187. c. M.

The Omnipresence and Providence of God.

1 GREAT God, how vast is thine abode!
Mysterious are thy ways!
Unseen, thy footsteps in the air,
And trackless in the seas.

2 Yet the whole peopled world bespeaks
Thy being and thy power,
Mid the resplendent blaze of day,
And awful midnight hour.

3 Nor all the peopled world alone,
Rich fields and verdant plains;
But lonely wilds by man untrod,
Where silent horror reigns :

4 Tempests and winds that sweep the sky,
Caverns and mountains bare,

Earthquakes and storms, and swelling waves,
Thy grandeur all declare.

5 Through all creation's widest range
The hand of heaven is near:
Where'er we wander in the world,
Lo! God is present there.

188. L. M.

Jervis, alt❜d

Steadfastness and Watchfulness implored.

1 GREAT God! my Father and my Friend,
On whom I cast my constant care,
On whom for all things I depend!
1
To thee I raise my humble prayer!

2 Endue me with a holy fear;

The frailty of my heart reveal;
Sin and its snares are always near,
Thee may I always nearer feel,

3 O that to thee my constant mind
May with a steady flame aspire;
Pride in its earliest motions find,
And check the rise of wrong desire!

4 O that my watchful soul may fly
The first perceived approach of sin;
Look up to thee when danger's nigh,
And feel thy fear control within!

5 Search, gracious God! my inmost heart;
From guilt and error set me free;
Thy light and truth and peace impart,
And guide me safe to heaven and thee.

189. c. M.

† Exeter Coll

Prayer for the Spread of the Gospel.

GREAT God of grace! arise and shine,
With beams of heavenly light;
From this dark world of sin dispel
The long and doleful night.

2 Let no inferior being share
The honours due to thee:

May every nation know thy name,
And thy salvation see.

3 No more may persécution dare
To lift her iron rod;

No longer shed the blood of saints,
And plead a zeal for Godi

4 With its own pure and native light,
Lord, may thy gospel shine!
May error fly like noxious mists
Before this light divine.

5 While heaven-born truth her charms reveals
May love each breast inspire ;.
Nor one base passion ever mix,
To quench this sacred fire.

190. c. M.

God our constant Benefactor.

Needham

1 GREAT God! to thee our grateful tongues
United thanks would raise:

Inspire our hearts to raise the song
Which celebrates thy praise.

2 From thine almighty forming hand
We drew our vital powers;
Our time revolves at thy command,
In all its circling hours.

3 Thy power, our ever present guard,
From every ill defends;

While numerous dangers hover-round,
Our help from thee descends.

4 Beneath the shadow of thy wings,
How sweet is our repose !
Thy morning light renews the springs
From whence our comfort flows.

In celebration of thy praise,
May we employ our breath;

And walking steadfast in thy ways,

We'll triumph over death.

Flexman

191. c. M.

Confidence in God.

1 GREAT God! thine attributes divine,
Thy glorious works and ways,
The wonders of thy power and might,
The universe displays.

In safety may thy children rest
On thy sustaining arm;
Extended still, and strong to save,
From danger and alarm.

3 O may thy gracious presence, Lord!
Chase anxious fears away;
Amidst the ruins of the world,
Our guardian and our stay.

192. L. M.

Christian Zeal, tempered by Charity.

Jervis

1 GREAT God! whose all-pervading eye
Sees every passion in my soul;

When sunk too low, or raised too high,
Teach me those passions to control.

2 Temper the fervours of my frame;
Be charity their constant spring;
And O let no unhallowed flame
Pollute the offerings which I bring!

3 Let love with piety unite
To mend the bias of my will;

While hope and heaven-eyed faith excite,
And wisdom regulates, my zeal :

4 That wisdom which to meekness turns,
Wisdom descending from above;
And let my zeal, whene'er it burns,
Be kindled by the fire of love."

The Kingdom of Christ. Ps. lxxii. 1–9.

1 GREAT God! whose universal sway
The known and unknown worlds obey;
Extend the kingdom of thy Son,
Till every land his rule shall own.

2 The sceptre well becomes his hands,
And wise and good are his commands;
His laws protect the humble poor,
And bid oppression rage no more.

3 They form to righteousness the mind,
To all that's candid, gentle, kind;
Inspire with love the human breast,
And stormy passions sooth to rest.

4 As gentle rain on parching ground,
His gospel sheds its influence round;
Its grace on fainting souls distils,
Like heavenly dew on thirsty hills.

5 The heathen lands that lie beneath
The shades of darkness and of death,
Revive at its first dawning light,
And deserts blossom at the sight.

6 His throne immoveable shall stand,
Upheld by thine almighty hand,
Till all shall love thee and adore,
And vice and misery be no more.

Watts.