Thou crownest the year with Thy goodness.
Psalm 65:11
Words: Anonymous, in The Standard Sunday School Hymnal, edited by Christopher C. Cline (Cincinnati, Ohio: Standard Publishing, 1888), number 342, adapted to fit the music.
Music: A conflation of entries 342 and 74 in the same hymnal, both attributed to E. L. White (Edward L. White?) (🔊 pdf nwc). Compare to Comfort (Toronto).
If you know the author, E. L. White’s full name, or where to get good photos of them (head & shoulders, at least 200×300 pixels),
Come, children, and join in our festival song,
The new year has come, and the old year has gone;
We’ll join our glad voices in one hymn of praise
To God, who has kept us and lengthened our days.
Refrain
Happy New Year to all, happy New Year to all!
Happy New Year, happy New Year,
Happy New Year to all!
Our Father in Heaven, we lift up to Thee
Our voice of thanksgiving, our glad jubilee;
Oh, bless us, and guide us, dear Savior, we pray,
That from Thy blest precepts we never may stray.
Refrain
And if ere this new year has drawn to a close,
Some loved one among us in death shall repose,
Grant, Lord, that the spirit in Heaven may dwell,
Held safe in Thy bosom, where all shall be well.
Refrain
Kind teachers, we children would thank you this day,
That faithfully, kindly, you’ve taught us the way
How we may escape from the world’s sinful charms,
And find a safe refuge in Jesus’ strong arms.
Refrain
Dear pastor, we ask thee, as lambs of thy fold,
To teach us that wisdom more precious than gold—
Our footsteps to guide in the pathways of truth,
To love our creator in days of our youth.
Refrain
And now, as we enter an other new year,
We pray for a blessing on your labors here;
May many bright jewels
be your blessèd reward,
And crowns of rejoicing in the day of the Lord.
Refrain