5 Great God, how infinite art thou!- How frail and weak are we!
Let the whole race of creatures bow, And pay their praise to thee.
The Eternal and Sovereign God. Ps. 93.
1 JEHOVAH reigns! he dwells in light, Girded with majesty and might : The world, created by his hands, Still on its first foundation stands.
2 But ere this spacious world was made, Or had its first foundations laid, Thy throne eternal ages stood, Thyself the ever-living God.
3 Like floods the angry nations rise, And aim their rage against the skies; Vain floods, that aim their rage so high ! At thy rebuke the billows die.
4 Forever shall thy throne endure: Thy promise stands forever sure ; And everlasting holiness Becomes the dwellings of thy grace.
Eternity and Sovereignty of God. Ps. 93.
1 WITH glory clad, with strength arrayed, The Lord, that o'er all nature reigns, The world's foundations strongly laid, And the vast fabric still sustains.
2 How surely stablished is thy throne! Which shall no change or period see ; For thou, O Lord, and thou alone, Art God from all eternity.
3 The floods, O Lord, lift up their voice, And toss the troubled waves on high; But God above can still their noise, And make the angry sea comply.
4 Thy promise, Lord, is ever sure; And they that in thy house would dwell, That happy station to secure, Must still in holiness excel.
God knows our Hearts and Ways. Ps. 139.
1 FATHER of spirits! Nature's God! Our inmost thoughts are known to thee; Thou, Lord, canst hear each idle word, And every private action see.
2 Could we on morning's swiftest wings Pursue our flight through trackless air; Or dive beneath deep ocean's springs, Thy presence still would meet us there.
3 In vain may guilt attempt to fly, Concealed beneath the pall of night, One glance from thy all-piercing eye Can kindle darkness into light.
4 Search thou our hearts, and there destroy Each evil thought, each secret sin; And fit us for those realms of joy, Where nought impure shall enter in.
God Omnipresent and Omniscient. 1 SEARCHER of hearts, to thee are known The inmost secrets of my breast; At home, abroad, in crowds, alone, Thou mark'st my rising and my rest, My thoughts far off, through every maze, Source, stream and issue,-all my ways.
2 No word that from my mouth proceeds, Evil or good, escapes thine ear; Witness thou art to all my deeds, Before, behind, forever near. Such knowledge is for me too high ; I live but in my Maker's eye.
3 How from thy presence should I go, Or whither from thy Spirit flee, Since all above, around, below, Exist in thine immensity? If up to heaven I take my way, I meet thee in eternal day;
4 If in the grave I make my bed With worms and dust, lo, thou art there; If, on the wings of morning sped, Beyond the ocean I repair, I feel thine all-controlling will,
And thy right hand upholds me still.
5 How precious are thy thoughts of peace, O God, to me! how great the sum! New every morn, they never cease ; They were, they are, and yet shall come, In number and in compass, more 'Than ocean's sand, or ocean's shore.
6 Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me, my secret soul survey, And warn thy servant to depart From every false and evil way; So shall thy truth my guidance be To life and immortality.
The All-seeing God. Ps. 139.
1 THOU, Lord, by strictest search hast known My rising up and lying down;
My secret thoughts are known to thee, Known long before conceived by me.
2 Thine eye my bed and path surveys, My public haunts and private ways; Thou know'st what 'tis my lips would vent, My yet unuttered words' intent.
3 Surrounded by thy power I stand, On every side I find thy hand; O skill, for human reach too high ! Too dazzling bright for mortal eye!
4 O could I so perfidious be,
To think of once deserting thee! Where, Lord, could I thy influence shun ? Or whither from thy presence run?
5 If I the morning's wings could gain, And fly beyond the western main, Thy swifter hand would first arrive, And there arrest thy fugitive.
6 Or should I try to shun thy sight Beneath the sable wings of night, One glance from thee, one piercing ray, Would kindle darkness into day.
7 The veil of night is no disguise, No screen from thy all-searching eyes: Thro' midnight shades thou find'st thy way, As in the blazing noon of day.
8 Search, try, O God, my thoughts and heart, If mischief lurks in any part; Correct me where I go astray,
And guide me in thy perfect way.
109. L. M.
The All-seeing God. Ps. 139.
1 LORD, thou hast searched and seen me through; Thine eye commands with piercing view My rising and my resting hours, My heart and flesh, with all their powers.
2 My thoughts, before they are my own, Are to my God distinctly known ; He knows the words I mean to speak, Ere from my opening lips they break.
3 Within thy circling power I stand; On every side I find thy hand : Awake, asleep, at home, abroad, I am surrounded still with God.
4 Amazing knowledge, vast and great! What large extent! what lofty height! My soul, with all the powers I boast, Is in the boundless prospect lost.
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