Scripture Verse

Consider the ravens: for they neither sow nor reap; which neither have storehouse nor barn; and God feedeth them: how much more are ye better than the fowls? Luke 12:24

Introduction

portrait
James Montgomery
(1771–1854)
National Portrait Gallery

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Words: James Mont­gom­ery, Sac­red Po­ems and Hymns (New York: D. Ap­ple­ton, 1854), num­ber 276. The poor pray­ing for bread in time of scar­ci­ty.

Music: St. John’s High­lands, ano­ny­mous, be­fore 1913 (🔊 pdf nwc).

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Lyrics

To God most aw­ful and most high,
Who formed the earth, the sea, the sky;
To Him on whom all worlds de­pend,
Our hum­bled hearts in sighs we send.

Will He who hears the ra­vens cry,
Reject our pray­ers, and bid us die?
Will He re­fuse His keep to yield,
Who clothes the li­lies of the field?

Pale fa­mine lifts at His co­mmand,
Her wi­ther­ing arm, and blasts the land;
The har­vests per­ish at her breath,
Her train are want, dis­ease, and death.

But when He smiles, the de­sert blooms,
New life is born among the tombs;
O’er the glad plains abun­dance teems,
And plen­ty rolls in boun­te­ous streams.

Father of grace whom we ad­ore,
Bless Thy large fa­mi­ly—the poor;
The poor on Thee alone de­pend,
Continue Thou the poor man’s friend.

Content to live by toil and pain,
May we eter­nal rich­es gain;
Meanwhile, by Thy free good­ness fed,
Give us this day our dai­ly bread.