Thou sovereign Lord of earth and skies,

Supremely good, supremely wise;

Fix thou the place of our abode;

But may we still live near to God.

2 Where’er our dwelling shall be found,

We will thy throne of grace surround;

An altar to thy name will raise,

With sacrifice of prayer and praise.

3 With faith and with devotion, Lord!

Teach us each day to hear thy word:

Grant us thy light to learn thy will,

And strength our duties to fulfill.

4 Our circles with thy presence bless;

Keep out each root of bitterness;

And may, to each, the last remove

Be to the mansions of thy love.

Happy the home, when God is there,

And love fills every breast;

Where one their wish, and one their prayer,

And one their heavenly rest.

2 Happy the home, where Jesus’ name

Is sweet to every ear;

Where children early lisp his fame

And parents hold him dear.

3 Happy the home where prayer is heard,

And praise is wont to rise;

Where parents love the sacred word,

And live but for the skies.

4 Lord! let us in our homes agree,

This blesséd peace to gain;

Unite our hearts in love to thee,

And love to all will reign.

This book is all that’s left me now,

Tears will unbidden start,

With faltering heart and throbbing brow,

I press it to my heart.

For many generations past,

Here is our family tree;

My mother’s hand this Bible clasped;

She dying gave it me.

2 Ah! well do I remember those

Whose name these records bear;

Who round the hearth-stone used to close,

After the evening prayer,

And tell of what those pages said,

In terms my heart would thrill!

Though they are with the silent dead,

Here are they living still.

3 My father read this holy book

To brothers, sisters dear;

How calm was my poor mother’s look,

Who leaned God’s word to hear.

Her angel face—I see it yet!

What thronging memories come!

Again that little group is met,

Within the walls of home.

4 Thou truest friend man ever knew,

Thy constancy I’ve tried;

Where all were false, I found thee true—

My counselor and guide.

The mines of earth no treasures give,

That could this volume buy;

In teaching me the way to live,

It taught me how to die.

In all my ways, O God!

I would acknowledge thee;

And seek to keep my heart and house

From all pollution free.

2 Where’er I have a tent,

An altar will I raise;

And thither my oblations bring

Of humble prayer and praise.

3 Could I my wish obtain,

My household, Lord, should be

Devoted to thyself alone,

A nursery for thee.

God of my life, to thee

My cheerful soul I raise,

Thy goodness bade me be,

And still prolongs my days:

I see my natal hour return,

And bless the day that I was born.

2 Though but a child of earth,

I glorify thy name,

From whom alone my birth,

And all my blessing came;

Creating and preserving grace

Let all that is within me praise.

3 My soul, and all its powers,

Thine, wholly thine shall be;

All, all my happy hours

I consecrate to thee;

Whate’er I have, whate’er I am,

Shall magnify my Maker’s name.

4 Long as I live beneath,

To thee O let me live,

To thee my every breath

In thanks and blessings give;

Me to thine image, Lord, restore,

And I shall praise thee evermore.

Gently, Lord, O gently lead us

Through this gloomy vale of tears,

Through the changes thou’st decreed us,

Till our last great change appears.

O! refresh us with thy blessing,

O! refresh us with thy grace,

May thy mercies never ceasing,

Fit us for thy dwelling place.

2 When temptation’s darts assail us,

When in devious paths we stray,

Let thy goodness never fail us,

Lead us in thy perfect way.

O! refresh us with thy blessing, etc.

3 In the hour of pain and anguish,

In the hour when death draws near,

Suffer not our hearts to languish,

Suffer not our souls to fear.

O! refresh us with thy blessing, etc.

4 When this mortal life is ended,

Bid us in thine arms to rest,

Till by angel bands attended,

We awake among the blest.

O! refresh us with thy blessing, etc.

5 Then, O! crown us with thy blessing,

Through the triumphs of thy grace;

Then shall praises never ceasing,

Echo through thy dwelling place.

O! refresh us with thy blessing, etc.

New every morning is the love

Our wakening and uprising prove;

Through sleep and darkness safely brought,

Restored to life, and power, and thought.

2 New mercies, each returning day,

Hover around us while we pray:

New perils past, new sins forgiven,

New thoughts of God, new hopes of heaven.

3 Old friends, old scenes will lovelier be

As more of heaven in each we see;

Some softening gleam of love and prayer

Shall dawn on every cross and care.

4 Only, O Lord, in thy dear love,

Fit us for perfect rest above,

And keep us this, and every day,

To live more nearly as we pray.

Lord of eternal truth and might!

Ruler of nature’s changing scheme!

Who dost bring forth the morning light,

And temper noon’s effulgent beam:

2 Quench thou in us the flames of strife,

And bid the heat of passion cease;

From perils guard our feeble life,

And keep our souls in perfect peace.

Forth in thy name, O Lord! I go,

My daily labors to pursue;

Thee, only thee, resolved to know

In all I think, or speak, or do.

2 Thee will I set at my right hand,

Whose eyes mine inmost substance see,

And labor on at thy command,

And offer all my works to thee.

3 For thee delightfully employ

Whate’er thy bounteous grace hath given,

And run my course with constant joy,

And closely walk with thee to heaven.

God of the morning, at whose voice

The cheerful sun makes haste to rise,

And, like a giant, doth rejoice

To run his journey through the skies!

2 O, like the sun may I fulfill

The appointed duties of the day;

With ready mind, and active will,

March on and keep my heavenly way.

I praise thy name, O God of Light,

For rest and safety through the night;

Beneath thy wing securely kept,

I closed my eyes and sweetly slept.

2 Redeemed from weariness, I rise

To greet the light with cheerful eyes;

And with the birds on joyful wing,

My soul would rise, and sweetly sing.

3 I thank thee, Lord, for all thy care,

For all the blessings that I share—

Life, reason, health, and home, and friends,

And every gift thy goodness sends.

4 O let me never, never cease

To cherish trust and thankfulness:

From thee, thou Maker of my frame,

Each undeservéd blessing came.

5 As numberless as stars of heaven,

Are the rich bounties thou hast given;

And fresh as dews, and sweet as flowers,

The love that smiles on all my hours.

6 O let me to thy altar bring

A pure and grateful offering;

And let my thanks, as incense, rise

In Christ, a pleasing sacrifice.

Awake, my soul! and with the sun

Thy daily course of duty run;

Shake off dull sloth, and joyful rise

To pay thy morning sacrifice.

2 Wake, and lift up thyself, my heart!

And with the angels bear thy part,

Who, all night long, unwearied sing

Glory to the eternal King.

3 Glory to thee, who safe hast kept,

And hast refreshed me, while I slept:

Grant, Lord! when I from death shall wake,

I may of endless life partake.

4 Lord! I my vows to thee renew;

Scatter my sins as morning dew;

Guard my first springs of thought and will,

And with thyself my spirit fill.

Lord of my life! O may thy praise

Employ my noblest powers,

Whose goodness lengthens out my days

And fills the circling hours.

2 While many spent the night in sighs,

And restless pains and woes,

In gentle sleep I closed my eyes,

And undisturbed repose.

3 O let the same Almighty care

My waking hours attend;

From every danger, every snare,

My heedless steps defend.

4 Smile on my minutes as they roll,

And guide my future days;

And let thy goodness fill my soul

With gratitude and praise.

To thee let my first offerings rise,

Whose sun creates the day;

Swift as his gladdening influence flies,

And spotless as his ray.

2 This day thy favoring hand be nigh,

So oft vouchsafed before:

Still may it lead, protect, supply,

And I that hand adore.

3 If bliss thy providence impart,

For which, resigned, I pray;

Give me to feel the grateful heart,

And thus thy love repay.

4 Afflictions should thy love intend,

As vice or folly’s cure,

Patient to gain that glorious end,

May I the means endure!

5 Be this and every future day

Still wiser than the past,

And when I all my life survey,

May grace sustain at last.

See how the rising sun

Pursues his shining way;

And wide proclaims his Maker’s praise,

With every brightening ray.

2 Thus would my rising soul

Its heavenly parent sing;

And to its great Original

An humble tribute bring.

3 O may I grateful use

The blessings I receive;

And ne’er in thought, in word, or deed,

His holy Spirit grieve.

4 May all my days and powers

Be sacred, Lord, to thee:

And in thy presence may I spend

A blest eternity!

The morning light returns,

The sun begins to shine;

Now let our souls in haste arise,

To run the race divine.

2 We praise the Father’s love,

Who kept us through the night;

O may his kindness be our song,

His pleasure our delight.

3 While passing through this day,

Lord, we implore thy care,

To guide us on the heavenly way,

And guard from every snare.

4 And when our life shall close,

O may it be in peace;

May we lie down in sweet repose,

And wake in endless bliss.

Now the shades of night are gone;

Now the morning light is come;

Lord, may I be thine to-day—

Drive the shades of sin away.

2 Fill my soul with heavenly light,

Banish doubt, and cleanse my sight;

In thy service, Lord, to-day,

Help me labor, help me pray.

3 Keep my haughty passions bound—

Save me from my foes around;

Going out and coming in,

Keep me safe from every sin.

4 When my work of life is past,

O! receive me then at last!

When I reach the heavenly shore,

Night of sin will be no more.

Thou that dost my life prolong,

Kindly aid my morning song;

Thankful let my offerings rise

To the God that rules the skies.

2 Gently, with the dawning ray,

On my soul thy beams display;

Sweeter than the smiling morn,

Let thy cheering light return.

Jesus, Sun of Righteousness,

Brightest beam of love divine,

With the early morning rays

Do thou on our darkness shine,

And dispel with purest light

All our night!

2 Like the sun’s reviving ray,

May thy love, with tender glow,

All our coldness melt away,

Warm and cheer us forth to go,

Gladly serve thee and obey

All the day!

3 Thou, our only Life and Guide!

Never leave us nor forsake:

In thy light may we abide

Till the eternal morning break—

Moving on to Zion’s hill

Homeward still!

Glory to thee, my God, this night,

For all the blessings of the light;

Keep me, O keep me, King of kings,

Beneath thine own almighty wings.

2 Forgive me, Lord, for thy dear Son,

The ill which I this day have done;

That with the world, myself, and thee,

I, ere I sleep, at peace may be.

3 Teach me to live, that I may dread

The grave as little as my bed;

Teach me to die, that so I may

Rise glorious at thy Judgment-day.

4 O let my soul on thee repose,

And may sweet sleep mine eyelids close;

Sleep, which shall me more vigorous make,

To serve my God when I awake.

5 Be thou my guardian while I sleep,

Thy watchful station near me keep;

My heart with love celestial fill,

And guard me from the approach of ill.

6 Lord, let my soul for ever share

The bliss of thy paternal care:

’Tis heaven on earth, ’tis heaven above,

To see thy face and sing thy love!

Thus far the Lord has led me on;

Thus far his power prolongs my days;

And every evening shall make known,

Some fresh memorial of his grace.

2 Much of my time has run to waste,

And I, perhaps, am near my home;

But he forgives my follies past;

He gives me strength for days to come.

3 I lay my body down to sleep;

Peace is the pillow for my head;

While well-appointed angels keep

Their watchful stations round my bed.

4 Thus, when the night of death shall come,

My flesh shall rest beneath the ground,

And wait thy voice to rouse my tomb,

With sweet salvation in the sound.

And now another day is gone,

I’ll sing my Maker’s praise;

My comforts every hour make known

His providence and grace.

2 I lay my body down to sleep;

Let angels guard my head;

And through the hours of darkness keep

Their watch around my bed.

3 With cheerful heart I close my eyes,

Since thou wilt not remove;

And in the morning let me rise,

Rejoicing in thy love.

Blest Sovereign, let my evening song

Like holy incense rise;

Assist the offerings of my tongue

To reach the lofty skies.

2 Through all the dangers of the day,

Thy hand was still my guard;

And still, to drive my wants away,

Thy mercy stood prepared.

3 Perpetual blessings from above

Encompass me around;

But O how few returns of love

Hath my Creator found!

4 Lord, with this guilty heart of mine,

To thy dear cross I flee;

And to thy grace my soul resign,

To be renewed by thee.

Hail, tranquil hour of closing day!

Begone, disturbing care;

And look, my soul, from earth away,

To him who heareth prayer.

2 How sweet the tear of penitence,

Before his throne of grace,

While, to the contrite spirit’s sense,

He shows his smiling face.

3 How sweet, through long remembered years,

His mercies to recall;

And, pressed with wants, and griefs, and fears,

To trust his love for all.

4 How sweet to look, in thoughtful hope,

Beyond this fading sky,

And hear him call his children up

To his fair home on high.

5 Calmly the day forsakes our heaven,

To dawn beyond the west;

So let my soul, in life’s last even,

Retire to glorious rest.

The shadows of the evening hours

Fall from the darkening sky;

Upon the fragrance of the flowers

The dews of evening lie:

Before thy throne, O Lord of heaven,

We kneel at close of day;

Look on thy children from on high,

And hear us while we pray.

2 The sorrows of thy servants, Lord,

O, do not thou despise;

But let the incense of our prayers

Before thy mercy rise;

The brightness of the coming night

Upon the darkness rolls:

With hopes of future glory chase

The shadows on our souls.

3 Slowly the rays of daylight fade;

So fade within our heart

The hopes in earthly love and joy,

That one by one depart;

Slowly the bright stars, one by one,

Within the heavens shine;

Give us, O Lord, fresh hopes in heaven

And trust in things divine.

4 Let peace, O Lord, thy peace, O God,

Upon our souls descend;

From midnight fears and perils, thou

Our trembling hearts defend;

Give us a respite from our toil,

Calm and subdue our woes;

Through the long day we suffer, Lord,

O, give us now repose!

A sweetly solemn thought,

Comes to me o’er and o’er;

To-day, I’m nearer to my home

Than e’er I’ve been before.

2 Nearer my Father’s house,

Where many mansions be,

And nearer to the great white throne,

Nearer the crystal sea;

3 Nearer the bound of life,

Where falls my burden down;

Nearer to where I leave my cross,

And where I gain my crown.

4 Saviour, confirm my trust,

Complete my faith in thee;

And let me feel as if I stood

Close on eternity;

5 Feel as if now my feet

Were slipping o’er the brink;

For I may now be nearer home,

Much nearer than I think.

Another day is past,

The hours for ever fled;

And time is bearing me away,

To mingle with the dead.

2 My mind in perfect peace

My Father’s care shall keep;

I yield to gentle slumber now,

For thou canst never sleep.

3 How blesséd, Lord, are they,

On thee securely stayed!

Nor shall they be in life alarmed,

Nor be in death dismayed.

The day is past and gone,

The evening shades appear;

O may we all remember well

The night of death draws near.

2 We lay our garments by,

Upon our beds to rest;

So death will soon disrobe us all

Of what we now possess.

3 Lord, keep us safe this night,

Secure from every fear,

Beneath the pinions of thy love,

Till morning light appear.

4 And when we early rise,

To view the unwearied sun,

May we set out to win the prize

And after glory run.

5 And when our days are past,

And we from time remove,

O may we in thy bosom rest—

The bosom of thy love.

Now from labor and from care

Evening shades have set me free,

In the work of praise and prayer,

Lord, I would converse with thee;

O, behold me from above,

Fill me with a Saviour’s love.

2 For the blessings of this day,

For the mercies of this hour,

For the gospel’s cheering ray,

For the Spirit’s quickening power,

Grateful notes to thee I raise;

Lord! accept my song of praise.

Softly, now, the light of day

Fades upon my sight away;

Free from care, from labor free,

Lord! I would commune with thee.

2 Soon, for me, the light of day

Shall for ever pass away;

Then, from sin and sorrow free,

Take me, Lord! to dwell with thee.

The mellow eve is gliding

Serenely down the west;

So, every care subsiding,

My soul would sink to rest.

2 The woodland hum is ringing

The daylight’s gentle close;

May angels round me, singing,

Thus hymn my last repose.

3 The evening star has lighted

Her crystal lamp on high;

So, when in death benighted,

May hope illume the sky.

4 In golden splendor dawning,

The morrow’s light shall break;

O, on the last bright morning

May I in glory wake!

God that madest earth and heaven,

Darkness and light!

Who the day for toil hast given,

For rest the night!

May thine angel guards defend us,

Slumber sweet thy mercy send us,

Holy dreams and hopes attend us,

This livelong night!

Saviour! breathe an evening blessing,

Ere repose our eyelids seal;

Sin and want we come confessing;

Thou canst save, and thou canst heal.

2 Though destruction walk around us,

Though the arrows past us fly,

Angel-guards from thee surround us—

We are safe if thou art nigh.

3 Though the night be dark and dreary,

Darkness can not hide from thee:

Thou art he who, never weary,

Watcheth where thy people be.

4 Should swift death this night o’ertake us,

And our couch become our tomb,

May the morn in heaven awake us,

Clad in bright and deathless bloom.

Tarry with me, O my Saviour,

For the day is passing by;

See the shades of evening gather,

And the night is drawing nigh.

2 Many friends were gathered round me

In the bright days of the past;

But the grave has closed above them,

And I linger here at last.

3 Deeper, deeper grow the shadows;

Paler now the glowing west;

Swift the night of death advances;

Shall it be the night of rest?

4 Feeble, trembling, fainting, dying,

Lord, I cast myself on thee;

Tarry with me through the darkness!

While I sleep, still watch by me.

5 Tarry with me, O my Saviour!

Lay my head upon thy breast

Till the morning; then awake me—

Morning of eternal rest!

Silently the shades of evening

Gather round my lowly door;

Silently they bring before me

Faces I shall see no more.

2 O! the lost, the unforgotten,

Though the world be oft forgot;

O! the shrouded and the lonely—

In our hearts they perish not.

3 Living in the silent hours,

Where our spirits only blend,

They, unlinked with earthly trouble,

We, still hoping for its end.

4 How such holy memories cluster,

Like the stars when storms are past;

Pointing up to that far heaven

We may hope to gain at last.

Faintly flow, thou falling river,

Like a dream that dies away;

Down to ocean gliding ever,

Keep thy calm, unruffled way:

Time with such a silent motion,

Floats along on wings of air,

To eternity’s dark ocean,

Burying all its treasure there.

2 Roses bloom and then they wither;

Cheeks are bright, then fade and die;

Shapes of light are wafted hither,

Then, like visions, hurry by:

Quick as clouds at evening driven

O’er the many-colored west,

Years are bearing us to heaven—

Home of happiness and rest.

Through the day thy love hath spared us,

Wearied, we lie down to rest;

Through the silent watches guard us,

Let no foe our peace molest.

Father! thou our guardian be;

Sweet it is to trust in thee.

2 Wandering in the land of strangers,

Dwelling in the midst of foes,

Us and ours preserve from dangers:

In thy love we all repose.

Father! thou our guardian be;

Sweet it is to trust in thee.

Jesus, tender Shepherd, hear me;

Bless thy little lamb to-night:

Through the darkness be thou near me;

Keep me safe till morning light.

2 All this day thy hand has led me,

And I thank thee for thy care;

Thou hast clothed me, warmed me, fed me,

Listen to my evening prayer!

3 May my sins be all forgiven;

Bless the friends I love so well;

Take me, when I die, to heaven,

Happy there with thee to dwell.

The day is ended. Ere I sink to sleep,

My weary spirit seeks repose in thine;

Father! forgive my trespasses, and keep

This little life of mine.

2 With loving kindness curtain thou my bed,

And cool in rest my burning pilgrim feet;

Thy pardon be the pillow for my head—

So shall my sleep be sweet.

3 At peace with all the world, dear Lord, and thee,

No fears my soul’s unwavering faith can shake;

All’s well, whichever side the grave for me

The morning light may break!

Father supreme! thou high and holy One!

To thee we bow;

Now, when the burden of the day is gone,

Devoutly, now.

2 From age to age unchanging, still the same

All-good thou art;

Hallowed for ever be thy reverend name

In every heart!

3 When the glad morn upon the hills was spread,

Thy smile was there;

Now, as the darkness gathers overhead,

We feel thy care.

4 Night spreads her shade upon another day

For ever past;

So, o’er our faults, thy love, we humbly pray,

A vail may cast.

5 Silence and calm, o’er hearts by earth distrest,

Now sweetly steal;

So every fear that struggles in the breast

Shall faith conceal.

6 Thou, through the dark, wilt watch above our sleep

With eye of love;

And thou wilt wake us, when the sunbeams leap

The hills above.

7 O, may each heart its gratitude express

As life expands,

And find the triumph of its happiness

In thy commands!

Fading, still fading, the last beam is shining;

Father in heaven! the day is declining;

Safety and innocence flee with the light,

Temptation and danger walk forth with the night;

From the fall of the shade till the morning bells chime,

Shield us from danger and keep us from crime!

Father! have mercy, thro’ Jesus Christ our Lord! Amen!

2 Father in heaven! O, hear when we call,

Hear for Christ’s sake, who is Saviour of all!

Feeble and fainting, we trust in thy might;

In doubting and darkness, thy love be our light!

Let us sleep on thy breast while the night taper burns,

Wake in thy arms when morning returns.

Father! have mercy, thro’ Jesus Christ our Lord! Amen!