Hymns for Christian Devotion Part 132

1 O G.o.d of freedom! hear us pray For steadfast hearts to toil as one; Till thy pure law hath boundless sway-- Thy will in heaven and earth be done.

2 A piercing voice of grief and wrong Goes upward from the groaning earth; Most true and holy Lord! how long?-- In majesty and might come forth.

3 Yet, Lord! remembering mercy too, Behold th' oppressor in his sin; Make all his actions just and true, Renew his wayward heart within.

800. L. M. Anonymous.

Prayer for Zeal and Love.

1 O Lord! whose forming hand one blood To all the tribes and nations gave, And giv'st to all their daily food, Look down in pity on the slave!

2 Fetters and chains and stripes remove, Deliv'rance to the captives give; And pour the tide of light and love Upon their souls, and bid them live.

3 Oh! kindle in our hearts a flame Of zeal, thy holy will to do; And bid each one, who loves thy name, Love all his bleeding brethren too.

4 Through all thy temples, let the stain Of prejudice each bosom flee; And, hand in hand, let Afric's train, With Europe's children, wors.h.i.+p thee.

801. 8s. & 7s. M. Mrs. Livermore.

Prayer for the Slave.

1 Father, who of old descended From thy throne above the sky, And thine Israel's rights defended, Hear the bondman's anguished cry!

2 Hear how Ethiopia crieth, Kneeling on the blood-stained sod; And how sable Afric' sigheth, Lifting up her hands to G.o.d!

3 From the grasp of strong oppression, From the tyrant's rusting chain, And from slavery's deep depression, With its life-long hours of pain;

4 From our country's wide savannas, Let the cry come up to thee, Let the prayers become hosannas-- Father, set thy children free!

802. 7s. M. Mrs. Follen.

That G.o.d Would hear the Cries of the Slave.

1 Lord! deliver; thou canst save; Save from evil, Mighty G.o.d!

Hear--oh! hear the kneeling slave, Break--oh! break th' oppressor's rod.

2 May the captive's pleading fill All the earth, and all the sky; Every other voice be still, While he pleads with G.o.d on high.

3 He, whose ear is everywhere, Who doth silent sorrow see, Will regard the captive's prayer, Will from bondage set him free.

4 From the tyranny within, Save thy children, Lord! we pray; Chains of iron, chains of sin, Cast forever, cast away.

5 Love to man, and love to G.o.d, Are the weapons of our war; These can break the oppressor's rod-- Burst the bonds that we abhor.

803. L. M. J. G. Whittier.

For a Liberty Meeting on the Fourth of July.

1 O Thou! whose presence went before Our fathers in their weary way, As with thy chosen moved of yore The fire by night--the cloud by day!

2 When, from each temple of the free, A nation's song ascends to heaven, Most Holy Father! unto thee, May not our humble prayer be given,--

3 For those to whom this day can bring, Not, as to us, the joyful thrill;-- For those, who, under freedom's wing, Are bound in slavery's fetters still:--

4 And grant, O Father! that the time Of Earth's deliverance may be near, When every land, and tongue, and clime, The message of thy love shall hear.

5 When smitten, as with fire from heaven, The captive's chain shall sink in dust, And to his fettered soul be given The glorious freedom of the just.

804. L. M. Miss Weston.

"'Tis good to be merciful."

1 'Tis good to weep and mourn for those, Crushed down by Slavery's iron hand, And feel, while numbering o'er their woes, Strength for the just and true to stand.

2 'Tis good and true to say to those, Who claim a right in human kind, "Mercy and Justice are your foes, And they shall certain triumph find."

3 'Tis good--'tis blessed, to say to all, "Arise, to help the wretched slave, Upon your G.o.d for courage call, And in his strength go forth and save."

4 Lord! this is what we seek to do; Grant us thy grace to do it well; Help us thy glory to pursue, And of thy promises to tell.

805. P. M. H. Ware, Jr.

The Progress of Freedom.

1 Oppression shall not always reign; There comes a brighter day; When freedom, burst from every chain, Shall have triumphant way.