Then shall our hopes ascend on high,
And triumph o'er the grave.
268. Death of a Sinner. C. M.
EATH! 'tis a melancholy day
To those that have no God,
When the poor soul is forc'd away
To seek her last abode.
2 In vain to heaven she lifts her eyes;
But guilt, a heavy chain,
Still drags her downward from the skies,
To darkness, fire, and pain.
3 Awake, and mourn, ye heirs of hell,
Let stubborn sinners fear;
You must be driven from earth, and dwell
A long FOR EVER there!
4 See how the pit gapes wide for you,
And flashes in your face;
And thou, my soul, look downward too,
And sing recovering grace.
5 He is a God of sovereign love,
Who promis'd heaven to me,
And taught my thoughts to soar above,
Where happy spirits be.
6 Prepare me, Lord, for thy right hand,
Then come the joyful day;
Come death, and some celestial band,
To bear my soul away.
269. Death of the Sinner and the Saint. L.M.
1 WHAT scenes of horror and of dread
Await the sinner's dying bed!
Death's terrors all appear in sight,
Presages of eternal night!
2 His sins in dreadful order rise,
And fill his soul with sad surprise;
Mount Sinai's thunders stun his ears,
And not one ray of hope appears.
3 Tormenting pangs distract his breast;
Where'er he turns he finds no rest:
Death strikes the blow-he groans and cries-
And, in despair and horror-dies.
4 Not so the heir of heavenly bliss:
His soul is fill'd with conscious peace;
A steady faith subdues his fear;
He sees the happy Canaan near.
5 His mind is tranquil and serene,
No terrors in his looks are seen;
His Savior's smile dispels the gloom.
And smooths his passage to the tomt
6 Lord, make my faith and love sincere,
My judgment sound, my conscience clear;
And when the toils of life are past,
May I be found in peace at last.
270. Righteous blessed in Death. L. M.
[OW bless'd the righteous, when he dies! When sinks a weary soul to rest:
How mildly beam the closing eyes,
How gently heaves the expiring breast!
2 So fades a summer cloud away;
So sinks the gale when storms are o'er;
So gently shuts the eye of day;
So dies the wave along the shore.
3 A holy quiet reigns around,
A calm which life nor death destroys;
Nothing disturbs that peace profound,
Which his unfettered soul enjoys.
4 Farewell, conflicting hopes and fears, Where lights and shades alternate dwell! How bright the unchanging morn appears; Farewell, inconstant world, farewell!
5 Life's duty done, as sinks the clay,
Light from its load the spirit flies,
While heaven and earth combine to say, "How bless'd the righteous when he dies!"
271. The dying Christian.
1 VITAL spark of heavenly flame!
Quit, O quit this mortal frame!
Trembling, hoping, lingering, flying:
O, the pain, the bliss of dying!
Cease, fond nature, cease thy strife,
And let me languish into life.
2 Hark! they whisper! angels say
"Sister spirit, come away!"
What is this absorbs me quite,
Steals my senses, shuts my sight,
Drowns my spirit, draws my breath?
Tell me, my soul, can this be death?
3 The world recedes, it disappears!
Heaven opens on my eyes! my ears
With sounds seraphic ring!
Lend, lend your wings! I mount! I fly!
O grave, where is thy victory!
O death, where is thy sting!
272. Dying Believer to his Soul.
1 DEATHLESS principle, arise;
Soar, thou native of the skies;
Pearl of price, by Jesus bought,
To his glorious likeness wrought,
Go, to shine before his throne,
Deck his mediatorial crown:
Go, his triumphs to adorn;
Born of God-to God return.
2 Lo! he beckons from on high,
Fearless, to his presence fly:
Thine the merit of his blood,
Thine the righteousness of God.
Angels, joyful to attend,
Hovering round thy pillow bend:
Wait to catch the signal given,
And escort thee quick to heaven.
3 Shudder not to pass the stream,
Venture all thy care on Him;
Him, whose dying love and power
Still'd its tossing, hush'd its roar.
Safe is the expanded wave;
Gentle as a summer's eve:
Not one object of his care
Ever suffer'd shipwreck there.
4 See the haven full in view!
Love divine shall bear thee through :
Trust to that propitious gale;
Weigh thy anchor, spread thy sail;
Saints in glory, perfect made,
Wait thy passage through the shade;
Ardent for thy coming o'er,
See, they throng the blissful shore.
5 Mount, their transports to improve,
Join the longing choir above;
Swiftly to their wish be given;
Kindle higher joy in heaven.-
Such the prospects that arise
To the dying Christian's eyes;
Such the glorious vista, Faith
Opens through the shades of death. Toplady.
273. Moment after Death. C. M.
IN vain my fancy strives to paint
The moment after death;
The glories that surround a saint
When yielding up his breath.
2 One gentle sigh his fetters breaks,
We scarce can say, "He's gone!"
Before the willing spirit takes
Its mansion near the throne.
3 Faith strives, but all its efforts fail,
To trace the spirit's flight;
No eye can pierce within the vail
Which hides the world of light.
4 Thus much (and this is all) we know,
Saints are completely blest;
Have done with sin, and care, and wo,
And with their Savior rest:
5 On harps of gold they praise his name,
His face they always view;
Then let us followers be of them,
That we may praise him too. Newton.
274. The Grave.
1 THE grave is now a favor'd spot,
To saints who sleep in Jesus, bless'd;
For there the wicked trouble not,
And there the weary are at rest.
2 At rest in Jesus' faithful arms;
At rest as in a peaceful bed;
Secure from all the dreadful storms
Which round this sinful world are spread.
3 Thrice happy souls, who're gone before To that inheritance divine!
|