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565. Praise for recovery from sickness. C.M.

The Lord hath chastened me sore; but he hath not given me over unto death.......Open to me the gates of righteousness: I will go into them, and will praise the Lord. PSA. cxviii. 18, 19.

SOVEREIGN of life, I own thy hand
In every chast'ning stroke;
And, while I smart beneath thy rod,
Thy presence I invoke.

2 To thee, in my distress, I cried,
And thou hast bow'd thine ear;
Thy powerful word my life prolong'd,
And brought salvation near.

3 Unfold, ye gates of righteousness,
That, with the pious throng,

1

may

record

my

solemn vows,

And tune my grateful song.

4 Praise to the Lord, whose gentle hand Renews our lab'ring breath:

Praise to the Lord, who makes his saints
Triumphant e'en in death.

5 My God, in thine appointed hour,
Those heav'nly gates display,

Where pain and sin, and fear and death,
For ever flee away.

6 There, while the nations of the bless'd
With raptures bow around,
My anthems to deliv'ring grace
In sweeter strains shail sound.

566. The Believer encouraged in his conflict with sin and Satan. L.M.

Be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the Devil.-EPH. vi. 10, 11.

STAND up, my soul, shake off thy fears,
And gird the gospel-armour on;
March to the gates of endless joy,
Where thy great Captain Saviour's gone.
2 Hell and thy sins resist thy course,
But hell and sin are vanquish'd foes;
Thy Jesus nail'd them to the cross,
And show'd his triumph when he rose.
3 What tho' the prince of darkness rage,
And waste the fury of his spite;
Eternal chains confine him down
To fiery deeps, and endless night.
4 What tho' thine inward lusts rebel,
'Tis but a struggling gasp for life;
The weapons of victorious grace
Shall slay thy sins, and end thy strife.

5 Then let my soul march boldly on,
Press forward to the heavenly gate;
There peace and joy eternal reign,
And glitt❜ring robes for conq'rors wait.
6 There shall I wear a starry crown,
And triumph in Almighty Grace;
While all the armies of the skies
Join in my glorious Leader's praise!

567. Death welcome in the prospect of heaven. C.M.

And there shall be no night there.—REV. xxii. 5.
THERE is a land of pure delight,
Where saints immortal reign;
Infinite day excludes the night,
And pleasures banish pain.
2 There everlasting spring abides,
And never with'ring flowers:
Death, like a narrow sea, divides
This heav'nly land from ours.

3 Sweet fields beyond the swelling flood,
Stand dress'd in living green;
So Canaan once to Israel stood,
While Jordan roll'd between.

4 But timorous mortals start and shrink,
To cross the narrow sea;
And linger shiv'ring on the brink,
And fear to launch away.

5 0! could we make our doubts remove,
(Those gloomy doubts that rise),
And see the Canaan that we love
With unbeclouded eyes!

6 Could we but climb where Moses stood, And view the landscape o'er,

Not Jordan's stream, nor death's cold flood,

Should fright us from the shore.

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568. Communion desired. L.M.

"Tell me, O thou whom my soul loveth, where thou feed

est, where thou makest thy flock to rest at noon: for why should I be as one that turneth aside by the flocks of thy companions.-SONG OF SOL. i, 7.

THOU whom my soul admires above
All earthly joy, and earthly love,
Say, my beloved, let me know
Where do thy sweetest pastures grow.
2 Where is the shadow of that rock,
That from the sun defends thy flock?
Fain would I feed among thy sheep,
Among them rest, among them sleep.
3 Why should thy bride appear like one
That turns aside to paths unknown?
My constant feet would never rove,
Would never seek another love.

4 The footsteps of thy flock I see,
Thy sweetest pastures here they be:
A wondrous feast thy love prepares,
Bought with thy wounds, and groans,

and tears.

5 His flesh he makes my heav'nly food, And bids me drink his richest blood; Here to these hills my soul would come, Till my Beloved leads me home.

569. The Believer's portion and joy. C.M.

Thou shalt guide me with thy counsel, and afterward receive me to glory. Whom have I in heaven but thee? and there is none upon earth that I desire beside thee. My flesh and my heart faileth: but God is the strength of my heart, and my portion for ever, &c. PSALM lxxiii. 24, 28.

THY counsels, Lord, shall guide my feet

Through this dark wilderness;

Thine hand conduct me near thy seat,
To dwell before thy face.

2 Were 1 in heaven without my God,
'Twould be no joy to me:
And while this earth is my abode,
I long for none but thee.

3 To thee, O Lord, mine eyes will look,
When flesh and heart shall faint:
Thou art my soul's eternal rock,
The strength of every saint.

4 Behold, the sinners that remove
Far from thy presence die;
Not all the idol-gods they love
Can save them when they cry.

5 But to draw near to thee my God,
Shall be my sweet employ;

My tongue shall sound thy works abroad,

And tell the world my joy.

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