The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands.
Psalm 19:1
Words: Amelia A. Opie (1769–1853). The stanzas are adapted from her poem After a Walk in the Spring. The earliest published instance we have found of this poem is in The New Year’s Gift and Juvenile Souvenir, edited by Mrs. Alaric Watts (London: Longman, Rees, Orme, Brown & Green, 1829), pages 143–44.
Music: Arlington Thomas A. Arne, 1762. Arranged by Ralph Harrison, 1784 (🔊 pdf nwc).
There seems a voice in every gale,
A tongue in every flower,
Which tells, O Lord, the wondrous tale
Of Thy almighty power.
The birds, that rise on quivering wing,
Proclaim their maker’s praise,
And all the mingling sounds of spring
To Thee an anthem raise.
Shall I be mute, great God, alone
’Midst nature’s loud acclaim?
No—let my heart, with answering tone,
Breathe forth Thy holy name!
All nature’s debt is small to mine;
Nature shall cease to be;
But Thou gave proof of love divine:
Immortal life to me!