I build a house to the name of the Lord my God, to dedicate it to Him.
2 Chronicles 2:4
Words: Jacob R. Scott, in The Psalmist, edited by Baron Stow & Samuel F. Smith (Boston, Massachusetts: Gould, Kendall & Lincoln, 1843), number 944.
Music: Downs Lowell Mason, 1832 (🔊 pdf nwc).
If you know where to get a good picture of Scott (head & shoulders, at least 200×300 pixels),
To Thee this temple we devote,
Our Father and our God;
Accept it Thine, and seal it now
Thy Spirit’s blest abode.
Here may the prayer of faith ascend,
The voice of praise arise;
O, may each lowly service prove
Accepted sacrifice.
Here may the sinner learn his guilt,
And weep before his Lord;
Here, pardoned, sing a Savior’s love,
And here his vows record.
Here may affliction dry the tear,
And learn to trust in God,
Convinced it is a Father smites,
And love that guides the rod.
Peace be within these sacred walls;
Prosperity be here;
Long smile upon Thy people, Lord,
And evermore be near.