The poetical works of John and Charles Wesley

Still with bowels of compassion
Jesus Thy disciples see,
Hungering after Thy salvation
Perishing for want of Thee,
Thee, the Bread come down from heaven,
Thee the true angelic food,
Manna to Thy people given,
Life, and plenitude of God.

Sin's immeasurable distance
God and us no longer parts:
By Thy merciful assistance
Lo, we bring to Thee our hearts:
Empty while Thy love is wanting,
For Thine only love we pine;
Feed us, Lord, distress'd and fainting,
Be our sustenance Divine.

If we in Thy grace have tasted
That imperishable Bread,
All our former strength is wasted,
Fresh supplies, Thou know'st, we need:
Lord we can hold out no longer,
Cannot live without Thy love:
Wilt Thou let us die for hunger,
Ere we reach our home above?

Comfort though Thou dost not give us
On the first, or second day,
Thou wilt on the third relieve us,
Us who for Thy blessing stay;
Patient, poor, and persevering,
Hungry if we still abide,
We shall at Thy late appearing
All be fill'd and satisfied.

935. [In this barren wilderness]

From whence can a man satisfy these men, &c. —viii. 4.

In this barren wilderness
By the good Shepherd led,
Having Christ we all possess,
And nothing more can need:
Thou art all good things in one,
And dost for every soul suffice;
Find we in Thy love alone
The life of paradise.

936. [Lord, on Thee Thy people wait]

He gave to His disciples to set before them; &c. —viii. 6.

Lord, on Thee Thy people wait
Thy blessing to receive,
Thou dost still communicate
The bread by which we live;

Dost to ministers impart
The grace we through their hands obtain,
All Thou hast and all Thou art,
Thou hast and art for man.

937. [Jesus multiplies to give]

And they had a few small fishes: and He, &c. —viii. 7.

Jesus multiplies to give,
But man to' engross and hoard:
Shall we not with thanks receive
The bounty of our Lord?
Riches, Lord, Thou dost not bless,
But things by which the poor are fed:
Happy who therewith possess
The everlasting Bread!

938. [When in Jesus' name we pray]

So they did eat, and were filled. —viii. 8.

When in Jesus' name we pray,
And bless our daily food,
Jesus doth the power convey
Which makes the creatures good;
He the secret grace reveals
Which never cloys, yet satisfies,
He our hearts with gladness fills,
And lifts them to the skies.

939. [No proofs will for the men suffice]

The Pharisees came forth, and began to, &c. —viii. 11.

No proofs will for the men suffice
Who shut against the light their eyes,
Who seek occasion from His word
To' oppose and contradict their Lord,
The Scriptures search but to pervert,
And harden more their faithless heart.

Because they will not understand
Thy truth, they miracles demand,

The hand Divine refuse to see,
And still insist “How can it be?”
And when the Comforter is given
They disbelieve the sign from heaven.

940. [When the captious Pharisee]

He sighed deeply in His spirit, and saith, &c. —viii. 12.

When the captious Pharisee
Asks a fresh unneeded sign,
We can only sigh like Thee
Touch'd with sympathy Divine!
Lord increase our loving grief,
Hear us for the' opposers pray,
Help their wilful unbelief,
Take their stony heart away.

941. [Christ no further effort makes]

He left them, and entering into the ship again, &c. —viii. 13

Christ no further effort makes
Men to teach who will not see,
Harden'd infidels forsakes
In their infidelity:
Passing to the other side,
When He gives the sinner o'er,
Parted by the gulf of pride
God and man can meet no more.

942. [Happy Thy faithful followers, Lord]

Now the disciples had forgotten to take bread. —viii. 14.

Happy Thy faithful followers, Lord,
Who slight the body's need,
And tasting the true heavenly word
Forget their daily bread:
Thou wilt from thence occasion take
To teach them truths unknown,
And everything subservient make
For perfecting Thine own.

943. [From spiritual to sensual good]

They reasoned among themselves, saying, &c. —viii. 16.

From spiritual to sensual good
By nature's weight we slide,
Till saved and perfectly renew'd
In Jesus we abide:
From sensible enjoyments then
To spiritual we soar,
And never sink in flesh again,
And think of earth no more.

944. [On whom doth Jesus' censure fall?]

Why reason ye, because ye have no bread? &c. —viii. 17.

On whom doth Jesus' censure fall?
On you who Providence forget,
Anxious for life, as life were all,
Labouring for perishable meat,
Who murmur at your scanty store,
Or in abundance grasp at more.

Doubting your heavenly Father's care,
So oft in your support employ'd,
Blinder than infidels ye are,
Of faith, of understanding void,
Grovelling on earth your spirits lie,
And stupid as the beasts that die.

945. [Worldlings ye may, but will not see]

Having eyes, see ye not? and having ears, &c. —viii. 18.

Worldlings ye may, but will not see
Ye will not hear the truth, and know
That all on earth is vanity,
While heaping up your wealth below,
Ye quite forget that coming day
When earth and heaven shall flee away.

Ye will not bear it in your mind
That God can all your riches blast,

Scatter as chaff before the wind,
And driven from His face at last
Confine you to the burning pool,
With not a drop your tongue to cool.

946. [How dark the night which sin hath spread]

How is it that ye do not understand? &c. —viii. 21.

How dark the night which sin hath spread
O'er every heart and mind of man!
Thy blessings, Lord, we will not heed,
Thy benefits pour'd out in vain,
Thy works with careless eye we view,
And wonders every moment new.

Surrounded by Thy power and love,
We will not see the' Almighty's hand,
Unless Thy grace the clouds remove,
And teach our hearts to understand,
And give us in Thy light to see
The fulness of our God in Thee.

947. [Blind to ourselves by nature we]

They bring a blind man unto Him, &c. —viii. 22.

Blind to ourselves by nature we,
Blind to the things of God, were born,
When God assumed humanity,
Our darkness into light to turn,
He touch'd our nature with His own,
And made them in His person one.

He to the conscious soul of man
Still condescends Himself to' unite,
Broods o'er the dark abyss again,
And sighing saith “Let there be light!
Open thine eyes of faith, and see
Thy God incarnated in Me.”

O Jesus, after Thee I feel,
To Thee present my blindfold heart:
Touch by Thy grace invisible,
And bid these scales of sin depart:
Till Thou mine unbelief remove,
I cannot see that God is love.

948. [Out of the crowd He first must take]

He took the blind man by the hand, and led, &c. —viii. 23.

Out of the crowd He first must take,
Before His grace He show:
Sinner, the busy world forsake,
And with thy Saviour go;
Then shall the God of pardoning love
Bid all thy sin depart,
And by a sovereign touch remove
The blindness of thy heart.

949. [Me by the hand Thy grace hath took]

Me by the hand Thy grace hath took,
Kind leader of a sinner blind,
Through Thee I have the world forsook,
And wait Thy healing touch to find,
That when Thou dost my sight restore
My faith may wonder and adore.

Thy hand upon Thy creature lay,
The Spirit of Thy powerful love,
Mould as Thou wilt the passive clay;
Jesus, in whom I live and move,
Apply Thine own balsamic blood,
And show my heart the pardoning God.

950. [Thy previous grace, which now I feel]

He looked up, and said, I see men as trees, &c. —viii. 24.

Thy previous grace, which now I feel,
To me mine unbelief hath shown.

Hath made my darkness visible,
And joyful in its cure begun,
A glimmering light my spirit sees,
And men beholds as walking trees.

As walking in a shadow vain
A world of sinners I perceive;
Joy they pursue, and sorrow gain,
In ignorance like mine they live,
Till justice stern the axe apply,
And then they fade, they fall, they die!

951. [O Saviour touch mine eyes again]

After that He put His hands again upon his, &c. —viii. 25.

O Saviour touch mine eyes again;
Heal'd by the eye-salve of Thy grace,
I then shall see both God and man,
Express'd in my Redeemer's face,
And comprehend the mystery,
And all things know by knowing Thee.

My head anoint and purify
That Thee I may behold below
With spiritual discerning eye
Thy works, Thy will, Thy people know,
And look the whole creation through
Till Thee I in Thy glory view.

952. [Christ of Himself, and Christ alone]

By the way He asked His disciples, . . . Whom, &c. —viii. 27.

Christ of Himself, and Christ alone
Can without peril speak:
We speak to magnify our own,
Ourselves, not God, we seek;
We plainly show our heart's desire
Our curious vanity

Who listening after fame, inquire
What say the world of me?

But rather what of Christ they say,
Let us desire to know,
And talk of Jesus by the way,
And Jesus' Godhead show:
The' Anointed of the Lord Thou art;
The unction of Thy grace
To me, to all Thy church impart,
To all our ransom'd race.

953. [Jesus no exception leaves]

Whosoever will come after Me, let him deny, &c. —viii. 34.

Jesus no exception leaves,
Our self-denying Lord
Calls the multitude, and gives
The universal word:
What to them the Saviour spoke
Doth every age and nation bind,
Lays alike the sacred yoke
On us, and all mankind.

Ministers and people too
Must now themselves forsake,
Keep the Crucified in view
And Jesus' cross partake;
Daily in His footsteps tread,
His sacrificial spirit breathe,
Till like Him they bow the head,
And die their latest death.

Lord, if Thou the grace supply
And mark me with Thy name,
I shall still renounce, deny
Whate'er I have or am;

Judgment, memory, mind, and will,
The Adam old opposed to Thee,
Thou my heavenly Adam, kill,
And live alone in me.

954. [What but the love of truth and Thee]

Whosoever shall lose his life for My sake, &c. —viii. 35.

What but the love of truth and Thee
From nature's love can set me free,
The just contempt of life bestow,
Of all its goods, and ills below?
Saviour, infuse into my heart
The grace with all for Thee to part,
And lo, I cheerfully resign
My life, to find it hid in Thine.

Regardless of the tyrant's frown,
The witnesses their lives laid down,
Tortures and death they dared despise,
And gain'd at once the glorious prize:
But proof of stronger faith we give,
While dead to life's delights we live,
And still for Thee ourselves deny,
And still a thousand deaths we die.

955. [Ere the righteous Judge appear]

What shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the, &c. —viii. 36.

Ere the righteous Judge appear,
Sinner, count thy mournful gains,
Momentary pleasures here
Purchased with eternal pains!
When Thy soul its body leaves,
Where is its felicity?
When the pit thy soul receives,
What is all the world to thee?

University of Virginia Library

CHAPTER VIII.

934.

[Still with bowels of compassion]

935.

[In this barren wilderness]

936.

[Lord, on Thee Thy people wait]

937.

[Jesus multiplies to give]

938.

[When in Jesus' name we pray]

939.

[No proofs will for the men suffice]

940.

[When the captious Pharisee]

941.

[Christ no further effort makes]

942.

[Happy Thy faithful followers, Lord]

943.

[From spiritual to sensual good]

944.

[On whom doth Jesus' censure fall?]

945.

[Worldlings ye may, but will not see]

946.

[How dark the night which sin hath spread]

947.

[Blind to ourselves by nature we]

948.

[Out of the crowd He first must take]

949.

[Me by the hand Thy grace hath took]

950.

[Thy previous grace, which now I feel]

951.

[O Saviour touch mine eyes again]

952.

[Christ of Himself, and Christ alone]

953.

[Jesus no exception leaves]

954.

[What but the love of truth and Thee]

955.

[Ere the righteous Judge appear]