IV. Jacob's Vow. Genesis xxviii. 20-22.
1 GOD of Jacob, by whose hand
Thine Israel still is fed,
Who through this weary pilgrimage
Hast all our fathers led.
2 To thee our humble vows we raise,
To thee address our prayer,
And in thy kind and faithful breast
Deposit all our care.
3 If thou, through each perplexing path,
Wilt be our constant guide;
If thou wilt daily bread supply,
And raiment wilt provide;
4 If thou wilt spread thy shield around,
Till these our wand'rings cease,
And at our Father's lov'd abade
Our souls arrive in peace:
5 To thee, as to our Covenant-God,
We'll our whole selves resign;
And count, that not our tenth alone,
But all we have is thine.
V. The Hand of the Lord upon the Cattle. Exodus ix. 3.
1 THE creatures, Lord, confess thy hand,
Through earth and sky, through sea and land; And all their meanest orders share
Their Maker's pity, and his care.
2 O look from thine exalted throne,
And hear our panting cattle moan;
Prone o'er th' untasted food they lie,
Groan out their agonies, and die.
3 What have these harmless creatures done
To draw this sore chastisement down?
'Tis human guilt for vengeance calls,
And heavy on the herds it falls.
4 From them to us the stroke might pass,
And mow down thousands of our race;
Till desolation reign'd around,
Our cities void, untill'd our ground.
5 Prevent the ruin by thy grace,
And melt our hearts to seek thy face:
Blest fruit of thy correcting rod
To lose our beasts, and find our God.
* Stretched out on the ground.
VI. Israel and Amalek. Exodus xvii. 11.
FOR A FAST-DAY.
OUR Banner is th' eternal God,
Nor will we yield to fear;
Amidst ten thousand fierce assaults,
His mighty aid is near.
2 To him the hands of faith we stretch,
And plead experienc'd grace;
To him the voice of prayer we raise,
Nor will he hide his face.
3 No more, proud Amalek, thy boast,
"God's arm is feeble grown:"
His sword shall lop off every hand
That dares insult his throne.
4 Awake, tremendous Judge, awake
Our nation's cause to plead ;
Nor let thine Israel's foes, and thine,
By wickedness succeed.
5 Our fainting hands, how soon they droop!
But thou the weak canst raise;
And in the mount of prayer canst leave
An altar to thy praise.
VII. Against following a Multitude to do Evil. Exodus xxiii, 2.
1 LORD, when iniquities abound,
And growing crimes appear;
We view the deluge rising round
and with fear.
2 Yet when its waves most fiercely beat,
And spread destruction wide,
Thy Spirit can a standard raise
To stem the roaring tide.
3 May thy triumphant arm awake
Thy sacred cause to plead ;
And let the multitude confess,
That thou art God indeed.
4 Their hearts shall in a moment turn,
Like water, by thy hand;
One word shall bow their stubborn necks
To own thy high command.
5 Our feeble souls at least support,
And there thy power display;
Then multitudes shall strive in vain
To draw us from thy way.
VIII. Christ's Intercession typified by Aaron's Breast-plate. Ex. xxviii. 29. 1 NOW let our cheerful eyes survey
Our great high Priest above,
And celebrate his constant care,
And sympathetic love.
2 Though rais'd to a superior throne,
Where angels bow around,
And high o'er all the shining train
With matchless honours crown'd;
3 The names of all his saints he bears
Deep graven on his heart;
Nor shall the meanest christian say,
That he hath lost his part.
4 Those characters shall fair abide,
Our everlasting trust,
When geins, and monuments, and crowns
Are moulder'd down to dust.
5 So, gracious Saviour, on my breast
May thy dear name be worn,
A sacred ornament and guard,
To endless ages borne.
IX. Who is on the Lord's Side? Ex. xxxiii. 26.
1 WHAT bosom mov'd with pious zeal
Doth for its God's dishonour feel?
What heart with generous ardor glows
To plead his cause against his foes?
2 Great God, what bosom can be cold?
What coward must not here grow bold?
While honour, interest, truth and love
Concur our inmost souls to move?
3 Around thy standard, Lord, we press,
Thine injur'd honour to redress,
And with determin'd voice demand
The signal of thy conquering hand.
4 Thou shalt these sacred weapons bless,
And lead through war to endless peace
Not death itself our souls shall dread,
For thine own arm shall raise the dead.
X. God's Presence desirable. Ex. xxxiii. 15.
1 IMMENSE, eternal God!
How marvellous thy name!
Thy presence all abroad
Pervades all nature's frame;
Heaven, earth, and air,
And the dark cell
Where devils dwell
In long despair.
2 Yet thou hast chosen ways
To make thy presence known
To favourites of thy grace,
To upright souls alone :
This glory, Lord,
My soul would see,
This grace to me,
My God, afford.
3 If thou thy lustre veil,
The charms of nature fade;
All wither'd, weak, and pale,
They bow their languid head.
My father, shine;
For thou canst give
The dead to live
By beams divine.
4 Even Eden's blisful lands
Would in thine absence mourn :
But thou wild Afric's sands
To paradise canst turn.
If God be there
The gloom is bright:
But noon is night,
Till thou appear.
5 Come, for my spirit glows
With infinite desire!
Strong love impatient grows,
And sets my heart on fire.
My father, come;
That presence give,
On which I live ;
Or call me home.
XI. Moses's View of the divine Glory. Ex. xxxiii. 18.
1 WITH humble pleasure, Lord, we trace The ancient records of thy grace;
And our own consolation draw,
From what thy servant Moses saw.
2 May we behold thy glory shine,
With gentle beams of love divine;
And hear thy secret voice proclaim
The various wonders of thy name.
3 If feeble nature faint t' endure
A voice so sweet, a ray so pure ;
Its dissolution would delight,
While death would wear a form so bright.
4 Death shall unveil that world above,
Where the dear children of thy love,
Attempered * all to heavenly day,
Bear, and reflect th' immediate ray.
XII. The Proclamation of God's Name to Moses; or, divine Mercy and Justice.
Ex. xxxiv. 6-8.
1 ATTEND, my soul, the voice divine,
And mark what beaming glories shine
Around thy condescending God!
To us, to us he still proclaims
His awful, his endearing names:
Attend, and sound them all abroad.
2" Jehovah I, the sovereign Lord,
"The mighty God, by heaven ador'd,
"Down to the earth my footsteps bend:
"My heart the tenderest pity knows,
"Goodness full-streaming wide o'erflows,
"And grace and truth shall never end.
3" My patience long can crimes endure:
"My pardoning love is ever sure,
"When penitential sorrow mourns;
"To millions, through unnumber'd years,
"New hope and new delight it bears;
"Yet wrath against the sinner burns.”
4 Make haste, my soul, the vision meet,
All prostrate at thy sovereign's feet,
And drink the tuneful accents in ;
Speak on, my Lord, repeat the voice,
Diffuse these heart-expanding joys,
Till heaven complete the rapturous scene.
XIII. The God of Spirits sought to supply Vacancies in the Congregations of his People. Num. xxvii. 15-17.
1 FATHER of spirits, from thy hand,
Our souls immortal came;
And still thine energy divine
Supports th' ethereal flame.
*Fitted and enabled to bear.
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