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BLEST hour! when mortal man retires
To hold communion with his God,
To send to heaven his warm desires,
And listen to the sacred word.

2 Blest hour! when earthly cares resign
Their empire o'er his anxious breast,
While all around the calm divine
Proclaims the holy day of rest.

3 Blest hour! when God himself drawsnigh, Well pleased his people's voice to hear, To hush the penitential sigh,

And wipe away the mourner's tear. 4 Blest hour! for where the Lord resortsForetastes of future bliss are given; And mortals find his earthly courts The house of God, the gate of Heaven!

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SWEET the time, exceeding sweet!
When the saints together meet,
When the Saviour is the theme,
When they joy to sing of him.

2 Sing we then eternal love,

Such as did the Father move:
He beheld the world undone,
Loved the world, and gave his Son.

3 Sing the Son's amazing love;

How he left the realms above,
Took our nature and our place,
Lived and died to save our race.

4 Sing we, too, the Spirit's love;

With our stubborn hearts he strove,
Filled our minds with grief and fear,
Brought the precious Saviour near.

5 Sweet the place, exceeding sweet, Where the saints in glory meet; Where the Saviour's still the theme, Where they see and sing of him. 85 S. M.

Matt. 21: 13.

COME to the house of prayer,

O thou afflicted, come;

TAYLOR.

The God of peace shall meet thee thereHe makes that house his home,

2 Come to the house of praise,

Ye who are happy now;

In sweet accord your voices raise,
In kindred homage bow.

3 Ye aged, hither come,

For ye have felt his love;

Soon shall your trembling tongues be dumb,

Your lips forget to move.

4 Ye young, before his throne,
Come, bow; your voices raise;
Let not your hearts his praise disown
Who gives the power to praise.

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Isa. 56: 7.

NEWTON,

C. M.
AGAIN our earthly cares we leave,
And to thy courts repair;
Again with joyful feet we come,
To meet our Saviour here.

2 Great Shepherd of thy people, hear!
Thy presence now display;
We bow within thy house of prayer;
Oh! give us hearts to pray.

3 The clouds which vail thee from our sight,
In pity, Lord, remove;
Dispose our minds to hear aright
The message of thy love.

4 The feeling heart, the melting eye,
The humble mind, bestow;
And shine upon us from on high,
To make our graces grow.

5 Show us some token of thy love,
Our fainting hopes to raise;
And pour thy blessing from above,
To aid our feeble praise.

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AGAIN the Lord of life and light
Awakes the kindling ray,
Dispels the darkness of the night,
And pours increasing day.

2 Oh, what a night was that which wrapt
A guilty world in gloom!
Oh, what a sun which broke this day
Triumphant from the tomb!

3 This day be grateful homage paid,
And loud hosannas sung;
Let gladness dwell in every heart,
And praise on every tongue.

4 Ten thousand thousand voices join
To hail this happy morn,

Which scatters blessings from its wings On nations yet unborn.

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THE festal morn, my God, is come,
That calls me to thy sacred dome,
Thy presence to adore!

My feet the summons shall attend,
With willing steps thy courts ascend,
And tread the hallowed floor.

2 Ev'n now, to my expecting eyes,
The heaven-built towers of Salem rise;

Ev'n now, with glad survey,
I view her mansions, that contain
The angelic forms-a glorious train-
And shine with cloudless day.

3 Hither, from earth's remotest end,
Lo! the redeemed of God ascend,
Their tribute hither bring;
Here, crowned with everlasting joy,
In hymns of praise their tongues employ,
And hail the immortal King.

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THE bird let loose in Eastern skies,

Returning fondly home,

Ne'er stoops to earth her wing, nor flies
Where idle warblers roam.

2 But high she shoots, thro' air and light,
Above all low delay,

Where nothing earthly bounds her flight,
Nor shadow dims her way.

3 So grant me, Lord, from every snare
Of sinful passion free,
Aloft, through faith's serener air,
To hold my course to thee.
4 No sin to cloud, no lure to stay
My soul, as home she springs,
Thy sunshine on her joyful way,
Thy freedom in her wings.

BARBAULD.

C. M. Ps. 51: 16, 17.
WHEN, as returns this solemn day,
Man comes to meet his God,
What rites, what honors shall he pay
How spread his praise abroad?

2 From marble domes and gilded spires
Shall clouds of incense rise?

?

And gems, and gold, and garlands deck
The costly sacrifice?

3 Vain, sinful man! creation's Lord
Thy offerings well may spare;
But give thy heart, and thou shalt find
Thy God will hear thy prayer.

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Lo, God is here!-let us adore!
And own how dreadful is this place!
Let all within us feel his power,

And, silent, bow before his face.

2 Lo, God is here! him day and night United choirs of angels sing:

To him, enthroned above all height,

Let saints their humble worship bring.
3 Lord God of hosts! oh, may our praise
Thy courts with grateful incense fill!
Still may we stand before thy face,
Still hear and do thy sovereign will.

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SING to the Lord our Might,-
With holy fervor sing!
Let hearts and instruments unite
To praise our heavenly King.

2 This is his sacred house;

3

And this his festal day,

LYTE

When he accepts the humblest vows
That we sincerely pay.

The Sabbath to our sires

In mercy first was given;

The Church her Sabbath still requires
To speed her on to heaven.

4 And we, like them of old,

Are in the wilderness;

And God is now as near his fold
To pity and to bless.

5 Then let us open wide

Our hearts for him to fill;
And he that Israel then supplied,
Will keep his Israel still.

OLD HUNDRED. L. M.

Praise God, from whom all bless-ings flow! Praise him, all creatures here below!

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With all your tongues his glory sing. 96

2 The Lord is God-'tis he alone

Doth life and breath and being give:
We are his work-and not our own,
The sheep that on his pastures live.
3 Enter his gates with songs of joy,

With praises to his courts repair;
And make it your divine employ,
To pay your thanks and honors there.

4 The Lord is good-the Lord is kind;
Great is his grace-his mercy sure';

Ps. 39.

WATTS.

And all the race of man shall find
His truth from age to age endure.
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JEHOVAH reigns; his throne is high;
His robes are light and majesty;
His glory shines with beams so bright,
No mortal can sustain the sight.

2 His terrors keep the world in awe;
His justice guards his holy law;
Yet love reveals a smiling face,
And truth and promise seal the grace.

3 Through all his works his wisdom shines,
And baffles Satan's deep designs;
His power is sovereign to fulfill
The noblest counsels of his will.

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FROM all that dwell below the skies, Let the Creator's praise arise: Let the Redeemer's name be sung, Through every land, by every tongue. 2 Eternal are thy mercies, Lord! Eternal truth attends thy word: Thy praise shall sound from shore to shore,

Till suns shall rise and set no more.

Ps. 100.

KETHE

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ALL people that on earth do dwell,
Sing to the Lord with cheerful voice;
Him serve with fear, his praise forth tell,
Come ye before him and rejoice.
2 The Lord, ye know, is God indeed,
Without our aid he did us make;
We are his flock, he doth us feed,

And for his sheep he doth us take.
3 Oh, enter, then, his gates with praise;
Approach with joy his courts unto;
Praise, laud, and bless his name always,
For it is seemly so to do.

4 For why? the Lord our God is good,
His mercy is forever sure;
His truth at all times firmly stood,
And shall from age to age endure.

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LONG. L. M.

Praise God, from whom all blessings flow, Praise him, all creatures here below; Praise him a-bove, ye

Ps. 148.

WATTS. IOO

LOUD hallelujahs to the Lord,
From distant worlds where creatures

dwell!

Let heaven begin the solemn word,
And sound it dreadful down to hell.

2 Wide as his vast dominion lies,

Make the Creator's name be known; Loud as his thunder, shout his praise, And sound it lofty as his throne. 3 Jehovah 't is a glorious word!

Oh, may it dwell on every tongue! But saints who best have known the Lord, Are bound to raise the noblest song. 4 Speak of the wonders of that love Which Gabriel plays on every chord: From all below, and all above, Loud hallelujahs to the Lord!

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GIVE to the Lord, ye sons of fame, Give to the Lord renown and power; Ascribe due honors to his name,

And his eternal might adore.

2 The Lord proclaims his power aloud,
O'er all the ocean and the land;
His voice divides the watery cloud,
And lightnings blaze at his command.
3 The Lord sits Sovereign on the flood;
The Thunderer reigns forever King;
But makes his church his blest abode,
Where we his awful glories sing.
4 In gentler language, there the Lord
The counsels of his grace imparts:
Amid the raging storm, his word
Speaks peace and courage to ourhearts.

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WATTS. 4 From the provisions of thy house

Now to the Lord a noble song!
Awake, my soul! awake, my tongue!
Hosanna to the eternal name,
And all his boundless love proclaim.
2 See where it shines in Jesus' face,-
The brightest image of his grace!
God, in the person of his Son,
Hath all his mightiest works outdone.

3 Grace! 't is a sweet, a charming theme:
My thoughts rejoice at Jesus' name:
Ye angels! dwell upon the sound:
Ye heavens! reflect it to the ground.
4 Oh! may I reach that happy place,
Where he unvails his lovely face,
Where all his beauties behold,
And sing his name to harps of gold.

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WATTS.

HIGH in the heavens, eternal God!
Thy goodness in full glory shines;
Thy truth shall break through every cloud
That vails and darkens thy designs.

2 Forever firm thy justice stands,

As mountains their foundations keep: Wise are the wonders of thy hands;

Thy judgments are a mighty deep. 3 My God, how excellent thy grace! Whence all our hope and comfort springs;

The sons of Adam, in distress,

Fly to the shadow of thy wings.

We shall be fed with sweet repast; There, mercy like a river flows,

And brings salvation to our taste.

5 Life, like a fountain rich and free,
Springs from the presence of my Lord;
And in thy light our souls shall see
The glories promised in thy word.

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LORD God of Hosts, by all adored!
Thy name we praise with one accord;
The earth and heavens are full of thee,
Thy light, thy love, thy majesty.

2 Loud hallelujahs to thy name
Angels and seraphim proclaim;
Eternal praise to thee is given
By all the powers and thrones in heaven.
3 The apostles join the glorious throng,
The prophets aid to swell the song,
The noble and triumphant host
Of martyrs make of thee their boast.

4 The holy church in every place
Throughout the world exalts thy praise;
Both heaven and earth do worship thee,
Thou Father of eternity!

5 From day to day, O Lord, do we
Highly exalt and honor thee;
Thy name we worship and adore,
World without end, forevermore.

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