40 for a strong, a lasting faith,
To credit what the Almighty saith;
To embrace the message of His Son,
And call the joys of heaven our own.
5 Our everlasting hopes arise
Above the ruinable skies;

Where the Eternal Builder reigns,
And His own courts His power sus-
tains.

L.M.

328 The heavens declare the glory of

1

THE

God.-Ps. 19, 1.

HE 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 has 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 Till Christ has all the nations blest [run; 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 judgmentsright. 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.

S.M.

329 The statutes of the Lord are right.

1

-Ps. 19, 8.

BEHOLD the morning sun

Begins his glorious way!

His beams through all the nations run
And life and light convey.

2 But where the gospel comes, It spreads diviner light;

3

4

5

6

It calls dead sinners from their tombs,
And gives the blind their sight.
How perfect is Thy word!
And all Thy judgments just;
For ever sure Thy promise, Lord,
And men securely trust.

My gracious God, how plain
Are Thy directions given!
O may I never read in vain,
But find the path to heaven!
I hear Thy word with love,
And I would fain obey;

Send Thy good Spirit from above,
To guide me lest I stray.

While with my heart and tongue,
I spread Thy praise abroad,
Accept the worship and the song,
My Saviour and my God.

C.M.

330 The law of the Lord is perfect.-Ps.

19, 7.

1 THY law is perfect, Lord of light!
Thy testimonies sure;

The statutes of Thy realm are right,
And Thy commandments pure.

2 Holy, inviolate. Thy fear,

Enduring as Thy throne;

Thy judgments, chastening or severe, Justice and truth alone.

3 More prized than gold, -than gold whose waste

Refining fire expels;

Sweeter than honey to my taste,-
Than honey from the cells.

4 Let these, O God! my soul convert,
And make Thy servant wise;

Let these be gladness to my heart,
The dayspring to my eyes.

5 By these may I be warned betimes;
Who knows the guilt within ?

Lord, save me from presumptuous crimes,

Cleanse me from secret sin.

6 So may the words my lips express,
The thoughts that throng the mind,
O Lord, my Strength and Righteousness!
With Thee acceptance find.

C.M.

331 The entrance of Thy words giveth

1

HO

light.-Ps. 119, 130.

TOW shall the young secure their hearts,

And guard their lives from sin?
Thy word the choicest rules imparts
To keep the conscience clean.

2 When once it enters to the mind,
It spreads such light abroad,
The meanest souls instruction find,
And raise their thoughts to God.
3 Tis like the sun, a heavenly light
That guides us all the day:

And, through the dangers of the night,
A lamp to lead our way.

4 The starry heavens Thy rule obey,
The earth maintains her place;
And these Thy servants, night and day,
Thy skill and power express.

5 But still Thy laws and gospel, Lord,
Have lessons more divine;

Not earth stands firmer than Thy word,
Nor stars so nobly shine.

6 Thy word is everlasting truth;
How pure is every page!

That holy book shall guide our youth,
And well support our age.

L.M.

332 Wondrons things out of Thy law.

-Ps. 119, 18.

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:
The hopes that holy word supplies,
Its truth divine, and precepts wise,
In each a heavenly beam I see,
And every beam conducts to Thee,

2 When taught by painful proof to know That all is vanity below;

The sinner roams from comfort far,
And looks in vain for sun or star;

Soft gleaming then, those lights divine
Through all the cheerless darkness
And sweetly to his ravished eye, [shine,
Disclose the Dayspring from on high.
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;
But, fixed for everlasting years,
Unmoved amid the wreck of spheres,
Thy Word shall shine in cloudless day,
When heaven and earth have passed

333 The commandment is a lamp, and

1

the law is light.-Prov. 6, 23.

1 Lour path when wont to stray;

AMP of our feet, whereby we trace

Stream from the fount of heavenlygrace,
Brook by the traveller's way:

2 Bread of our souls, whereon we feed,
True manna from on high;

Our guide and chart, wherein we read
Of realms beyond the sky.

3 Pillar of fire, through watches dark,
And radiant cloud by day;

[bark,

When waves would whelm our tossing
Our anchor and our stay.

4 Word of the Everlasting God,

Will of His glorious Son;

Without thee how could earth be trod,
Or heaven itself be won?

5 Lord, grant us all aright to learn
The wisdom it imparts;

And to its heavenly teaching turn,
With simple child-like hearts.

C.M.

334 Thy word is a lamp unto my feet.

1

Ps. 119, 105:

HOW precious is the book divine,
By inspiration given!

Bright as a lamp its doctrines shine,
To guide our souls to heaven.

2 It sweetly cheers our drooping hearts
In this dark vale of tears;
Life, light, and joy, it still imparts,
And quells our rising fears.

8 This lamp, through all the tedious night Of life, shall guide our way,

Till we behold the clearer light
Of an eternal day.

C.M.

335 Better unto me than thousands of

1

gold and silver.-Ps. 119, 72.

FATHER of mercies! in Thy word

What endless glory shines!

For ever be Thy name adored,

For these celestial lines.

2 Here may the wretched sons of want
Exhaustless riches find;

Riches above what earth can grant,
And lasting as the mind.

3 Here the Redeemer's welcome voice
Spreads heavenly peace around!
And life and everlasting joys
Attend the blissful sound.

4 O may these heavenly pages be
My ever dear delight!

And still new beauties may I see,
And still increasing light.

5 Divine Instructor, gracious Lord!
Be Thou for ever near:

Teach me to love Thy sacred word,
And view my Saviour there.

L.M.

336 The power of God unto salvation.

-Rom. 1, 16.

1 LET everlasting glories crown

Thy head, my Saviour and my Lord; Thy hands have brought salvation down,

And writ Thy blessings in Thy word. 2 In vain the trembling conscience seeks Some solid ground to rest upon; With long despair the spirit breaks, Till we apply to Christ alone.