 | A Collection of Poems on Various Subjects |  |
58
A SOLILOQUY.
I commune with my own Heart.
Psalm lxxvii. 6.
Psalm lxxvii. 6.
Grateful Sensations urge my Voice, O lend
Thy sacred Ear! my Father, God, and Friend,
Assist the Strain, while by Reflection led,
I backward view the Years gone o'er my Head.
As far as my frail Memory can trace,
I find Vestigia's of Thy Love and Grace;
Thro' ev'ry Period of my Life, I see
Thy saving Providence and Clemency;
There's scarce a Day, thro' the revolving Year,
But I remark some Token of Thy Care:
A Sense of which deeply impress'd my Mind,
Humbl'd my Heart, and made my Soul resign'd;
Engag'd me oft to cry, on bended Knee,
Draw me O God! and I'll run after Thee.
And should'st Thou deign a Competence to give,
Thy Laws shall be revered while I live;
And when I die, admitted to Thy Throne,
In endless Praise my Gratitude be shown.
Thy sacred Ear! my Father, God, and Friend,
Assist the Strain, while by Reflection led,
I backward view the Years gone o'er my Head.
As far as my frail Memory can trace,
I find Vestigia's of Thy Love and Grace;
Thro' ev'ry Period of my Life, I see
Thy saving Providence and Clemency;
There's scarce a Day, thro' the revolving Year,
But I remark some Token of Thy Care:
A Sense of which deeply impress'd my Mind,
Humbl'd my Heart, and made my Soul resign'd;
Engag'd me oft to cry, on bended Knee,
Draw me O God! and I'll run after Thee.
And should'st Thou deign a Competence to give,
Thy Laws shall be revered while I live;
59
In endless Praise my Gratitude be shown.
But on Thy Mercy still must I confide,
For tho' I vow'd, yet I have stept aside,
Infring'd Thy Laws, Thy Statutes disrever'd,
And the first Nature has too much appear'd;
So that I may this fair Confession make,
The Spirit's willing, but the Flesh is weak.
Therefore I beg, O! let Thy Grace subdue
Each erring Passion, and my Heart renew,
That to my Friends, I this Account may give,
Like pious Paul, I'm dead, and yet, I live!
And now the Life, that animates this Clod,
Leans on the Faith of the dear Son of God,
Who for my Sake alone the Wine-press trod.
For tho' I vow'd, yet I have stept aside,
Infring'd Thy Laws, Thy Statutes disrever'd,
And the first Nature has too much appear'd;
So that I may this fair Confession make,
The Spirit's willing, but the Flesh is weak.
Therefore I beg, O! let Thy Grace subdue
Each erring Passion, and my Heart renew,
That to my Friends, I this Account may give,
Like pious Paul, I'm dead, and yet, I live!
And now the Life, that animates this Clod,
Leans on the Faith of the dear Son of God,
Who for my Sake alone the Wine-press trod.
On Worship.
The Worship, Heav'n with Approbation crowns,Consisteth not in Cringes, or in Sounds;
In Ceremonies, or in Cut of Coat,
Nor in long Pray'rs, expressed all by Rote;
60
In costly Domes, Houses magnificent,
Which strike the Senses, and Affections draw
Into a superstitious lifeless Awe;
But unreforms, and leaves the Soul as poor,
As impotent, and filthy as before.
No! genuine Worship is a nobler Thing,
Love's its Original and only Spring;
It is perform'd in Spirit and in Heart,
By th' Ability God doth Himself impart;
And it consisteth in a boly living,
In Pray'r, in Praise, and true Thanksgiving.
The Internal Monitor.
Thou need'st not say, with mental Sighs, O Man!Who will unfold Jehovah's mystick Plan?
Who bring the sacred Pandects from the Sky?
That we may hear, and with the Terms comply.
Who perch upon the Morning's early Breeze?
And waft it to us from beyond the Seas.
Or, who descend to the unmeasur'd Deep,
And fetch it where tremendous Waters sleep?
For in thy Heart the Word's divinely wrote,
Indelible and fair, without a Blot;
61
Extensive as the Light! to All 'tis giv'n.
Unto this Oracle Attention give,
Obey its Dictates, and thy Soul shall live.
Nor need'st thou say, Wherewith, alas, shall I
Approach the Great Eternal Deity?
Or how prostrate myself to gain his Eye?
Shall I before His awful Presence come
With Yearling-calves, in a full Hecatomb?
Will Rams in thousands please from Bashan's Soil?
Or, shall I give ten thousand Rills of Oil?
Shall my First-born be offer'd as a Toll,
The Body's Fruit ransom the guilty Soul?
No! none of these, Jehovah will delight;
Thy Heart is Conscious of the Thing that's Right.
The Rule is short—Be merciful, be just,
And humbly in thy Maker put thy Trust.
A Hymn.
What Words Jehovah! shall I chuse
T' express my Thanks to Thee?
What reverential Posture use?
Down on my Face or Knee?
T' express my Thanks to Thee?
What reverential Posture use?
Down on my Face or Knee?
62
External Forms may seem devout,
Yet no Acceptance find;
Nor all the Pomp of Words, without
A correspondent Mind.
Yet no Acceptance find;
Nor all the Pomp of Words, without
A correspondent Mind.
The Heart's an Index; read me, there
See Gratitude and Praise;
For Competence, a Conscience clear,
With Health, and Length of Days;
See Gratitude and Praise;
For Competence, a Conscience clear,
With Health, and Length of Days;
For one true Friend, an Offspring large;
And what is dearer still,
For Love, that did my Debts discharge,
And brought from Heav'n Thy Will.
And what is dearer still,
For Love, that did my Debts discharge,
And brought from Heav'n Thy Will.
Shall I, O God! thus highly blest,
E'er disobedient prove,
Or make revealed Truths a Jest,
And Sceptick Reas'ning love?
E'er disobedient prove,
Or make revealed Truths a Jest,
And Sceptick Reas'ning love?
Shall I prefer a transient Sin,
Renounce Thy sacred Laws,
And slight Thy holy Checks within,
To gain the World's Applause?
Renounce Thy sacred Laws,
And slight Thy holy Checks within,
To gain the World's Applause?
No; rather let my Hand forget
To guide the passive Quill;
My Eyes in total Darkness set,
My lab'ring Heart stand still.
To guide the passive Quill;
My Eyes in total Darkness set,
My lab'ring Heart stand still.
FINIS.
| A Collection of Poems on Various Subjects | |