Wesley Corpus

Believing in the woman's seed, And justified by faith alone, Abel a nobler offering made, And God vouchsaf'd his gifts to own. Page 3 2Ori., "threating", a misprint; corrected in 2nd edn. (1743) of HSP (1740). Witness divine he thus obtain'd, The gift of righteousness receiv'd; And now he wears the crown he gain'd, And sees the Christ he once believ'd. Still by his faith he speaks tho' dead, He calls us to the living way: We hear; and in his footsteps tread: We first believe, and then obey. Verses V, VI. Exempted from the general doom, The death which all are born to know, Enoch obtain'd his heavenly home By faith, and disappear'd below. From earth unpainfully releas'd, Translated to the realms of light, He found the God by faith he pleas'd, His faith was sweetly lost in sight. God without faith we cannot please: For all, who unto God would come, Must feelingly believe he is, And gives to all their righteous doom. We feelingly believe thou art: Behold we ever seek thee, Lord, With all our mind, with all our heart, And find thee now our great reward. Verse VII. Divinely warn'd of judgments near, Noah believ'd a threatning2 God, With humble faith, and holy fear He built the ark, and 'scap'd the flood. Page 4 3"Twice two" changed to "full four" in HSP (1740). He (while the world that disbeliev'd, The careless world of sinners died,) The righteousness of faith receiv'd: Noah by faith was justified. We too by faith the world condemn, Of righteousness divine possest, Escape the wrath that covers them, Safe in the ark of Jesu's breast. Verses VIII, IX, X. Obedient to his God's command, And influenc'd by faith alone, Abraham left his native land, Went out, and sought a place unknown. A place he should possess at last, When twice two3 hundred years were o'er, Upon the word himself he cast, He follow'd God, and ask'd no more. As in a strange, tho' promis'd, land, (A land his distant heirs receiv'd,) He, and his sons in tents remain'd; He knew on whom he had believ'd. A better heritage he sought, A city built by God on high, Thither he rais'd his tow'ring thought, He fix'd on heaven his stedfast eye. Whose firm foundations never move, Jerusalem was all his care, The New Jerusalem above; His treasure, and his heart was there.