Ere mountains reared their forms sublime
1
Ere mountains reared their forms sublime,
Or heaven and earth in order stood,
Before the birth of ancient time,
From everlasting thou art God.
2
A thousand ages, in their flight,
With thee are as a fleeting day;
Past, present, future, to thy sight
At once their various scenes display.
3
But our brief life's a shadowy dream,
A passing thought, that soon is o'er,
That fades with morning's earliest beam,
And fills the musing mind no more.
4
To us, O Lord, the wisdom give,
Each passing moment so to spend
That we at length with thee may live,
Where life and bliss shall never end.