And to my chamber I'll repair,
To commune with my God in pray'r,
And all my griefs to tell;
His kind compassion will relieve,
His bounteous hand will mercies give,
With mourners he will dwell.
Thus may my Sabbath pass away,
My best, my holiest, happiest day,
The sweetest of the seven :
But yet a rest for Saints remains,
A Sabbath free from cares and pains
Eternal, and in Heav'n.
HOW CAN YOU CALL ME POOR?
How canst thou call me poor? all things are mine;
Whate'er I ask, my God replies, "'tis thine,"
"The world, life, death, things present, things to
come;"
Such is my store in Christ; a countless sum!
The world may think me poor; so I think them;
Their treasures I, my riches they contemn.
They have their good things now; for mine I
wait;
How worthless theirs at best: the least of mine how great!
THE God of nature and of grace
In all his works appears;
His goodness through the earth we trace,
His grandeur in the spheres.
Behold this fair, and fertile soil,
By him in wisdom plann'd;
'Twas He who girded like a robe,
The ocean round the land.
Lift to the firmament your eye,
Thither his path pursue;
His glory, boundless as the sky,
O'erwhelms the wondering view.
The forests in his strength rejoice;
Hark! on the evening breeze,
As once of old, the Lord God's voice
Is heard among the trees.
His blessings fall in plenteous showers,
Upon the lap of earth,
That teems with foliage, fruit and flowers,
And rings with infant mirth.
If God hath made this world so fair,
Where sin and death abound;
How beautiful beyond compare,
Will Paradise be found.
Jacob journeying from Beer-sheba to Padan-Aram to seek for refuge in the house of Laban.-Gen. xxviii.
JACOB had scarce the blessing got,
Ere banishment became his lot;
Yet, whilst the dreary way he trod,
He was remembered by his God.
His first day's weary journey done,
He for his pillow laid a stone:
And sleeping-had a wondrous dream,
In which the holy angels seem
Descending and ascending near;
While God himself deigns to appear:
There Jacob saw the gate of heaven,
And there he found his sins forgiven.
The gospel unto us makes known,
A mighty Saviour on his throne;
He guides us safe through earthly strife,
He feeds us with the bread of life.
With Jacob may we thankful say,
"Since God is with us on our way,
To lead and teach, defend and feed,
The Lord shall be our God indeed."
GOD of my fathers! beud a gracious ear
To my soul's anguish, in this hour of fear;
The seal is set, the stern decree is pass'd,-
Ere next its beams shall glad the earth again,
I shall have perish'd in that dreadful den:
How my heart shrinks before the fearful thought!
O God of Israel, now forsake me not!
Jerusalem, farewell! I hoped to see
A brighter era in thy destiny:
Thy years of widowhood are rolling by:
The hour foretold of God is drawing nigh,
When 'midst thy walls thy temple shall arise-
Nor idol worship then insult the skies;
But fortified by sorrow, thou shalt shine,
Joy of the earth-pride of my royal line.
Is this the end of all my hopes and fears ?
This the reward of all my anxious years?
Put not thy trust in princes-they are frail,
Their will may alter, or their power may fail:
The fragile reed on which I vainly leant,
Hath broken; and my wounded spirit, sent
Back to the rock for shelter, finds thee still
My God, my trust, my hope, in good or ill.
Hope! can I dream of hope ? what brilliant ray
Hath chased the darkness from my soul away ?
Is it a meteor, whose delusive light
Gleams but to leave me in a deeper night?
No!-clearer, brighter, beams the star of faith--
My God will save me from this dreadful death!
Powerful though Darius be, there is still
A King of Kings-who can resist his will!
Dreadful though be the Lion, my defence
Is in a mightier power-OMNIPOTENCE.
WHICH HE SUNG A SHORT TIME BEFORE HE DIED.
BELOVED Saviour! let not me
In thy kind heart forgotten be;
Of all that deck the field or bower,
Thou art the fairest, sweetest flower.
Youth's prime is o'er, old age comes on,
But sin distracts my soul alone:
Beloved Saviour, let not me
In thy kind heart forgotten be.
Abdul Musseeh was a learned Mahometan, who was led to embrace Christianity by Henry Martyn, at Cawnpore; and was afterwards ordained Deacon by Bishop Heber. He died in 1827.
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