Lord, let my prayer like incense rise,
And when I lift my hands to Thee,
As on the evening sacrifice
Look down from heaven well-pleased on me.
Set Thou a watch to keep my tongue,
Let not my heart to sin incline;
Save me from men who practise wrong,
Let me not share their mirth and wine.
But let the righteous, when I stray,
Smite me in love,--his strokes are kind;
His mild reproofs, like oil, allay
The wounds they make, and heal the mind.
Mine eyes are unto Thee, my God!
Behold me humbled in the dust;
I kiss the hand that wields the rod,
I own thy chastisements are just.
But O! redeem me from the snares
With which the world surrounds my feet,
Its riches, vanities, and cares,
Its love, its hatred, its deceit.
Source: Sacred Poems and Hymns #77
James Montgomery (b. Irvine, Ayrshire, Scotland, 1771; d. Sheffield, Yorkshire, England, 1854), the son of Moravian parents who died on a West Indies mission field while he was in boarding school, Montgomery inherited a strong religious bent, a passion for missions, and an independent mind. He was editor of the Sheffield Iris (1796-1827), a newspaper that sometimes espoused radical causes. Montgomery was imprisoned briefly when he printed a song that celebrated the fall of the Bastille and again when he described a riot in Sheffield that reflected unfavorably on a military commander. He also protested against slavery, the lot of boy chimney sweeps, and lotteries. Associated with Christians of various persuasions, Montgomery supported missio… Go to person page >
My Starred Hymns
My FlexScores
My Hymnals
My Purchased Files