2 Silent and swift they glide away;
Steady and strong the current flows,
Lost in eternity's wide sea,
The boundless gulf from whence it rose.
3 With it the thoughtless sons of men
Upon the rapid stream are borne
Swift on to their eternal home,
Whence not one soul can e'er return.
4 Yet, while the shore, on either side,
Presents a gaudy, flattering show,
We gaze, in fond amazement lost,
Nor think to what a world we go.
5 Great Source of wisdom, teach my heart
To know the price of every hour,
That time may bear me on to joys
Beyond its measure and its power.
10 & 11s. M.
For New Year's Day.
1 HOUSE of our God, with cheerful anthems ring,
While all our lips and hearts his graces sing;
The opening year his bounties shall proclaim,
And all its days be vocal with his name.
The Lord is good, his mercy never-ending,
His blessings in perpetual showers descending.
2 Thou earth, enlightened by his rays divine,
Pregnant with grass, and corn, and oil, and wine;
Crowned with his goodness, let the nations meet,
And lay their crowns at his paternal feet;
With grateful love that liberal hand confessing,
Which through each heart diffuseth every blessing.
3 His mercy never ends; the dawn, the shade,
Still see new beauties through new scenes displayed;
Succeeding ages bless this sure abode,
And children lean upon their father's God.
The soul of man, through its immense duration,
Drinks from this source immortal consolation.
4 Burst into praise, my soul ! all nature join;
Angels and men in harmony combine;
While human years are measured by the sun,
And while eternity its course shall run,
His goodness, in perpetual showers descending,
Exalt in songs and raptures never-ending.
The Providence of God in the Seasons.
1 THE rolling year, Almighty Lord!
Obeys thy powerful nod;
Each season, as it silent moves,
Declares the present God.
2 Waked by thy voice, blooms forth the spring,
In living verdure dressed;
On hills, in vales, through fields and groves,
Thy beauties stand confessed.
3 The sun calls forth the summer months,
Nor do the hours delay;
The fruits with varied colors glow
Beneath his ripening ray.
4 Thy bounty, Lord! in autumn shines,
And spreads a general feast;
In which thy creatures all partake,
The greatest and the least.
5 When winter rears her hoary head,
And shows her furrowed brow,
In storms and tempests, frosts and snows,
How awful, Lord, art thou!
6 The rolling year, Almighty Lord!
Obeys thy powerful nod;
Each season, as it silent moves,
Declares the present God.
The Goodness of God in the Seasons.
1 GREAT God! at whose all-powerful call
At first arose this beauteous frame,
By thee the seasons change, and all
The changing seasons speak thy name.
2 Thy bounty bids the infant year,
From winter storms recovered, rise;
When thousand grateful scenes appear,
Fresh opening to our wondering eyes.
3 O, how delightful 't is to see
The earth in vernal beauty dressed! While in each herb, and flower, and tree, Thy bright perfections shine confessed! 4 Indulgent God! from every part, Thy plenteous blessings largely flow; - let every heart With grateful love and duty glow.
1 WITH songs and honors sounding loud,
Address the Lord on high ;
O'er all the heavens he spreads his cloud,
And waters veil the sky.
2 He sends his showers of blessings down,
To cheer the plains below;
He makes the grass the mountains crown,
And corn in valleys grow.
3 His steady counsels change the face
Of each declining year;
He bids the sun cut short his race,
And wintry days appear.
4 On us his providence has shone,
With gentle, smiling rays;
O, may our lips and lives make known
His goodness and his praise.
1 WHEN brighter suns and milder skies
Proclaim the opening year,
What various sounds of joy arise !
What prospects bright appear!
2 Earth and her thousand voices give
Their thousand notes of praise;
And all, that by his mercy live,
To God their offering raise.
3 The streams, all beautiful and bright,
Reflect the morning sky;
And there, with music in his flight,
The wild bird soars on high.
4 Thus, like the morning, calm and clear,
That saw the Saviour rise,
The spring of heaven's eternal year
Shall dawn on earth and skies.
5 No winter there, no shades of night,
Obscure those mansions blest,
Where, in the happy fields of light,
The weary are at rest.
1 WHEN verdure clothes the fertile vale,
And blossoms deck the spray,
And fragrance breathes in every gale,
How sweet the vernal day!
2 Hark! how the feathered warblers sing!
'T is nature's cheerful voice;
Soft music hails the lovely spring,
And woods and fields rejoice.
3 O God of nature and of grace,
Thy heavenly gifts impart ;
Then shall my meditation trace
Spring, blooming in my heart.
4 Inspired to praise, I then shall join
Glad nature's cheerful song,
And love and gratitude divine
Attune my joyful tongue.
The Seasons. Summer.
1 GREAT God, at thy command
Seasons in order rise :
Thy power and love in concert reign
Through earth, and seas, and skies.
2 How balmy is the air!
How warm the sun's bright beans!
While, to refresh the ground, the rains
Descend in gentle streams.
3 With grateful praise we own
Thy providential hand,
While grass, and herbs, and waving corn,
Adorn and bless the land.
4 But greater still the gift
Of thy beloved Son;
By him forgiveness, peace, and joy,
Through endless ages run.
1 THE leaves around me falling
Are preaching of decay;
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