4 Death, like an overflowing stream,
Sweeps us away: our life's a dream;
An empty tale; a morning flower,
Cut down and wither'd in an hour.
5 Our age to sev'nty years is set ;
How short the term! how frail the state!
And if to eighty we arrive,
We rather sigh and groan than live.
6 Teach us, O Lord, how frail is man, And kindly lengthen out our span, Till a wise care of piety
Fit us to die and dwell with thee.
PSALM XCI. (L. M.)
I HE that hath made his refuge God,
Shall find a most secure abode;
Shall walk all day beneath his shade,
And there at night shall rest his head.
2 Thrice happy man! thy Maker's care
Shall keep thee from the fowler's snare;
Just as a hen protects her brood
From birds of prey that seek their blood. 3 What, though a thousand at thy side, At thy right hand ten thousand died? Thy God his chosen people saves, Among the dead, amidst the graves. 4 But if the fire, or plague, or sword, Receive commission from the Lord To strike his saints among the rest, Their very pains and deaths are blest. 5 The sword, the pestilence, or fire, Shall but fulfil their best desire; From sins and sorrows set them free, And bring thy children, Lord, to thee.
1 SWEET is the work, my God, my King,
To praise thy name, give thanks, and sing;
To shew thy love by morning light,
And talk of all thy truth at night.
2 Sweet is the day of sacred rest;
No mortal care shall seize my breast:
Oh, may my heart in tune be found,
Like David's harp of solemn sound!
3 Lord, 'tis a pleasant thing to stand
In gardens planted by thy hand:
Let me within thy courts be seen,
Like a young cedar, fresh and green.
4 There grow thy saints in faith and love,
Blest with thine influence from above;
Not Lebanon, with all its trees,
Yields such a comely sight as these.
5 Laden with fruits of age, they shew
The Lord is holy, just, and true:
None that attend his gates shall find
A God unfaithful or unkind.
PSALM XCIII. (P. M. 104th.)
YE servants of God, your Master proclaim,
And publish abroad his wonderful name:
The name all-victorious of Jesus extol;
His kingdom is glorious, and rules over all.
God ruleth on high, almighty to save;
And still he is nigh; his presence we have;
The great congregation his triumph shall
Ascribing salvation to Jesus our King.
Then let us adore, and give him his right, All glory and power,and wisdom and might; All honour and blessing, with angels above, And thanks never-ceasing, and infinite love.
PSALM XCV. PART I. 1-6. (L. M.) 1 O COME, loud anthems let us sing, Loud thanks to our almighty King; For we our voices high should raise, When our Salvation's Rock we praise. 2 Into his presence let us haste, To thank him for his favours past; To him address, in joyful songs, The praise that to his name belongs. 3 For God, the Lord, enthron'd in state, Is with unrivall'd glory great;
A King superior far to all,
Whom kings or gods the nations call.
4 O let us to his courts repair,
And bow with adoration there;
Down on our knees devoutly all
Before the Lord our Maker fall.
PSALM XCV. PART II. 3-11. (s. M.)
COME, sound his praise abroad,
And hymns of glory sing;
Jehovah is the sov'reign God,
The universal King.
2 He form'd the deeps unknown;
He gave the seas their bound;
The wat'ry worlds are all his own,
And all the solid ground.
3 Come, worship at his throne;
Come, bow before the Lord:
We are his work, and not our own;
He form'd us by his word.
To-day attend his voice,
Nor dare provoke his rod;
Come, like the people of his choice,
And own your gracious God.
But if your ears refuse
The language of his grace,
And hearts grow hard, like stubbornJews, That unbelieving race;
The Lord, in vengeance drest, Will lift his hand and swear, "You that despise my promis'd rest, "Shall have no portion there."
PSALM XCVI. (c.M.)
1 SING to the Lord, ye distant lands,
Ye tribes of every tongue:
His new-discover'd grace demands
A new and nobler song.
2 Say to the nations, Jesus reigns,
God's own almighty Son;
His power the sinking world sustains,
And grace surrounds his throne.
3 Let heav'n proclaim the joyful day,
Joy through the earth be seen;
Let cities shine in bright array,
And fields in cheerful green.
4 Let an unusual joy surprise
The islands of the sea:
Ye mountains sink, ye vallies rise,
Prepare the Lord his way.
5 Behold, he comes! he comes to bless
The nations, as their God;
To shew the world his righteousness,
And send his truth abroad.
PSALM XCVII. PART I. 1-8. (L. M.)
1 THE Lord is come: the heav'ns proclaim
His birth; the nations learn his name:
An unknown star directs the road
Of eastern sages to their God.
2 All ye bright armies of the skies,
Go, worship where the Saviour lies;
Angels and kings before him bow,
Those gods on high, and gods below.
3 Let idols totter to the ground,.
And their own worshippers confound:
But Judah shout, but Zion sing,
And earth confess her sov'reign King.
PSALM XCVII. PART II. 1-2, 9-12. (L. M.)
1 TH' Almighty reigns, exalted high,
O'er all the earth, o'er all the sky:
Though clouds and darkness veil his feet,
His dwelling is the mercy-seat.
2 O ye that love his holy name,
Hate every work of sin and shame:
He guards the souls of all his friends,
And from the snares of hell defends.
3 Immortal light, and joys unknown,
Are for the saints in darkness sown;
Those glorious seeds shall spring and rise,
And the bright harvest bless our eyes.
4 Rejoice, ye righteous, and record
The sacred honours of the Lord:
None but the soul that feels his grace
Can triumph in his holiness.
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