Pt 421/Ps 84 O God of Hosts, O God of Grace

1O God of hosts, O God of grace,
How lovely is Thy holy place,
How good and pleasant is Thy dwelling!
My thirsty soul longs earnestly,
Yea, faints Thy holy courts to see
'Mid festal throngs and music swelling.
My heart and flesh cry out to God,
To Him I spread my hands abroad.

2The sparrow finds a house to rest,
The swallow deftly builds her nest,
And broods her young hard by Thine altar.
O Lord of hosts, my God, my King,
With all my soul to Thee I cling!
Hold Thou my hand, lest I should falter.
How blest are they that dwell with Thee!
They praise Thy Name continually.

3Blest is the man whose strength Thou art,
Thy ways are hidden in his heart,
He treads the highway to Thy dwelling.
Though passing through a vale of tears,
Thy grace, O God, to him appears
With winged hope and power impelling.
The wilderness, by showers blest,
Is now a pilgrim's vale of rest.

4From strength to strength Thy children dear
Go forward, till they all appear
In Zion's courts, God's holy mountain.
O how delightful, God of grace,
The paths of those that seek Thy face,
And yearn for waters from Thy fountain!
Jehovah, God of hosts, give ear,
O Jacob's God, in mercy hear.

5O God, our shield, with face benign
Look on Thy servant, wholly Thine,
And keep him, Lord, Thou great Defender!
One day, passed in Thy house of praise,
Is better than a thousand days
Spent in the realm of earthly splendor.
Though only at Thy door I wait,
No tents of sin give joy so great.

6O God Jehovah, good and kind,
On Zion's mount in clouds enshrined,
Thou art our sun and shield forever.
To upright souls that seek Thy face
Thou givest glory, truth, and grace;
E'en in death's vale Thou failest never.
O Lord of hosts, how blest is he
Who puts his stedfast trust in Thee!