4 The hills were cover'd with its shade,
Its goodly boughs did cedars seem;
Its branches to the sea were spread,
And reach'd to proud Euphrates' stream.
5 To thee, O God of hosts, we pray,
Thy wonted goodness, Lord, renew; From heaven, thy throne, this vine survey, And her sad state with pity view. 6 Behold the vineyard made by thee,
Which thy right hand did guard so long; And keep that branch from danger free, Which for thyself thou mad'st so strong. 7 Do thou convert us, Lord, do thou
The lustre of thy face display;
And all the ills we suffer now,
Like scatter'd clouds, shall pass away.
PSALM 62. C. M.
From the lxxxi. Psalm of David.
JO God, our never-failing strength,
With loud applauses sing:
And jointly make a cheerful noise
To Jacob's awful King.
2 Compose a hymn of praise, and touch
Your instruments of joy;
Let psalteries and tuneful harps
Your grateful skill employ.
3 Let trumpets at the festival
Their joyful voices raise,
To celebrate th' appointed time,
The solemn day of praise.
4 For this a statute was of old,
Which Jacob's God decreed
To be with pious care observed,
By Israel's chosen seed.
PSALM 63. C. M.
From the lxxxiv. Psalm of David.
GOD of hosts, the mighty Lord,
How lovely is the place
Where thou, enthroned in glory, show'st
The brightness of thy face!
2 My longing soul faints with desire
To view thy blest abode;
My panting heart and flesh cry out
For thee, the living God.
3 The birds, more happy far than I,
Around thy temple throng;
Securely there they build, and there
Securely hatch their young.
4 O Lord of hosts, my king and God,
How highly bless'd are they,
Who in thy temple always dwell,
And there thy praise display!
5 Thrice happy they, whose choice has thee
Their sure protection made,
Who long to tread the sacred ways
That to thy dwelling lead!
6 Who pass through parch'd and thirsty vales, Yet no refreshment want;
Their pools are fill'd with rain, which thou
At their request dost grant.
7 Thus they proceed from strength to strength,
And still approach more near;
Till all on Sion's holy mount
Before their God appear.
8 Within thy courts one single day
'Tis better to attend,
Than, Lord, in any other place
A thousand days to spend.
9 Much rather in God's house will I
The meanest office take,
Than in the wealthy tents of sin
My pompous dwelling make.
10 For God, who is our sun and shield,
Will grace and glory give;
And no good thing will he withhold
From them that justly live.
11 Thou, God, whom heavenly hosts obey,
How highly bless'd is he,
Whose hope and trust, securely placed,
Are still reposed on thee
PSALM 64. C. M.
From the lxxxv. Psalm of David.
GOD, our Saviour, all our hearts
To thy obedience turn;
That, quench'd with our repenting tears,
Thy wrath no more may burn.
2 For why should'st thou be angry still,
And wrath so long retain ?
Revive us, Lord, and let thy saints
Thy wonted comfort gain.
3 Thy gracious favour, Lord, display,
Which we have long implored:
And, for thy wondrous mercy's sake,
Thy wonted aid afford.
4 God's answer patiently I'll wait;
For he with glad success,
If they no more to folly turn,
His mourning saints will bless.
5 To all that fear God's holy Name
His sure salvation's near;
His glory in our happy land
For ever shall appear.
6 For mercy now with truth is join'd;
And righteousness with peace,
Like kind companions, absent long,
With friendly arms embrace.
7 Truth from the earth shall spring, whilst heaven
Shall streams of justice pour;
And God, from whom all goodness flows,
Shall endless plenty shower.
8 Before him righteousness shall march,
And his just paths prepare;
While we his holy steps pursue
With constant zeal and care.
PSALM 65. C. M.
From the lxxxvi. Psalm of David,
O my complaint, O Lord my God,
Thy gracious ear incline;
Hear me, distress'd and destitute
Of all relief but thine.
2 Do thou, O God, preserve my soul,
That does thy Name adore;
Thy servant keep, and him whose trust
Relies on thee, restore.
3 To me, who daily thee invoke,
Thy mercy, Lord, extend;
Refresh thy servant's soul, whose hopes
On thee alone depend.
4 Thou, Lord, art good, nor only good,
But prompt to pardon too;
Of plenteous mercy to all those
Who for thy mercy sue.
5 To my repeated humble prayer,
O Lord, attentive be;
When troubled, I on thee will call,
For thou wilt answer me.
6 Among the gods there's none like thee, O Lord, alone divine!
To thee as much inferior they,
As are their works to thine.
7 Therefore their great Creator, thee
The nations shall adore;
Their long-misguided prayers and praise
To thy bless'd Name restore.
8 All shall confess thee great, and great
The wonders thou hast done;
Confess thee God, the God supreme,
Confess thee God alone.
9 Teach me thy way, O Lord, and I
From truth shall ne'er depart;
In rev'rence to thy sacred Name
Devoutly fix my heart.
10 Thee will I praise, O Lord my God,
Praise thee with heart sincere;
And to thy everlasting Name
Eternal trophies rear.
11 Thy boundless mercy shown to me
Transcends my power to tell;
For thou hast oft redeem'd my soul
From lowest deeps of hell.
12 And thou thy constant goodness didst
To my assistance bring;
Of patience, mercy, and of truth,
Thou everlasting spring!
PSALM 66. II. 3.
From the lxxxvii. Psalm of David
OD'S temple crowns the holy mount,
The Lord there condescends to dwell:
His Sion's gates, in his account,
Our Israel's fairest tents excel:
Yea, glorious things of thee we sing
O city of th' Almighty King!
2 Of honoured Sion we aver,
Illustrious throngs from her proceed;
Th' Almighty shall establish her,
And shall enrol her holy seed:
Yea, for his people he shall count
The children of his favour'd mount
3 He'll Sion find with numbers fill'd,
Who celebrate his matchless praise;
Who, here in hallelujah's skill'd,
In heaven their harps and hymns shall raise:
O Sion, seat of Israel's King,
Be mine to drink thy living spring!
PSALM 67. L. M.
From the lxxxviii. Psalm of David.
OD of my life, O Lord most high,
To thee by day and night I ery;
Vouchsafe my mournful voice to hear,
To my distress incline thine ear.
2 Like those whose strength and hopes are fled,
They number me among the dead;
Like those who, shrouded in the grave,
From thee no more remembrance have.
3 Wilt thou by miracle revive
The dead whom thou forsook'st alive?
Shall the mute grave thy love confess,
A mouldering tomb thy faithfulness?
4 To thee, O Lord, I cry forlorn,
My prayer prevents the early morn:
Why hast thou, Lord, my soul forsook,
Nor once vouchsafed a gracious look?
5 Companions dear, and friends beloved,
Far from my sight thou hast removed:
God of my life, O Lord most high,
Vouchsafe to hear my mournful cry!
PSALM 68. L. M.
From the lxxxix. Psalm of David.
HY mercies, Lord, shall be my song,
My song on them shall ever dwell;
To ages yet unborn, my tongue
Thy never-failing truth shall tell.
2 I have affirm'd, and still maintain,
Thy mercy shall for ever last;
Thy truth, that does the heavens sustain,
Like them shall stand for ever fast.
3 Thus spak'st thou by thy prophet's voice: "With David I a league have made; To him, my servant, and my choice,
By solemn oath this grant convey'd :
4 "While earth, and seas, and skies endure,
Thy seed shall in my sight remain;
To them thy throne I will ensure,
They shall to endless ages reign."
5 For such stupendous truth and love,
Both heaven and earth just praises owe,
By choirs of angels sung above,
And by assembled saints below.
6 What seraph of celestial birth
To vie with Israel's God shall dare?
Or who among the gods of earth
With our Almighty Lord compare? 7 With reverence and religious dread,
His saints should to his temple press;
His fear through all their hearts should spread
Who his almighty Name confess.
8 Lord God of armies, who can boast
Of strength or power like thine renown'd?
Of such a numerous, faithful host,
As that which does thy throne surround?
9 Thou dost the lawless sea control,
And change the prospect of the deep; Thou mak'st the sleeping billows roll;
Thou mak'st the rolling billows sleep.
10 In thee the sovereign right remains
Of earth and heaven; thee, Lord, alone,
The world, and all that it contains,
Their Maker and Preserver own.
11 Thine arm is mighty, strong thy hand,
Yet, Lord, thou dost with justice reign;
Possess'd of absolute command,
Thou truth and mercy dost maintain. 12 Happy, thrice happy they, who hear
Thy sacred trumpet's joyful sound;
Who may at festivals appear,
With thy most glorious presence crown'd.
13 Thy saints shall always be o'erjoy'd,
Who on thy sacred name rely;
And, in thy righteousness employ'd,
Above their foes be raised on high.
14 For in thy strength they shall advance,
Whose conquests from thy favour spring:
The Lord of hosts is our defence,
And Israel's God our Israel's King.
PSALM 69.
From the xc. Psalm of David.
PART I. C. M.
LORD, the Saviour and defence
Of us thy chosen race,
From age to age thou still hast been
Our sure abiding place.
2 Before thou brought'st the mountains forth,
Or th' earth and world didst frame,
Thou always wast the mighty God,
And ever art the same.
3 Thou turnest man, O Lord, to dust,
Of which he first was made;
And when thou speak'st the word, “Return,”
'Tis instantly obey'd.
4 For in thy sight a thousand years
Are like a day that's past;
Or like a watch in dead of night,
Whose hours unminded waste.
5 Thou sweep'st us off as with a flood,
We vanish hence like dreams :-
At first we grow like grass that feels
The sun's reviving beams;
6 But howsoever fresh and fair
Its morning beauty shows,
'Tis all cut down, and wither'd quite,
Before the evening close.
7 We by thine anger are consumed,
And by thy wrath dismay'd;
Our public crimes and secret sins
Before thy sight are laid.
8 Beneath thine anger's sad effects
Our drooping days we spend;
Our unregarded years break off,
Like tales that quickly end.
9 Our term of time is seventy years,
An age that few survive:
But if, with more than common strength,
To eighty we arrive-
10 Yet then our boasted strength decays,
To sorrow turn'd and pain:
So soon the slender thread is cut,
And we no more remain.
1 BUT who thine anger's dread effects
Does, as he ought, revere?
And yet thy wrath does fall or rise,
As more or less we fear.
2 So teach us, Lord, th' uncertain sum
Of our short days to mind,
That to true wisdom all our hearts
May ever be inclined.
30 to thy servants, Lord, return,
And speedily relent:
As we of our misdeeds, do thou
Of our just doom repent.
4 To satisfy and cheer our souls,
Thy early mercy send;
That we may all our days to come
In joy and comfort spend.
5 To all thy servants, Lord, let this
Thy wondrous work be known;
And to our offspring yet unborn,
Thy glorious power be shown.
6 Let thy bright rays upon us shine,
Give thou our work success;
The glorious work we have in hand
Do thou vouchsafe to bless.
From the xci. Psalm of David.
PART I. II. 2.
E that has God his guardian made,
Shall under the Almighty's shade
Secure and undisturb'd abide:
Thus to my soul of him I'll say,
He is my fortress and my stay,
My God, in whom I will confide.
2 His tender love and watchful care Shall free thee from the fowler's snare,
And from the noisome pestilence; He over thee his wings shall spread, And cover thy unguarded head;
His truth shall be thy strong defence. 3 No terrors that surprise by night Shall thy undaunted courage fright,
Nor deadly shafts that fly by day,
Nor plague of unknown rise, that kills
In darkness, nor infectious ills
That in the burning noon-tide slay.
4 Because, with well-placed confidence,
Thou mak'st the Lord thy sure defence,
Thy refuge, even God most high;
Therefore no ill on thee shall come,
Nor to thy heaven-protected home
Shall overwhelming plagues draw nigh.
PART II. III. 3.
1 GOD shall charge his angel legions
Watch and ward o'er thee to keep; Though thou walk through hostile regions, Though in desert wilds thou sleep.
2 On the lion vainly roaring,
On his young, thy foot shall tread;
And, the dragon's den exploring,
Thou shalt bruise the serpent's head.
3 Since, with pure and firm affection,
Thou on God hast set thy love,
With the wings of his protection
He will shield thee from above.
4 Thou shalt call on him in trouble,
He will hearken, he will save;
Here for grief reward thee double,
Crown with life beyond the grave.
PSALM 71. C. M.
From the xcii. Psalm of David.
OW good and pleasant must it be
To thank the Lord most high;
And with repeated hymns of praise
His name to magnify!
2 With every morning's early dawn
His goodness to relate;
And of his constant truth, each night,
The glad effects repeat!
3 To ten-string'd instruments we'll sing,
With tuneful psalteries join'd;
And to the harp, with solemn sounds,
For sacred use design'd.
4 For through thy wondrous works, O Lord,
Thou mak'st my heart rejoice;
The thoughts of them shall make me glad,
And shout with cheerful voice.
5 How wondrous are thy works, O Lord!
How deep are thy decrees!
Whose winding tracts, in secret laid,
No careless sinner sees.
6 He little thinks, when wicked men,
Like look fresh and gay,
grass,
How soon their short-lived splendour must
For ever pass away.
7 But thou, my God, art still most high;
And all thy lofty foes,
Who thought they might securely sin,
Shall be o'erwhelm'd with woes.
8 But righteous men, like rising palms,
Shall grow and flourish still;
Thy flock shall spread, like cedars choice
On Lebanon's high hill.
9 These, planted in the house of God,
Within his courts shall thrive;
Their vigour and their lustre both
Shall in old age revive.
10 Thus will the Lord his justice show;
And God, my strong defence,
Shall due rewards to all the world
Impartially dispense.
PSALM 72. L. M.
From the xciii Psalm of David.
7ITH glory clad, with strength array'd,
The Lord, that o'er all nature reigns,
The world's foundation strongly laid,
And the vast fabric still sustains.
2 How surely stablish'd is thy throne!
Which shall no change or period see;
For thou, O Lord, and thou alone,
Art God from all eternity.
3 The floods, O Lord, lift up their voice,
And toss the troubled waves on high;
But God above can still their noise,
And make the angry sea comply.
4 Thy promise, Lord, is ever sure,
And they that in thy house would dwell,
That happy station to secure,
Must still in holiness excel.
From the xciv. Psalm of David.
PART I. C. M.
AY ye, the Lord shall not regard,
Shall not your sins discern? Take heed, ye foolish and unwise;
When will ye wisdom learn?
2 Can he be deaf who form'd the ear,
Or blind, who fram'd the eye?
Shall earth's great Judge not punish those
Who his known will defy?
3 He fathoms all the hearts of men,
To him their thoughts lie bare;
His eye surveys them all, and sees
How vain their counsels are.
1 BLESS'D is the man whom thou, O Lord, In kindness dost chastise,
And by thy sacred rules to walk
Dost lovingly advise.
2 This man shall rest and safety find
In seasons of distress;
Whilst God prepares a pit for those
That stubbornly transgress.
3 For God will never from his saints
His favour wholly take;
His own possession and his lot
He will not quite forsake.
4 The world shall yet confess thee just
In all that thou hast done;
And those that choose thy upright ways
Shall in those paths go on.
5 Long since had I in silence slept,
But that the Lord was near,
To stay me when I slipp'd; when sad,
My troubled heart to cheer.
6 My soul's defence is firmly placed
In God, the Lord most high:
He is my rock, to which I may
For refuge always fly.
PSALM 74. L. M.
From the xcv. Psalm of David.
COME, loud anthems let us sing,
Loud thanks to our Almighty King;
For we our voices high should raise,
When our salvation's rock we praise.
2 Into his presence let us haste,
To thank him for his favours past;
To him address, in joyful songs,
The praise that to his Name belongs:
3 For God the Lord, enthroned in state,
Is with unrivall❜d glory great;
A King superior far to all
Whom gods the heathen falsely call.
4 The depths of earth are in his hand,
Her secret wealth at his command;
The strength of hills that reach the skies
Subjected to his empire lies.
5 The rolling ocean's vast abyss
By the same sovereign right is his;
"Twas made by his almighty hand,
That form'd and fix'd the solid land.
6 O let us to his courts repair,
And bow with adoration there;
Down on our knees devoutly all
Before the Lord, our Maker, fall.
7 For he's our God, our shepherd he,
His flock and pasture-sheep are we:
O then, ye faithful flock, to-day
His warning hear, his voice obey.
PSALM 75. II. 8.
From the xevi. Psalm of David.
ING to the Lord a new-made song;
Let earth, in one assembled throng,
Her common patron's praise resound: Sing to the Lord, and bless his name, From day to day his praise proclaim,
Who us has with salvation crown'd:
To heathen lands his fame rehearse,
His wonders to the universe.
2 He's great, and greatly to be praised;
In majesty and glory raised
Above all other deities;
For pageantry and idols all
Are they whom gods the heathen call;
He only rules who made the skies:
With majesty and honour crown'd,
Glory and strength his throne surround.
3 Be glory then to him restored
By all who have false gods adored:
Ascribe due honour to his Name,
Peace-off'rings on his altar lay,
Before his throne your homage pay,
Which he, and he alone, can claim:
To worship at his sacred court,
Let all the trembling world resort.
4 Proclaim aloud, Jehovah reigns,
Whose power the universe sustains,
And banish'd justice will restore :
Let therefore heaven new joys confess,
And heavenly mirth let earth express,
Its loud applause the ocean roar,
Its mute inhabitants rejoice,
And for this triumph find a voice.
5 For joy let fertile valleys sing,
The cheerful groves their tribute bring,
And tuneful harmonies awake:
Behold! in truth and justice clad,
God comes to judge the world he made,
And to himself its throne to take:
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