Poems on Several Occasions :: :: University of Virginia Library

Great art thou, Lord, with dazling brightness crown'd,
Compleat in Glory, and with Light enthron'd.
Thy artful hand outstretch'd the Heav'ns on high,
And turn'd the convex of the vaulted Sky.
Thy Clouds, as chariots, Thee their Maker bear,
And Winds officious waft Thee thro' the Air.
By Thee this beautious frame of Earth was made;
A pond'rous Mass, on firm Foundations laid:

What time immers'd beneath the Waves she lay,
High o'er her mountains flow'd the swelling sea:
Subdu'd by Thee, the swelling Seas subside
And blended oceans at Thy Word divide;
No more licentious wander o'er the ground,
But peaceful back retire, and roar around.
Where pathless Woods and Rocks impervious rise,
Thy careful Goodness ev'ry want supplies.
Thro' the wide Waste the limpid Currents stray,
Green springs the Herbage, and the Trees are gay;
Here undisturb'd the savage Kind resort,
Bound o'er the hills, and thro' the forest sport;
Joyful, secure, the cooling stream they taste,
Profuse around them rises their repast:
While on each branch the Birds harmonious sing,
And hail the beauties of the kindling Spring.

By Thee the Moon was form'd, serenely bright,
Refulgent ruler of the silent night:
With various Shapes she charms th'observing Eye,
And gilds the horrors of the midnight sky:
Her cheerful Beams departed day renew,
Dance on the deep, and glitter o'er the dew.
See the bright Sun unwearied roul around,
And feed with genial fires the pregnant ground;
To stated Times obedient, mark his Way;
And now contract, and now extend the Day:

With Ev'ning light he paints the glowing West,
And warns the busie world to needful rest:
Then awful Night exerts her solemn reign,
Broods o'er the hills, and spreads upon the plain.
Fierce from his den the brindled Lion moves,
And stalks impatient thro' the sable groves;
From his dread Roar the herds affrighted flee;
To them a Terror, but a Prayer to Thee.

Nor is Thy Care (Oh Lord!) on Earth alone.
Extended Oceans Thy Protection own;
Thy wondrous Works extend thro'out the Main,
And Swarms unnumber'd crowd the wat'ry plain.
See thro' the waves the Whale enormous sport,
The groaning waters scarce his weight support:
He turns his monstrous bulk in careless Play,
And spouts an Ocean in the Face of Day.
To these their Food Thy hands unsparing give;
Thy Care protects them, and by Thee they live.
At Thy Command they yield their borrow'd breath,
And prostrate fall the sacrifice of Death:
But Thou (Oh Lord!) for ever shalt remain,
Thy Pow'r eternal, and supream Thy Reign.
Let scornful Fools Thy Sacred Name deride,
Despise Thy Laws, and boast their impious Pride;
Be mine to praise, to wonder, and adore,
'Till Life's precarious moments are no more.