1
O God! our help in ages past,
Our hope for years to come,
Our shelter from the stormy blast,
And our eternal home.
2
Under shadow of thy throne;
Still may we dwell secure;
Sufficient is thine arm alone,
And our defence is sure.
3
Before the hills in order stood,
Or earth receiv’d her frame,
“From everlasting thou art God,
To endless years the same.
4
A thousand ages in thy sight
Are like an evening gone;
Short as the watch that ends the night,
Before the rising sun.
5
The busy tribes of flesh and blood,
With all their cares and fears,
Are carried downward by the flood,
And lost in foll’wing years.
6
Time, like an ever-rolling stream,
Bears all its sons away;
They fly, forgotten, as a dream
Dies at the op’ning day.
7
O God! our help in ages past,
Our hope for years to come;
Be thou our guide while life shall last,
And our perpetual home!