When night descends in sable guise

1 When night descends in sable guise,
And spreads her gloom around,
To close the weary traveller's eyes,
And rest him on the ground,

2 Amidst the dreary desert wide,
The wanderer faints to hear,
The wild alarm on every side,
Which speaks some danger near.

3 So in this wilderness of life,
Whene'er afflictions come,
We sink, as in a night of grief,
Far from our sheltering home.

4 The tempter's, like a lion's roar,
Sounds through the vale abroad,
Then let us watch, and ever more
Depend upon our God.

5 From every other help afar,
And left without a friend,
God is a helper ever near,
And faithful to the end.

Source: A Collection of Hymns and Prayers, for Public and Private Worship #308