2 Night her solemn mantle spreads
O'er the earth as daylight fades;
All things tell of calm repose
At the holy Sabbath's close.
3 Peace is on the world abroad;
'Tis the holy reace of God-
Symbol of the peace within,
When the spirit rests from sin.
4 Still the Spirit lingers near,
Where the evening worshiper
Seeks communion with the skies,
Pressing onward to the prize.
5 Saviour! may our Sabbaths be
Days of peace and joy in thec,
Till in heaven our souls repose,
Where the Sabbath ne'er shall close.
93.
1 FOR a season called to part,
Let us now ourselves commend,
To the gracious eye and heart
Of our ever-present Friend.
2 Jesus! hear our humble prayer;
Tender Shepherd of thy sheep!
Let thy mercy and thy care
All our souls in safety keep. 3 Then, if thou thy help afford,
Joyful songs to thee shall rise, And our souls shall praise the Lord, Who regards our humble cries.
1 Now may he who from the dead
Brought the Shepherd of the sheep,
Jesus Christ, our king and head,
All our souls in safety keep.
2 May he teach us to fulfill
What is pleasing in his sight;
Make us perfect in his will,
And preserve us day and night!
3 To that great Redeemer's praise,
Who the covenant scaled with blood,
Let our hearts and voices raise
Loud thanksgivings to our God.
1 For the mercies of the day,
For this rest upon our way,
Thanks to thee alone be given,
Lord of carth and King of heaven!
2 Cold our services have been,
Mingled every prayer with sin:
But thou canst and wilt forgive;
By thy grace alone we live.
3 While this thorny path we tread,
May thy love our footsteps lead;
When our journey here is past,
May we rest with thee at last.
4 Let these earthly Sabbaths prove
Foretastes of our joys above;
While their steps thy children bend
To the rest which knows no end.
1 LORD, dismiss us with thy blessing,
Fill our hearts with joy and peace :
Let us each, thy love possessing,
Triumph in redeeming grace;
Oh, refresh us,
Traveling through this wilderness.
2 Thanks we give and adoration,
For thy gospel's joyful sound;
May the fruits of thy salvation
In our hearts and lives abound;
May thy presence,
With us evermore be found.
3 So, whene'er the signal 's given
Us from carth to call away,
Borne on angels' wings to heaven,
Glad the summons to obey,
Reign with Christ in endless day.
97.
1 COME, thou soul-transforming Spirit,
Bless the sower and the seed:
Let cach heart thy grace inherit,
Raise the weak, the hungry feed:
From the gospel
Now supply thy people's need.
2 Oh! may all enjoy the blessing,
Which thy word 's designed to give;
Let us all, thy love possessing,
Joyfully the truth receive;
To thy praise and glory live.
1 GENTLY, Lord! oh, gently lead us,
Through this lonely vale of tears;
Through the changes thou 'st decreed us,
Till our last great change appears:
When temptation's darts assail us,
When in devious paths we stray,
Let thy goodness never fail us,
Lead us in thy perfect way.
2 In the hour of pain and anguish,
In the hour when death draws near,
Suffer not our hearts to languish,—
Suffer not our souls to fear;
And, when mortal life is ended
Bid us on thy bosom rest,
Till, by angel-bands attended,
We awake among the blest.
1 GOD of our salvation, hear us;
Bless, Oh! bless us, ere we go;
When we join the world, be near us,
Lest we cold and careless grow:
Saviour, keep us,
Keep us safe from every foe.
2 As our steps are drawing nearer
To our best and lasting home,
May our view of heaven grow clearer;
Hope more bright of joys to come;
And when dying,
May thy presence cheer the gloom.
1 GOD, in the gospel of his Son, Makes his eternal counsels known, Where love in all its glory shines, And truth is drawn in fairest lines. 2 Here, sinners of an humble frame May taste his grace, and learn his name; May read, in characters of blood, The wisdom, power and grace of God. 3 Here, faith reveals, to mortal eyes,
A brighter world beyond the skies;
Here, shines the light which guides our
way
From earth to realms of endless day.
4 Oh! grant us grace, almighty Lord!
To read and mark thy holy word,
Its truths with meekness to receive,
And by its holy precepts live.
1 THE heavens declare thy glory, Lord!
In every star thy wisdom shines;
But when our eyes behold thy word,
We read thy name in fairer lines.
2 The rolling sun, the changing light,
And nights and days thy power confess,
But the blest volume thou hast writ,
Reveals thy justice and thy grace.
3 Sun, moon, and stars, convey thy praise
Round the whole earth, and never stand:
So, when thy truth began its race,
It touched and glanced on every land.
4 Nor shall thy spreading gospel rest,
Till through the world thy truth has run;
Till Christ has all the nations blessed
That see the light, or feel the sun.
5 Great Sun of righteousness, arise!
Bless the dark world with heavenly light:
Thy gospel makes the simple wise,
Thy laws are pure, thy judgments right.
6 Thy noblest wonders here we view,
In souls renewed, and sins forgiven;
Lord, cleanse my sins, my
soul renew,
And make thy word my guide to heaven.
1 THE starry firmament on high,
And all the glories of the sky,
Yet shine not to thy praise, O Lord,
So brightly as thy written word.
2 The hopes that holy word supplies,
Its truths divine and precepts wise,
In each a heavenly beam I see,
And every beam conducts to thee.
3 Almighty Lord, the sun shall fail,
The moon forget her nightly tale,
And deepest silence hush on high
The radiant chorus of the sky;
4 But fixed for everlasting years,
Unmoved, amid the wreck of spheres,
Thy word shall shine in cloudless day,
When heaven and earth have passed away.
sa-cred Book of God! No other can its place sup-ply;
1 I LOVE the sacred Book of God! No other can its place supply; It points me to his own abode, It gives me wings, and bids me fly. 2 Sweet Book! in thee my eyes discern The very image of my Lord;
From thine instructive page I learn
The joys his presence will afford.
3 In thee I read my title clear
To mansions that will ne'er decay ;-
Dear Lord, oh, when wilt thou appear,
And bear thy prisoner away!
4 While I am here, these leaves supply
His place, and tell me of his love;
I read with faith's discerning eye,
And gain a glimpse of joys above.
5 I know in them the Spirit breathes
To animate his people here;
Oh, may these truths prove life to all,
Till in his presence we appear!
1 Now let my soul, eternal King,
To thee its grateful tribute bring;
My knee with humble homage bow,
My tongue perform its solemn vow.
2 All nature sings thy boundless love,
In worlds below, and worlds above;
But in thy blessed word I trace
Diviner wonders of thy grace.
3 Here what delightful truths I read!
Here I behold the Saviour bleed;
His name salutes my listening ear,
Revives my heart and checks my fear.
4 Here Jesus bids my sorrows cease,
And gives my laboring conscience peace;
Here lifts my grateful passions high,
And points to mansions in the sky.
5 For love like this, oh, let my song,
Through endless years, thy praise pro-
long;
Let distant climes thy name adore,
Till time and nature are no more.
1 UPON the Gospel's sacred page
The gathered beams of ages shine;
And, as it hastens, every age
But makes its brightness more divine.
2 On mightier wing, in loftier flight,
From year to year does knowledge soar;
And, as it soars, the Gospel light
Adds to its influence more and more.
3 More glorious still as centuries roll,
New regions blessed, new powers un
furled,
Expanding with th' expanding soul,
Its waters shall o'erflow the world-
4 Flow to restore, but not destroy;
As when the cloudless lamp of day
Pours out its floods of light and joy,
And sweeps the lingering mist away.
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