BLESSING—BLESSEDNESS—BLESS.
I will bless the Lord at all times: his praise shall continually be in my mouth.—Psalm xxxiv. 1.
Blessed are they that dwell in thy house: they will be still praising thee.
Blessed is the man whose strength is in thee.—Psalm lxxxiv. 4, 5.
Blessings are upon the head of the just, but violence covereth the mouth of the wicked.—Proverbs, x. 6.
The blessing of the Lord, it maketh rich, and he addeth no sorrow with it.—Proverbs, x. 22.
Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.—Matthew, v. 8.
I say unto you, love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you.—Matthew, v. 44.
Blessing; knowing that ye are thereunto called, that ye should inherit a blessing.—I. Peter, iii. 9.
O All-Sufficient, All-Beneficent!
Thou God of Goodness and of glory, hear!
Thou who to lowest minds dost condescend,
Assuming passions to enforce thy laws,
Adopting jealousy to prove thy love!
Thou who resigned humility upholdest,
E’en as the florist props the drooping rose;
But quellest tyrannic pride with peerless power,
E’en as the tempest drives the stubborn oak!
O All-Sufficient, All-Beneficent!
Thou God of goodness and of glory, hear!
Bless all mankind, and bring them in the end
To heaven, to immortality, and Thee!
Smart.
O my soul, with all thy powers,
Bless the Lord’s most holy name;
O my soul, till life’s last hours,
Bless the Lord, his praise proclaim;
Thine infirmities He healed;
He thy peace and pardon sealed.
As in Heaven, His throne and dwelling.
King on earth He holds his sway;
Angels, ye in strength excelling,
Bless the Lord, his voice obey;
All his works beneath the pole,
Bless the Lord, with thee, my soul.
J. Montgomery.
Author of being! life-sustaining king!
Lo! want’s dependant eye from Thee implores
The seasons, which provide nutritious stores;
Give to her prayers the renovating spring,
And summer’s heats all perfecting, that bring
The fruits which autumn, from a thousand shores
Selecteth provident! when earth adores
Her God, and all her vales exultory sing.
Without thy blessing the submissive steer
Bends to the ploughman’s galling yoke in vain;
Without thy blessing on the varied year,
Can the swarth reaper grasp the golden grain?
Without thy blessing all is blank and drear;
With it the joys of Eden bloom again.
Wordsworth.
Blessed be thy name for ever,
Thou of life the guard and giver;
Thou canst guard the creatures sleeping,
Heal the heart long broke with weeping.
God of stillness and of motion,
Of the desert and the ocean,
Of the mountain, rock, and river,
Blessed be thy name for ever.
Thou who slumberest not, nor sleepest,
Blest are they thou kindly keepest;
God of evening’s parting ray,
Of midnight’s gloom, and dawning day,
That rises from the azure sea,
Like breathings of eternity;
God of life! that fade shall never,
Blessed be thy name for ever.
James Hogg.
Oh! ’tis a sight the soul to cheer,
The promise of the fruitful year,
When God abroad his bounty flings,
And answering nature laughs and sings!
He, “for the evil and the good,”
For them, who with heart’s gratitude,
For them, who thanklessly receive
The blessings He vouchsafes to give,
Bids from his storehouse in the skies,
“His rain descend, his sun arise.”
Mant.
Thrice blessed they who dwell
Within thine house, my God,
Where daily praises swell,
And still the floor is trod
By those who in thy presence bow,
By those whose King and God art thou.
J. Montgomery.
Blessed are the pure in heart,
For they shall see our God;
The secret of the Lord is theirs,
Their soul is Christ’s abode.
Spotless their robes and pure,
Dipped in the sea of light,
That hides the unapproached shrine
From men’s and angels’ sight.
Keble.
From darkness here, and dreariness,
We ask not full repose,
Only be thou at hand to bless
Our trial hour of woes.
Is not the pilgrim’s toil o’erpaid
By the clear rill and palmy shade?
And see we not, up earth’s dark glade,
The gate of Heaven unclose?
Keble.
Thou that created’st all! Thou fountain
Of our sun’s light—who dwellest far
From man, beyond the farthest star,
Yet, ever present; who dost heed
Our spirits in their human need;
We bless thee, Father, that we are!
We bless thee for our inward life;
For its immortal date decreeing;
For that which comprehendeth thee,
A spark of thy divinity,
Which is the being of our being!
We bless thee for this bounteous earth;
For its increase—for corn and wine;
For forest-oaks, for mountain-rills;
For cattle “on a thousand hills;”
We bless thee—for all good is thine!
Mary Howitt.
We have the promise of th’ eternal truth,
Those who live well, and pious paths pursue,
To man and to their Maker true;
Let them expire in age or youth,
Can never miss
Their way to everlasting bliss;
But from a world of misery and care,
To mansions of eternal ease repair;
Where joy in full perfection flows,
And in an endless circle moves
Through the vast round of beatific love,
Which no cessation knows.
John Pomfret.
No, ’tis in vain to seek for bliss,
For bliss can ne’er be found
Till we arrive where Jesus is,
And tread on heav’nly ground.
Watts.
When we have slept that dreamless sleep,
Which dearest hearts must sever;
O may we wake no more to weep,
But live in bliss for ever.
John Linden.
True bliss, the flower of Paradise,
Lives not in this ungenial clime;
It blossoms in celestial skies,
Beyond the ravages of time;
The joy to christian pilgrims given,
Is but the rich perfume of heaven.
W. J. Brock.
True bliss, the flower of Paradise,
Why seek it here below?
It groweth only ’neath those skies
With love divine that glow.
Warmed by the sun of righteousness,
And watered by the dews
Of mercy, and redeeming grace,
How lively are its hues!
In heaven, an amaranthine flower,
On earth, it blossoms but an hour.
Egone.