Rejoicing in the care of the good Shepherd. THE Lord is my Shepherd, no want shall I know, I feed in green pastures, safe-folded I rest; He leadeth my soul where the still waters flow, Restores me when wand'ring, redeems when oppress'd.
2 Through the valley and shadow of death though I stray,
Since thou art my guardian, no evil I fear; Thy rod shall defend me, thy staff be my stay; No harm can befall, with my Comforter near. 3 In the midst of affliction my table is spread; With blessings unmeasured my cup runneth o'er; With oil and perfume thou anointest my head;
O what shall I ask of thy providence more? 4 Let goodness and mercy, my bountiful God, Still follow my steps till I meet thee above; I seek-by the path which my forefathers trod, Through the land of their sojourn-thy kingdom of love.
Are they not all ministering spirits?
HICH of the monarchs of the earth
Can boast a guard like ours,—
Encircled from our second birth
With all the heavenly powers?
2 Myriads of bright, cherubic bands,
Sent by the King of kings,
Rejoice to bear us in their hands,
And shade us with their wings.
3 Angels, where'er we go, attend
Our steps, whate'er betide;
With watchful care their charge defend,
And evil turn aside.
4 Our lives those holy angels keep
From every hostile power;
And, unconcern'd, we sweetly sleep,
As Adam in his bower.
5 And when our spirits we resign,
On outstretch'd wings they bear,
And lodge us in the arms divine,
And leave us ever there.
24th P. M. 66, 66, 86, 86
The guardianship of angels.
✓ E simple souls, that stray Far from the path of peace,
That unfrequented way
To life and happiness :
How long will ye your folly love,
And throng the downward road,
And hate the wisdom from above,
And mock the sons of God?
2 So wretched and obscure,
The men whom ye despise,
So foolish, weak, and poor,-
Above your scorn we rise :
Our conscience in the Holy Ghost,
Can witness better things;
For He whose blood is all our boast,
Hath made us priests and kings.
3 Riches unsearchable
In Jesus' love we know;
And pleasures from the well
Of life, our souls o'erflow:
From him the Spirit we receive
Of wisdom, grace, and power;
And always sorrowful we live,
Rejoicing evermore.
4 Angels our servants are,
And keep in all our ways,
And in their hands they bear
The sacred sons of grace:
Our guardians to that heavenly bliss,
They all our steps attend;
And God himself our Father is,
And Jesus is our friend.
The final conquest explains all mysteries.
THOU, Lord, on whom
Shalt keep me faithful to the end:
I trust thy truth, and love, and power,
Shall save me till my latest hour;
And when I lay this body down,
Reward with an immortal crown.
2 Jesus, in thy great name I go,
To conquer death, my final foe ;
And when I quit this cumbrous clay,
And soar on angels' wings away,
My soul the second death defies,
And reigns eternal in the skies.
3 Eye hath not seen, nor ear hath heard,
What Christ has for his saints prepared,
Who conquer through their Saviour's might,
Who sink into perfection's height,
And trample death beneath their feet,
And gladly die their Lord to meet.
4 Dost thou desire to know or see
What thy mysterious name shall be?
Contending for thy heavenly home,
Thy latest foe in death o'ercome ;-
Till then thou searchest out in vain,
What only conquest can explain.
Nothing hath half thy work to do,
Yet nothing's half so dull.
2 Go to the ants! for one poor grain
See how they toil and strive;
Yet we who have a heaven to obtain,
How negligent we live!
3 We, for whose sake all nature stands,
And stars their courses move;
We, for whose guard the angel bands
Come flying from above :-
4 We, for whom God the Son came down,
And labour'd for our good;
How careless to secure that crown
He purchased with his blood!
5 Lord, shall we live so sluggish still,
And never act our parts?
Come, holy Dove, from the heavenly hill,
And warm our frozen hearts!
6 Give us with active warmth to move,
With vig'rous souls to rise;
With hands of faith, and wings of love,
To fly and take the prize.
O THOU, who all things canst control,
Chase this dread slumber from my soul;
With joy and fear, with love and awe,
Give me to keep thy perfect law.
2 O may one beam of thy blest light
Pierce through, dispel, the shade of night:
Touch my cold breast with heavenly fire;
With holy, conqu'ring zeal inspire.
3 For zeal I sigh, for zeal I pant;
Yet heavy is my soul, and faint:
With steps unwav'ring, undismay'd,
Give me in all thy paths to tread.
4 With outstretch'd hands, and streaming eyes,
Oft I begin to grasp the prize :
I groan, I strive, I watch, I pray;
But ah! my zeal soon dies away.
5 The deadly slumber then I feel
Afresh upon my spirit steal:
Rise, Lord, stir up thy quick'ning power,
And wake me that I sleep no more.
JESUS, shall I never be
Firmly grounded upon thee?
Never by thy work abide?
Never in thy wounds reside?
2 O how wav'ring is my mind,
Toss'd about with every wind;
O how quickly doth my heart
From the living God depart.
3 Jesus, let my nature feel
Thou art God unchangeable:
JAH, JEHOVAH, great I AM,
Speak into my soul thy Name.
4 Grant that every moment I
May believe and feel thee nigh;
Steadfastly behold thy face,
'Stablish'd with abiding grace.
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