Ere mountains reared their forms sublime,

Or heaven and earth in order stood—

Before the birth of ancient time,

From everlasting thou art God.

2 A thousand ages, in their flight,

With thee are as a fleeting day;

Past, present, future, to thy sight

At once their various scenes display.

3 But our brief life’s a shadowy dream,

A passing thought, that soon is o’er,

That fades with morning’s earliest beam,

And fills the musing mind no more.

4 To us, O Lord, the wisdom give

Each passing moment so to spend,

That we at length with thee may live,

Where life and bliss shall never end.