O GOD HELP IN AGES PAST (MAGNIFICAT TUNE)

1. O God our help in ages past,

Our hope for years to come

Our shelter from the stormy blast

And our eternal home.

2. Beneath the shadow of thy throne,

Thy saints have dwelt secure

Sufficient is thine arm alone

And our defense is sure.

3. Before the hills in order stood

Or earth received her frame,

From everlasting thou art God

To endless years to come.

4. A thousand ages in thy sight

Are like an evening gone,

Short as the watch that ends the night

Before the rising sun.

5. Time, like an over-rolling stream,

Bears all its sons away,

They fly forgotten, as a dream,

Dies at the opening day.

6. O God our help in ages past,

Our hope for years to come,

Be thou our guard while trouble last,

And our eternal home.