4 Teach us, O Lord, how frail is man, And kindly lengthen out our span, Till a wise care of piety

Fit us to die and dwell with thee.

482

C. M.

WATTS.

Human Frailty, and God our Preserver.

1 LET others boast how strong they be,
Nor death nor danger fear;

But we'll confess, O Lord, to thee,
What feeble things we are.

2 Fresh as the grass our bodies stand,
And flourish bright and gay;

A blasting wind sweeps o'er the land,
And fades the grass away.

3 Our life contains a thousand springs,
And dies if one be gone :

Strange that a harp of thousand strings
Should keep in tune so long.

4 But 'tis our God supports our frame,
The God that built us first;
Salvation to the almighty name
That reared us from the dust.

483

C. M.

DODDRIDGE.

Human Frailty and divine Compassion.

1 LORD, we adore thy wondrous name,
And make that name our trust,

Which raised at first this curious frame
From mean and lifeless dust.

2 Awhile these frail machines endure,
The fabric of a day;

Then know their vital powers no more,
But moulder back to clay.

3 Yet, Lord, whate'er is felt or feared,
This thought is our repose,

That he, by whom this frame was reared,
Its various weakness knows.

4 Thou view'st us with a pitying eye,
While struggling with our load;
In pains and dangers thou art nigh,
Our Father and our God.

5 Gently supported by thy love,
We tend to realms of peace,
Where every pain shall far remove,
And every frailty cease.

484

C. M.

WATTS.

The Pilgrimage of the Saints.

1 BY glimmering hopes and gloomy fears
We trace the sacred road;

Through dismal deeps and dangerous snares
We make our way to God.

2 A thousand savage beasts of prey
Around the forest roam;

But Judah's Lion guards the way,
And guides the strangers home.

3 Long nights and darkness dwell below,
With scarce a twinkling ray;

But the bright world to which we go
Is everlasting day.

HUMAN LIFE.

4 See the kind angels at the gates,
Inviting us to come;

There Jesus, the Forerunner, waits,
To welcome travellers home.

5 There, on a green and flowery mount,
Our weary souls shall sit,

And with transporting joys recount
The labors of our feet.

485

C. M.

DODDRIDGE.

The Blind and Weak led in God's Ways. 1s. xlii. 16. 1 PRAISE to the radiant Source of bliss, Who gives the blind their sight,

And scatters round their wondering eyes
A flood of sacred light.

2 In paths unknown he leads them on
To his divine abode,

And shows new miracles of grace
Through all the heavenly road.

3 The ways, all rugged and perplexed,
He renders smooth and straight,
And strengthens every feeble knee
To march to Zion's gate.

4 Through all the path I'll sing his name,
Till I the mount ascend,

Where toils and storms are known no more,
And anthems never end.

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486

L. M.

WATTS.

Israel led to Canaan and Christians to Heaven. Ps. 107

1 GIVE thanks to God; he reigns above;
Kind are his thoughts, his name is love;
His mercy ages past have known,
And ages long to come shall own.

2 Let the redeemed of the Lord

The wonders of his grace record Israel, the nation whom he chose, And rescued from their mighty foes. 3 In their distress, to God they cried;

God was their Savior and their Guide; He led their march far wandering round; "Twas the right path to Canaan's ground.

4 Thus, when our first release we gain
From sin's old yoke and Satan's chain,
We have this desert world to pass,
A dangerous and a tiresome place.

5 He feeds and clothes us all the way;
He guides our footsteps, lest we stray;
He guards us with a powerful hand,
And brings us to the heavenly land.

6 O, let the saints with joy record

The truth and goodness of the Lord;
How great his works! how kind his ways!
Let every tongue pronounce his praise.

384

The High-Way to Zion.

1 SING, ye redeemed of the Lord,
Your great Deliverer sing;
Pilgrims for Zion's city bound,
Be joyful in your King.

DODDRIDGE.

2 See the fair way his hand hath raised,
How holy, and how plain!
Nor shall the simplest travellers err,
Nor ask the track in vain.

3 No ravening lion shall destroy,
Nor lurking serpent wound;
Pleasure and safety, peace and praise,
Through all the path are found.

4 A hand divine shall lead you on
Through all the blissful road,
Till to the sacred mount you rise,
And see your smiling God.

5 There garlands of immortal joy
Shall bloom on every head,
While sorrow, sighing, and distress,
Like shadows, all are fled.

6 March on in your Redeemer's strength;
Pursue his footsteps still;

And let the prospect cheer your eye
While laboring up the hill.

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