O God, Thou Bottomless Abyss

O God

Thou bot­tom­less ab­yss!

Thee to per­fect­ion who can know?

O height im­mense! What words suf­fice

Thy count­less at­trib­utes to show?

Unfathomable depths Thou art;

O plunge me in Thy mer­cy’s sea!

Void of true wis­dom is my heart;

With love em­brace and cov­er me:

While Thee

all-in­fi­nite

I set

By faith be­fore my rav­ished eye

My weak­ness bends be­neath the weight;

O’erpowered I sink

I faint

I die.

Eternity Thy fount­ain was

Which

like Thee

no be­gin­ning knew;

Thou wast ere time be­gan his race

Ere glowed with stars the ether­eal blue.

Greatness un­speak­able is Thine

Greatness

whose un­dim­in­ished ray

When short-lived worlds are lost

shall shine

When earth and Heav­en are fled away.

Unchangeable

all-per­fect Lord

Essential life’s un­bound­ed sea

What lives and moves

lives by Thy Word;

It lives

and moves

and is from Thee.

Thy parent-hand

Thy form­ing skill

Firm fixed this uni­vers­al chain;

Else emp­ty

bar­ren dark­ness still

Had held his un­mo­lest­ed reign.

Whate’er in earth

or sea

or sky

Or shuns or meets the wan­der­ing thought

Escapes or strikes the search­ing eye

By Thee was to per­fect­ion brought.

High is Thy pow­er above all height

Whate’er Thy will de­crees is done;

Thy wis­dom

eq­ual to Thy might

Only to Thee

O God

is known!

Heaven’s glo­ry is Thy aw­ful throne

Yet earth par­takes Thy gra­cious sway:

Vain man! Thy wis­dom fol­ly own

Lost is thy rea­son’s fee­ble ray.

What our dim eye could nev­er see

Is plain and nak­ed to Thy sight;

What thick­est dark­ness veils

to Thee

Shines clear­ly as the morn­ing light.

In light Thou dwell’st; light that no shade

No va­ri­ation

ev­er knew;

Heaven

earth

and hell

stand all dis­played

And op­en to Thy pierc­ing view.