God's Condescension to Human Affairs › Representative Texts

1 Up to the Lord, that reigns on high,
And views the nations from afar,
Let everlasting praises fly,
And tell how large his bounties are.

2 [He that can shake the worlds he made,
Or with his word, or with his rod;
His goodness, how amazing great;
And what a condescending God!]

3 God, that must stoop to view the skies,
And bow to see what angels do,
Down to our earth he casts his eyes,
And bends his footsteps downwards too.]

4 He over-rules all mortal things,
And manages our mean affairs;
On humble souls the King of kings
Bestows his counsels and his cares.

5 Our sorrows and our tears we pour
Into the bosom of our God:
He hears us in the mournful hour,
And helps us bear the heavy load.

6 In vain might lofty princes try
Such condescension to perform!
For worms were never rais'd so high
Above their meanest fellow-worm.

7 O could our thankful hearts devise
A tribute equal to thy grace,
To the third heav'n our songs should rise,
And teach the golden harps thy praise.

Hymns and Spiritual Songs, in Three Books: I. collected from the scriptures, II. composed on divine subjects, III. prepared for the Lord's Supper #II.XLVI

Up to the Lord, that reigns on high,
And views the nations from afar,
Let everlasting praises fly,
And tell how large his bounties are.
[He that can shake the worlds he made,
Or with his word, or with his rod,
His goodness, how amazing great!
And what a condescending God!]
[God, that must stoop to view the skies,
And bow to see what angels do,
Down to our earth he casts his eyes,
And bends his footsteps downwards too.]
He overrules all mortal things,
And manages our mean affairs;
On humble souls the King of kings
Bestows his counsels and his cares.
Our sorrows and our tears we pour
Into the bosom of our God;
He hears us in the mournful hour,
And helps us bear the heavy load.
In vain might lofty princes try
Such condescension to perform;
For worms were never raised so high
Above their meanest fellow worm.
O could our thankful hearts devise
A tribute equal to thy grace,
To the third heav'n our songs should rise,
And teach the golden harps thy praise.


Psalms and Hymns of Isaac Watts, The #II.46

Up to the Lord, that reigns on high,
And views the nations from afar,
Let everlasting praises fly,
And tell how large his bounties are.

[He that can shake the worlds he made,
Or with his word, or with his rod,
His goodness, how amazing great!
And what a condescending God!]

[God, that must stoop to view the skies,
And bow to see what angels do,
Down to our earth he casts his eyes,
And bends his footsteps downwards too.]

He overrules all mortal things,
And manages our mean affairs;
On humble souls the King of kings
Bestows his counsels and his cares.

Our sorrows and our tears we pour
Into the bosom of our God;
He hears us in the mournful hour,
And helps us bear the heavy load.

In vain might lofty princes try
Such condescension to perform;
For worms were never raised so high
Above their meanest fellow worm.

O could our thankful hearts devise
A tribute equal to thy grace,
To the third heav'n our songs should rise,
And teach the golden harps thy praise.



The Psalms and Hymns of Dr. Watts #27

1 Up to the Lord that reigns on high,
And views the Nations from afar,
Let everlasting Praises fly,
And tell how large his Bounties are.

[2 He that can shake the Worlds he made,
Or with his Word, or with his Rod,
His Goodness how amazing great!
And what a condescending God!]

[3 God that must stoop to view the Skies,
And bow to see what Angels do,
Down to our Earth he casts his eyes,
And bends his Footsteps downwards too.]

4 He over-rules all mortal Things,
And manages our mean Affairs;
On humble Souls the King of Kings
Bestows his Counsels and his Cares.

5 Our Sorrows and our Tears we pour
Into the Bosom of our God;
He hears us in the mournful hour,
And helps us bear the heavy Load.

6 In vain might lofty Princes try
Such Condescension to perform;
For Worms were never rais'd so high,
Above their meanest Fellow-Worm.

7 O could our thankful Hearts devise
A Tribute equal to thy Grace,
To the Third Heav'n our Songs should rise,
And teach the golden Harps thy Praise.

The Psalms of David: imitated in the language of the New Testament, and applied to the Christian state and worship (27th ed.) #II.XLVI