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A PRAYER for the YEAR, 1745.

1 ALMIGHTY Wisdom, at whose Nod
2 The Stars shall cease to shine,
3 Great Nature's Father, Guide, and God,
4 O let me call thee mine.
5 Yet not for me, and me alone,
6 Thy Mercies I implore:
7 No, let that Bliss to all be known,
8 That tremble and adore.
9 Now Fear, that makes the Sorrows flow
10 Ev'n from the Infant's Eyes,
11 O'er-whelms in one promiscuous Woe
12 The Ignorant and Wise.
13 Then hear, O hear, thy Servants cry,
14 We beg thy saving Hand:
15 To whom but Heav'n shou'd we apply,
16 To raise a drooping Land!
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17 Be thou the Guard of helpless Age,
18 The wretched Orphan's Friend:
19 O smooth the Face of hostile Rage,
20 And spare its purple End.
21 Restrain the Hand of threat'ning Pride,
22 Asswage the cruel Breast:
23 Teach Mercy to the Victor Side,
24 And Patience to the rest.
25 And when the Sword of Conquest shall
26 The trembling Wretch arraign,
27 Let Justice guide the equal Scale,
28 Nor swerve the steady Beam.
29 Preserve the merciful and kind
30 From Violence and Pain:
31 And let the meek and gentle Mind
32 Rejoice, and not complain.
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33 Nor let the barb'rous Steel invade
34 The Breast of hoary Age:
35 Nor give the unresisting Babe
36 A Prey to purple Rage.
37 Amongst un-number'd Worlds if I
38 Am worth my Maker's Care,
39 Then let me live and let me die
40 Unwounded by Despair.
41 Tho' Want or Peril, Pain or Death,
42 Assault this feeble Clay,
43 Let Hope attend my latest Breath
44 And chear the gloomy Way.
45 Preserve my Parent and my Friend
46 From Danger, Guilt or Shame:
47 In Peace their chearful Days extend
48 To praise thy holy Name.
49 Forgive the Errors of my Youth,
50 If in my Youth I fall:
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51 Or teach my Age thy saving Truth,
52 O hear me when I call.
53 Thou mighty Lord of all above
54 And all beneath the Sun,
55 Thy Servant's humble Suit approve;
56 If not, thy Will be done.

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Title (in Source Edition): A PRAYER for the YEAR, 1745.
Author: Mary Leapor
Themes: war; religion
Genres: prayer
References: DMI 23740

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Source edition

Leapor, Mrs. (Mary), 1722-1746. Poems upon several occasions: By Mrs. Leapor of Brackley in Northamptonshire. London: printed: and sold by J. Roberts, 1748, pp. 69-72. 15,[5],282p. ; 8⁰. (ESTC T127827; Foxon p. 413; OTA K101776.000) (Page images digitized from a copy at University of California Libraries.)

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The text has been typographically modernized, but without any silent modernization of spelling, capitalization, or punctuation. The source of the text is given and all editorial interventions have been recorded in textual notes. Based on the electronic text originally produced by the TCP project, this ECPA text has been edited to conform to the recommendations found in Level 5 of the Best Practices for TEI in Libraries version 4.0.0.

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