XIII. THE COVENANT.-Ezek. xxxvi. 25-28. THE Lord proclaims his grace abroad! My grace, a flowing stream, proceeds My truth the great design ensures, Yet not unsought, or unimplored, From the first breath of life divine, XIV. JEHOVAH-SHAMMAH. Ezek. xlviii. 35. As birds their infant brood protect,† "So will I guard Jerusalem." * Verse 37. † Isaiah xxxi. 5. And what then is Jerusalem, This darling object of his care? Where is its worth in God's esteem? Jehovah founded it in blood, The blood of his incarnate Son; There dwell the saints, once foes to God, The sinners whom he calls his own. There, though besieged on every side, Let earth repent, and hell despair, Her name is call'd The Lord is there, XV. PRAISE FOR THE FOUNTAIN THERE is a fountain fill'd with blood The dying thief rejoiced to see Dear dying Lamb, thy precious blood Till all the ransom'd church of God Be saved to sin no more. E'er since, by faith, I saw the stream Then in a nobler, sweeter song, Lord, I believe thou hast prepared For me a blood-bought free reward, "Tis strung, and tuned, for endless years, And form'd by power divine, To sound in God the Father's ears No other name but thine. XVI. THE SOWER.-Matt. xiii. 3. YE sons of earth, prepare the plough, The seed that finds a stony soil, But ill repays the sower's toil, Soon wither'd, scorch'd, and dead. The thorny ground is sure to balk The beaten path and highway side But where the Lord of grace and Father of mercies, we have need power Let the same hand that gives the seed XVII. THE HOUSE OF PRAYER.Mark xi. 17. THY mansion is the Christian's heart, O Lord, thy dwelling-place secure! Bid the unruly throng depart, And leave the consecrated door. Devoted as it is to thee, A thievish swarm frequents the place; There, too, a sharp designing trade I know them, and I hate their din, Am weary of the bustling crowd; But while their voice is heard within, I cannot serve thee as I would. Oh! for the joy thy presence gives, What peace shall reign when thou art here! And if thou make thy temple shine, XVIII. LOVEST THOU ME?-John xxi. 16. HARK, my soul! it is the Lord: "I deliver'd thee when bound, And when bleeding, heal'd thy wound; "Can a woman's tender care Cease towards the child she bare? “Mine is an unchanging love, "Thou shalt see my glory soon, |