Songs of Zion, Collection – Dedication 5
Eph. 1. 16. The first Prayer.
1.
I cease not to giuegive thankes to thee
O god my god most iust
For all thy gifts of grace, & louelove
To vsus that liue in dust
2.
And lord I craue a glympse of light
In Christ my lord thy sonne
That so my faith may see that sight,
And to it still may runne.
3.
That I may knovve thy becke thy call
My hope, my helpe, my all.
That I may hauehave thy povver, & strength
To helpe me vvhen I fall.
4.
For thou o god hast made vsus see
What thou hast vvrought in louelove
For thy svveete spouse thy church thy vvife
Thy ioy, thy simle, thy doue.
5.
For thou hast set our Christ, o god
At thy right hand to shine
And thou to that place vvilt vsus bring
For that deare louelove of thine.
6.
O god thou laidst my Christ fu… lovve
With in the earth so darke
But thou didst raise him vp on high
And settst him as a marke.
7.
On vvhichwhich vve fixe our eies of faith
Our harts, our minds, our louelove
O bring vsus all to him svveete god
That is our deere, our doue.
O god my hart is fixt on thee, and my tongue shall sing, & giuegive praise to thy name for aye.
PSAL. 108. 1.
Eph. 3. 14. The second Prayer.
1.
I day by, day doe bovve to thee
And cease not in the night
To seeke thee lord in all my thoughts
And muse of all thy might
2.
For of our Christ is nāde the church
Of vsus that liue in clay,
And eke thy gaurd, & saincts on high
That praise thee day, by day.
3.
Graūt vsus o lord that vve may knovve
Thy grace, our good, our end
And that vve may feele povver, & strength
And Christ may be our frend
4.
Let him dvvell in our harts o lord
And then vve shall thee see,
With all thy saincts in breadth, & length
In depth, in height, in glee.
5.
Then shall vve knovve the louelove of Christ
That else is past our skill
The shalt thou fill vsus vvith thy grace
In him to doe thy vvill.
6.
O lord for vsus this thou canst doe
And more then all that is
Of thy good grace to vvorke in vsus
In Christ hovve should vve misse.
7.
Praise be to thee in all the vvorld,
Thy church doe sing the same,
And age to age shall eke sett forth
For aye, to ours, thy name.
O god thou art my god ere it be day vvill I seeke thee my soule, & flesh doe thirst, & long for thee as drie land vvhichwhich vvants raine.
PSAL. 63. 1.
Phil. 1. 9. The third Prayer.
1.
GRaunt to vsus lord that louelove may dvvell
In these poore tents of ours
For vve must hence vve knovve full
And fade as doe the flovvers
2.
And graūt good lord that in thy louelove
It may grovve more, & more
That vve may knovve vvhat things are ill
And lead not to thy lore.
3.
So may vve in the day of doome
In Christ be void of shame
And fild vvith his faire fruits of louelove
May scape the rod of blame
4.
Then shall vve sing the praise to thee
In midst of all thy Saincts,
Then shall our soules be glad, & ioy,
That novve is vveake, & faints.
5.
Icease not lord to pray for those
That seeke, & sue to thee
That they may knovve hovve safe, & sure
In Christ their soules may be
6.
And that vve all may vvalke, and vvorke
In vvord, in vvorth, in all
As he that hath vsus cald to thi…
And rid vsus of our thrall.
7.
Who hath vsus fred from povver of death
Frō foggs, & doggs of hell▪
And set vsus by his chaire of state
With Christ fotaye to dvvell.
Saue vsus o lord our god, & bring vsus from those that doe not call on thee that vve may call on thee, & laud, & praise …hy name for aye.
PSAL. 106. 47.
The. 3. 11. The fourth Prayer.
1.
THe lord our god our strength & stay
Make vsus to louelove each one;
And make vsus knovve hovve that vve are
Made all of flesh, & bone.
2.
That soe vve may grovve vp in grace
And firme in hart, & minde
That soe to all vve may set forth
Our louelove both sure, & kind.
3.
Yea not to cease till that our lord
Doe come in clouds full bright
To iudge this earth, & all the folke
Yea all the vvorld in sight.
4.
For is it not the louelove of Christ
Who did louelove vsus soe deare
That vve through hope of grace in him
Should liue voyd of base feare
5.
Lord be thou ioy to all our harts
Our vvords, our vvorkes good make▪
That vve may louelove, & liue in thee
For thy sonne Christ his sake.
6.
O god of peace, of louelove, of life
Grant vsus to serue thee still
In spright, in soule, in hart, in mind
And this of thy good vvill.
7.
Yea keepe vsus lord frō blame, & blott
Till Christ doth come in skey.
So shall vve sure be of thy louelove
To liue, vvhen vve shall die.
Heare me o lord, & that soone for my soule doth vvaxe faint hide not thy face from me: Least I be like them that goe dovvne to the graue.
PSAL. 148. 7.
…om. 7. 25. The fift Prayer.
1.
… thanke thee lord that hast sett novve
In me a fight, a iarre;
My mind, my flesh, doe day by day
In strife sett forth a vvarre.
2.
My mind to thy svveete lavve giues vvay,
My flesh in thrall is brought,
My mind vvould keepe thy lavve, thy lore.
And hath thy vvill still sought
3.
But my base flesh is prompt, & seekes
Thy lavve to cast me fro.
O god vvhat shall I doe in this?
With me the case is so.
4.
My mind vvould doe the god full faine
That thy lawes shevve to me
But still my flesh doth frett, & fume
Gainst this thy lavve to me
5.
For I doe not that vvhichwhich I louelove,
But I doe that I hate,
And all for that my mind is vext
With this my flesh my mate.
6.
What shall I doe o lord my god
Ah vvretch vvho setts thee free?
Frō this fell death of sinne, & shame
That I thy grace may see.
7.
I thanke my god vvho hauehave me fie…
For his sonne Christ his sake;
To him for aye both night, & day
My hymnes, my songs I make.
O god that thou vvouldst beat dovvne the strong, & ill man that rules, & raigns in my vveake flesh that I may say to him goe farre from me.
PSAL. 139. 19.
…o. 16. 24. The sixt Prayer.
1.
THe grace of god be all my giude
His povver be all my staye
His strength eke be to me a staffe
By night, & eke by day,
2.
For he it is that hath me taught
That vvhichwhich the vvorld nere knevve
Till Christ our lord vvas made to vsus
Our lord, our god in vevve.
3.
To god in hymnes still vvill I sing
His praise is all my mirth
The vvorld shall sett him forth in praise.
In all parts of the earth.
4.
If there be vvight that liues in life
And doth not louelove our god
Let him tast of the lord of hosts
His curse, his vvrath, his rod
5.
But let the louelove of god, & grace
Of Christ, be vvith you all
That louelove, & looke, & long for him
To rid vsus of our thrall.
6.
And let our god that brought fro… death
Our Christ, our grace, our blisse
Set vsus vvith saincts in ioy, in light
Where as our Christ novve is.
7.
So shall vve tūe in that svveete qui…
Midst of those saincts in rest;
And see his saincts in light of light
And so for aye be blest.
O god let them that hate thee flit from thy sight as the mist doth from the sunne, but let them that louelove thee be glad, & ioy in thee.
PSAL. 68. 1.
…. 13. 20. The seuenth Prayer
1.
O God vve are poore sheepe that stray
In vvods, in vvaies of sinne
…ovve dovvne thine eare to vsus, & heare
And rid vsus of this dinne.
2.
…hat vve may knovve thy grace in Christ
That keepes vsus as his flocke.
…hat leads vsus forth to streames of ioy
And setts vsus on a rocke.
3.
…hat soe vve may ore see this vvorld
And all the things in it
…nd then doe place vsus vp on high
With him in ioy to sit.
4.
Graūt vsus good lord that vve may see
The good that doth thee please
…o shall vve liue in hart in mind
In ioy, in rest, in ease.
5.
Graunt lord vvhat thou dost bid … do…
That vve may doe the same
Bid vvhat thou vvilt, & graūt vsus grac…
And vve vvill praise thy name
6.
To Christ our lord the lambe of go…
That shed his bloud for sinnes,
To rid vsus from the feends of hell
And all their crafts, & ginns.
7.
Be praisd of vsus all tymes, & tyds
In vvoe, & eke in vvealth
And let the folke on all the earth
GiueGive laud to him for health.
O lord god of our health I crie d… & night to thee, let my grones come nig… to thee, & bovve dovvne thine eare to … sighes that I make to thee.
The song of songs
Or the Canticle of Solomon betweene Christ, & his spouse, the tvvo first chapters, & is set to the tune of, Blessed are they that perfect are
PSAL. CXIX. 1. part.
To his much esteemed good freend Mr. WILLIAM CHRISTMAS Marchant one of the deacons of the English Church residing at Hamborough:
Grace here, glory for euer in Christ.
LOuing, & beloued frend. The title of this heauenly hymne shevveth the excellency thereof. For it is called the song of songs, or the Canticles of vvise Soloman. The subiecte is most sacred, for it is the …uptiall louelove song betvveene Christ, & his spouse. Wherein their mutuall loues by svveete resēblāces are mystically, & maruelously expressed What more comfortable song then to sing our harts louelove vve beare to Christ in the blessed vnion by one spirit vvherby vve hauehave euerlasting life. Tvvo of the first chapters of vvhichwhich song I hauehave metaphrased into Monosyllables, vvhichwhich I hauehave bequethed to your louelove as a signe of mine, & to seale both ours. Receaue it as the rest of your colleagues, for I vvish you all the happines of both vvorlds in the sauing mercies of Christ t… vvhichwhich I recommend you, & a… that looke vponupon you vvith louelove resting.
Yours because of Christ W. LOE.