HYMNS, COMPOSED BY DIFFERENT AUTHORS, AT THE REQUEST OF THE GENERAL CONVENTION OF UNIVERSALISTS OF THE NEW ENGLAND STATES AND OTHERS. Adapted to public and private Devotion. s in Adam all die, even so, in Christ, shall all be made St. Paul. praise the Lord, all ye people-for his mercy endureth for ever. SECOND EDITION. David. Charlestown, (Mass.) PRINTED FOR THE COMMITTEE, bld by A. Brown and W. Hovey, Charlestown; C. Steele, 450 495 1810 cop.l District of Massachusetts: to wit, BE it remembered, that on the nineteenth day of April, in the thirty fourth year of the independence of the United States of America, ÅBNER KNEELAND, of the said district, hath deposited in this office the title of a book, the right whereof he claims as proprietor, in the words following, to wit, Hymns, composed by different authors, at the request of the General Convention of Universalists of the New England States and Others. Adapted to public and private Devotion. "As in Adam all die, even so, in Christ, shall all be made alive." St Paul. "O, praise the Lord, all ye people,--for his mercy endureth for ever." David. Second edition. In conformity to the Act of Congress of the United States, intitled, "An act for the encouragement of Learning, by securing the Copies of Maps, Charts, and Books, to the Authors and Proprietors of such Copies, during the Times therein mentioned;" and also to an Act intitled, An Act supplementary to An Act for the Encouragement of Learning, by securing the Copies of Maps, Charts, and Books, to the authors and proprietors of such Copies during the times therein mentioned; and extending the benefits thereof to the Arts of Designing, Engraving, and Etching Historical, and other Prints." WILLIAM S. SHAW, Clerk of the District of Massachusetts. PREFACE. HE GENERAL CONVENTION of the New England States and others, professing the gospel of the Lamb of God, who taketh away the sin of the world; being in the full belief of the Universality of Gospel Salvation, did on the 17th day of September in the year of our Lord 1807, appoint brothers HOSEA BALLOU, ABNER KNEELAND, and EDWARD TURNER, approved laborers in the ministry of reconciliation, with discretionary powers, to furnish a HYMN Book, suitable for the various occurrences in public and private devotion, from the following causes and motives: viz. Dr. ISAAC WATTS, in the opinion of the Convention, has, in almost every instance, extended the idea of the punishment of sin, infinitely beyond the design of the inspired authors; and has thereby sorely wounded the divine theme of devotional Psalmody; and this work, being the principal one in use in the country, rendered it necessary that another should be introduced which might be free from the difficulty above mentioned. The various collections which have been heretofore made by particular societies, or brethren of the universalian order have never had so general a circulation in the country as to accommodate but few of the many believers. And those collections containing many productions from authors who possessed, not only LIMITED views of the great salvation, but ideas of the tenure of atonement, contrary to the divine oracles, were not, in that particular, altogether acceptable. The error, that ATONEMENT was necessary to reconcile our heavenly Father to his offspring, in room of reconciling his unreconciled offspring to himself, is found in almost all the authors of divine hynins. It was a thing much desired by the Convention that the rising generation might learn to sing the praises of the Captain of our salvation, without mixing the alloy of dishonor in the sacred song. The inconsistency of calling on every thing that hath breath to praise the Lord, and at the same time representing the wisdom of the Deity as laying his divine plan to the reverse of this UNIVERSAL JOY, was considered sufficient reason to justify a disuse of Dr. Watts' book, in general, notwithstanding the unrivalled beauties of the poet. iv PREFACE. It was at first the calculation of the Committee and the expectation of the Convention that the new book would have been a collection, with the addition of few original hymns ; but on mature consideration, the committee thought advisable to attempt an entire NEW WORK, and not induce those who had been at the expense of other books, to purchase the same hymns in ours. There were several imitations of Dr. Watts written before the Committee gave up the idea of selecting from that author: it was, however, thought excusable if we retained them. The incumbrances have been many and peculiar, which the Committee have labored under, in composing and compiling the following hymns. That of our living in different States has proved a very material one. It was not possible, consistent with our parochial business, to have but a slight opportunity of consultation on a subject of so much concern. Having been but little practised in this mode of writing was a still greater embarrassment. Yet, notwithstanding, our fervent desire to discharge the duties of our appointment, and of presenting to the humble believers of the ABRAHAMIC faith, a va iety of divine songs, suitable for the heavenly employment of PRAISE TO OUR REDEEMER, has supported us under trials which might otherwise have been insurmountable. The committee have endeavored, in the following work, to throw as much light on the sacred text as was possible, and to keep the triumph of the gospel over sin and death, as a pole star, continually in view. With this work, the committee have the honour of presenting an affectionate salutation to the General Convention, humbly hoping in the Lord, that their labours, though inconsiderable, may, by the blessing of God, prove a comfort to thousands, while they travel through the thorny paths of time to the city of eternal rejoicing, when the MORTAL SONG shall be lost in the IMMORTAL TRIUMPHS and ceaseless joys of the just made perfect. HOSEA BALLOU, Committee. HYMNS. 1. L. M. KNEELAND. The operations of nature speak the existence of a God. Rom. i. 20. ALL nature speaks, let men give ear, And bow the reverential knee; The voice of nature they shall hear, 2 Behold the stars with brilliant light, 3 The glorious sun, whose gentle beams The lucid moon, with paler gleams, 4 Survey the whole capacious earth, 5 Behold the trees in verdure rise! God's wisdom shines in all their leaves: |