2 When to thy works on high
I raise my wondering eyes,
And see the moon complete in light
Adorn the darksome skies:
3 When I survey the stars,
In all their shining forms,
Lord, what is man, that worthless thing,
A-kin to dust and worms?
4 Lord, what is worthless man,
That thou shouldst love him so?
Next to thine angels he is placed,
And lord of all below.
5 Thine honours crown his head,
While beasts like slaves obey,
And birds that cut the air with wings,
And fish that cleave the sea.
6 How rich thy bounties are!
And wondrous are thy ways:
Of dust and worms thy power can frame
A monument of praise.
PSALM 8. SECOND PART. L. M.
ORD, what was man, when made at first,
Adam the offspring of the dust,
That thou shouldst set him and his race
But just below an angel's place?
2 That thou shouldst raise his nature so,
And make him lord of all below;
Make every beast and bird submit,
And lay the fishes at his feet?
3 But O, what brighter glories wait
To crown the second Adam's state!
What honours shall thy Son adorn,
Who condescended to be born!
4 See him below his angels made,
Behold him numbered with the dead
To save a ruined world from sin;
But he shall reign with power divine.
5 The world to come, redeemed from all
The miseries that attend the fall,
New made and glorious, shall submit
At our exalted Saviour's feet.
PSALM 9. FIRST PART. C. M.
WITH my whole heart I'll raise my song,
Thy wonders I'll proclaim;
Thou, Sovereign Judge of right and wrong,
Wilt put thy foes to shame.
2 I'll sing thy majesty and grace
My God prepares his throne
To judge the world in righteousness,
And make his justice known.
3 Then shall the Lord a refuge prove
For all the poor opprest,
To save the people of his love,
And give the weary rest.
4 The men that know thy name, will trust
In thy abundant grace;
For thou wilt ne'er forsake the just,
Who humbly seek thy face.
5 Sing praises to the righteous Lord,
Who dwells on Zion's hill,
Who executes his threatening word,
And doth his grace fulfil.
PSALM 9. SECOND PART. C. M.
WHEN the great Judge, supreme and just,
Shall once inquire for blood,
The humble souls that mourn in dust,
Shall find a faithful God.
2 He from the dreadful gates of death
Does his own children raise;
In Zion's gates with cheerful breath,
They sing their Father's praise.
3 His foes shall fall with heedless feet
Into the pit they made;
And sinners perish in the net
That their own hands have spread.
4 Thus by thy judgments, mighty God!
Are thy deep counsels known;
When men of mischief are destroyed,
In snares that were their own.
5 The wicked shall sink down to hell;
Thy wrath devour the lands
That dare forget thee, or rebel
Against thy known commands.
6 Though saints to sore distress are brought,
And wait, and long complain,
Their cries shall never be forgot,
Nor shall their hopes be vain.
7 Rise, great Redeemer, from thy seat,
To judge and save the poor;
Let nations tremble at thy feet,
And man prevail no more.
8 Thy thunder shall affright the proud,
And put their hearts to pain,
Make them confess that thou art God,
And they but feeble men.
WHY doth the Lord depart so far,
And why conceal his face,
When great calamities appear,
And times of deep distress?
2 Lord, shall the wicked still deride
Thy justice and thy laws?
Shall they advance their heads in pride,
And slight thy righteous cause?
3 They cast thy judgments from their sight, And then insult the poor;
They boast, in their exalted height,
That they shall fall no more.
4 Arise, O God, lift up thine hand,
Attend our humble cry;
No enemy shall dare to stand
When God ascends on high.
5 Why do the men of malice rage,
And say, with foolish pride,
"The God of heaven will ne'er engage
To fight on Zion's side?"
6 But thou for ever art our Lord;
And mighty is thy hand,
As when the heathen felt thy sword,
And perished from thy land.
7 Thou wilt prepare our hearts to pray,
And cause thine ear to hear;
Accept the vows thy children pay,
And free thy saints from fear.
8 Proud tyrants shall no more oppress,
No more despise the just;
And mighty sinners shall confess
They are but earth and dust.
PSALM 11. L. M.
MY refuge is the God of love;
Why do my foes insult and cry,
"Fly like a timorous trembling dove, To distant woods or mountains fly?"
'Behold the wicked bend their bow,
And fit their arrows to the string;
To lay the men of virtue low,
In secrecy their darts they fling.
3 If government be once destroyed
(That firm foundation of our peace,)
And violence make justice void,
Where shall the righteous seek redress? 4 The Lord in heaven has fixed his throne, His eye surveys the world below; To him all mortal things are known, His eyelids search our spirits through. 5 If he afflicts his saints so far,
To prove their love and try their grace,
What may the bold transgressors fear?
His soul abhors their wicked ways.
6 On impious wretches he will rain
Sulphureous flames of wasting death,
Such as he kindled on the plain
Of Sodom, with his angry breath.
7 The righteous Lord loves righteous souls,
Whose thoughts and actions are sincere ;
And with a gracious eye beholds
The men that his own image bear.
PSALM 12. C. M.
ELP, Lord, for men of virtue fail,
Religion loses ground;
The sons of violence prevail
And treacheries abound.
2 Their oaths and promises they break,
Yet act the flatterer's part:
With fair deceitful lips they speak,
And with a double heart.
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