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PART II.

POEMS felected out of the Apoftolical Epifiles.

INTRODUCTION.

As the FOUR EVANGELISTS lay down the foundation of our holy religion, in the biftory and life of our blessed SAVIOUR, its great Author; fo, the APOSTOLICAL EPISTLES open up the mystery of his death and refurrection. The Four Gofpels how us how the foundation of the 7 Chriftian church was laid; the Acts of the Apostles point out how the fuperftructure began to be raised, both amongst Jews and Gentiles: and the Apoftolical Epiftles contain a clear and compendious fyftem. of the great and important doctrines of the gospel, in order to edify, comfort, and build up the church. The Apostles were endowed with a wonderful effufion of the Holy Spirit, and were under his infallible influence and guidance, both in preaching the gospel, and writing their Epiftles; and all of them declare, that what they wrote was from God: and they being all men of undoubted probity, we may well credit them on this point. The fundamental articles of the Chriftian faith, being more fully difcuffed in thefe Epiftles than elfewhere, tend mightily to influence practical godliness, out of a principle of divine love, a good conscience, and faith unfeigned; and alfo to produce evangelical obedience.

It is none of the leaft defigns of the Chriftian inftitutes, to excite men unto, and engage them in, all the inftances and acts of fincere love, and fervent devotion towards God: and accordingly we find in them abundance of very fuitable matter both for inftruction, meditation, prayer, and praife. When the different Epiftles are carefully looked into, and examined with any degree of attention, we find there are interfperfed many divine odes and facred doxologies; and thefe lay a foundation for felecting the following Songs.

SONG I.

S.

Ruin by Sin, Relief by CHRIST. Rom. v. 12. 21.

Ver. OUR two firft parents happy flood,
Ου Till, foon as fin had place,

They loft their garden, and their God,
And kill'd their unborn race.

Thus fprung the plague from Adam's bow'r,
And ruin fpread abroad;

O curfed fin! that in one hour,
Spoil'd fix days work of God.

Ver. Tremble, O finner! mourn for grief,
That fuch a foe's within:

Fly, fly, to Chrift for quick relief,
And let him kill your fin.

SONG

II.

The Believer's S. curity in CHRIST: or, the Ground of Faith's Affurance about the Believer's unchangeable bappy State. Rom. viii. 33,---39..

33 WHO fhall to th' elect's charge ought lay, Since God hath justify'd?

34 Who fhall condemn by any way,
Since Chrift the Surety died?

Who can adjudge their fouls to hell,
Since he, who in their ftead
Has fuffer'd, feal'd their blifs fo well,
By rifing from the dead?

Yea, now he lives and fits above,
Still interceding there.
35 What can divide us from his love,
Or tempt us to defpair?

Shall perfecution, or diftrefs,
A feparation make?

Shall famine, fword, or nakedness,
Love's bond afunder break?

37 Nay, lo! in all thefe things our Shield,
Our Lover goes before,

To make us ev'n upon the field
Both conquerors, and more.

38 I'm fure no death nor life of ours,
Nor angels troublefome;
Nor principalities, nor pow'rs,
Things prefent, nor to come;

39 Nor height, nor depth, nor any mode
Of creatures might befide,
Can feparate our fouls from God,
Nor from his love divide.

His love is fix'd in Jefus fo,

Where we have fuch a part,

Not all that earth and hell can do

Shall pluck us from his heart.

Ver.

33

SONG III.

The unfearchable Depth of divine Wisdom and Sovereignty, in the Rejection of the Jews and the Calling of the GENTILLS. Rom. xi. 33,—36.

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DEPTH of wisdom, riches rare
Of grace and mercy free!

[That Gentile nations now fhould fhare
The Jews felicity:

And that till Jews, through grace, repent,

Their prefent dismal fall,
Should thus be made fubfervient

To Gentiles happy call!]

O depth of riches all divine!

O fathomless aby's!

Wisdom and knowledge here combine,
God's work alone is this.

How fearchlefs are his judgments juft!
How tracelefs are his ways!
[With sweet and awful wonder must
Both men and angels gaze.]

34 For, who hath known Jehovah's mind?
What angel or what man,
With him in privy counsel join'd
Their help to form the plan!

35 Or, who hath e'er oblig'd him yet,
By gifts, and dare upbraid,
As having on him claims of debt
And favours unrepaid?

36 For all things of him as the fource,
And through him as the guide,
And to him as the end, by course,
Still are, and fhall abide.

To whom for ftores of grace fo free,
Dealt in a fov'reign way,
And praife and glory render'd be
From henceforth and for ay.

Ver.

25

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The Apostle PAUL'S Doxology for the Revelation of
CHRIST by the Gospel: or, a Song of Praife to the
Power and Wisdom of GoD. Rom. xvi. 25,26,27.

HE power and wifdom of our God,

THE power

Becomes our praises well;

For thefe, to fave us, did explode
The pow'r and wit of hell.

Now to the God of pow'r, that can
Confirm and flablish you,
According to the gofpel-plan,
Expos'd to open view:

Chrift preached, making light to fhine,
That clearly fhows to man,
The mystery of grace divine,
Kept hid fince time began:

26 But now by fcripture lamps in hand,
Made manifeft abroad;

And publifh'd by exprefs command
Of the eternal God:

That nations all may know and trace
The new and living path,
By yielding to the word of grace,
Th' obedience of faith.

27 To God, the only wife, alone
Be praise and glory then,
Through Jefus, his anointed one,
For evermore, Amen.

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1 Cor. i. 24. Pfalm lxxxv. 10.

LL nature spreads, with open blaze,
Her Maker's name abroad;

And ev'ry work of his, displays

The pow'r and skill of God.

But in the grace that refcu'd man,
His brightest glory fhines;
Here, on the, crofs 'tis faireft drawn,
In precious bloody lines.

Here his whole name appears complete ;
And who can guess or prove,
Which of the letters beft are writ,
The wisdom, pow'r, or love?
Juftice and mercy, truth and grace,
In all their fweeteft charms,

Here met, and join'd their kind embrace,
With everlasting arms.

SONG VI.

CHRIST'S Fourfold Name, fuited to the finner's Need. I Cor. i. 30.

GOD

OD's knowledge, favour, image, bliss,
Men by the fall have loft;

But Jefus the restorer is

Of all these, to his coft.

Sad evils, pofitive, with-all

Our lofs of God attend;

Great ignorance, guilt, filth and thrall,

Which he alone can mend.

His name hath attributes engrav'd
Moft curiously within,

By which we may be fully fav'd
From ev'ry ill in fin.

Of God, he is made wifdom meet,
Sin's folly to expofe:

Made alfo righteoufnefs complete,
Sin's chain of guilt to loofe:
Sanctification, down to caft

Sin's reigning, flaining pow'r:
Redemption full, that fhall at laft
Its bitter brood devour.

How dark and heavy is the night
That hangs upon our eyes,
Till Chrift, our wifdom and our light,
Doth o'er our fouls arife?

Our guilty fpirits are afraid

To meet the wrath of Heav'n, Till in his righteoufnefs array'd, We fee our fins forgiv'n.

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