THE GIFT ‘If thou knewest the gift of God’ (John iv. 10). This is the Gift, Thy Gift, O Lord! The token of Thy dearest love: The orient jewel of Thy Word; Sent down my thankfulness to prove. Great is his gift in all men’s eyes, Who gives himself, his friend to save: My Lord does more, for foes He dies, This Gift no parallel may have. But Lord! whil’st Thou thus gav’st to Thine Others arose to vie with Thee: The world and Satan did combine, And they would needs a giving be. Satan, sin’s pleasures offerèd, And almost forced them upon me: But while they bloomed, they witherèd, And Lord! Thy Gift my choice shall be. Then did the World its gayes present, And still alluring cried, See, See! Here’s that may rather give content; But Lord! Thy Gift my choice shall be. These cannot give, they’d steal away From me my heaven, my heart from Thee: Whate’er they offer, I’ll say nay, Still Lord! Thy Gift my choice shall be. Richard Baxter (1615-91) is to Nonconformity what Ken is to Anglicanism. He might have been a bishop if he would, but preferred the rough ways of persecution for conscience’ sake to the pleasant paths of ecclesiastical preferment. He wrote many hymns, and attempted, with as little success as others, a metrical version of the psalms. He is, and will be, known to our hymn-books by the exquisite verses taken from his long poem on the ‘Covenant and Confidence of Faith.’ These verses, beginning Now it belongs not to my care Whether I die or live. are in almost every hymn-book. Another of his hymns, in a brighter tone, is in many collections— Ye holy angels bright. The two following are not so well known. They are good in themselves, and very characteristic of their author. As for my friends, they are not lost: The several vessels of Thy fleet, Though parted now, by tempests tost, Shall safely in the haven meet. Still we are centred all in Thee; Members, though distant, of one Head, In the same family we be, By the same faith and Spirit led. Before the throne we daily meet, As joint petitioners to Thee; In spirit we each other greet, And shall again each other see. The heavenly hosts, world without end, Shall be my company above; And Thou, my best, my surest Friend, Who shall divide me from Thy love? The three following verses are in Miss Wood’s _Hymns for School Worship_—a very striking selection of hymns suitable for intelligent young people. Lord, though Thy Church in this dark world Do but begin and learn Thy praise, Accept both it and us through Christ, Till it and us Thy glory raise. Here trembling sin resists Thy grace; Of joy and sorrow we partake: Our broken hearts and broken peace Can none but broken music make.