286. When Israel, by Divine Command

C.M.
by J. Newton
1
When Israel, by divine command,
 
The pathless desert trod,
 
They found, throughout the barren land,
 
A sure resource in God.
2
A cloudy pillar marked the road,
 
And screened them from the heat;
 
From the hard rock the water flowed,
 
And manna was their meat.
3
Like them, we have a rest in view,
 
Secure from hostile powers;
 
Like them, we pass a desert too,
 
But Israel’s God is ours.
4
His Word a light before us spreads,
 
By which our path we see;
 
His love, a banner o’er our heads,
 
From harm preserves us free.
5
Jesus, the bread of life, is given
 
To be our daily food;
 
Within us dwells that well from heaven,
 
The Spirit of our God.
6
Lord, ’tis enough, we ask no more;
 
Thy grace around us pours
 
Its rich and unexhausted store,
 
And all its joy is ours.