Beneath my Father's eye?

8 Whate'er thy providence denies,
I calmly would resign;

For thou art good, and just, and wise;
Oh! bend my will to thine.

4 Whate'er thy sacred will ordains,
Oh! give me strength to bear;

Let me but know my Father reigns,
And trust his tender care.

aff 5 If pain and sickness rend this frame,
And life almost depart,

31

m

Is not thy mercy still the same,
To cheer my drooping heart?

6 My God! my Father! be thy name
My solace and my stay;

1

Oh! wilt thou seal my humble claim,
And drive my fears away?

LI

PSALM 31, 7s.

God, a Rock and Fortress.

ORD! I look for all to thee;
Thou hast been a rock to me:
Still thy wonted aid afford;
Still be near, my shield, my sword!
I my soul commit to thee,

Lord! thy blood has ransomed me.
mp 2 Faint and sinking on my road,
Still I cling to thee, my God!
Bending 'neath a weight of woes,
Harassed by a thousand foes,
Hope still chides my rising fears;
Joys still mingle with my tears.
mf 3 On thy word I take my stand;
All my times are in thy hand;
Make thy face upon me shine;
Take me 'neath thy wings divine:
Lord thy grace is all my trust;
Save, Oh! save thy trembling dust.

4 Oh! what mercies still attend

1

Those who make the Lord their friend!
Sweetly, safely shall they 'bide
'Neath his eye, and at his side:
Lord! may this my station be:
Seek it, all ye saints! with me.

PSALM 32, First Part, L. M.
Pardon and Obedience.

BLEST

LEST is the man, for ever blest, Whose guilt is pardoned by his God; Whose sins with sorrow are confessed, And covered with his Saviour's blood.

2 From guile his heart and lips are free: His humble joy, his holy fear,

With deep repentance well agree, And join to prove his faith sincere. mf 3 How glorious is that righteousness, That hides and cancels all his sins! While a bright evidence of grace,

32 af 1

32

Through his whole life, appears and shines.

PSALM 32, Second Part, L. M.

WHIL

Confession and Pardon.

WHILE I keep silence, and conceal
My heavy guilt within my heart,
What torments doth my conscience feel!
What agonies of inward smart!

2 I spread my sins before the Lord,
And all my secret faults confess;
Thy gospel speaks a pard'ning word,
Thy Holy Spirit seals the grace.
3 For this shall every humble soul

Make swift addresses to thy seat;
When floods of huge temptations roll,
There shall they find a blest retreat.
4 How safe beneath thy wings I lie,

m

1

When days grow dark and storms appear!
And, when I walk, thy watchful eye
Shall guide me safe from every snare.

PSALM 32, S. M.

Forgiveness of Sins.

H! blesséd souls are they,

Whose sins are covered o'er ;-
Divinely blest, to whom the Lord
Imputes their guilt no more.

mp 2 They mourn their follies past,

And keep their hearts with care;
Their lips and lives, without deceit,
Shall prove their faith sincere.

3 While I concealed my guilt,
I felt the festering wound;
Till I confessed my sins to thee,
And ready pardon found.

4 Let sinners learn to pray,

Let saints keep near the throne;

mf

33

f

1

f

Λ

33

Our help, in times of deep distress,
Is found in God alone.

PSALM 33, First Part, C. M.
Works of Creation and Providence.

REJOICE, ye righteous! in the Lord;

This work belongs to you;
Sing of his name, his ways, his word;
How holy, just, and true!

2 His mercy, and his righteousness,
Let heaven and earth proclaim;
His works of nature and of grace
Reveal his wondrous name.

3 His wisdom and almighty word
The heavenly arches spread;
And, by the Spirit of the Lord,
Their shining hosts were made.
4 He bade the liquid waters flow
To their appointed deep;
The flowing seas their limits know,
And their own station keep.

5 Ye tenants of the spacious earth!
With fear before him stand:

He spake-and nature took its birth,
And rests on his command.

6 He scorns the angry nations' rage,
And breaks their vain designs;
His counsel stands through every age,
And in full glory shines.

m

1

mp

>

m

PSALM 33, Second Part, C. M.
Creatures vain, and God all-sufficient.

BLE

QLEST is the nation, where the Lord
Hath fixed his gracious throne;
Where he reveals his heavenly word,
And calls the tribes his own.

2 His eye, with infinite survey,
Does the whole world behold;
He formed us all of equal clay,
And knows our feeble mould.
3 God is our fear, and God our trust,
When plagues or famine spread;