Wesley Corpus

On thee, O God of purity, I wait for hallowing grace; None without holiness shall see The glories of thy face: In souls unholy and unclean Thou never canst delight; Nor shall they, while unsav'd from sin, Appear before thy sight. Thou hatest all that evil do, Or speak iniquity, The hearts unkind, and hearts untrue Are both abhor'd by thee. The greatest and minutest fault Shall find its fearful doom, Sinners in deed, or word, or thought Thou surely shall8 consume. But as for me, with humble fear I will approach thy gate, Tho' most unworthy to draw near, Or in thy courts to wait: I trust in thy unbounded grace To all so freely given, And worship t'ward thy holy place, And lift my soul to heaven. Lead me in all thy9 righteous ways, Nor suffer me to slide, Page 8 10"Shall" changed to "shalt" in 9th edn. (1776) and following. 11A manuscript version appears in MS Psalms, 9-10. Point out the path before my face; My God be thou my guide. The cruel power, the guileful art Of all my foes suppress, Whose throat an open grave, whose heart Is desperate wickedness. Thou, Lord, shall10 drive them from thy face, And finally consume, Thy wrath on the rebellious race Shall to the utmost come. But all who put their trust in thee, Thy mercy shall proclaim, And sing with chearful melody, Their dear Redeemer's name. Protected by thy guardian grace They shall extol thy power, Rejoice, give thanks, and shout thy praise, And triumph evermore. They never shall to evil yield Defended from above, And kept, and cover'd with the shield Of thine almighty love. Psalm VI.11 Lord, in thy wrath no more chastize, Nor let thy whole displeasure rise Against a child of man: Have mercy, Lord, for I am weak, And heal my soul diseas'd and sick, And full of sin and pain. Body and soul thy judgments feel, Thy heavy wrath afflicts me still: O when shall it be o'er! Turn thee, O Lord, and save my soul, And for thy mercy sake make whole, And bid me sin no more. Page 9 12John Wesley substituted "spotless" for "sinless" by hand in his personal copy of the 5th edn. (1751). 13A manuscript version appears in MS Psalms, 21-23; and MS Thirty, 40-41. 14"Thy" changed to "the" in 4th edn. (1748) and following.