Wesley Corpus

To us thy love shew Who nothing do know, For of such is the kingdom of heaven below: O give us thy grace In our earliest days, And let us grow up to thy honour and praise. But rather than live Thy goodness to grieve, Back into thy hands we our spirits would give: O take us away In the morn of our day, And let us no longer in misery stay. If now we remove, Thy pity and love Will certainly take us to heaven above: With thee we shall dwell, Who hast lov'd us so well: For O, wilt thou send little children to hell? We need not come there, But at death may repair To heaven, and heavenly happiness share: Us mercy shall raise To that happy place, And we shall behold with our angels thy face. They now are our guard, And ready prepar'd To carry us hence to our glorious reward: Page 35 7Ori., "E'er"; a misprint, corrected in 3rd edn. (1778) and following. 8"Humble" changed to "heavenly" in 2nd edn. (1768) and following. Ere7 long it shall be; We are ransom'd by thee, And we our all-loving Redeemer shall see. Our bodies are thine, Our souls we resign To be wholly employ'd in the service divine, Our spirits we give For thee to receive: O who would not die, with his Saviour to live! Hymn XL. At the Opening of a School in Kingswood. Come Father, Son, and Holy-Ghost, To whom we for our children cry, The good desir'd and wanted most Out of thy richest grace supply, The sacred discipline be given To train, and bring them up for heaven. Answer on them that end of all Our cares, and pains, and studies here, On them, recover'd from their fall, Stampt with the humble8 character, Rais'd by the nurture of the Lord, To all their paradise restor'd. Error and ignorance remove, Their blindness both of heart and mind, Give them the wisdom from above, Spotless, and peaceable, and kind, In knowledge pure their mind renew, And store with thoughts divinely true. Learning's redundant part and vain Be here cut off, and cast aside: But let them, Lord, the substance gain, In every solid truth abide, Page 36 Swiftly acquire, and ne'er forego The knowledge fit for man to know.