Press’d by pursuing foes,
I lift mine eyes unto the hills,
From whence salvation flows.
My help is from the Lord, who made
And governs earth and sky;
I look to his almighty aid,
And ever-watching eye.
He who thy soul in _safety_ keeps,
Shall drive destruction hence;
The Lord thy keeper never sleeps;
The Lord is thy defence.
_J. Montgomery._
Place me on some desert shore
Foot of man ne’er wandered o’er;
Lock me in a lonely cell
Beneath some prison citadel;
Still, here or there, within I find
My quiet kingdom of the mind;
Nay, ’mid the tempest fierce and dark,
Float me in peril’s frailest barque,
My quenchless soul could sit and think,
And smile at danger’s dizziest brink;
And wherefore? God, my God is still
King of kings in good and ill;
And where He dwelleth--every where--
_Safety_ supreme and peace are there;
And where He reigneth--all around--
Wisdom, and love, and power are found,
And, reconciled to Him and bliss,
“My mind to me a kingdom is.”
_Tupper._
SAINT.
O love the Lord, all ye his _saints_: for the Lord preserveth the
faithful.--Psalm xxxi. 23.
O fear the Lord, ye his _saints_; for there is no want to them that
fear him.--Psalm xxxiv. 9.
Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers
of the inheritance of the _saints_ in light.--Colossians, i. 12.
If but one sun with his diffusive fires,
Can fill the stars and the whole world with light,
And joy and light into each heart inspires:
And every _saint_ shall shine in heaven as bright;
As doth the sun in his transcendant might;
(As faith may well believe what truth once says)
What shall so many sun’s united rays
But dazzle all the eyes that now in heaven we praise?
Here let my Lord hang up his conquering lance,
And bloody armour with late slaughter warm;
And looking down on his weak militants,
Behold his _saints_ amidst their hot alarm,
Hang all their golden hopes upon his arm;
And on this lower field when straying wide
Through Satan’s wiles, who would their sails misguide,
Anchor their fleshly ships fast in his wounded side.
_Giles Fletcher._
What are these arrayed in white,
Brighter than the noonday sun?
Foremost of the sons of light,
Nearest the eternal throne?
These are they that bore the cross,
Nobly for their master stood;
Sufferers in his righteous cause,
Followers of the dying God.
Out of great distress they came,
Wash’d their robes by faith below
In the blood of yonder Lamb,
Blood that washes white as snow,
Therefore are they next the throne,
Serve their Maker day and night:
God resides among his own,
God doth in his _saints_ delight.
_De Courcy._
A _Saint_! Oh, would that I could claim
The privileged, the honour’d name,
And confidently take my stand,
Though lowest in the _saintly_ band.
Would, though it were in scorn applied
That term the test of truth could bide!
Like kingly salutation given,
In mockery to the king of Heaven.
A _saint_? and what imports the name
Thus banded in derision’s game?
“Holy and separate from sin;
To good, nay even to God akin.”
How shall the name of _saint_ be prized,
Though now neglected and despised,
And sinners to their doom be hurled,
When scorned _saints_ shall “judge the world.”
_Marriot._
From _saint_ to _saint_ the world around
Celestial odours are diffused;
Sweet thoughts are born on hallow’d ground,
Where holy men have mused.
And none can tell how many springs
Flow to sustain one soul serene;
But every hour some tribute brings
From sources quiet and unseen.
The loneliest pilgrim in the ways
Is never in his prayers alone;
But every one for thousands prays,
And thousands pray for every one.
We dwell with shadows round us here,
And nought is bright but heaven above:
When all our secret friends appear,
How many shall we know and love!
Yet, as we learn the mystery,
Around One holy fount we fall,
And, in the light eternal, see
That God is all in all.
_J. Gostick._
SALVATION.
He that is our God, is the God of _salvation_.--Psalm lxviii. 20.
And all the ends of the earth shall see the _salvation_ of our
God.--Isaiah, lii. 10.
For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain _salvation_ by
our Lord Jesus Christ.--I. Thessalonians, v. 9.
A cheerful confidence I feel,
My well-placed hopes with joy I see;
My bosom glows with heavenly zeal
To worship Him who died for me.
As man He pities my complaint;
His power and truth are all divine;
He will not fail, He cannot faint,
_Salvation’s_ sure, and must be mine.
_Cowper._
Almighty framer of the skies!
O let our pure devotion rise,
Like incense in thy sight!
Wrapt in impenetrable shade
The texture of our souls was made
Till Thy command gave light.
The Son of Glory gleamed the ray,
Refined the darkness into day,
And bid the vapours fly:
Impelled by his eternal love,
He left his palaces above
To cheer our gloomy sky.
How shall we celebrate the day,
When God appeared in mortal clay,
The mark of worldly scorn:
When the Archangel’s heavenly lays
Attempted the Redeemer’s praise,
And hail’d _salvation’s_ morn.
_Chatterton._
“Thy Spirit knows I love Thee.” Worthless wretch,
To dare to love a God! But, grace requires--
And grace accepts--Love divine
Constrains me; I am thine. Incarnate Love
Has seized and holds me in Almighty arms:
Here’s my _salvation_, my eternal hope,
Amidst the wreck of worlds and dying nature,
“I am the Lord’s; and He for ever mine.”
_Watts._
_Salvation!_ O the joyful sound!
’Tis pleasure to our ears;
A sov’reign balm for every wound,
A cordial for our fears.
Buried in sorrow and in sin,
At hell’s dark door we lay;
But we arise by grace divine
To see a heavenly day.
_Salvation!_ let the echo fly
The spacious earth around,
While all the armies of the sky
Conspire to raise the sound.
_Watts._
Jesus, transporting sound!
The joy of earth and heaven;
No other help is found,
No other name is given,
By which we can _salvation_ have,
But Jesus came the world to save.
_Wesley._
If the best Thy great _salvation_
Must attain with trembling fear,
Lord and Judge of all creation,
Where should sinful man appear?
God of love and mercies tender,
Stern to vice, to weakness mild,
Teacher, Saviour, Sire, Defender,
Save, O save Thy suppliant child!
By the claims which saints inherit
From Thy blood for converts pour’d,
By thy all-prevailing Spirit,--
By Thy covenanted Word,--
By Thy tears, in sorrow weeping,
Over harden’d sinners’ doom;
Take me to Thy gracious keeping,
Lead me to Thy glorious home!
_Bishop Spencer._
SATAN.
Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, _Satan_: for it is
written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou
serve.--Matthew, iv. 10.
And the God of peace shall bruise _Satan_ under your feet
shortly.--Romans, xvi. 20.
The other shape,
If shape it might be called that shape had none
Distinguishable in member, joint, or limb;
Or substance might be called that shadow seemed,
For each seemed either; black it stood as night,
Fierce as ten furies, terrible as hell,
And shook a dreadful dart; what seemed his head,
The likeness of a kingly crown had on.
_Satan_ was now at hand; and from his seat
The monster, moving onward, came as fast
With horrid strides, hell trembled as he strode.
_Milton._
He trusted to have equalled the Most High,
If he opposed; and with ambitious aim
Against the throne and monarchy of God,
Raised impious war in Heav’n and battle proud
With vain attempt. Him the Almighty Power
Hurled headlong flaming from the ethereal sky,
With hideous ruin and combustion, down
To bottomless perdition; there to dwell
In adamantine chains and penal fire,
Who durst defy th’ Omnipotent to arms.
_Milton._
_Satan_, thy power’s decline is nigh;
Like lightning flashing through the sky,
Thy demons hear the Heavenly Word,
And owning Him Creation’s Lord,
Confess, with fierce appalling yell--
Emmanuel deigns on earth to dwell.
_Shepherd._
How sad our state by nature is!
Our sin how deep it stains!
And _Satan_ binds our captive minds
Fast in his slavish chains.
_Watts._
SAVIOUR.
I, even I, am the Lord; and beside me there is no _Saviour_.--Isaiah,
xliii. 11.
Thou shalt know that I the Lord am thy _Saviour_ and thy Redeemer, the
mighty One of Jacob.--Isaiah, lx. 16.
And the angel said unto them, fear not: for, behold, I bring you good
tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.
For unto you is born this day in the city of David a _Saviour_, which
is Christ the Lord.
And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in
swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.--Luke, ii. 10, 11, 12.
For our conversation is in heaven; from whence also we look for the
_Saviour_, the Lord Jesus Christ.--Philippians, iii. 20.
We trust in the living God, who is the _Saviour_ of all men, specially
of those that believe.--I. Timothy, iv. 10.
And thou, my soul, inspired with holy flame,
View and review with most regardful eye
That holy cross whence thy salvation came,
On which thy _Saviour_ and thy sin did die!
For in that sacred object is much pleasure,
And in that _Saviour_ is my life, my treasure.
_Sir Walter Raleigh._
O unexampled Love!
Love nowhere to be found less than Divine!
Hail son of God, _Saviour_ of men, Thy name
Shall be the copious matter of my song
Henceforth, and never shall my harp Thy praise
Forget, nor from Thy Father’s praise disjoin.
_Milton._
O may I pant for Thee in each desire!
And with strong Faith foment the holy fire!
Stretch out my soul in Hope, and grasp the prize,
Which in Eternity’s deep bosom lies!
At the great day of recompense behold,
Devoid of fear, the fatal book unfold!
Then wafted upward to the blissful seat,
From age to age my graceful song repeat;
My Light--my Life--my God--my _Saviour_,--see,
And rival angels in the praise of Thee.
_Young._
O _Saviour_ God! O Lamb once slain!
At thought of Thee, Thy love, Thy flowing blood,
All thoughts decay; all things remembered fade;
All hopes return; all actions done by men
Or angels disappear, absorbed and lost.
_Pollok._
Exalted high at God’s right hand
And Lord of all below,
Through Him is pardoning love dispensed,
And boundless blessings flow.
And still for erring guilty man
A brother’s pity flows;
And still His bleeding heart is touched
With memory of our woes.
So then, my _Saviour_, and my King,
Glad homage let me give;
And stand prepared like Thee to die,
With Thee that I may live.
_Mrs. Barbauld._
My soul shall cry to Thee, O Lord!
To Thee supreme incarnate word!
My rock and fortress, shield and friend,
Creator, _Saviour_, source, and end!
Yea, Thou wilt hear Thy servant’s prayer,
Though death and darkness speak despair.
_Bowdler._
Dear _Saviour_! draw reluctant hearts,
To Thee let sinners fly,
And take the bliss Thy love imparts,
And drink, and never die!
_Steele._
_Saviour!_ and dost Thou speak
Such gracious words to me?
Dost Thou the wanderer seek
Who basely fled from Thee?
Wilt Thou my footsteps guide
To where Thy sheep beside
The living streams abide?
I come, I come, with shame and grief opprest,
Thy feet embrace, and shelter in thy breast.
_Pearson._
A _Saviour’s_ light shall break,
A ray from Jacob’s star the darkness streak:
To Him the fairest scenes their lustre owe;
His covenant brightens the celestial bow;
His vast benevolence profusely spreads
The yellow harvests, and the verdant meads.
_John Duick._
Great God, Thy judgments all are just and right;
Thou art all pity, and to anger slow;
But I have done such evil in Thy sight,
That mercy now with justice cannot flow.
Yes, gracious God, my sins have reached such height,
As leaves no choice but how to deal the blow;
Such guilt to pardon would Thy honour blight,
And even Thy goodness seals my final woe.
Consult Thy glory, then withhold no more,
Let fall Thy thunder, and my tears forget,
Wage war for war, pour Thy avenging flood;
The justice which consumes me I adore.
But where to strike, O Lord? where find even yet
A spot not covered by the _Saviour’s_ blood?
_James Glassford._
’Tis midnight; and on Olive’s brow
The star is dimmed that lately shone;
’Tis midnight, in the garden, now,
The suffering _Saviour_ prays alone.
’Tis midnight; and from all removed,
The _Saviour_ wrestles lone, with fears;
E’en that disciple whom He loved
Heeds not his Master’s grief and tears.
’Tis midnight; and for others’ guilt
The Man of Sorrows weeps in blood;
Yet He that hath in anguish knelt,
Is not forsaken by His God.
’Tis midnight; and from ether plains
Is borne the song that angels know;
Unheard by mortals are the strains
That sweetly soothe the _Saviour’s_ woe.
_W. B. Tappan._
SCORN.
Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly,
nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the
_scornful_.--Psalm i. 1.
The _scorner_ is an abomination to men.--Proverbs, xxiv. 9.
The _scorner_ is consumed, and all that watch for iniquity are cut
off.--Isaiah, xxix. 20.
Blessed is the man who hath not walked astray
In counsel of the wicked; and i’ the way
Of sinners hath not stood, and in the seat
Of _scorners_ hath not sat.
_Milton._
Thrice happy he, who shuns the way
That leads ungodly men astray;
Who fears to stand where sinners meet,
Nor with the _scorner_ takes his seat.
The law of God is his delight;
That cloud by day, that fire by night,
Shall be his comfort in distress,
And guide him through the wilderness.
_J. Montgomery._
I may not _scorn_ the meanest thing
That on the earth doth crawl;
The slave who dares not burst his chain,
The tyrant in his hall.
The vile oppressor, who hath made
The widowed mother mourn,
Though worthless, he before me stand--
I cannot, dare not _scorn_.
The darkest night that shrouds the sky,
Of beauty hath a share;
The blackest heart hath signs to tell
That God still lingers there.
I pity all that evil are--
I pity, and I mourn;
But the Supreme hath fashioned all,
And, oh! I dare not _scorn_.
_Robert Nicol._
SEA.
The Lord is a great God, and a great King above all gods.
The _sea_ is His, and He made it: and His hands formed the dry
land.--Psalm xcv. 3, 5.
They that go down to the _sea_ in ships, that do business in great
waters;
These see the works of the Lord, and His wonders in the deep.--Psalm
cvii. 23, 24.
And the _sea_ gave up the dead which were in it.--Revelation, xx. 13.
And I saw a new heaven and new earth: for the first heaven and the
first earth were passed away; and there was no more _sea_.--Revelation,
xxi. 1.
_Sea!_--of Almightiness itself the immense
And glorious mirror!--how thy azure face
Renews the heavens in their magnificence!
What awful grandeur rounds thy heavy space:
Thy surge two worlds eternal-warring sweeps,
And God’s throne rests on thy majestic deeps.
_Chenedolle._
Mysterious deep, farewell!
I turn from thy companionship, but lo,
Thy voice doth follow me. ’Mid lonely bower,
Or twilight dream, or wakeful couch, I hear
That solemn and reverberated hymn
From thy deep organ, which doth speak God’s praise
In thunder, night and day. Still by my side,
Even as a dim-seen spirit, deign to walk,
Prompter of holy thought, and type of Him,
Sleepless, immutable, omnipotent.
_Mrs. Sigourney._
To thee the love of woman hath gone down;
Dark flow thy tides o’er manhood’s noble head,
O’er youth’s bright looks, and beauty’s flowery crown!
Yet must thou hear a voice--Restore the dead!
Earth shall reclaim her precious things from thee:--
Restore the dead, thou _sea_!
_Mrs. Hemans._
How humbling to one, with a heart and a soul,
To look on thy greatness, and list to its roll;
To think how that heart in cold ashes shall be,
While the voice of Eternity rises from thee!
But when thy deep surges no longer shall roll,
And the firmament’s length is drawn back like a scroll,
Then--then shall the spirit that sighs by thee now,
Be more mighty, more lasting, more chainless than thou!
_John A. Shea._
God of the dark and heavy deep!
The waves lie sleeping on the sands,
Till the fierce trumpet of the storm
Hath summoned up their slumbering bands;
Then the white sails are dashed like foam,
Or hurry, trembling, o’er the _seas_,
Till, calmed by Thee, the sinking gale
Serenely breathes,--Depart in peace.
_W. B. O. Peabody._
In every object here I see
Something, O Lord, that leads to Thee;
Firm as the rock Thy promise stands,
Thy mercies countless as the sands,
Thy love a _sea_ immensely wide,
Thy grace an overflowing tide.
In every object here I see
Something, my heart, that points to thee;
Hard as the rocks that bound the strand,
Unfruitful as the barren sand,
Deep and deceitful as the _Ocean_,
And like the tides in constant motion.
_B. Barton._
The prayer is said,
And the last rite man pays to man is paid;
The plashing water marks his resting-place,
And folds him round, in one long, cold embrace;
Bright bubbles for a moment sparkle o’er,
Then break, to be, like him, beheld no more;
Down, countless fathoms down, he sinks to sleep,
With all the nameless shapes that haunt the deep.
_Charles Sprague._
Thou paragon of elemental powers,
Mystery of waters--never slumbering _sea_!
Impassioned orator with lips sublime,
Whose waves are arguments which prove a God!
_R. Montgomery._
SEASONS.
And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of heaven to divide
the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for _seasons_,
and for days, and years.--Genesis, i. 14.
While the earth remaineth, seed-time and harvest, and cold and heat,
and summer and winter, and day and night, shall not cease.--Genesis,
viii. 22.
He giveth snow like wool: He scattereth the hoar-frost like ashes.
He casteth forth His ice like morsels: who can stand before His cold?
He sendeth out His word, and melteth them: He causeth His wind to blow,
and the waters flow.--Psalm cxlvii. 16, 17, 18.
He changeth the times and the _seasons_.--Daniel, ii. 21.
The earth which drinketh in the rain that cometh oft upon it, and
bringeth forth herbs meet for them by whom it is dressed, receiveth
blessing from God.--Hebrews, vi. 7.
These, as they change, Almighty Father, these
Are but the varied God. The rolling year
Is full of Thee. Forth in the pleasing Spring
Thy beauty walks, Thy tenderness and love.
Wide flush the fields; the softening air is balm;
Echo the mountains round; the forest smiles;
And every sense, and every heart is joy.
Then comes Thy glory in the Summer months,
With light and heat refulgent. Then Thy sun
Shoots full perfection through the swelling year;
And oft Thy voice in dreadful thunder speaks;
And oft at dawn, deep noon, or falling eve,
By brooks and groves, in hollow whispering gales.
Thy bounty shines in Autumn unconfined,
And spreads a common feast for all that live.
In Winter awful Thou! with clouds and storms
Around Thee thrown, tempest o’er tempest rolled,
Majestic darkness! on the whirlwind’s wing,
Riding sublime, Thou bid’st the world adore,
And humblest nature with Thy northern blast.
_Thomson._
Truth bids me look on men as Autumn leaves;
And all they bleed for, as the Summer’s dust,
Driven by the whirlwind.
_Young._
What prodigies can power divine perform
More grand than it produces year by year,
And all in sight of inattentive man?
Familiar with the effect, we slight the cause,
And in the constancy of nature’s course,
The regular return of genial months,
See nought to wonder at.
_Cowper._
When Spring unlocks the flowers, to paint the laughing soil;
When Summer’s balmy showers refresh the mower’s toil;
When Winter binds in frosty chains the fallow and the flood,
In God the earth rejoiceth still, and owns her Maker good.
The birds that wake the morning, and those that love the shade;
The winds that sweep the mountain, or lull the drowsy glade;
The sun that from his amber bower rejoiceth on his way,
The moon and stars their Maker’s name in silent pomp display.
Shall man, the lord of nature, expectant of the sky--
Shall man, alone unthankful, his meed of praise deny?
No,--let the sun forsake its course, the _seasons_ cease to be,
Thee, Maker, must we still adore; and, Saviour, honour Thee.
The flowers of spring may wither,--the hope of Summer fade,--
The Autumn droop in Winter,--the birds forsake the shade,--
The wind be lull’d,--the sun and moon forget their old decree,--
But we in nature’s latest hour, O Lord! will cling to Thee.
_Bishop Heber._
Is there a heart that beats and lives,
To which no joy the Spring-time gives?
Alas! in that unfeeling heart
Nor love nor kindliness has part;
Or chilling want, or pining care
Must brood, or comfortless despair.
Blest, who without profane alloy
Can revel in that blameless joy!
More blest, in every welcome hour,
If Spring-time smile, or winter lower,
Who round him scatter’d hears or sees
What still the excursive sense may please;
Who round him finds, perchance unsought,
Fresh matter for improving thought;
And more, the more he looks abroad,
Marks, owns, and loves the present God!
_Bishop Mant._
When youthful Spring around us breathes,
Thy spirit warms her fragrant sigh;
And every flower that Summer wreathes,
Is born beneath thy kindling eye;
Where’er we turn Thy glories shine,
And all things bright and fair are Thine.
_Thomas Moore._
Ah, how soon
The shades of twilight follow hazy noon,
Short’ning the busy day!--day that slides by
Amidst th’ unfinish’d toils of husbandry;
Toils still each morn resumed with double care,
To meet the icy terrors of the year;
To meet the threats of Boreas undismay’d,
And Winter’s gathering frowns and hoary head.
Then welcome, cold; welcome, ye snowy nights!
Heaven ’midst your rage shall mingle pure delights,
And confidence of hope the soul sustain,
While devastation sweeps along the plain:
Nor shall the child of poverty despair,
But bless the Power that rules the changing year;
Assur’d--though horrors round his cottage reign--
That Spring will come, and Nature smile again.
_Bloomfield._
SEEING--SIGHT.
Thou God _seest_ me.--Genesis, xvi. 13.
He that planted the ear, shall He not hear? He that formed the eye,
shall He not _see_.--Psalm xciv. 9.
The light of the body is the eye: if, therefore, thine eye be single,
thy whole body shall be full of light.
But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If
therefore, the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that
darkness!--Matthew, vi. 22, 23.
First the two eyes that have the _seeing_ power,
Stand as one watchman, spy, or sentinel,
Being placed aloft within the head’s high tower;
And though both _see_, yet both but one thing tell.
These mirrors take into their little space
The forms of moon, and sun, and every star,
Of every body, and of every place,
Which with the wide world’s arms embraced are:
Yet their best objects, and their noblest use,
Hereafter, in another world, will be;
When God in them shall heavenly light infuse,
That face to face they may their Maker _see_,
Here are they guides, which do the body lead,
Which else would stumble in eternal night;
Here in this world they do most knowledge read,
And are the casements which admit most light.
_Sir John Davies._
Though all the doors are sure, and all our servants
As sure bound with their sleeps; yet there is One
That wakes above, whose eye no sleep can bind;
He _sees_ through doors, and darkness, and our thoughts;
And, therefore, as we should avoid with fear,
To think ourselves amiss before His search;
So should we be as curious to shun
All cause that others think not ill of us.
_George Chapman._
God nought _foresees_, but _sees_: for to His eyes
Nought is to come, or past: nor are you vile
Because that Heaven _foresees_, for God, not we,
_Sees_ as things are; things are not as we _see_.
_John Marston._
SEEKING.
O God thou art my God; early will I _seek_ thee.--Psalm lxiii. 1.
_Seek_ ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is
near.--Isaiah, lv. 6.
It is time to _seek_ the Lord, till he come and rain righteousness upon
you.--Hosea, x. 12.
_Seek_ and ye shall find.--Matthew, vii. 7.
We’ll _seek_ Thy face at early dawn
When clouds and darkness veil the sky,
Upon the rising mist of morn,
Confess our errors in a sigh,
And the first beam that shines above
Shall glow with Thy forgiving love.
Then will the clouds that linger oft
About the region of the breast,
Like those that faint in light aloft,
Flee far away and give us rest;
While every darksome grief shall be
Dispelled by glory shed from Thee.