3 The flow'rs, that spring along the road,
We scarcely stoop to pluck;
We walk o'er beds of shining ore,
Nor waste one anxious look.
4 We tread the path our Master trod;
We bear the cross he bore;
And ev'ry thorn, that wounds our feet,
His temples pierc'd before.
5 Our pow'rs are oft dissolv'd away
In ecstacies of love;
And, while our bodies wander here,
Our souls are fix'd above.
6 We purge our mortal dross away,
Refining as we run;
But, while we die to earth and sense,
Our heav'n is here begun.
HYMN 291. L. M.
LET sorrow, Lord, my bosom fill,
When impious men transgress thy will;
Teach me to mourn, when lips profane
Take thy tremendous name in vain.
2 With indignation may I treat
The works of malice and deceit;
And ever from their friendship flee,
Who dare to scorn thy laws and thee.
3 Doth secret mischief lurk within?
Do I indulge some unknown sin?
O turn my feet whene'er I stray,
And lead me in thy perfect way.
HYMN 292. s. M.
E servants of the Lord,
Each in his office wait
Observant of his heav'nly word,
And watchful at his gate.
2 Let all your lamps be bright,
And trim the golden flame,
Gird up your loins, as in his sight,
For awful is his name.
3 Watch! 'tis your Lord's command;
And while we speak, he's near.
Mark the first signal of his hand,
And ready all appear.
4 O happy servant he,
In such a posture found!
He shall his Lord with rapture see,
And be with honour crown'd.
HYMN 293. L. M.
ASSIST us, Lord, thy name to praise,
For this rich gospel of thy grace;
And, that our hearts may love it more,
Teach them to feel its vital pow'r.
2 With joy may we our course pursue,
And keep the crown of life in view;
That crown, which in one hour repays
The labour of ten thousand days.
3 Should bonds or death obstruct our way,
Unmov'd their terrors we'll survey;
And the last hour improve for thee,
The last of life or liberty.
4 Welcome those bonds, which may unite
Our souls to their supreme delight!
Welcome that death, whose painful strife
Bears us to Christ, our better life.
HYMN 294. C. M.
AITH adds new charms to earthly bliss,
And saves me
from its snares;
Its aid in ev'ry duty brings,
And softens all my cares;
2 Extinguishes the thirst of sin,
And lights the sacred fire,
Of love to God and heav'nly things,
And feeds the pure desire.
3 The wounded conscience knows its pow'r
The healing balm to give;
That balm the saddest heart can cheer, '
And make the dying live.
4 Wide it unveils celestial worlds,
Where deathless pleasures reign;
And bids me seek my portion there,
Nor bids me seek in vain.
5 Shews me the precious promise seal'd
With the Redeemer's blood;
And helps my feeble hope to rest
Upon a faithful God.
6 There, there unshaken would I rest,
Till this vile body dies;
And then on Faith's triumphant wings
At once to glory rise.
HYMN 295. L. M.
'T We walk through deserts dark as night;
VIS by the faith of joys to come,
Till we arrive at heav'n our home,
Faith is our guide, and faith our light.
2 The want of sight she well supplies;
She makes the pearly gates appear;
Far into distant worlds she pries,
And brings eternal glories near.
3 Cheerful we tread the desert through,
While faith inspires a heav'nly ray;
Though lions roar, and tempests blow,
And rocks and dangers fill the way.
4 So Abra'm, by divine command,
Left his own house to walk with God.
His faith beheld the promis'd land,
And fir'd his zeal along the road.
HYMN 296. L. M.
OY various maxims, forms, and rules, pass for wisdom in the schools,
I strove my passions to restrain;
But all my efforts prov'd in vain.
2 But since the Saviour I have known,
My rules are all reduc'd to one :-
To keep my Lord, by faith, in view.
This strength supplies and motives too.
3 I see him lead a suff'ring life,
Patient amidst reproach and strife;
And from this pattern courage take
To bear and suffer for his sake.
4 Upon the cross I see him bleed,
And by the sight from fear am freed.
This sight destroys the life of sin,
And quickens heav'nly life within.
5 To look to Jesus as he rose,
Confirms my hope, disarms my foes.
The world I shame and overcome, By pointing to my Saviour's tomb. 6 I see him look with pity down,
And hold in view the conq'ror's crown.
If press'd with griefs and cares before,
My soul revives, and asks no more.
By faith I see the hour at hand,
When in his presence I shall stand.
Then it will be my endless bliss,
To see him where and as he is.
HYMN 297. L. M.
LORD, dost thou shew a corner-stone,
For us to build our hopes upon,
That the fair edifice may rise
Sublime in light beyond the skies?
2 Thy people long this stone have try'd, And all the pow'rs of hell defy'd. Floods of temptation beat in vain; Well doth this rock the house sustain. 3 When storms and tempests round prevail, Whirlwind and thunder, fire and hail; 'Tis here our trembling souls shall hide, And here securely they abide.
HYMN 298. L. M.
N vain would boasting reason find
Her weak directions leave the mind
Bewilder'd in a doubtful road.
2. Jesus, thy words alone impart
Eternal life; on these I live;
Diviner comforts cheer my heart,
Than all the pow'rs of nature give.
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