6 Behold the hosts of hell
How cruel is their hate!
Against my life they rise, and join
Their fury with deceit.
7 O keep my soul from death,
Nor put my hope to shame,
For I have plac'd my only trust
In my Redeemer's name.
8 With humble faith I wait
To see thy face again;
Of Israel it shall ne'er be said,
"He sought the Lord in vain."
Psalm 26.
Self-examination; or, Evidences of grace.
1 Judge me, O Lord, and prove my ways,
And try my reins, and try my heart;
My faith upon thy promise stays,
Nor from thy law my feet depart.
2 I hate to walk, I hate to sit,
With men of vanity and lies;
The scoffer and the hypocrite
Are the abhorrence of mine eyes.
3 Amongst thy saints will I appear,
With hands well wash'd in innocence;
But when I stand before thy bar,
The blood of Christ is my defence.
4 I love thy habitation, Lord,
The temple where thine honours dwell;
There shall I hear thine holy word,
And there thy works of wonder tell.
5 Let not my soul be join'd at last
With men of treachery and blood,
Since I my days on earth have past
Among the saints, and near my God.
Psalm 27:1. 1-6. First Part.
The church is our delight and safety.
1 The Lord of glory is my light,
And my salvation too;
God is my strength, nor will I fear
What all my foes can do.
2 One privilege my heart desires;
O grant me an abode
Among the churches of thy saints,
The temples of my God!
3 There shall I offer my requests,
And see thy beauty still,
Shall hear thy messages of love,
And there enquire thy will.
4 When troubles rise, and storms appear,
There may his children hide:
God has a strong pavilion where
He makes my soul abide.
5 Now shall my head be lifted high
Above my foes around,
And songs of joy and victory
Within thy temple sound.
Psalm 27:2. 8 9 13 14. Second Part.
Prayer and Hope.
1 Soon as I heard my Father say,
"Ye children, seek my grace;"
My heart reply'd without delay,
"I'll seek my Father's face."
2 Let not thy face be hid from me,
Nor frown my soul away;
God of my life, I fly to thee
In a distressing day.
3 Should friends and kindred near and dear
Leave me to want, or die,
My God would make my life his care
And all my need supply.
4 My fainting flesh had dy'd with grief,
Had not my soul believ'd
To see thy grace provide relief,
Nor was my hope deceiv'd.
5 Wait on the Lord, ye trembling saints,
And keep your courage up;
He'll raise your spirit when it faints,
And far exceed your hope.
Psalm 29. L. M.
Storm and thunder.
1 Give to the Lord, ye sons of fame,
Give to the Lord renown and power,
Ascribe due honours to his name,
And his eternal might adore.
2 The Lord proclaims his power aloud
Over the ocean and the land;
His voice divides the watery cloud,
And lightnings blaze at his command.
3 He speaks, and tempest, hail, and wind,
Lay the wide forests bare around;
The fearful hart, and frighted hind,
Leap at the terror of the sound.
4 To Lebanon he turns his voice,
And, lo, the stately cedars break;
The mountains tremble at the noise,
The vallies roar, the deserts quake.
5 The Lord sits sovereign on the flood,
The thunderer reigns for ever king;
But makes his church his blest abode,
Where we his awful glories sing.
6 In gentler language there the Lord
The counsels of his grace imparts;
Amidst the raging storm his word
Speaks peace and courage to our hearts.
Psalm 30:1. First Part.
Sickness healed, and sorrow removed.
1 I will extol thee, Lord, on high,
At thy command, diseases fly;
Who but a God can speak and save
From the dark borders of the grave?
2 Sing to the Lord, ye saints of his,
And tell how large his goodness is;
Let all your powers rejoice and bless,
While you record his holiness.
3 His anger but a moment stays
His love is life and length of days;
Tho' grief and tears the night employ,
The morning-star restores the joy.
Psalm 30:2. 6. Second Part.
Health, sickness, and recovery.
1 Firm was my health, my day was bright,
And I presum'd 'twould ne'er be night;
Fondly I said within my heart,
"Pleasure and peace shall ne'er depart."
2 But I forgot thine arm was strong,
Which made my mountain stand so long;
Soon as thy face began to hide,
My health was gone, my comforts dy'd.
3 I cry'd aloud to thee, my God,
"What canst thou profit by my blood?
"Deep in the dust can I declare
"Thy truth, or sing thy goodness there?
4 "Hear me, O God of grace," I said,
"And bring me from among the dead:"
Thy word rebuk'd the pains I felt,
Thy pardoning love remov'd my guilt.
5 My groans, and tears, and forms of woe,
Are turn'd to joy and praises now;
I throw my sackcloth on the ground,
And ease and gladness gird me round.
6 My tongue, the glory of my frame,
Shall ne'er be silent of thy name
Thy praise shall sound thro' earth and heaven,
For sickness heal'd, and sins forgiven.
Psalm 31:1. 5 13-19 22 23. First Part.
Deliverance from death.
1 Into thine hand, 0 God of truth,
My spirit I commit;
Thou hast redeem'd my soul from death,
And sav'd me from the pit.
2 The passions of my hope and fear
Maintain'd a doubtful strife,
While sorrow, pain, and sin conspir'd
To take away my life.
3 "My times are in thine hand," I cry'd,
"Tho' I draw near the dust ;"
Thou art the refuge where I hide,
The God in whom I trust.
4 O make thy reconciled face
Upon thy servant shine,
And save me for thy mercy's sake,
For I'm entirely thine.