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But guard the just, thou God, to whom
The hearts of both are known.

10, 11 God me protects, not only me,
But all of upright heart;

And daily lays up wrath for those
Who from his laws depart.

12 If they persist, he whets his sword,
His bow stands ready bent;

18 Ev'n now, with swift destruction wing'd, His pointed shafts are sent ;

14 The plots are fruitless which my foe Unjustly did conceive;

15 The pit he digg'd for me, has prov'd His own untimely grave.

16 On his own head his spite returns,
Whilst I from harm am free;

On him the violence is fall'n,
Which he design'd for me.

17 Therefore will I the righteous ways
Of Providence proclaim;

I'll sing the praise of God most high,
And celebrate his Name.

PSALM VIII.

THOU, to whom all creatures bow
Within this earthly frame,

Through all the world how great art thou!
How glorious is thy Name!
In heav'n thy wondrous acts are sung,
Nor fully reckon❜d there;

2 And yet thou makʼst the infant tongue
Thy boundless praise declare.

Through thee the weak confound the strong,
And crush their haughty foes;

And so thou quell'st the wicked throng,
That thee and thine oppose.

3 When heav'n, thy beauteous work on high, Employs my wond'ring sight;

The moon, that nightly rules the sky,
With stars of feebler light;

4 What's man, say I, that, Lord, thou lovʼst
To keep him in thy mind?

Or what his offspring, that thou prov'st
To them so wondrous kind?

s Him next in pow'r thou didst create
To thy celestial train ;

6 Ordain'd with dignity and state, O'er all thy works to reign.

7 They jointly own his pow'rful sway; The beasts that prey or graze;

8 The bird that wings its airy way; The fish that cuts the seas.

9 O Thou, to whom all creatures bow Within this earthly frame,

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Through all the world how great art thou!
How glorious is thy Name!

ΤΟ

PSALM IX.

To celebrate thy praise, O Lord,

I will my heart prepare;

To all the list'ning world, thy works,
Thy wondrous works declare.

2 The thought of them shall to my soul
Exalted pleasures bring;

Whilst to thy name, O thou Most High,
Triumphant praise I sing.

3 Thou mad'st my haughty foes to turn
Their backs in shameful flight:
Struck with thy presence, down they fell,
They perish'd at thy sight.

4 Against insulting foes advanc'd,

Thou didst my cause maintain;
My right asserting from thy throne,
Where truth and justice reign.

5 The insolence of heathen pride
Thou hast reduc'd to shame ;
Their wicked offspring quite destroy'd,
And blotted out their name.

6 Mistaken foes, your haughty threats
Are to a period come;

Our city stands, which you design'd
To make our common tomb.

7,8 The Lord for ever lives, who has
His righteous throne prepar'd,
Impartial justice to dispense,

To punish or reward.

9 God is a constant sure defence
Against oppressing rage;

As troubles rise, his needful aids
In our behalf engage.

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10 All those who have his goodness prov'd
Will in his truth confide;

Whose mercy ne'er forsook the man
That on his help rely'd.

11 Sing praises there fore to the Lord,
From Sion, his abode;

Proclaim his deeds, till all the world
Confess no other God.

PART II.

12 When he inquiry makes for blood,
He'll call the poor to mind:
The injur'd humble man's complaint
Relief from him shall find.
13 Take pity on my troubles, Lord,
Which spiteful foes create,
Thou hast rescu'd me so oft
From death's devouring gate.

14 In Sion then I'll sing thy praise,
To all that love thy Name;

And with loud shouts of grateful joy
Thy saving power proclaim.
15 Deep in the pit, they digg'd for me,
The heathen pride is laid;

Their guilty feet to their own snare
Are heedlessly betray'd.

16 Thus, by the just returns he makes,
The mighty Lord is known;

While wicked men by their own plots,
Are shamefully o'erthrown.

17 No single sinner shall escape,
By privacy obscur'd:

Nor nation, from his just revenge,

By numbers be secur'd.

18 His suff'ring saints, when most distress'd,
He ne'er forgets to aid;
Their expectations shall be crown'd
Though for a time delay'd.

19 Arise, O Lord, assert thy pow'r,
And let not man o'ercome e;
Descend to judgment, and pronounce
The guilty heathen's doom

20 Strike terror through the nations round,
Till, by consenting fear,

They to each other, and themselves,
But mortal men appear.

PSALM X.

HY presence why withdraw'st thou, Lord?
Why hid'st thou now thy face,

When dismal times of deep distress
Call for thy wonted grace?

2 The wicked, swell'd with lawless pride,
Have made the poor their prey ;
O let them fall by those designs
Which they for others lay.

3 For straight they triumph, if success
Their thriving crimes attend;
And sordid wretches whom God hates,
Perversely they commend.

4 To own a power above themselves,
Their haughty pride disdains;
And therefore in their stubborn mind
No thought of God remains.
5 Oppressive methods they pursue,
And all their foes they slight;
Because thy judgments unobserv'd,
Are far above their sight.

6 They fondly think their prosp❜rous state
Shall unmolested be;

They think their vain designs shall thrive,
From all misfortunes free.

7 Vain and deceitful is their speech,
With curses fill'd, and lies;

By which the mischief of their heart
They study to disguise.

8 Near public roads they lie conceal'd,
And all their art employ,

The innocent and poor at once
To rifle and destroy.
9 Not lions, couching in their dens,
Surprise their heedless prey

With greater cunning, or express
More savage rage than they.

to Sometimes they act the harmless man,
And modest looks they wear;

That so deceiv'd, the poor may less
Their sudden onset fear.

PART II.

11 For God, they think, no notice takes Of their unrighteous deeds;

He never minds the suff'ring poor,
Nor their oppression heeds.

12 But thou, O Lord, at length arise,
Stretch forth thy mighty arm;
And, by the greatness of thy pow'r,
Defend the poor from harm.

13 No longer let the wicked vaunt,
And, proudly boasting, say,

"Tush, God regards not what we do;
"He never will repay

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14 But sure thou seest, and all their deeds
Impartially dost try;

The orphan, therefore, and the poor,
On thee for aid rely.

15 Defenceless let the wicked fall,
Of all their strength bereft ;
Confound, O God, their dark designs,
Till no remains are left.

16 Assert thy just dominion, Lord,
Which shall for ever stand;
Thou who the heathen didst expel
From this thy chosen land.

17 Thou hear'st the humble supplicants
That to thy throne repair;

Thou first prepar'st their hearts to pray,
And then accept❜st their pray'r.

18 Thou, in thy righteous judgment, weigh'st The fatherless and poor;

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That so the tyrants of the earth
May persecute no more.

SINCE

PSALM XI.

CE I have plac'd my trust in God,
A refuge always nigh,

Why should I, like a tim'rous bird,
To distant mountains fly?

2 Behold, the wicked bend their bow,
And ready fix their dart,
Lurking in ambush to destroy
The men of upright heart.

3 When once the firm assurance fails,
Which public faith imparts,

'Tis time for innocence to fly
From such deceitful arts.

4 The Lord hath both a temple here,
And righteous throne above;

B

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