By thy omnipotence; and from thy grace-
Unbought, unmerited, though not unsought-
The wells of thy salvation, hast refreshed
My spirit, watering it, at morn and even ;
And by thy Spirit, which thou freely giv'st
To whom thou wilt, hast led my venturous song
Over the vale and mountain track, the light
And shade of man; into the burning deep
Descending now, and now circling the mount
Where highest sits Divinity enthroned;
Rolling along the tide of fluent thought,
The tide of moral, natural, divine;
Gazing on past and present: and again,
On rapid pinion borne, outstripping Time,
In long excursion, wandering through the groves
Unfading, and the endless avenues
That shade the landscape of Eternity;
And talking there with holy angels met,
And future men, in glorious vision seen!
Nor unrewarded have I watched at night,
And heard the drowsy sound of neighbouring
sleep.
New thought, new imagery, new scenes of bliss
And glory, unrehearsed by mortal tongue,
Which, unrevealed, I trembling turned and left,
Bursting at once upon my ravished eye,
With joy unspeakable have filled my soul,
And made my cup run over with delight;
Though in my face the blast of adverse winds,
While boldly circumnavigating Man,
(Winds seeming adverse, though perhaps not so,)
Have beat severely-disregarded beat,
When I behind me heard the voice of God,
And His propitious Spirit, say, Fear not!
God of my fathers! ever present God!
This offering more inspire, sustain, accept;
Highest, if numbers answer to the theme;
Best answering, if thy Spirit dictate most.
Jehovah! breathe upon my soul; my heart
Enlarge! my faith increase; increase my hope;
My thoughts exalt; my fancy sanctify,
And all my passions, that I near thy throne
May venture, unreproved: and sing the day,
Which none unholy ought to name the Day
Of Judgment! greatest day past or to come!
Day which-deny me what thou wilt, deny
Me home, or friend, or honourable name-
Thy mercy grant, I thoroughly prepared,
With comely garment of redeeming love,
May meet, and have my Judge for Advocate.
ROBERT POLLOK.
God's Operations by Day and by
Night.
Y soul, adore the Lord of might,
With uncreated glory crowned;
And clad in royalty of light,
He draws the curtained heavens around.
Dark waters his pavilion form,
Clouds are his car, his wheels the storm:
Lightning before Him and behind,
Thunder rebounding to and fro;
He walks upon the winged wind,
And reins the blast, or lets it go:
This goodly globe his wisdom planned;
He fixed the bounds of sea and land.
When o'er a guilty world of old
He summoned the avenging main,
At his rebuke the billows rolled
Back to their parent gulf again;
The mountains raised their joyful heads,
Like new creations from their beds.
Thenceforth the self-revolving tide
Its daily fall and flow maintains;
Through winding vales fresh fountains glide,
Leap from the hills, or course the plains ;
Their thirsty cattle throng the brink,
And the wild asses bend to drink.
Fed by the currents, fruitful groves
Expand their leaves, their fragrance fling
Where the cool breeze at noon-tide roves,
And birds among the branches sing;
Soft fall the showers when day declines,
And sweet the peaceful rainbow shines.
Grass through the meadows, rich with flowers,
God's bounty spreads for herds and flocks;
On Lebanon his cedar towers;
The wild goats bound upon his rocks;
Fowls in his forest build their nests;
The stork amid the pine-tree rests.
To strengthen man, condemned to toil,
He fills with grain the golden ear;
Bids the ripe olive melt with oil,
And swells the grape, man's heart to cheer.
The moon her tide of changing knows,
Her orb with lustre ebbs and flows.
The sun goes down, the stars come out;
He maketh darkness, and 'tis night;
Then roam the beasts of prey about;
The desert rings with chase and flight:
The lion and the lion's brood
Look up, and God provides their food.
Morn dawns far east; ere long the sun
Warms the glad nations with his beams;
Day, in their dens, the spoilers shun,
And night returns to them in dreams :
Man from his couch to labour goes,
Till evening brings again repose.
How manifold thy works, O Lord,
In wisdom, power, and goodness wrought! The earth is with thy riches stored, And ocean with thy wonders fraught; Unfathomed caves beneath the deep For Thee their hidden treasures keep. There go the ships, with sails unfurled, By Thee directed on their way; There, in his own mysterious world, Leviathan delights to play;
And tribes that range immensity,
Unknown to man, are known to Thee.
By Thee alone the living live;
Hide but thy face, their comforts fly;
They gather what thy seasons give;
Take Thou away their breath, they die:
Send forth thy Spirit from above,
And all is life again, and love.
Joy in his works Jehovah takes,
Yet to destruction they return;
He looks upon the earth, it quakes;
Touches the mountains, and they burn:
Thou, God, for ever art the same;
I AM, is thine unchanging name.
JAMES MONTGOMERY.
LIKE that ancient Saxon phrase, which calls The burial-ground God's-Acre! It is just; It consecrates each grave within its walls, And breathes a benison o'er the sleeping dust. God's-Acre! Yes, that blessed name imparts Comfort to those who in the grave have sown The seed that they have garnered in their hearts, Their bread of life, alas! no more their own.
Into its furrows shall we all be cast,
In the sure faith, that we shall rise again At the great harvest, when the archangel's blast Shall winnow, like a fan, the chaff and grain.
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