Of the wide heavens Thy throne may be;
But this we know, that where Thou art,
Strength, wisdom, goodness dwell with Thee.
And through the various maze of time,
And through the infinity of space,
We follow Thy career sublime,
And all Thy wondrous footsteps trace.
Thy children shall not faint nor fear,
Sustained by this delightful thought,
Since Thou their God art everywhere,
They cannot be where Thou art not.
_Anon._
The Sabbath sun was setting slow,
Amidst the clouds of even;
“Our _Father_,”--breathed a voice below--
“_Father_, who art in Heaven!”
Beyond the earth--beyond the cloud--
Those infant words were given;
“Our _Father_,” angels sang aloud--
“_Father_, who art in Heaven!”
“Thy kingdom come”--still from the ground,
That childlike voice did pray;
“Thy kingdom come”--God’s hosts resound--
Far up the starry way!
“Thy will be done,”--with little tongue,
That lisping love implores;
“Thy will be done,”--the angelic throng--
Sing from seraphic shores!
“For ever,”--still those lips repeat,
Their closing evening prayer;
“For ever,”--floats in music sweet--
High ’midst the angels there!
Thine be the glory evermore,
From Thee may man ne’er sever;
But every Christian land adore
Jehovah!--God!--for ever!
_C. Swain._
One _father_ have we here on earth,
Another up in heaven;
By Him to us the second birth,
And lasting life is given.
_Egone._
FEAR.
The _fear_ of the wicked it shall come upon him: but the desire of the
righteous shall be granted.--Proverbs, x. 24.
The _fear_ of man bringeth a snare: but whoso putteth his trust in the
Lord shall be safe.--Proverbs, xxix. 25.
Say to them that are of a _fearful_ heart, Be strong, _fear_ not;
behold your God will come with vengeance, even God with a recompense;
He will come and save you.--Isaiah, xxxv. 4.
_Fear_ not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul:
but rather _fear_ Him which is able to destroy both soul and body in
hell.--Matthew, x. 28.
For God hath not given us the spirit of _fear_; but of power, and of
love, and of a sound mind.--II. Timothy, i. 7.
So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not _fear_
what man shall do unto me.--Hebrews, xiii. 6.
Since nature’s work be good, and death doth come
As nature’s work, why should we _fear_ to die?
Since _fear_ is vain, but when it may presume,
Why should we _fear_ that which we cannot fly?
_Fear_ is more pain than is the pain it _fears_,
Disarming human minds of native might;
While each conceit an ugly figure bears,
Which were not ill well viewed in reason’s light.
_Sir P. Sidney._
Persuade them then,
_Fearless_ to be resolved to die like men;
For want of such a resolution stings
At point of death, and dreadful horror brings
Ev’n to the soul; ’cause, wanting preparation,
She dies, despairing of her own salvation.
Yea, and moreover this full well know I,
He that’s at any time _afraid_ to die,
Is in weak case, and whatsoe’er he saith,
Hath but a wavering and a feeble faith.
_George Wither._
_Fear_ on guilt attends, and deeds of darkness;
The virtuous breast ne’er knows it.
_Havard._
Some, for _fear_ of want,
Want all their lives; and others ev’ry day,
For _fear_ of dying, suffer worse than death.
Ah! from your bosoms banish if you can
That fatal guest, I mean the demon _fear_,
That trembles at impossible events,
Lest aged Atlas should resign his load,
And Heaven’s eternal battlements rush down.
Is there an evil worse than _fear_ itself?
And what avails it, that indulgent Heav’n
From mortal eyes has wrapt the woes to come,
If we, ingenious to torment ourselves,
Grow pale at hideous fictions of our own?
Enjoy the present, nor with needless cares
Of what may spring from blind Misfortune’s womb
Appal the surest hour that life bestows;
Serene and master of yourself, prepare
For what may come, and leave the rest to heaven.
_Armstrong._
God’s altar grasping with an eager hand,
_Fear_, the wild-visaged, pale, eye-starting wretch,
Sure-refuged, hears his hot-pursuing fiends
Yell at vain distance. Soon refreshed from Heaven,
He calms the throb and tempest of his heart,
His countenance settles; a soft solemn bliss
Swims in his eye--his swimming eye upraised:
And faith’s whole armour glitters on his limbs!
And thus transfigured with a dreadless awe,
A solemn hush of soul, meek he beholds
All things of terrible seeming.
_Coleridge._
Happy beyond description he
Who _fears_ the Lord his God,
Who hears His threats with holy awe
And trembles at His rod.
Let _fear_ and love, most holy God,
Possess this soul of mine.
Then shall I worship Thee aright,
And taste Thy joys divine.
_Needham._
My son, be this thy simple plan:
_Fear_ God and love thy fellow-man;
Forget not in temptation’s hour
That sin lends sorrow double power:
With hand, and brow, and bosom clear,
_Fear_ God and know no other _fear_.
_Anon._
FELLOWSHIP.
Shall the throne of iniquity have _fellowship_ with thee, which frameth
mischief by a law.--Psalm xciv. 20.
Have no _fellowship_ with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather
reprove them.--Ephesians, v. 11.
That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also
may have _fellowship_ with us; and truly our _fellowship_ is with the
Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ.--I. John, i. 3.
We would not die in that man’s company,
That fears his _fellowship_ to die with us.
_Shakspere._
From blissful bowers
Of amaranthine shade, fountain or spring,
By the waters of life where’er they sat.
In _fellowship_ of joy.
_Milton._
The blessings which the poor and weak can scatter
Have their own season. ’Tis a little thing
To give a cup of water; yet its draught
Of cool refreshment, drained by fevered lips,
May give a shock of pleasure to the frame,
More exquisite than when nectarean juice
Renews the life of joy in happiest hours.
It is but a little thing to speak a phrase
Of common comfort, which by daily use
Has almost lost its sense; yet on the ear
Of him who thought to die unmourned, ’t will fall
Like choicest music; fill the glazing eye
With gentle tears; relax the knotted band
To know the bonds of _fellowship_ again.
_Talfourd._
O, sweet it is, through life’s dark way
In Christian _fellowship_ to move,
Illumed by one unclouded ray,
And one in faith, in hope, in love.
_Charlotte Elizabeth._
How sweet it is when friend with friend
In holy _fellowship_ can walk!
When thoughts and sympathies may blend,
And hearts be open as their talk!
Such will the preparation prove
For lasting _fellowship_ above.
_Egone._
FINISHED.
Moreover the word of the Lord came unto me saying, The hands of
Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this house; his hands shall also
_finish_ it.--Zechariah, iv. 8, 9.
When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, It is
_finished_; and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost.--John, xix.
30.
As he had begun, so he would also _finish_ in you the same grace
also.--II. Corinthians, viii. 6.
He that of greatest works is _finisher_,
Oft does them by the weakest minister.
_Shakspere._
O prophet of glad tidings! _finisher_
Of utmost hope.
_Milton._
Though here you all perfection should not find,
Yet it is all the Eternal will designed;
It is a _finished_ work, and perfect in its kind.
_Blackmore._
Hark! the voice of love and mercy
Sounds aloud from Calvary!
See! it rends the rocks asunder,
Shakes the earth and veils the sky!
“It is _finished_!”
Hear the dying Saviour cry!
“It is _finished_!”--O what pleasure
Do those charming words afford!
Heavenly blessings without measure
Flow to us from Christ the Lord:
“It is _finished_!”--
Saints the dying words record.
_Finished_ all the types and shadows
Of the ceremonial law!
_Finished_ all that God had promised;
Death and hell no more shall awe:
“It is _finished_!”--
Saints from hence their comfort draw.
Happy souls, approach the table,
Taste the soul-reviving food;
Nothing’s half so sweet and pleasant
As the Saviour’s flesh and blood:
“It is _finished_!”--
Christ has borne the heavy load.
_J. Evans._
FLOOD.
And the _flood_ was forty days upon the earth.--Genesis, vii. 17.
The Lord sitteth upon the _flood_: yea the Lord sitteth King for
ever.--Psalm xxix. 10.
For as in the days that were before the _flood_ they were eating and
drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe
entered into the ark,
And knew not until the _flood_ came, and took them all away; so shall
also the coming of the Son of Man be.--Matthew, xxiv. 38, 39.
By faith _Noah_, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved
with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by which he
condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by
faith.--Hebrews, xi. 7.
God spared not the old world, but saved _Noah_, the eighth person, a
preacher of righteousness, bringing in the _flood_ upon the world of
the ungodly.--II. Peter, ii. 5.
He preached
Conversion and repentance, as to souls
In prison under dangers imminent:
But all in vain, which, when he saw, he ceased
Contending, and removed his tents far off,
Then from the mountain hewing timbers tall,
Began to build a vessel of huge bulk.
_Milton._
And now, the thickening sky
Like a dark ceiling stood; down rushed the rain
Impetuous, and continued till the earth
No more was seen. The floating vessel swam
Uplifted, and secure with beaked prow,
Rode tilting o’er the waves; all dwellings else
_Flood_ overwhelmed, and them, with all their pomp,
Deep under water rolled; sea covered sea,
Sea without shore; and in their palaces,
Where luxury late reigned, sea monsters whelped
And stabled. Of mankind, so numerous late,
All left in one small bottom swam imbarked.
_Milton._
Methinks I see a distant vessel ride,
A lonely object on the shoreless tide,
Within whose ark the innocent have found
Safety, when stayed destruction ravens round;
Thus, in the hour of vengeance, God, who knows
His servants, spares them, while He smites His foes.
_James Montgomery._
Sunk beneath the wave,
The guilty share an universal grave;
One wilderness of waters rolls in view,
And heaven and ocean wear one turbid hue;
Still stream unbroken torrents from the skies,
Higher, beneath, the inundations rise;
A lurid twilight glares athwart the scene,
Now thunders peal, faint lightnings flash between.
_James Montgomery._
Down rush the torrents from above; the deep
Opens in all its fountains, ceaseless, still
Ceaseless: the muddy waters eddying fill
The valleys. High on every mound and steep,
In crowds, men, women, children, cattle, sheep,
Stand shivering with dismay, the horrible
Confusion eyeing; and, from hill to hill,
They shout in agony, or shriek, or weep,
In vain! the waters gain upon them. Lo!
The ark careering past, their hands they stretch
For help; and now you see some drowning wretch
Pursue the sacred vessel; but in woe
No pity must they have; so on they go.--
Now all is one wide sea without a beach.
_Morehead._
Behold the awful Deity enthroned
In darkness awful--inaccessible,
And order almost unto chaos changed;
Tremendous gloom! that blots the sun’s bright beams,
And more than midnight horrors shroud the skies,
The faint grey twilight gleaming thro’ the clouds,
Discover, floating on a shoreless sea,
The chosen eight embosom’d in the Ark,
One family preserved to renovate
The world, Jehovah’s judgments have destroyed.
* * * * *
But see the bow its new-created dyes
Begin to beam propitious from the cloud--
“Destructive waters shall no more prevail,
No more become a _flood_ upon the earth.”
_S. Hughes._
FLOWERS.
Man that is born of a woman is of few days, and full of trouble.
He cometh forth like a _flower_, and is cut down.--Job, xiv. 1, 2.
As for man, his days are as grass: as a _flower_ of the field, so he
flourisheth.--Psalm ciii. 15.
Consider the lilies how they grow: they toil not, they spin not; and
yet I say unto you, that Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like
one of these.
If then God so clothe the grass, which is to-day in the field, and
to-morrow is cast into the oven; how much more will He clothe you, O ye
of little faith.--Luke, xii. 27, 28.
Let the brother of low degree rejoice in that he is exalted:
But the rich in that he is made low: because as the _flower_ of the
grass, he shall pass away.--James, i. 9, 10.
For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the _flower_ of
grass. The grass withereth, and the _flower_ thereof falleth away: but
the word of the Lord endureth for ever.--I. Peter, i. 24, 25.
When with a serious musing I behold
The grateful and obsequious marigold;
How duly every morning she displays
Her open breast. When Titan spreads his rays,
How she observes him in his daily walk.
Still bending towards him her small slender stalk.
For when he down declines, she droops and mourns,
Bedew’d as ’twere, with tears till he returns;
And how she veils her _flowers_ when he is gone,
As if she scorned to be looked on
By an inferior eye, or did contemn
To wait upon a meaner light than him.
When thus I meditate, methinks the _flowers_
Have spirits far more generous than ours;
And give us fair examples to despise
The servile fawning and idolatries
Wherewith we court these earthly things below,
Which merit not the service we bestow.
_George Wither._
To me the meanest _flower_ that blows can give
Thoughts that do often lie too deep for tears.
_Wordsworth._
Foster the good, and thou shalt tend the _flower_
Already sown on earth;--
Foster the beautiful, and every hour,
Thou call’st new _flowers_ to birth.
_Schiller._
The enlivening sap,
Obedient to Thy laws, through fitted tubes
Ascends fermenting, and, at length, matured,
Breaks forth in gems, and germinates in leaves.
By Thee each family of _flowers_ is clothed
In one unvarying dress, and breathes the same
Transmitted essences; and though the loom
No virgin fingers ply to swell her pride,
The lily shines, more gorgeously arrayed
Than monarchs, where the East, with hand profuse,
Showers on their pomp barbaric, pearl and gold.
_Smart._
There is a lesson in each _flower_,
A story in each stream and bower;
In every herb on which you tread
Are written words, which, rightly read,
Will lead you from earth’s fragrant sod,
To hope, and holiness, and God.
_Allan Cunningham._
When spring returns, the little children play,
In the grave-yard of the cathedral grey,
Busy as morning bees, and gather _flowers_--
Daisies and gold-cups--of the hurrying hours
Thoughtless as unsolicitous, though time
Speeds like a spectre, and their playful prime
Bears on to sorrow. Angel! cry aloud!
Speak of the knell, the grave-worm and the shroud!
No! let them play! for solitude and care
Too soon will teach them what poor mortals are.
Yes! let them play, but as their thoughts expand,
May smiling pity lead them by the hand,
When they look up, and in the clouds admire
The lessening shaft of that aërial spire,
So be their thoughts uplifted from the sod,
Where time’s brief _flowers_ they gather to their God.
_W. Lisle Bowles._
This cottage door, this gentle gale,
Hay-scented, whispering round,
Yon path-side rose, that down the vale,
Breathes incense from the ground,
Methinks should from the dullest clod,
Invite the thankful heart to God.
But, Lord, the violet bending low,
Seems better moved to praise;
From us what scanty blessings flow,
How voiceless close our days;--
Father, forgive us, and the _flowers_
Shall lead in prayer the vesper hours.
_James T. Fields._
_Flowers!_ wherefore do ye bloom?
--We strew the pathway to the tomb!
_J. Montgomery._
God might have made the earth bring forth
Enough for great and small--
The oak tree and the cedar tree,
Without a _flower_ at all.
He might have made enough, enough,
For every want of ours,
For luxury, medicine, and toil,
And yet have made no _flowers_.
Our outward life requires them not,
Then wherefore had they birth?
To minister delight to man--
To beautify the earth;
To whisper hope, to comfort man,
Whene’er his faith is dim;
For whoso careth for the _flowers_,
Will care much more for him.
_Mary Howitt._
“See,” said Marian unto me,
Standing by the cressy brook,
“How my wealth of _flowers_ increaseth;
Have they not a pleasant look?”
“Deeper still,” I said unto her,
“There the ceaseless worm alway
Feeds upon the living _flower_,
Drooping, drooping to decay.”
“Deeper yet,” said Marian,
“Love, and thank the love that giveth;
In the death of every one,
Future wealth uncounted liveth.”
_J. B. Kington._
FOLLY.
The _fool_ hath said in his heart, There is no God.--Psalm xiv. 1.
I will hear what God the Lord will speak: for he will speak peace
unto his people, and to his saints: but let them not turn again to
_folly_.--Psalm lxxxv. 8.
The crown of the wise is their riches: but the _foolishness_ of _fools_
is _folly_.--Proverbs, xiv. 24.
Answer not a _fool_ according to his _folly_, lest thou also be like
unto him.--Proverbs, xxvi. 4.
Whosoever shall say, Thou _fool_, shall be in danger of hell
fire.--Matthew, v. 22.
The rout is _folly’s_ circle which she draws
With magic wand. So potent is the spell,
That none decoy’d into that fatal ring,
Unless by Heaven’s peculiar grace, escape.
There we grow early grey, but never wise;
There form connections, but acquire no friend;
Solicit pleasure, hopeless of success;
Waste youth in occupations only fit
For second childhood; and devote old age
To sports, which only childhood could excuse.
_Cowper._
Many there are who wear the cap and bells,
And tread the maze of _folly_;
And some who dwell apart in hermit cells
With moping melancholy.
Many there are who toil, and moil, and scrape,
For gold they cannot keep;
And many who from toil and care escape,
Wrapped in a drunken sleep.
Some of their brothers in their anger cry--
Thou _fool_! nor heed the sin;
And some their God and Saviour would deny
Human applause to win.
All this is _foolishness_, but worst of all
The last mad _folly_,
Building betwixt the soul and heaven a wall,
Spreading o’er nature’s face a gloomy pall
Of hopeless melancholy.
_Egone._
FORGETFULNESS.
How long wilt thou _forget_ me, O Lord? for ever? how long wilt thou
hide thy face from me?--Psalm xiii. 1.
But Zion said, The Lord hath forsaken me, and my Lord hath _forgotten_
me.
Can a woman _forget_ her sucking child, that she should not have
compassion on the son of her womb? yea, they may _forget_, yet will I
not _forget_ thee.--Isaiah, xlix. 14, 15.
Behold the inexorable hour at hand!
Behold the inexorable hour _forgot_!
And to _forget_ it, the chief aim of life;
Though well to ponder it is life’s chief end.
_Young._
_Forget_ me not! _Forget_ me not!
Thou utterest, Lord, from earth or skies,
In glittering glory--rainbow dyes,
And every breeze that sheds a balm
On morning’s joy or evening’s calm,
In open glade or lonely spot,
Maintains a tongue to tell Thy power,
And whispers in Thy name and hour,
_Forget_ me not! _Forget_ me not!
_Forget_ me not! _Forget_ me not!
The record of Thy will doth say,
Revealing Thee in glory’s ray,
On Sinai’s mount with justice crowned,
Throwing Thy awful thunders round,
But most, when pitying the hard lot
Of man, Thy Son rejoiced to die
Upon the mount of Calvary,
Thy voice was heard--_Forget_ me not!
_Forget_ us not! _Forget_ us not!
In that dread hour when tyrant death
Shall gripe this form and stop its breath;
Oh! in each struggling throe, that clay
Feels when the soul is wrenched away,
And it is left for earth to rot,
Look down in mercy--Lord, be nigh,
To curb the dying agony;
We are but dust--_Forget_ us not!
_William Martin._
FORGIVENESS.
To the Lord our God belong mercies and _forgivenesses_, though we have
rebelled against him.--Daniel, ix. 9.
When ye stand praying, _forgive_, if ye have ought against any: that
your Father also which is in heaven may _forgive_ you your trespasses.
But if ye do not _forgive_, neither will your Father which is in heaven
_forgive_ your trespasses.--Mark, xi. 25, 26.
When they were come to the place, which is called Calvary, there they
crucified him, and the malefactors, one on the right hand, and the
other on the left.
Then said Jesus, Father, _forgive_ them; for they know not what they
do.--Luke, xxiii. 33, 34.
Be ye kind one to another, tender-hearted, _forgiving_ one another,
even as God for Christ’s sake hath _forgiven_ you.--Ephesians, iv. 32.
Though in the secret paths of sin I trod,
Yet do not quite forsake me, O my God!
’Tis Thou alone canst ease me of my pain,
Thy healing hand can wash out every stain,
Can cleanse my soul, and make the leper clean.
Speak, love divine, and bid the suppliant live,
Oh, let mine ear but hail the word, “_Forgive!_”
_Daniel._
_Forgive_ thy foe;--nor that alone,
His evil deed with good repay;
Fill those with joy who leave thee none
And kiss the hand upraised to slay.
_From the Persian._
Good nature and good sense must ever join;
To err is human, to _forgive_ divine.
_Pope._
Great souls _forgive_ not injuries till time
Has put their enemies into their power,
That they may show _forgiveness_ in their own.
_Dryden._
My foemen, Lord, are fierce and fell,
They spurn me in their pride;
They render evil for my good,
My patience they deride.
Arise, O King! and be the proud
To righteous ruin driven!--
“_Forgive!_” an awful answer came,
“As thou would’st be _forgiven_.”
_Heber._
O thou unknown, Almighty cause
Of all my hope and fear!
In whose dread presence, ere an hour,
Perhaps I must appear!
If I have wandered in those paths
Of life I ought to shun,
As something, loudly, in my breast,
Remonstrates I have done;
Thou know’st that Thou hast formed me
With passions wild and strong;
And list’ning to their witching voice
Has often led me wrong.
Where human weakness has come short,
Or frailty stept aside,
Do Thou, All-Good! for such thou art,
In shades of darkness hide.
Where with intention I have err’d,
No other plea I have,
But Thou art good; and Goodness still
Delighteth to _forgive_.
_Burns._
_Forgiveness!_ ’tis a joyful sound,
To rebel sinners doomed to die:
Publish the bliss the world around;
Ye seraphs shout it from the sky!
’Tis the rich gift of love divine;
’Tis full--outmeasuring every crime;
Unclouded shall its glories shine,
And feel no change by changing time.
For this stupendous love of heaven,
What grateful honour shall we shew?
Where much transgression is _forgiven_,
Let love with equal ardour glow.
Cheered by the hope of pardoning grace,
We come Thy mercy, Lord, to prove;
Like weeping Mary, let us taste
A pledge of Thy _forgiving_ love.
_Gibbons._
She rose from her untroubled sleep,
And put aside her soft brown hair,
And in a tone as low and deep
As love’s first whisper, breath’d a prayer.
And there, from slumber soft and warm,
Like a young spirit fresh from heaven,
She bow’d her slight and graceful form,
And humbly pray’d to be _forgiven_.
Oh, God! if souls unsoiled as these
Need daily mercy from Thy throne,
If she, upon her bended knees,
Our loveliest and purest one--
She, with a face so clear and bright,
We deem her some stray child of light;
If she, with those soft eyes in tears,
Day after day, in her first years,
Must kneel and pray for grace from Thee,
What far, far deeper need have we?
How hardly if she win not heaven,
Will our wild errors be _forgiven_?
_N. P. Willis._
When on the fragrant sandal tree
The woodman’s axe descends,
And she who bloomed so beauteously
Beneath the keen stroke bends--
E’en on the edge that brought her death,
Dying, she breathes her sweetest breath,
As if to token in her fall
“Peace to her foes, and love to all.”
How hardly man this lesson learns,
To smile, and bless the hand that spurns;
To see the blow, and feel the pain,
But render only love again.
This spirit ne’er was given on earth;
One had it,--he of heavenly birth;
Reviled, rejected, and betrayed,
No curse He breathed, no plaint He made,
But when in death’s deep pang He sighed,
Prayed for his murderers--and died.
_Edmeston._
FOUNDATION.
Of old hast thou laid the _foundation_ of the earth: and the heavens
are the work of thy hands.--Psalm cii. 25.
Thus saith the Lord God, Behold I lay in Zion for a _foundation_ a
stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure _foundation_: he
that believeth shall not make haste.--Isaiah, xxviii. 16.
According to the grace of God which is given unto me, as a wise master
builder, I have laid the _foundation_, and another buildeth thereon.
But let every man take heed how he buildeth thereupon.