1 GREAT GOD! in vain man's narrow view
Attempts to look thy nature through;
Our laboring powers with reverence own,
Thy glories never can be known.
2 Not the high seraph's mighty thought,
Who countless years his God has sought,
Such wondrous height or depth can find,
Or fully trace thy boundless mind.
3 And yet thy kindness deigns to show
Enough for mortal minds to know;
While wisdom, goodness, power divine,
Through all thy works and conduct shine.
4 0! may our souls with rapture trace
Thy works of nature and of grace;
Explore thy sacred truth, and still
Press on to know and do thy will.
God the only Object of Worship. Ps. 81.
1 O GOD, our strength, to thee the song
With grateful hearts we raise;
To thee, and thee alone, belong
All worship, love, and praise.
2 In trouble's dark and stormy hour,
Thine ear hath heard our prayer;
And graciously thine arm of power
Hath saved us from despair.
3 And thou, O ever gracious Lord,
Wilt keep thy promise still,
If, meekly hearkening to thy word,
We seek to do thy will.
4 Led by the light thy grace imparts, Ne'er may we bow the knee
To idols, which our wayward hearts
Set up instead of thee.
5 So shall thy choicest gifts, O Lord, Thy faithful people bless;
For them shall earth its stores afford,
And heaven its happiness.
1 THE God who reigns alone
O'er earth, and sea, and sky,
Let man with praises own,
And sound his honors high.
2 Him all in heaven above,
Him all on earth below,
The exhaustless source of love,
The great Creator know.
3 He formed the living frame,
He gave the reasoning mind;
Then only He may claim
The worship of mankind.
4 So taught his only Son,
Blessed messenger of grace!
The Eternal is but one,
No second holds his place.
Greatness of God. Ps. 145.
1 My God, my King, thy various praise
Shall fill the remnant of my days;
Thy grace employ my humble tongue,
Till death and glory raise the song.
2 The wings of every hour shall bear
Some thankful tribute to thine ear;
And every setting sun shall see
New works of duty done for thee.
3 Thy truth and justice I'll proclaim ;
Thy bounty flows, an endless stream;
Thy mercy swift; thine anger slow,
But dreadful to the stubborn foe.
4 Thy works with sovereign glory shine,
And speak thy majesty divine;
Let every realm with joy proclaim
The sound and honor of thy name.
5 Let distant times and nations raise
The long succession of thy praise;
And unborn ages make my song
The joy and labor of their tongue.
6 But who can speak thy wondrous deeds?
Thy greatness all our thoughts exceeds;
Vast and unsearchable thy ways;
Vast and immortal be thy praise!
God's Sovereignty and Man's Dignity. Ps. 8. 1 O LORD, our heavenly King, Thy name is all divine;
Thy glories round the earth are spread,
And o'er the heavens they shine.
2 When to thy works on high
I raise my wondering eyes,
And see the moon, complete in light,
Adorn the darksome skies:
3 When I survey the stars,
And all their shining forms,
Lord, what is man, that feeble thing,
Akin to dust and worms!
4 Lord, what is feeble man,
That thou shouldst love him so! Next to thine angels is he placed, And lord of all below.
5 How rich thy bounties are! And wondrous are thy ways;
Of dust and worms thy power can frame A monument of praise.
6 O Lord, our heavenly King, Thy name is all divine;
Thy glories round the earth are spread, And o'er the heavens they shine.
Majesty of God. Ps. 18.
1 THE Lord descended from above,
And bowed the heavens most high,
And underneath his feet he cast
The darkness of the sky.
2 On cherubim and seraphim
Full royally he rode,
And on the wings of mighty winds
Came flying all abroad.
3 He sat serene upon the floods,
Their fury to restrain;
And he as sovereign Lord and King
For evermore shall reign.
God's Power over his Works.
1 THE Lord our God is full of might,
The winds obey his will;
He speaks, and in his heavenly height
The rolling sun stands still.
2 Rebel, ye waves! and o'er the land
With threatening aspect roar
The Lord uplifts his awful hand,
And chains you to the shore.
3 Howl, winds of night! your force combine; Without his high behest,
Ye shall not in the mountain pine
Disturb the sparrow's nest.
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