Shine on the cedar roofs of Salem more:
Her tale of splendour now is done;
Her wine-cup of festivity is spilt,
And all is o’er--her grandeur and her guilt.
Oh, fair and favoured city, where of old,
The balmy airs were rich with melody,
That led her pomp beneath the cloudless sky
In vestments flaming with the orient gold;
Her gold is dim, and mute her music’s voice,
The heathen o’er her perish’d pomp rejoice!
How stately then was every palm-deck’d street
Down which the maidens danced with tinkling feet!
How proud the elders in the lofty gate!
How crowded all her nation’s solemn feasts
With white-robed Levites, and high-mitred priests;
How gorgeous her temple’s sacred state!
Her streets are razed, her maidens sold for slaves,
Her gates thrown down, her elders in their graves;
Her feasts are holden ’mid the Gentile’s scorn,
By stealth her priesthood’s holy garments worn.
_Milman._
_Jerusalem!_ alas! alas! of old,
Deaf to whate’er prophetic seers foretold,
Assailing all, whom Heaven, in mercy sent
And murdering those that warned thee to repent!
Thou, the world’s Saviour who suspendedst high,
His works reviled, and mocked His agony,
How oft hath God, still gracious, striven to bring
Thy devious brood beneath His sheltering wing,
To save thee from the hovering eagle’s power,
And shield the unequalled misery of this hour!
But no! thou would’st not! thence this signal fate!
Thence art thou fallen! deserted! desolate!
_William Gibson._
_Jerusalem!_ my happy home!
Name ever dear to me;
When shall my labours have an end
In joy, and peace, and thee?
When shall these eyes thy heaven-built walls
And pearly gates behold?
Thy bulwarks with salvation strong,
And streets of shining gold?
_Dickson._
JESUS.
And thou shalt call his name JESUS; for he shall save his
people from their sins.--Matthew, i. 21.
But we see JESUS, who was made a little lower than the angels,
for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour; that he by
the grace of God should taste death for every man.--Hebrews, ii. 9.
Whosoever shall confess that JESUS is the Son of God, God
dwelleth in him, and he in God.--I. John, iv. 15.
To Thee, O _Jesu_, I direct my eyes,
To Thee my hands, to Thee my humble knees;
To Thee my heart shall offer sacrifice,
To Thee my thoughts, who my thoughts only sees;
To Thee myself, myself and all I give,
To Thee I die, to Thee I only live.
_Sir Walter Raleigh._
_Jesus_, I love Thy charming name,
’Tis music in my ear;
Fain would I sound it out so loud
That earth and heaven should hear.
Yes, thou art precious to my soul,
My transport and my trust;
Jewels to Thee are gaudy toys,
And gold is sordid dust.
All my capacious powers can wish,
In Thee doth richly meet:
Nor to mine eyes is light so dear,
Nor friendship half so sweet,
Thy grace still dwells upon my heart,
And sheds its fragrance there;
The noblest balm of all its wounds,
The cordial of its care.
I’ll speak the honours of Thy name
With my last labouring breath;
Then, speechless, clasp Thee in my arms,
The antidote of death.
_Doddridge._
O God, of good the unfathomed sea!
Who would not give his heart to Thee?
Who would not love Thee with his might?
O _Jesu_, Lover of mankind!
Who would not his whole soul and mind,
With all his strength, to Thee unite;
Hell’s armies tremble at Thy nod,
And, trembling, own th’ Almighty God,
Sovereign of earth, hell, air, and sky:
But who is this that comes from far,
Whose garments roll’d in blood appear?
’Tis God made man, for man to die.
_Wesley._
Weary souls that wander wide,
From the central point of bliss,
Turn to _Jesus_ crucified,
Fly to those dear wounds of His,
Sink into the purple flood--rise into the life of God.
_Wesley._
_Jesus_ shall reign where’er the sun
Does his successive journeys run;
His kingdom stretch from shore to shore,
’Till moons shall wax and wane no more.
_Watts._
_Jesus_, in Thy transporting name
What blissful glories rise!
_Jesus_ the angels’ sweetest theme!
The wonder of the skies!
Well might the skies with wonder view
A love so strange as thine,
No thought of angels ever knew
Compassion so divine.
_Steele._
We know that “He will save us” Lord,
If we on Him depend,
_Jesus_, the true and living word,
The sinner’s only friend.
May He be ours, in life and death,
_Jesus_ enthroned above,
And may we with our latest breath
Adore redeeming love!
_J. Burbidge._
JEWS.
The Lord shall establish thee an holy people unto himself, as He hath
sworn unto thee, if thou shalt keep the commandments of the Lord thy
God, and walk in His ways.
And all people of the earth shall see that thou art called by the name
of the Lord; and they shall be afraid of thee.
But it shall come to pass, if thou wilt not hearken unto the voice
of the Lord thy God, to observe to do all his commandments and
his statutes, * * * thou shalt become an astonishment, a proverb
and a bye-word, among all nations whither the Lord shall lead
thee.--Deuteronomy, xxviii. 9, 10, 15, 37.
Salvation is of the _Jews_.--John, iv. 22.
He is not a _Jew_, which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision
which is outward in the flesh;
But he is a _Jew_, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of
the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter, whose praise is not of
men but of God.--Romans, ii. 28, 29.
What advantage then hath the _Jew_, or what profit is there in
circumcision? Much every way: chiefly, because that unto them were
committed the oracles of God.--Romans, iii. 1, 2.
They, and they only, amongst all mankind,
Received the transcript of the Eternal Mind;
Were trusted with His own engraven laws,
And constituted guardians of His cause;
Theirs were the prophets, theirs the priestly call,
And theirs, by birth, the Saviour of us all.
_Cowper._
Thrice happy nation! Favourite of Heaven!
Selected from the kingdoms of the earth
To be His chosen race, ordained to spread
His glory through remotest realms, and teach
The Gentile world Jehovah’s awful name.
_William Hodson._
That people once
So famed, whom God Himself vouchsafed to call
His chosen race, and with a guardian hand
Deigned to protect, from Palestine exiled,
Are doomed to wander; although scattered thus
Through all the globe, there is no clime which they
Can call their own, no country where their laws
Hold sovereign rule. Irrefragable proof,
That every oracle of Holy Writ
Was given by Heaven itself!
_Samuel Hayes._
JORDAN.
And Lot lifted up his eyes and beheld all the plain of _Jordan_, that
it was well watered every where.--Genesis, xiii. 10.
If thou hast run with the footmen, and they have wearied thee, then how
canst thou contend with horses? and if in the land of peace wherein
thou trustedst, they wearied thee, then how wilt thou do in the
swelling of _Jordan_.--Jeremiah, xii. 5.
Then went out to him Jerusalem and all Judea and all the region round
about _Jordan_.
And were baptized of him in _Jordan_ confessing their sins.--Matthew,
iii. 5, 6.
The waters slept. Night’s silvery veil hung low
On _Jordan’s_ bosom, and the eddies curled
Their glassy rings beneath it, like the still,
Unbroken beatings of the sleeper’s pulse.
The reeds bent down the stream: the willow leaves,
With a soft cheek upon the lulling tide,
Forgot the lifting winds; and the long stems,
Whose flowers the water, like a gentle nurse,
Bears on its bosom, quietly gave way
And leaned in graceful attitudes, to rest.
How strikingly the course of nature tells
By its light heed of human suffering
That it was fashioned for a happier world.
_N. P. Willis._
Christian, behold the typic shade
Of that dim path prepared for thee--
Behold, in _Jordan’s_ tide displayed,
Death’s overflowing sea.
But if thou still hast kept the Ark
Of God before thee as a mark,
Fear not the troubled waters dark,
Howe’er they rage, and chafe, and roar;
On that mysterious voyage embark,
And God will guide thee o’er.
_J. H. Clinch._
When I tread the banks of _Jordan_
May my soul no tremblings know;
Be my Saviour near to guide me,
And uphold me as I go
Through the waters,
Fearing not their overflow.
_Egone._
JOY.
Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of
_joy_; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.--Psalm xvi.
11.
Weeping may endure for a night, but _joy_ cometh in the morning.--Psalm
xxx. 5.
And ye now therefore have sorrow: but I will see you again, and your
heart shall rejoice, and your _joy_ no man taketh from you.--John, xvi.
22.
What nothing earthly gives, or can destroy,
The soul’s calm sunshine, and the heartfelt _joy_.
_Pope._
A Deity believed, is _joy_ begun;
A Deity adored, is _joy_ advanced;
A Deity beloved, is _joy_ matured.
Each branch of piety delight inspires.
_Young._
Words of eternal truth proclaim
All mortal _joys_ are vain;
A diamond pen engraves the theme
Upon a mortal pane.
_Watts._
When on some balmy-breathing night of spring
The happy child to whom the world is new,
Pursues the evening moth of mealy wing,
Or from the heath-bell shakes the sparkling dew,
He sees before his inexperienced eyes,
The brilliant glow-worm like a meteor shine
On the turf-bank, surprised, and pleased, he cries
“Star of the dewy grass! I make thee mine.”
Then, ere he sleeps, collects the moistened flower,
And bids soft leaves his glittering prize unfold,
And dreams that fairy lamps illume his bower;
But in the morning shudders to behold
His shining treasure viewless as the dust;
So fade the world’s bright _joys_ to cold and blank disgust.
_Charlotte Smith._
I see a forest, dark, dim, deep, and dread,
Whose solemn shades no human foot or eye
Can penetrate; but now, oh see! a veil
Falls from my strengthened eyes; and now
Even in its deepest centre I behold
A spot more beautiful than human heart
Can comprehend; it is the home of _Joy_,
And there the blessed spirit broods for ever,
Making her dwelling-place a heaven: there
The skies are pure as crystal, and the eye
Looks through their clear expanse direct to God.
No sun is there; the air itself is light
And life; a rainbow spans it like a crown
Of tearless glory, and the forest trees
Sweep round it in a belt of living green.
Colour, that wayward sprite of changeful mien,
Is here subdued to an intensity
Of burning lustre. Sound has but one voice,
And that _joyous_ song; sight but one object,
And that is happiness; mine eyes are strained
To catch the lineaments of the bright queen,
Whose dwelling-place I see; but ’tis in vain;
Nowhere distinct, yet felt in all, she glides,
A shape of light and colour through the air,
Making its pure transparency to thrill
With the soft music of her viewless step.
_C. L. Reddel._
Christ had His _joys_--but they were not
The _joys_ the son of pleasure boasts--
O, no! ’twas when His Spirit sought
Thy will, Thy glory, God of hosts!
Christ had His _joys_--and so hath he,
Who feels His Spirit in his heart;
Who yields, O God, his all to Thee,
And loves Thy name, for what thou art!
_Anon._
_Joy_ dwells not in external things,
It hath an inner birth;
The sweetest bird in darkness sings,
And fairest flowers oft nurture stings,--
Such is our life on earth.
Then measure not by outward show
The depth of real _joy_;
The heart can o’er the darkest woe
A stream of sunlight softly throw,
Or purest bliss destroy.
_W. J. Brock._
JUDAH.
When Israel went out of Egypt, the house of Jacob from a people of
strange language;
_Judah_ was his sanctuary and Israel his dominion.--Psalm cxiv. 1, 2.
_Judah_ shall dwell for ever, and Jerusalem from generation to
generation.--Joel, iii. 20.
It is evident that our Lord sprang out of _Judah_.--Hebrews, vii. 14.
_Judah!_ thou art he whom thy brethren shall praise,
Thy hand shall be on the neck of thine enemies:
Thy father’s children shall bow down before thee.
_Judah_ is a lion’s whelp!
From the prey, my son, thou art gone up:
He stooped down, he crouched as a lion,
And as an old lion; who shall rouse him up?
The sceptre shall not depart from _Judah_,
Nor a lawgiver from between his feet,
Until Shiloh come,
And unto him shall the gathering of the people be.
_Jacob’s Benediction of Judah_, Genesis, xlix. 8, 9, 10.
_Dr. Caunter’s Metrical Arrangement._
O, Thou, the Shepherd of Thy flock,
Who led’st Thy people through the wave,
And gav’st them water from the rock,
And bar’dst thine arm in might to save:--
Hear Thou the strain our hearts prolong--
List--list the suppliant captive’s cry--
O, when shall cease the mournful song,
O, when shall _Judah’s_ tears be dry?
_C. W. Everest._
For yet the tenfold film shall fall
O, _Judah_, from thy sight,
And every eye be purged to read
Thy testimonies right,
When thou, with all Messiah’s signs
In Christ distinctly seen,
Shall, by Jehovah’s nameless name,
Invoke the Nazarene.
_William Crosswell._
JUDGE--JUDGMENT.
The Lord loveth _judgment_.--Psalm xxxvii. 28.
Hear my prayer, O Lord, give ear to my supplications.
And enter not into _judgment_ with thy servant: for in thy sight shall
no man living be justified.--Psalm cxliii. 1, 2.
_Judge_ not, that ye be not _judged_.--Matthew, vii. 1.
We shall all stand before the _judgment_-seat of Christ.
Let us not therefore _judge_ one another any more, but _judge_ this
rather, that no man put a stumbling-block, or an occasion to fall, in
his brother’s way.--Romans, xiv. 10, 13.
He should be born grey-headed, that will bear
The sword of empire: _judgment_ of the life,
Free state, and reputation of a man,
If he be just and worthy, dwells so dark,
That it denies access to sun and moon;
The soul’s eye, sharpen’d with that sacred light
Of whom the sun itself is but a beam,
Must only give that _judgment_. O how much
Err those kings then that play with life and death,
And nothing put into their serious states
But humour and their lusts! For which alone
Men long for kingdoms, whose huge counterpoise
In cares and dangers, could a fool comprise,
He would not be a king, but would be wise.
_Chapman._
The day of Christ; the last, the dreadful day;
When thou and I, and all the world, shall come
Before His _judgment_-seat, to bear their doom
For ever and for ever; and when they
Who loved not God, far, far from Him away
Shall go;--but whither banished? and with whom?--
And they who loved Him shall be welcomed home
To God, and Christ, and Heaven, and Heaven’s array,
Angels and saints made perfect--may the scene
Of that dread day be always present here--
Here in my heart! That every day between,
Which brings my passage to the goal more near,
May find me fitter, by His love made clean,
Before His throne of justice to appear.
_Bishop Mant._
Then, all Thy saints assembled, Thou shalt _judge_
Bad men and angels; they, arraigned, shall sink
Beneath Thy sentence: Hell, her numbers full,
Thenceforth shall be for ever shut. Meanwhile
The world shall burn, and from her ashes spring
New Heaven and Earth, wherein the just shall dwell,
And after all their tribulations long,
See golden days, fruitful of golden deeds,
With joy and love triumphing, and fair truth.
Then Thou Thy regal sceptre shalt lay by,
For regal sceptre thee no more shall need,
God shall be All in All.
_Milton._
The world is grown old, and her pleasures are past;
The world is grown old, and her form may not last;
The world is grown old, and trembles for fear,
For sorrows abound, and _judgment_ is near!
The sun in the heaven is languid and pale;
And feeble and few are the fruits of the vale;
And the hearts of the nations fail them for fear,
For the world is grown old, and _judgment_ is near!
The king on his throne, the bride in her bower,
The children of pleasure all feel the sad hour;
The roses are faded, and tasteless the cheer;
For the world is grown old, and _judgment_ is near!
The world is grown old, but should we complain
Who have tried her, and know that her promise is vain;
Our heart is in heaven, our home is not here,
And we look for our crown when _judgment_ is near.
_Bishop Heber._
From Adam to his youngest heir,
Not one shall ’scape that muster-roll;
Each, as if he alone were there,
Shall stand, and win, or lose his soul:
These from the Judge’s presence, go
Down into everlasting woe;
Vengeance hath barred the gates of hell--
The scenes within no tongue can tell.
But lo! far off, the righteous pass
To glory; from the king’s right hand,
In silence, on the sea of glass,
Heaven’s numbers without number stand,
While He who bore the cross, lays down
His priestly robe and victor crown;
The mediatorial reign complete,
All things are put beneath His feet.
_James Montgomery._
Time
Hath functions awful and sublime,
And on its viewless lapse are traced
Stern chronicles of all the past,
A writing every sunset laid,
While heaven is still within the shade
Of Christ’s high throne, one day to be
A part of the solemnity
And pomp of _judgment_, endless Woe,
Or endless Weal! to some a show
Of fiery ciphers, symbols dread,
Of unchaste things unpardoned.
* * * * *
And some there are to whom that scroll
Sad record still, may yet unroll
A fairer vision, dark and bright,
Like dawn o’er-mastering tardy night
In dubious streaks, with here and there
A firm and radiant character,
To angels’ eyes not new, but known
And recognised the _Judge’s_ own.
_Frederic W. Faber._
The _judgment_! the _judgment_! the thrones are all set,
Where the Lamb and the white-vested Elders are met!
All flesh is at once in the sight of the Lord,
And the doom of eternity hangs on His word!
O mercy! O mercy! look down from above,
Creator! on us thy sad children, with love!
When beneath, to their darkness, the wicked are driven,
May our sanctified souls find a mansion in Heaven!
_H. H. Milman._
JUSTICE.
Shall mortal man be more _just_ than God? Shall a man be more pure than
his Maker.--Job, iv. 17.
Touching the Almighty, we cannot find him out: he is excellent in
power, and in judgment and in plenty of _justice_.--Job, xxxvii. 23.
_Justice_ and judgment are the habitation of Thy throne.--Psalm lxxxix.
14.
To do _justice_ and judgment is more acceptable to the Lord than
sacrifice.--Proverbs, xxi. 3.
Whoso upon himself will take the skill
True _justice_ unto people to divide,
Has need have mighty hands for to fulfil
That which he doth with righteous doom decide,
And for to maister wrong and puissant pride;
For vain it is to deem of things aright,
And make wrong doers _justice_ to deride,
Unless it be performed with dreadless might;
For power is the right hand of _justice_ truly hight.
_Spenser._
A _just_ man cannot fear,
Not, though the malice of traducing tongues,
The open vastness of a tyrant’s ear,
The senseless rigour of the wrested laws,
Or the red eyes of strain’d authority,
Should, in a point meet all to take his life,
His innocence is armour ’gainst all these.
_Ben Jonson._
The words of Heaven, on whom it will, it will;
On whom it will not, so; yet still ’tis _just_.
_Shakspere._
His life is parallel’d
Even with the stroke and line of his great _justice_;
He doth with holy abstinence subdue
That in himself, which he spurs on his power
To qualify in others; where he meal’d
With that which he corrects, than where he tyrannous;
But this being so, he’s _just_.
_Shakspere._
Heaven’s king
Keeps register of every thing,
And nothing may we use in vain;
Ev’n beasts must be with _justice_ slain.
_Marvell._
Well, then, my soul, joy in the midst of pain;
Thy Christ, that conquered hell, shall from above
With greater triumph yet return again
And conquer His own _justice_ with His love.
Commanding earth and seas to render those
Unto His bliss for whom he paid His woes.
_Wotton._
So sure the fall of greatness raised on crimes!
So fixed the _justice_ of all-conscious Heaven!
When haughty guilt exalts with impious joy,
Mistake shall blast, or accident destroy;
Weak man, with erring rage, may throw the dart,
But Heaven shall guide it to the guilty heart.
_Dr. Johnson._
Say, how can man be _justified_ by God?
Thy vaults eternity would echo. How?
But from the cross, responding grace replies
To this high question. Faith in Christ is life
And Love and Righteousness. Completely fit
To each vast claim of violated law.
_R. Montgomery._
The Sun of _Justice_ may withdraw his beams
Awhile from earthly ken, and sit concealed
In dark recess pavilioned round with clouds:
Yet let not guilt presumptuous rear her crest,
Nor virtue droop despondent: soon these clouds,
Seeming eclipse, will brighten into day,
And in majestic splendour He will rise,
With healing and with terror on His wings.
_George Bally._
Peace to the _just_ man’s memory,--let it grow
Greener with years, and blossom through the flight
Of ages; let the mimic canvas show
His calm benevolent features; let the light
Stream on his deeds of love, that shunned the sight
Of all but heaven, and, in the book of fame,
The glorious record of his virtues write,
And hold it up to men, and bid them claim
A palm like his, and catch from him the hallowed flame.
_W. C. Bryant._
KINDNESS.
Blessed be the Lord: for he hath shewed me his marvellous
_kindness_.--Psalm xxxi. 21.
Rend your heart, and not your garments, and turn unto the Lord your
God: for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great
_kindness_.--Joel, ii. 13.
Be _kindly_ affectioned one to another with brotherly love; in honour
preferring one another.--Romans, xii. 10.
Be ye _kind_ one to another, tender-hearted, forgiving one another,
even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.--Ephesians, iv. 32.
The poorest poor
Long for some moments in a weary life,
When they can know and feel that they have been
Themselves the fathers and the dealers out
Of some small blessings--have been _kind_
To such as needed _kindness_; for this single cause,
That we have all of us a human heart.
_Wordsworth._
Awake, my soul, in joyful lays,
And sing thy great Redemer’s praise;
He justly claims a song from me,
His loving-_kindness_ O how free!
He saw me ruined in the fall,
Yet loved me notwithstanding all:
He saved me from my lost estate,
His loving-_kindness_ O how great!
Often I feel my sinful heart
Prone from my Jesus to depart;
But, though I have Him oft forgot,
His loving-_kindness_ changes not.
Soon shall I pass the gloomy vale;
Soon all my mortal powers shall fail:
O may my last expiring breath
His loving-_kindness_ sing in death!
Then let me mount and soar away
To the bright world of endless day:
And sing with rapture and surprise,
His loving-_kindness_ in the skies.
_Medley._
As from the bosom of her mystic fountains,
Nile’s sacred water windeth to the main,
Flooding each vale embosom’d ’mong the mountains,
From far Alata’s fields to Egypt’s plain:
So from the bosom of the Fount of Love,
A golden stream of sympathy is gushing;
And winding, first through intellect above,
Then through each vale of mortal mind is rushing;
Sweeping the heart of iceberg and of storm,
Purging humanity of every blindness,
Melting all spirits earthly into one,
And leaving holiness and joy--’tis _Kindness_.
_D. K. Lee._
Meanwhile as we idly rave,
Thousands hasten to the grave;
No _kind_ voice their footsteps guides
To the home where truth abides;
Tones of truth within them stirred,
Meet with no _kind_ answering word.
_J. Gostick._
Be _kind_ to each other!
The night’s coming on,
When friend and when brother
Perchance may be gone.
Then, ’midst our dejection,
How sweet to have earn’d
The blest recollection
Of _kindness_ return’d!
When day hath departed,
And Memory keeps
The watch, broken-hearted,
Where all the loved sleeps,
Let falsehood assail not,
Nor envy disprove;
Let trifles prevail not
Against those ye love.
Nor change with to-morrow
Should fortune take wing,
But the deeper the sorrow
The closer still cling.
Oh, be _kind_ to each other,
For night’s coming on,
When friend and when brother
Perchance may be gone.
_Anon._
KING.
The Lord is _King_ for ever and ever.--Psalm x. 16.
Lift up your heads, O ye gates; even lift them up, ye everlasting
doors; and the _King_ of glory shall come in.
Who is this _King_ of glory? The Lord of hosts, he is the _King_ of
glory.--Psalm xxiv. 9, 10.
The _King_ that faithfully judgeth the poor, his throne shall be
established for ever.--Proverbs, xxix. 14.
Fear God. Honour the _King_.--I. Peter, ii. 17.
The _king_-becoming graces
Are justice, verity, temperance, stableness,
Bounty, perseverance, mercy, lowliness,
Devotion, patience, courage, fortitude.
_Shakspere._
O take heed, sir,
Saints stand upon heaven’s silver battlements,
When _kings_ make vows, and lay their listening ears
To princes’ protestations.
_R. Davenport._
The silver trumpet’s heavenly call
Sounds for the poor, but sounds alike for all;
_Kings_ are invited, and, would _kings_ obey,
No slaves on earth more welcome were than they;
But royalty, nobility, and state,
Are such a dead preponderating weight,
That endless bliss, how strange soe’er it seem,
In counterpoise flies up, and kicks the beam.
_Cowper._