Moses' Prophetic Song

Verse 1

Let heaven's wide arch, while I shall speak, Give an attentive ear: And hear, O earth! the important truths My mouth shall now declare.

Verse 2

As rain from heaven, my doctrine drops, My speech, as dew, distills; As gentle rains on tender herbs, And showers on grassy hills.

Verse 3

While I, Jehovah's glorious name, Shall publish all abroad; With awful reverence, ascribe Ye greatness to our God.

Verse 4

A rock, whose work perfection claims, His ways all judgment are; A God of truth, unspotted pure, And just beyond compare.

Verse 5

But they themselves corrupted have., Their spot's, they're not his sons; They're a perverse, and crooked race, A race of wicked ones.

Verse 6

Oh! foolish people, and unwise! Do ye thus the Lord requite? Thy Father is he not, who bought. Thee made, and girt with might?

Verse 7

Remember ancient times, review The ages past and gone; Thy father ask, and elders, they Will tell what God hath done.

Verse 8

When God the nation's lots assigned, To Adam's sons their place; He set their bounds with special eye To Israel's numerous race.

Verse 9

Jehovah, for his portion, doth His people high advance; Jacob he chose the special lot Of his inheritance.

Verse 10

In Sinai's desert howling waste, There found him the Most High; He led, and taught, and kept him safe. As the apple of his eye.

Verse 11

As the eagle flutters o'er her young, And cheers the feeble things; Her pinions spreads, and takes them up, And bears them on her wings.

Verse 12

So did the Lord alone sustain, And lead them in his care; And to assist him there was none, No foreign god was there.

Verse 13

On earth's high places made him ride Rich, fields supply his want; To suck sweet honey from the rock, And oil from the adamant:

Verse 14

Butter of kine, and milk of sheep, Fat lambs of Bashan's brood, With goats, and finest wheat, to eat; And drink the grapes pure blood.

Verse 15

But Jeshurun waxed fat and kicked; High pampered, and adorned. His Maker he forsook; the rock Of his salvation scorned.

Verse 16

His jealousy provoked they with Strange gods, their fond delights; And kindled up his burning wrath, With their detested rites.

Verse 17

To idols,devils, not to God, They altars madly reared; To unknown, new and upstart gods, Their fathers never feared.

Verse 18

The Rock of Ages thee begat, Sure thou remember'st not; The God that formed, and nourished thee, Thou vilely hast forgot.

Verse 19

When this Jehovah saw, their deeds His just abhorrence moved; Because a provocation great His sons, and daughters, proved.

Verse 20

Therefore he said, I'll mark their end, From them I'll hide my face; For they are froward children grown, A very faithless race.

Verse 21

Since they, with that which is not God, Have moved my jealousy; My anger greatly have provoked With lying vanity; Their rage I'll with a people move, Who're only so in name; And with a foolish nation I Their anger will inflame.

Verse 22

A fire is kindled in my wrath, Which down to hell shall burn; The earth's increase, and mountains base, Shall into ashes turn.

Verse 23

I'll loads of mischief on them heap; My pointed arrows spend.

Verse 24

Hunger to burn, and heat devour, With bitter deaths I'll send: I'll order teeth of savage beasts Their viral blood to spill; The crawling serpent of the dust Shall them with poison kill.

Verse 25

The sword without, terror within, Shall seize young men, and maids, And slay them, with the sucking child, And men of hoary heads.

Verse 26

I said, that I would scatter them, In every distant coast; Make their remembrance among men To be entirely lost.

Verse 27

But that I feared the pride of foes, Lest insolently they Behave; and our high hand, not God, Hath done all this should say.

Verse 28

For they're a nation void of sense, Nor wisdom's rules attend.

Verse 29

Oh! were they wise, this understood, And thought on their last end.

Verse 30

How should one chase a thousand? two Ten thousand put to flight? Except their rock had sold them slaves, The Lord restrained their might?

Verse 31

For their weak rock can ne'er with our Almighty Rock compare; Our enemies themselves must own, If they the judges were.

Verse 32

Their vine's of Sodom's vicious stock, And from Gomorrah's fields; Which brings forth naught but grapes of gall, And bitter clusters yields.

Verse 33

There wine's the dragon's poison, sell Venom of asps congealed.

Verse 34

Is not this kept in store with me; And with my treasures sealed.

Verse 35

Vengeance, and recompense, are mine, They'll fall the time decreed; Their woeful day is near at hand, Their misery comes with speed.

Verse 36

Yet God his people's cause will plead, For his servant sake repent; When none shut up, and lest, he sees, And all their strength is spent.

Verse 37

Then will he say, "Where are your gods, You looked to for defense? Where's now your rock of strength, in whom Ye placed your confidence?

Verse 38

"Which on fat sacrifices fed, And crowned with wine the board? Now let them rise, protection give, And needed help afford.

Verse 39

Know ye, that I, e'en I am he, No God with me I have; I kill, revive, I wound, and heal, None from my hands can save.

Verse 40

"For I to heaven, my throne above, Lift up my hand on high; And solemnly I swear, as sure As ever live do I.

Verse 41

If I shall whet my glittering sword, And hold on judgment lay; I'll render vengeance to my foes, My haters I'll repay.

Verse 42

"I'll make my sword devour their flesh, Mine arrows drunk with blood Of slain, and captives; on their chiefs Revenges I'll make good."

Verse 43

Ye nations join his people's joy; For he will on their foe Revenge their blood; but to his land And people, mercy show.