4 Hence and forever from my heart
I bid my doubts and fears depart;
And to those hands my soul resign,
Which bears credentials so divine.

554. C. M.

Warnings of frailty and immortality.

1 BENEATH our feet, and o'er our head
Is equal warning given;

Beneath us lie the countless dead,
Above us is the heaven.

2 Death rides on every passing breeze,

He lurks in every

flower;

Each season has its own disease,

Its peril, every hour.

3 Our eyes have seen the rosy light
Of youth's soft cheek decay,
And fate descend in sudden night
On manhood's middle day.

4 Our eyes have seen the steps of age
Halt feebly towards the tomb;
And yet shall earth our hearts engage,
And dreams of days to come?

5 Turn, mortal, turn! thy danger know!
Where'er thy foot can tread,
The earth rings hollow from below,
And warns thee of the dead.

6 Turn, Christian, turn! thy soul apply
To truths divinely given;

The boundless fields of light on high
Remind thee of thy heaven.

Watts.

Heber.

555. s. M.

The pure in heart.

1 BLESS'D are the pure in heart,
For they shall see our God;
The secret of the Lord is theirs,
Their soul is his abode.

2 Still to the lowly soul

He doth himself impart;

And for his temple and his throne,
Chooseth the pure in heart.

556. c. M.

The guiding star.

1 BRIGHT was the guiding star that led,
With mild benignant ray,
The Gentiles to the lowly shed
Where the Redeemer lay.

2 But lo! a brighter, clearer light,
Now points to his abode;

It shines through sin and sorrow's night,
To guide us to our God.

30 haste to follow where it leads;
The gracious call obey;

Be rugged fields, or flowery meads
The Christian's destined way.

3 O gladly tread the narrow path,

While light and grace are given! Who meekly follow Christ on earth, Shall reign with him in heaven.

Keble.

Spirit of the Psalms.

557. c. M.

Early Religion.

1 By cool Siloam's shady rill
How sweet the lily grows!

How sweet the breath beneath the hill
Of Sharon's dewy rose!

2 Lo, such the child whose early feet
The paths of peace have trod;
Whose secret heart, with influence sweet,
Is upward drawn to God!

3 By cool Siloam's shady rill
The lily must decay;

The rose that blooms beneath the hill
Must shortly fade away.

4 And soon, too soon the wintry hour
Of man's maturer age,

Will shake the soul with sorrow's power,
And stormy passions rage!

5 0 thou who giv'st us life and breath,
We seek thy grace alone,

In childhood, manhood, age, and death,
To keep us still thine own!

558. 7s M.

The Christian Pilgrim's song.

1 CHILDREN of the heavenly King!
As ye journey, sweetly sing;
Sing your Maker's worthy praise,
Glorious in his works and ways!

2 Ye are travelling home to God,
In the way the fathers trod:

Heber.

They are happy now, and ye
Soon their happiness shall see.

3 Fear not, brethren; lo! we stand
On the borders of our land:
Jesus, from its summit won.
Bids you undismayed go on.

4 Lord! submissive may we go,
Gladly leaving all below;
Only thou our leader be,
And we still will follow thee.

Cennick.

559. L. M.

The light of the Gospel in the tomb.

1 DARK, dark indeed the grave would be,
Had we no light, O God, from thee;
If all we saw were all we knew,
Or hope from reason only grew.

2 But fearless now we rest in faith,
A holy life makes happy death;
Tis but a change ordained by thee,
To set the imprisoned spirit free.

3 Sad, sad indeed, 'twould be to part
From those who long had shared our heart,
If thou hadst left us still to fear
Love's only heritage was here.

4 But calmly now we see them go
From out this world of pain and wo:

We follow to a home on high,

Where pure affections never die.

Gaskell.

560. c. M.

Christian Fellowship.

1 FATHER of all, from whom we trace
Our universal kind,

Teach us, to all of human race,
To show a brother's mind.

2 O, might mankind in love agree,
Sons of one parent stock!
But chief may Christian verity
Connect the Christian flock!

3 May truth to all that hear its sound,
A bond of union prove,
And fellowship of faith be crowned
With fellowship of love

561. c. M.

Ancient Hymns

Reliance on God in time of trial.

1 FATHER of lights, thy needful aid
To us that ask, impart;
Mistrustful of ourselves, afraid
Of our own treacherous heart.

2 In spite of our resolves, we fear
Our own infirmity;

And tremble at the trial near,
And cry, O God, to thee!
3 Our only help in danger's hour,
Our only strength, thou art!—
Above the world, and all its power,
And greater than our heart.

4 If on thy promised grace alone
We faithfully depend,

Thou surely wilt preserve thine own,
And keep them to the end.

(443)

Wesley's Col.