LIII. FOR THE POOR

WHEN Hagar found the bottle spent,
And wept o'er Ishmael,

A message from the Lord was sent
To guide her to a well.

Should not Elijah's cake and cruse
Convince us at this day,

A gracious God will not refuse
Provisions by the way?

His saints and servants shall be fed,
The promise is secure;

"Bread shall be given them," he has said, "Their water shall be sure."

Repasts far richer they shall prove
Than all earth's dainties are;
'Tis sweet to taste a Saviour's love
Though in the meanest fare.

To Jesus then your trouble bring,

lot;

Nor murmur at your
While you are poor and He is King,
You shall not be forgot.

LIV. MY SOUL THIRSTETH FOR GOD

I THIRST, but not as once I did

The vain delights of earth to share;

Thy wounds, Emmanuel, all forbid

That I should seek my pleasures there.

It was the sight of thy dear cross

First weaned my soul from earthly things;

And taught me to esteem as dross

The mirth of fools and pomp of kings.

I want that grace that springs from thee,
That quickens all things where it flows,
And makes a wretched thorn like me
Bloom as the myrtle, or the rose.

Dear fountain of delight unknown,
No longer sink below the brim ;
But overflow, and pour me down
A living and life-giving stream!
For sure, of all the plants that share
The notice of thy Father's eye,
None proves less grateful to his care
Or yields him meaner fruit than I.

LV. LOVE CONSTRAINING TO OBEDIENCE

No strength of nature can suffice
To serve the Lord aright:
And what she has she misapplies,
For want of clearer light.

How long beneath the law I lay
In bondage and distress;
I toiled the precept to obey,

But toiled without success.

Then to abstain from outward sin
Was more than I could do;
Now, if I feel its power within,

I feel I hate it too.

Then all my servile works were done

A righteousness to raise;

Now, freely chosen in the Son,

I freely choose his ways.

"What shall I do," was then the word,
"That I may worthier grow?

"What shall I render to the Lord?"
Is my inquiry now.

To see the law by Christ fulfilled,

And hear his pardoning voice,
Changes a slave into a child,
And duty into choice.

LVI. THE HEART HEALED AND CHANGED BY MERCY

SIN enslaved me many years,
And led me bound and blind,
Till at length a thousand fears
Came swarming o'er my mind.

"Where," said I, in deep distress,
"Will these sinful pleasures end?
How shall I secure my peace,

And make the Lord my friend?"

Friends and ministers said much
The Gospel to enforce;

But my blindness still was such,
I chose a legal course:

Much I fasted, watched, and strove,
Scarce would show my face abroad,
Feared almost to speak or move,
A stranger still to God.

Thus afraid to trust his grace,
Long time did I rebel;
Till, despairing of my case,
Down at his feet I fell:
Then my stubborn heart he broke,
And subdued me to his sway;

By a simple word he spoke,
"Thy sins are done away.”

LVII. HATRED OF SIN

HOLY Lord God! I love thy truth,

Nor dare thy least commandment slight;
Yet, pierced by sin, the serpent's tooth,
I mourn the anguish of the bite.

But, though the poison lurks within,
Hope bids me still with patience wait;
Till death shall set me free from sin,
Free from the only thing I hate.

Had I a throne above the rest,

Where angels and archangels dwell,

One sin, unslain, within my breast,

Would make that heaven as dark as hell.

The prisoner sent to breathe fresh air,
And blessed with liberty again,

Would mourn were he condemned to wear
One link of all his former chain.

But, oh! no foe invades the bliss,

When glory crowns the Christian's head; One view of Jesus as he is

Will strike all sin for ever dead.

LVIII. THE NEW CONVERT

THE new-born child of Gospel grace,
Like some fair tree when summer's nigh,
Beneath Emmanuel's shining face

Lifts up his blooming branch on high.

No fears he feels, he sees no foes,
No conflict yet his faith employs,
Nor has he learnt to whom he owes
The strength and peace his soul enjoys.

But sin soon darts its cruel sting,
And, comforts sinking day by day,
What seemed his own, a self-fed spring,
Proves but a brook that glides away.

When Gideon armed his numerous host,
The Lord soon made his numbers less;
And said, "Lest Israel vainly boast,

My arm procured me this success.” ”

Thus will he bring our spirits down,
And draw our ebbing comforts low,
That, saved by grace, but not our own,
We may not claim the praise we owe.

LIX. TRUE AND FALSE COMFORTS

O God, whose favourable eye
The sin-sick soul revives,
Holy and heavenly is the joy
Thy shining presence gives.

Not such as hypocrites suppose,
Who with a graceless heart
Taste not of thee, but drink a dose
Prepared by Satan's art.

Intoxicating joys are theirs,

Who, while they boast their light
And seem to soar above the stars,
Are plunging into night.

Lulled in a soft and fatal sleep,
They sin and yet rejoice;

Were they indeed the Saviour's sheep,
Would they not hear his voice?

Be mine the comforts that reclaim
The soul from Satan's power;
That make me blush for what I am,
And hate my sin the more.

'Tis joy enough, my All in All,
At thy dear feet to lie;
Thou wilt not let me lower fall,
And none can higher fly.

LX. A LIVING AND A DEAD FAITH

THE Lord receives his highest praise
From humble minds and hearts sincere;
While all the loud professor says
Offends the righteous Judge's ear.

To walk as children of the day,
To mark the precepts' holy light,
To wage the warfare, watch, and pray,
Show who are pleasing in his sight.

Not words alone it cost the Lord

To purchase pardon for his own; Nor will a soul by grace restored Return the Saviour words alone.

With golden bells the priestly vest

And rich pomegranates bordered round

The need of holiness expressed,

And called for fruit as well as sound.

Easy indeed it were to reach

A mansion in the courts above,
If swelling words and fluent speech
Might serve instead of faith and love.