BREVIARY.

138. C. M. Breviary.

True Repentance. 1 O SINNER, bring not tears alone,

Or outward form of prayer, But let it in thy heart be known

That penitence is there.

2 To smite the breast, the clothes to rend,

God asketh not of thee :
Thy secret soul he bids thee bend

In true humility.

3 0, let us, then, with heartfelt grief,

Draw near unto our God,
And pray to him to grant relief,

And stay the lifted rod.

4 O righteous Judge, if thou wilt deign

To grant us what we need, We pray for time to turn again,

And grace to turn indeed.

139. 75 M. MERRICK.

Freedom from Error, Guilt, and Folly. 1 Blest Instructor, from thy ways

Who can tell how oft he strays?
Save from error's growth our mind;

Leave not, Lord, one root behind. 2 Purge us from the guilt that lies

Wrapped within our heart's disguise ;
Let us thence, by thee renewed,
Each presumptuous sin exclude.

3 Let our tongues, from error free,

Speak the words approved by thee;
To thine all-observing eyes

Let our thoughts accepted rise.
4 While we thus thy name adore,

And thy healing grace implore,
Blest Instructor, bow thine ear;
God, our strength, propitious hear.

SPIRIT OF THE PSALMS.

The Hope of Pardon. 1 GREAT God, wert thou extreme to mark

The deeds we do amiss,
Before thy presence who could stand ?

Who claim thy promised bliss ?
But 0, all-merciful and just,

Thy love surpasseth thought;
A gracious Savior has appeared,

And peace and pardon brought. 2 On us the Sun of Righteousness

Its brightest beams hath poured;
With grateful hearts and holy zeal,

Lord, be thy love adored :
And let us look with joyful hope

To that more glorious day,
Before whose brightness, sin and death.

And grief, shall flee away.

141. L. M. Watts.

A Penitent pleading for Pardon.
1 Show pity, Lord; O Lord, forgive;

Let a repenting rebel Jive :
Are not thy mercies large and free?
May not a sinner trust in thee?

2 My crimes are great, but can't surpass

The power and glory of thy grace : Great God, thy nature hath no bound,

So let thy pardoning love be found. 3 0, wash my soul from every sin,

And make my guilty conscience clean;
Here on my heart the burden lies,

And past offences pain mine eyes. 4 Yet save a trembling sinner, Lord,

Whose hope, still hovering round thy word, Would light on some sweet promise there, Some sure support against despair.

142. L. M. BEDDOME.

Inconstancy lamented.
1 The wandering star and fleeting wind

Are emblems of the fickle mind;
The morning cloud and early dew
Bring our inconstancy to view.

2 But cloud and wind, and dew and star,

Only a faint resemblance bear;
Nor can there aught in nature be

So changeable and frail as we.
3 Our outward walk and inward frame

Are scarcely through an hour the same;
We vow, and straight our vows forget,

And then those very vows repeat.
4 With contrite hearts, Lord, we confess

Our folly and unsteadfastness.
When shall these hearts more stable be,
Fixed by thy grace alone on thee?

1 Forgive us, for thy mercy's sake;

Our multitude of sins forgive;
And for thy own possession take,
And bid us to thy glory live -
Live in thy sight, and gladly prove
Our faith by our obedient love.

2 The covenant of forgiveness seal,

And all thy mighty wonders show;
Our hidden enemies expel,
And conquering them, to conquer go,
Till all of pride and wrath be slain,
And not one evil thought remain.

3 0, put it in our inward parts,

The living law of perfect love;
Write the new precept on our hearts :
We shall not then from thee remove,
Who in thy glorious image shine, –
Thy people, and forever thine.

ness.

144. L. M. Watts.

Seeking Forgiveness. 10 Thou that hear’st when sinners cry,

Though all my crimes before thee lie,
Behold them not with angry look,
But blot their memory from thy book.

2 Create my nature pure within,

And form my soul averse to sin;
Let thy good Spirit ne'er depart,
Nor hide thy presence from my heart.

3 I cannot live without thy light,

Cast out and banished from thy sight :
Thy holy joys, my God, restore,

And guard me, that I fall no more. 4 A broken heart, my God, my King,

Is all the sacrifice I bring :
The God of grace will ne'er despise
A broken heart for sacrifice.

145. C. M. Doddridge.

Cleanse thou me from secret Faults.
1 SEARCHER of hearts, before thy face

I all my soul display ;
And, conscious of its innate arts,

Entreat thy strict survey.
2 If, lurking in its inmost folds,

I any sin conceal,
O, let a ray of light divine

The secret guile reveal.
3 If tinctured with that odious gall,

Unknowing, I remain,
Let grace, like a pure silver stream,

Wash out the hateful stain.
4 To humble penitence and prayer

Be gentle pity given;
Speak ample pardon to my heart,

And seal its claim to heaven.

146. L. M. Christian Psalmist.

Amidst Temptation. 1 My gracious Lord, whose changeless love

To me nor earth nor death can part,
When shall my feet forget to rove?
Ah, what shall fix this faithless heart?