Magnificat

And Mary said, Luke i. 46.

O magnify, my soul, the Lord,
And in thy God rejoice.
He doth thy lowliness record
With blessing in his voice.
His might is worthy of all fame,
And holy is his name.

His mercy is for those who fear
His name in ev’ry day.
His mighty arm doth scatter near
And far the proud away.
He hath the mighty toppled all
But lifted up the small.

The hungry take from him their fill;
The rich may only pine.
Thus to his servant Israel
His face hath turned to shine.
He mercy to our fathers swore
Which standeth evermore.

—11/14/25. From Luke 1:46-55. To “Morning Song” (Ananias Davisson), perhaps.

Resurrection

But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, 1 Cor. xv. 20.

Christ is raised for our salvation!
For our sins he bled and died,
(Perfect, pure propitiation!
Justice he has satisfied!)
Then he rose the third-day morning
As the firstfruits of his kin
Whom he gave himself to win,
All their wretchedness unscorning.
Now by faith his life they see,
E’en the lowest— even me.

(1 Cor 15:1-9, 20)

As in Adam we must perish,
So in Christ we shall revive:
Great appearing that we cherish!
He who versus death doth strive
Will fulfill all resurrection,
Then in heav’n assume his seat,
All creation at his feet
Placed in firm, complete subjection
By the Father, in whose praise
He shall lead the saints always.

(1 Cor 15:21-28; 2 Tim 4:8; Heb 2:12-13)

Never kernel grew nor flourished
Save it fell into the ground,
Yet when God the seed hath nourished,
Lo, what fruit doth then abound!
Just as man excels creation,
As the sun all stars outshines,
So the frame our Lord designs
Passeth earthly expectation—
As we have been born of dust,
Likewise soon of heav’n we must.

(1 Cor 15:35-49; John 12:24; 1 John 3:2)

Therefore I will fear no terror,
Not another’s death, nor mine,
For I know the Mercy-Bearer
Brings consuming life divine
Unto death’s envenomed power:
Where, O grave, is victory?
Ill in us he cannot see,
Having sated Sinai’s glower.
Nothing can our souls distress,
Since the Savior deigns to bless.

(1 Cor 15:54-57; Hab 1:13)

Though against us stand betaken
Either sin, or hell, or foes,
Grace doth keep us yet unshaken
As thy gospel in us grows;
Always in thy work abounding,
Knowing labor is not vain,
Sure and steadfast we remain,
E’er in praise to thee resounding
And in patience waiting here
Till thy glory shall appear.

(1 Cor 15:57-58; James 5:7-8)

—11/4/25. From 1 Corinthians 15. To “Sollt’ ich meinem Gott nicht singen” (Johann Schop).

Meditations: October 2025

The thorn pricks to wound and tear;
Grace’s needle pricks to stitch back together.

(2 Cor 12:7-9)

Crucify my anxiety on this truth:
The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases.

(Lam 3:22)

[[Why did they bring the adulteress to Jesus?
Why did he not condemn her?
Did she, understanding the weight of sin,
Beg to be judged by the friend of sinners?]]

[[John 7:53-8:11]]

Security

Who is sufficient for these things? 2 Cor. ii. 16.

O Comfort from the Lord,
Who all his depths declares,
Who plants in us the living word
And girds our prayers:
For thorns and flaming darts,
Be all sufficiency,
And unto glory seal our hearts
As guarantee.

O Wisdom from on high,
Who sojourned here below
And intercedes unceasingly
In us to grow:
Guide every step we take,
Watch o’er us while we sleep,
And still be with us when we wake
To converse keep.

O Patriarch of Lights,
In constance shining e’er,
Who every blessing in the heights
Dost freely share,
Predestining in love,
Adopting by thy grace:
We lift our eyes to thee above
With fear and praise.

—10/20/25. To “Leoni” (“The God of Abraham Praise”).

Vineyard Cycle (Imperfect)

I. Isaiah v. 1–4

A ballad let me sing for my beloved,
Who had a vineyard on a fertile slope,
Who cleared and dug and watered with the hope
That vintage fine to flourish would be moved.
He built a tow’r amid the trellises;
Under its shade a vat and press he hewed;
Thus in his former wilderness he would
Enjoy the fruit of all he toiled to dress,
But lo! no sweet it yielded, only sour.
Now judge ye for my love between his plot:
What untried care remained within his pow’r?
What else could he have done that he did not?
O men of Judah and Jerusalem,
Why only wildness hath he got of them?


II. Isaiah v. 5–7 ; Hosea xi. 8–9

Hear ye my love declare that he intends
His faithless arbor not with love to prune,
Its hedge with fire and grazing to consume,
Its wall against with trampling to contemn,
To lay it waste, be neither dressed nor hoed,
But thorns and briers on its frames be grown,
And barren clouds with nothing wilt the ground,
Since it with holiness be unendued.
And yet, love’s fire declares— and yet— and yet—
How can I hand them over to their fate?
How can I give them all they ought to get?
Am I not greater than their sin is great?
O men of Israel and Ephraim,
How can I make a perfect end of them?


III. Psalm lxxx. 8–11, 14–19

My Lord, my love, a vine thou drewest out
Of nations, planted, tended, and you bade
The tree-lined mounts find respite in her shade
And Sea and River stand her twinned redoubt.
Look down from heaven, God of hosts, and see
The fiery waste wherein thy vineyard lies,
How by th’ Accuser’s sword thy planting dies,
And how, great God, by this he spits at thee.
Have pity on thy bruised and smoking stem,
And gird the holy Son in perfect might;
To green abundance resurrect thou them;
Thy hand be on the man upon thy right.
O son of God and yet the son of man,
Shine on us, save us, for thou only can.

—Completed 10/9/25

Mortifying Sin

The LORD has said that he would dwell in thick darkness. 2 Chron. vi. 1.

“God has said in shadow clouded
He will dwell,” all else apart,
From the dark by darkness shrouded,
And in such has lain my heart,
Yet thy glory’s pillar, blazing
Like the first Creation morn,
Shines within, my spirit raising:
“Let there be” the dead reborn.

When the Adversary’s temptrance
Lies in wait to lead astray,
Grant us easy, quick repentance
To regain thy narrow way,
Till our heart and soul and vigor
Join in glorified accord,
Freed from flesh-restraining rigor,
To enjoy thee as their Lord.

Gracious Spirit, our salvation
Keep till grace’s work is done;
Let us fear no condemnation
As we live within the Son;
Bid us seek the Father’s glory
Till to glory we draw nigh,
Where our endless, laudatory
Song will praise thee, Lord on high.

—To Nettleton (“Come, Thou Fount”).

Meditations: September 2025

The Lord has said that he would dwell in thick darkness,
And such is my heart:
The thick darkness in which he dwells.
His mercies are new every morning;
One morning, his mercies will not need to be new.
That day will never end.

(2 Chron 6:1; Lam 3:22-23; Rev 21:25)

That is actually the last, chronologically, of the meditations below, but it is a wonderful summary of my month.

Teach me, my Savior, how to set mine eyes
Above, nor aim at any earthly prize,
But on thy cross and throne my gaze be fix’d,
Ev’ry affection bent t’ward thee, unmix’d,
So I would set my steps to then be most
To workings of thy Spirit unoppos’d,
As love and joy and peace and patience be
With ev’ry other fruit matur’d in me,
Until thou liftest up this childish frame
Unto thy Father’s side and thine, thy name—
The threefold Name that yet resolves as one—
To praise, and too the vict’ry thou hast won
O’er sin and death and me. My being cries,
O teach me, Savior, how to set mine eyes.

—On Colossians 3:1-2. Completed 9/29/25.

Anxiety's Resolution

I do not know what I shall be
Within a day or month or year
But trust my Lord’s authority
O’er everything that meets me here.

I know too well what I would be
Hadst thou not freely saved my soul,
So I commit mine all to thee;
Until thou come, sir, keep it whole.

I’ve tasted, too, what I can be
When from thy providence I stray,
So give me grace to trust in thee
To straighten out mine every way.

I thank you, Lord, that I have been
An anxious fool, yet still may find
Forgiveness for this silly sin
And trade it for your peace of mind.

I cannot fathom what I’ll be,
O Savior, when at last by grace,
My faith ensightened, I can see
And mirror thy most holy face.

Anxiety's Confession

I do not know what I shall be
Within a year, or month, or day;
Thy will, my Lord, I cannot see;
I know not how to make my way.

I do not know what I shall be
But fear thy Spirit might not guide
Me out of my iniquity
Or to the goodness at thy side.

I do not know what I shall be
If more by faith than sight I move
But know that my anxiety
Doth not my Master fear nor love.

So teach me what I ought to be:
A creature, who cannot command
The rains or snows to fall, like thee,
But waits, my Father, for thy hand.

I do not know what I shall be,
O Savior, when at last by grace,
Mine eyes enlightened, I shall see
And mirror thy most holy face.