Blest be the Father and his love,

To whose celestial source we owe

Rivers of endless joy above,

And rills of comfort here below.

2 Glory to thee, great Son of God!

From whose dear, wounded body rolls

A precious stream of vital blood--

Pardon and life for dying souls

3 We give the sacred Spirit praise,

Who, in our hearts of sin and woe,

Makes living springs of grace arise,

And into boundless glory flow.

4 Thus, God, the Father, God, the Son,

And God, the Spirit, we adore;

That sea of life and love unknown,

Without a bottom or a shore.

Thy way, O God! is in the sea,

Thy paths I cannot trace;

Nor comprehend the mystery

Of thine unbounded grace.

2 'Tis but in part I know thy will;

I bless thee for the sight;

When will thy love the rest reveal,

In glory's clearer light?

3 Here the dark veils of flesh and sense

My captive soul surround;

Mysterious deeps of providence

My wondering thoughts confound.

4 As through a glass I dimly see

The wonders of thy love;

How little do I know of thee,

Or of the joys above!

5 With rapture I shall soon survey

Thy providence and grace;

And spend an everlasting day

In wonder, love, and praise.

O God! our help in ages past,

Our hope for years to come;

Our shelter from the stormy blast,

And our eternal home.

2 Under the shadow of thy throne,

Still may we dwell secure;

Sufficient is thine arm alone,

And our defense is sure.

3 Before the hills in order stood,

Or earth received her frame,

From everlasting thou art God,

To endless years the same.

4 A thousand ages in thy sight

Are like an evening gone;

Short as the watch that ends the night,

Before the rising sun.

5 The busy tribes of flesh and blood,

With all their cares and fears,

Are carried downward by the flood,

And lost in following years.

I sing th' almighty power of God,

That made the mountains rise,

That spread the flowing seas abroad,

And built the lofty skies.

2 I sing the wisdom that ordained

The sun to rule the day;

The moon shines full at his command,

And all the stars obey.

3 I sing the goodness of the Lord,

That filled the earth with food;

He formed the creatures with his word,

And then pronounced them good.

4 Lord! how thy wonders are displayed

Where'er I turn mine eye!

If I survey the ground I tread,

Or gaze upon the sky.

My God how wonderful thou art!

Thy majesty how bright!

How beautiful thy mercy seat,

In depths of burning light.

2 How dread are thine eternal years,

Oh, everlasting Lord!

By prostrate spirits day and night,

Incessantly adored.

3 Oh, how I fear thee, living God!

With deepest, tenderest fears,

And worship thee with trembling hope,

And penitential tears.

4 Yet I may love thee, too, O Lord!

Almighty as thou art,

For thou hast stooped to ask of me

The love of this poor heart.

5 No earthly father loves like thee,

No mother, half so mild,

Bears and forbears as thou hast done

With me, thy sinful child.

6 Father of Jesus! love's reward!

What rapture will it be,

Prostrate before thy throne to lie,

And gaze and gaze on thee.

God moves in a mysterious way,

His wonders to perform;

He plants his footsteps in the sea,

And rides upon the storm.

2 Deep in unfathomable mines

Of never-failing skill,

He treasures up his bright designs,

And works his sovereign will.

3 Ye fearful saints! fresh courage take;

The clouds ye so much dread,

Are big with mercy, and shall break

In blessings on your head.

4 Judge not the Lord by feeble sense,

But trust him for his grace;

Behind a frowning providence,

He hides a smiling face.

5 His purposes will ripen fast,

Unfolding every hour;

The bud may have a bitter taste,

But sweet will be the flower.

6 Blind unbelief is sure to err,

And scan his work in vain;

God is his own interpreter,

And he will make it plain.

The Lord descended from above,

And bowed the heavens most high;

And underneath his feet he cast

The darkness of the sky.

2 On cherub and on cherubim

Full royally he rode;

And on the wings of mighty winds

Came flying all abroad.

3 He sat serene upon the floods,

Their fury to restrain;

And he, as sovereign Lord and King,

Forevermore shall reign.

Yes, God is good; in earth and sky,

From ocean depths and spreading wood,

Ten thousand voices seem to cry,

"God made us all, and God is good."

2 The sun that keeps his trackless way,

And downward pours his golden flood,

Night's sparkling hosts all seem to sky,

In accents clear, that God is good.

3 Yes, God is good, all Nature says,

By God's own hand with speech endued;

And man, in louder notes of praise,

Should sing for joy that God is good.

4 For all thy gifts, we bless thee, Lord;

But chiefly for our heavenly food,

Thy pardoning grace, thy quickening word;

These prompt our song that God is good.

Ere mountains reared their forms sublime,

Or heaven and earth in order stood,

Before the birth of ancient time,

From everlasting thou art God.

2 A thousand ages in their flight

With thee are as a fleeting day;

Past, present, future, to thy sight

At once their various scenes display.

3 But our brief life's a shadowy dream--

A passing thought, that soon is o'er;

That fades with morning's earliest beam,

And fills the musing mind no more.

4 To us, O Lord, the wisdom give,

Each passing moment so to spend,

That we at length with thee may live

Where life and bliss shall never end.

There is a God--all nature speaks,

Through earth, and air, and sea, and skies;

See, from the clouds his glory breaks,

When earliest beams of morning rise.

2 The rising sun, serenely bright,

Throughout the world's extended frame,

Inscribes in characters of light

His mighty Maker's glorious name.

3 Ye curious minds, who roam abroad,

And trace creation's wonders o'er,

Confess the footsteps of your God--

Bow down before him and adore.

The Lord is King; child of the dust!

The Judge of all the earth is just;

Holy and true are all his ways;

Let every creature speak his praise.

2 The Lord is King! lift up thy voice,

Oh, earth! and all ye heavens! rejoice;

From world to world the joy shall ring--

The Lord omnipotent is King.

3 The Lord is King! who then shall dare

Resist his will, distrust his care,

Or murmur at his wise decrees,

Or doubt his royal promises?

4 Oh, when his wisdom can mistake,

His might decay, his love forsake,

Then may his children cease to sing--

The Lord omnipotent is King.

God is love; his mercy brightens

All the path in which we rove;

Bliss he wakes, and woe he lightens:

God is wisdom, God is love.

Chance and change are busy ever;

Man decays and ages move;

But his mercy waneth never;

God is wisdom, God is love.

2 E'en the hour the darkest seemeth

Will his changeless goodness prove;

From the gloom his brightness streameth:

God is wisdom, God is love.

He with earthly cares entwineth

Hope and comfort from above;

Everywhere his glory shineth:

God is wisdom, God is love.

Lord! thy glory fills the heaven;

Earth is with its fullness stored;

Unto thee be glory given,

Holy, holy, holy Lord.

2 Heaven is still with glory ringing,

Earth takes up the angels' cry--

"Holy, holy, holy!" singing,

"Lord of hosts! the Lord most high!"

3 Ever thus in God's high praises,

Brethren! let our tongues unite;

Chief the heart when duty raises

God-ward at his mystic rite.

Eternal Wisdom! thee we praise,

Thee the creation sings;

With thy loved name, rocks, hills, and seas,

And heaven's high palace rings.

2 Thy hand, how wide it spread the sky!

How glorious to behold!

Tinged with a blue of heavenly dye,

And starred with sparkling gold.

3 Infinite strength and equal skill

Shine through the worlds abroad;

Our souls with vast amazement fill,

And speak the builder--God.

4 But the sweet beauties of thy grace

Our softer passions move;

Pity divine, in Jesus' face,

We see, adore, and love.

Hail! holy, holy, holy, Lord,

Whom One in Three we know;

By all thy heavenly host adored,

By all thy Church below.

2 One undivided Trinity

With triumph we proclaim;

The universe is full of thee,

And speaks thy glorious name.

3 Thee, holy Father, we confess;

Thee, holy Son, adore;

And thee, the Holy Ghost, we bless,

And worship evermore.

4 Hail! holy, holy, holy Lord,

Our heavenly song shall be

Supreme, Essential One, adored

In co-eternal Thee!

Come, ye that know and fear the Lord,

And lift your souls above;

Let every heart and voice accord,

To sing that--God is love.

2 This precious truth his word declares,

And all his mercies prove;

Jesus, the Gift of gifts, appears,

To show that--God is love.

3 Behold his patience lengthened out

To those who from him rove,

And calls effectual reach their hearts,

To teach them--God is love.

4 The work begun is carried on

By power from heaven above;

And every step from first to last,

Declares that--God is love.

Jehovah God! thy gracious power

On every hand we see;

Oh, may the blessings of each hour

Lead all our thoughts to thee.

2 Thy power is in the ocean deeps,

And reaches to the skies;

Thine eye of mercy never sleeps,

Thy goodness never dies.

3 In all the varying scenes of time,

On thee our hopes depend;

In every age, in every clime,

Our Father and our Friend.

Come, let us all unite to sing,

God is love;

Let heav'n and earth their praises bring,

God is love;

Let every soul from sin awake,

Each in his heart sweet music make,

And sing with us for Jesus' sake,

For God is love.

REF.--God is love,

God is love.

Come, let us all unite to sing

That God is love.

2 Oh, tell us to earth's remotest bound,

God is love;

In Christ we have redemption found,

God is love;

His blood has washed our sins away,

His Spirit turned our night to day,

And now we can rejoice to say

That God is love.

3 How happy is our portion here,

God is love;

His promises our spirits cheer,

God is love;

He is our sun and shield by day,

Our help, our hope, our strength, and stay;

He will be with us all the way;

Our God is love.

It came upon the midnight clear,

That glorious song of old,

From angels bending near the earth,

To touch their harps of gold;

"Peace to the earth, good-will to men,

From heaven's all gracious King:"

The earth in solemn stillness lay,

To hear the angels sing.

2 Still through the cloven skies they come,

With peaceful wings unfurled;

And still celestial music floats

O'er all the weary world;

Above its sad and lowly plains

They bend on heavenly wing,

And ever o'er its Babel sounds,

The blessed angels sing.

3 O ye, beneath life's crushing load,

Whose forms are bending low,

Who toil along the climbing way,

With painful steps and slow;--

Look up! for glad and golden hours

Come swiftly on the wing;

Oh, rest beside the weary road,

And hear the angels sing!

4 For lo! the days are hastening on,

By prophet-bards foretold,

When with the ever-circling years

Comes round the age of gold!

When peace shall over all the earth

Its final splendors fling,

And the whole world send back the song

Which now the angels sing!

The race that long in darkness pine

Have seen a glorious light;

The people dwell in day who dwelt

In death's surrounding night.

To hail thy rise, thou better Sun,

The gathering nations come,

With joy, as when the reapers bear

The harvest treasures home.

2 To us a child of hope is born;

To us a Son is given;

And him shall all the earth obey,

And all the hosts of heaven.

His name shall be the Prince of Peace,

Forevermore adored,

The Wonderful, the Counselor,

The great and mighty Lord.

While shepherds watched their flocks by night,

All seated on the ground,

The angel of the Lord came down,

And glory shone around.

2 "Fear not," said he,--for mighty dread

Had seized their troubled mind,--

"Glad tidings of great joy I bring

To you and all mankind.

3 "To you, in David's town, this day,

Is born of David's line,

The Savior, who is Christ, the Lord;

And this shall be the sign:

4 "The heavenly babe you there shall find

To human view displayed,

All meanly wrapped in swathing bands,

And in a manger laid."

5 Thus spake the seraph; and forthwith

Appeared a shining throng

Of angels, praising God, and thus

Addressed their joyful song:

6 "All glory be to God on high,

And to the earth be peace:

Good-will henceforth from heaven to men

Begin and never cease!"

Calm on the listening ear of night

Come heaven's melodious strains,

Where wild Judea stretches far

Her silver-mantled plains.

2 Celestial choirs, from courts above,

Shed sacred glories there,

And angels, with their sparkling lyres,

Make music on the air.

3 The answering hills of Palestine

Send back the glad reply,

And greet, from all their holy heights,

The day-spring from on high.

4 "Glory to God!" the sounding skies

Loud with their anthems ring--

"Peace to the earth, good-will to men,

From heaven's eternal King."

Joy to the world! the Lord is come:

Let earth receive her King;

Let every heart prepare him room,

And heaven and nature sing.

2 Joy to the earth! the Savior reigns:

Let men their songs employ;

While fields and floods, rocks, hills, and plains,

Repeat the sounding joy.

3 No more let sins and sorrows grow,

Nor thorns infest the ground;

He comes to make his blessings flow,

Far as the curse is found.

4 He rules the world with truth and grace,

And makes the nations prove

The glories of his righteousness,

And wonders of his love.

Hark the glad sound! the Savior comes--

The Savior promised long;

Let every heart prepare a throne,

And every voice a song.

2 He comes, the prisoners to release,

In Satan's bondage held;

The gates of brass before him burst,

The iron fetters yield.

3 He comes, the broken heart to bind,

The bleeding soul to cure;

And, with the treasures of his grace,

T' enrich the humble poor.

4 Our glad hosannas, Prince of Peace,

Thy welcome shall proclaim;

And heaven's eternal arches ring

With thy beloved name.

Jesus is God! the glorious bands

Of holy angels sing

Songs of adoring praise to him,

Their Maker and their King.

2 He was true God in Bethlehem's crib,

On Calvary's cross, true God;

He who, in heaven, eternal reigned,

In time, on earth abode.

3 Jesus is God! there never was

A time when he was not;

Boundless, eternal, merciful,

The Word the Sire begot.

4 Backward our thoughts through ages stretch,

Onward through endless bliss;

For there are two eternities,

And both alike are his.

5 Jesus is God! oh, could I now,

But compass land and sea,

To teach and tell this single truth,

How happy should I be!

6 Oh, had I but an angel's voice,

I would proclaim so loud,

Jesus, the Good, the Beautiful,

Is everlasting God.

Hark! the herald angels sing,

"Glory to the new-born King!

Peace on earth, and mercy mild,

God and sinners reconciled."

Joyful all ye nations, rise;

Join the triumph of the skies!

With the angelic host proclaim,

Christ is born in Bethlehem.

2 See, he lays his glory by,

Born that man no more may die;

Born to raise the sons of earth,

Born to give them second birth.

Veiled in flesh the Godhead see;

Hail the incarnate Deity.

Pleased as man with men to dwell,

Jesus, our Immanuel.

3 Hail the heaven-born Prince of Peace!

Hail the Sun of Righteousness;

Light and life to all he brings,

Risen with healing in his wings.

Let us, then, with angels sing,

"Glory to the new-born King!

Peace on earth, and mercy mild,

God and sinners reconciled."

Angels rejoiced and sweetly sung

At our Redeemer's birth;

Mortals! awake: let every tongue

Proclaim his matchless worth.

2 Glory to God, who dwells on high,

And sent his only Son

To take a servant's form, and die,

For evils we had done!

3 Good-will to men; ye fallen race!

Arise, and shout for joy;

He comes, with rich abounding grace

To save and not destroy.

4 Lord! send the gracious tidings forth,

And fill the world with light,

That Jew and Gentile, through the earth,

May know thy saving might.

What means this glorious radiance

Across Judea's plain?

Those white-winged angels singing

In such exultant strain?

CHO.--The King of glory cometh,

Earth's broken hearts to bind,

And God's salvation morning

Hath dawned for all mankind.

2 What means this wondrous story

The holy angels tell?

Of one who reigned in heaven,

And now on earth would dwell?

3 Why bend these Eastern sages

To one of lowly birth?

What means this heav'nly message

Of love and peace on earth?

4 Ye wand'rers in earth's darkness,

On ocean deep and land,

Hail! hail! the joyful tidings,

The morning is at hand.

What grace, O Lord! and beauty shone

Around thy steps below!

What patient love was seen in all

Thy life and death of woe!

2 Thy foes might hate, despise, revile,

Thy friends unfaithful prove;

Unwearied in forgiveness still,

Thy heart could only love.

3 Oh, give us hearts to love like thee;

Like thee, O Lord! to grieve

Far more for others' sins, than all

The wrongs that we receive.

4 One with thyself, may every eye,

In us, thy brethren, see

That gentleness and grace that springs

From union, Lord, with thee.

We may not climb the heavenly steeps

To bring the Lord Christ down;

In vain we search the lowest deeps,

For him no depths can drown.

2 But warm, sweet, tender, even yet

A present help is he;

And faith has yet its Olivet,

And love its Galilee.

3 The healing of the seamless dress

Is by our beds of pain;

We touch him in life's throng and press,

And we are whole again.

4 Through him the first fond prayers are said

Our lips of childhood frame;

The last low whispers of our dead

Are burdened with his name.

5 O Lord and Master of us all,

Whate'er our name or sign,

We own thy sway, we hear thy call,

We test our lives by thine!

In stature grows the heavenly Child,

With death before his eyes;

A Lamb unblemished, meek and mild,

Prepared for sacrifice.

2 The Son of God his glory hides

With parents mean and poor;

And he who made the heavens abides

In dwelling-place obscure.

3 Those mighty hands that stay the sky

No earthly toil refuse;

And he who set the stars on high

A humble trade pursues.

4 He before whom the angels stand.

At whose behest they fly,

Now yields himself to man's command,

And lays his glory by.

5 The Father's name we loudly raise,

The Son we all adore,

The Holy Ghost, One God, we praise,

Both now and evermore.

A pilgrim through this lonely world,

The blessed Savior passed;

A mourner all his life was he,

A dying Lamb at last

2 That tender heart which felt for all,

For us its life-blood gave;

It found on earth no resting-place.

Save only in the grave.

3 Such was our Lord; and shall we fear

The cross with all its scorn?

Or love a faithless, evil world

That wreathed his brow with thorn?

4 No, facing all its frowns or smiles,

Like him obedient still,

We homeward press, through storm or calm,

To Zion's blessed hill.

How beauteous were the marks divine,

That in thy meekness used to shine;

That lit thy lonely pathway, trod

In wondrous love, O Son of God!

2 Oh, who, like thee, so calm, so bright,

Thou God of God, thou Light of Light!

Oh, who, like thee, did ever go

So patient through a world of woe?

3 Oh, who, like thee, so humbly bore

The scorn, the scoffs of men before?

So meek, forgiving, godlike, high,

So glorious in humility?

4 E'en death, which sets the prisoner free,

Was pang, and scoff, and scorn to thee;

Yet love, through all thy torture glowed,

And mercy with thy life-blood flowed.

5 Oh, in thy light, be mine to go,

Illuming all my way of woe!

And give me ever on the road

To trace thy footsteps, Son of God!

How sweetly flowed the gospel's sound

From lips of gentleness and grace,

When listening thousands gathered round,

And joy and reverence filled the place!

2 From heaven he came, of heaven he spoke;

To heaven he led his followers' way;

Dark clouds of gloomy night he broke,

Unveiling an immortal day.

3 "Come, wanderers, to my Father's home;

Come, all ye weary ones, and rest;"

Yes, sacred Teacher, we will come,

Obey thee, love thee, and be blest.

My dear Redeemer and my Lord,

I read my duty in thy Word;

But in thy life the law appears,

Drawn out in living characters.

2 Such was thy truth, and such thy zeal,

Such deference to thy Father's will,

Such love and meekness so divine,

I would transcribe and make them mine.

3 Cold mountains and the midnight air

Witnessed the fervor of thy prayer;

The desert thy temptations knew;

Thy conflict and thy victory too.

4 Be thou my pattern, make me bear

More of thy gracious image here;

Then God, the Judge, shall own my name

Among the followers of the Lamb.

Behold! the blind their sight receive;

Behold! the dead awake and live;

The dumb speak wonders, and the lame

Leap, like the hart, and bless his name.

2 Thus doth th' eternal Spirit own

And seal the mission of the Son;

The Father vindicates his cause,

While he hangs bleeding on the cross.

3 He dies! the heavens in mourning stood;

He rises, the triumphant God!

Behold the Lord ascending high,

No more to bleed, no more to die.

4 Hence, and forever, from my heart,

I bid my doubts and fears depart;

And to those hands my soul resign,

Which bear credentials so divine.

Ride on! ride on in majesty!

Hark! all the tribes Hosanna cry;

O Savior meek, pursue thy road

With palms and scattered garments strowed.

2 Bide on! ride on in majesty!

In lowly pomp ride on to die;

O Christ, thy triumphs now begin

O'er captive death and conquered sin.

3 Ride on! ride on in majesty!

The angel armies of the sky

Look down with sad and wondering eyes

To see the approaching sacrifice.

4 Ride on! ride on in majesty!

The last and fiercest strife is nigh;

The Father on his sapphire throne

Awaits his own anointed Son.

5 Ride on! ride on in majesty!

In lowly pomp, ride on to die;

Bow thy meek head to mortal pain,

Then take, O God, thy power and reign.

Oh, wondrous type, oh, vision fair,

Of glory that the church shall share,

Which Christ upon the mountain shows,

Where brighter than the sun he glows!

2 From age to age the tale declare,

How with the three disciples there,

Where Moses and Elias meet,

The Lord holds converse high and sweet.

3 The law and prophets there have place,

Two chosen witnesses of grace;

The Father's voice from out the cloud

Proclaimed his only Son aloud.

4 With shining face and bright array

Christ deigns to manifest to-day,

What glory shall be theirs above

Who joy in God with perfect love.

Ever would I fain be reading,

In the ancient holy Book,

Of my Savior's gentle pleading,

Truth in ev'ry word and look.

How to all the sick and tearful

Help was ever gladly shown;

How he sought the poor and fearful,

Called them brothers and his own.

2 How no contrite soul e'er sought him,

And was bidden to depart;

How, with gentle words he taught him,

Took the death from out his heart.

Still I read the ancient story,--

And my joy is ever new,--

How for us he left his glory,

How he still is kind and true.

3 How the flock he gently leadeth,

Whom his Father gave him here;

How his arms he widely spreadeth,

To his heart to draw us near.

Let me kneel, my Lord! before thee,

Let my heart in tears o'erflow,

Melted by thy love adore thee,

Blessed in thee, mid joy or woe.

Behold where, in the Friend of man,

Appears each grace divine!

The virtues all in Jesus meet,

With mildest radiance shine.

2 To spread the rays of heavenly light,

To give the mourner joy,

To preach glad tidings to the poor,

Was his divine employ.

3 In the last hour of deep distress,

Before his Father's throne,

With soul resigned, he bowed, and said,

"Thy will, not mine, be done!"

4 Be Christ our pattern and our guide,

His image may we bear;

Oh, may we tread his sacred steps,

And his bright glories share.

In vain in high and holy lays

My soul her grateful voice would raise;

For who can sing the worthy praise

Of the wonderful love of Jesus?

CHO.--Wonderful love! wonderful love!

Wonderful love of Jesus!

Wonderful love! wonderful love!

Wonderful love of Jesus!

2 A joy by day, a peace by night,

In storms a calm, in darkness light;

In pain a balm, in weakness might,

Is the wonderful love of Jesus.

3 My hope for pardon when I call,

My trust for lifting when I fall;

In life, in death, my all in all,

Is the wonderful love of Jesus.