1 THEE we adore, eternal name!
And humbly own to thee,
How feeble is our mortal frame,
What dying worms we be!
2 Our wasting lives grow shorter still,
As days and months increase;
And every beating pulse we tell
Leaves but the number less.
3 The year roll round, and steals away
The breath that first it gave;
Whate'er we do, where'er we be,
We are travelling to the grave.
4 Dangers stand thick through all the ground,
To push us to the tomb;
And fierce diseases wait around,
To hurry mortals home.
5 Great God! on what a slender thread
Hang everlasting things;
The eternal states of all the dead
Upon life's feeble strings!
6 Infinite joy, or endless woe,
Depends on every breath;
And yet how unconcerned we go
Upon the brink of death!
7 Waken, O Lord, our drowsy sense,
To walk this dangerous road!
And if our souls be hurried hence,
May they be found with God!