The Comparison and Complaint.
I
Infinite power, eternal Lord,
How sov'reign is thy hand!
All nature rose t'obey thy word,
And moves at thy command.
II
With steady course thy shining sun
Keeps his appointed way,
And all the hours obedient run
The circle of the day.
III
But ah! how wide my spirit flies,
And wanders from her God!
My soul forgets the heavenly prize,
And treads the downward road.
IV
The raging fire, and stormy sea,
Perform thine awful will;
And ev'ry beast and ev'ry tree,
Thy great designs fulfil:
V
While my wild passions rage within,
Nor thy commands obey;
And flesh and sense, inslav'd to sin,
Draw my best thoughts away.
VI
Shall creatures of a meaner frame
Pay all their dues to thee;
Creatures, that never knew thy name,
That never lov'd like me?
VII
Great God, create my soul anew,
Conform my heart to thine,
Melt down my will, and let it flow,
And take the mould divine.
VIII
Seize my whole frame into thy hand:
Here all my pow'rs I bring;
Manage the wheels by thy command,
And govern ev'ry spring.
IX
Then shall my feet no more depart,
Nor wandering senses rove;
Devotion shall be all my heart,
And all my passions love.
X
Then not the sun shall more than I
His Maker's law perform,
Nor travel swifter thro' the sky,
Nor with a zeal so warm.
