When o'er the green undeluged earth,
Heaven's covenant thou didst shine;
How came the world's grey fathers forth,
To watch thy sacred sign!
Gloriously is thy girdle cast,
O'er mountain, tower, and town;
Or mirrored in the ocean vast
A thousand fathoms down.
As fresh in yon horizon dark,
As young thy beauties seem,
As when the eagle from the ark
First sported in thy beam.
For, faithful to His sacred page,
God still rebuilds thy span;
Nor lets the type grow pale with age,
That first spoke peace to man.
GLORY TO GOD AND THE LAMB.
HARP! lift thy voice on high! shout! angels shout!
And loudest, ye redeemed! Glory to God,
And to the Lamb who bought us with His blood,
From every kindred, nation, people, tongue;
And washed, and sanctified, and saved our souls;
And gave us robes of linen pure, and crowns
Of life, and made us kings and priests to God.
Shout back to ancient time! Sing aloud, and wave
Your palms of triumph! Sing, where is thy sting,
O death where is thy victory, O grave!
Thanks be to God, eternal thanks, who gave
Us victory through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Harp! lift thy voice on high! shout, angels, shout!
And loudest, ye redeemed! Glory to God,
And to the Lamb, all glory and all praise,
All glory and all praise, at morn and even,
That come and go continually, and find
Us happy still, and thee for ever blest!
Glory to God and to the Lamb! Amen.
For ever and for evermore.
THOU Soft-flowing Kedron! by thy limpid stream
Our Saviour, at night, when the moon's silver beam
Shone bright on thy waters, would oftentimes stray,
And lose in thy murmurs the toils of the day;
Come, saints, and adore Him, come, bow at His feet;
Oh! give Him the glory, the praise that is meet!
Let joyful hosannahs unceasing arise,
And join the full chorus that gladdens the skies!
How damp were the vapours that fell on His head! How hard was His pillow! how humble His bed! The angels, beholding, amazed at the sight, Attended their Master with solemn delight.
Come, saints, and adore Him, come, bow at His feet; Oh! give Him the glory, the praise that is meet!
Let joyful hosannahs unceasing arise,
And join the full chorus that gladdens the skies!
Oh! garden of Olivet, dear, honoured spot!
The fame of thy wonders shall ne'er be forgot!
The theme most transporting to seraphs above,
The triumph of sorrow, the triumph of love!
Come, saints, and adore Him, come, bow at His feet;
Oh! give Him the glory, the praise that is meet!
Let joyful hosannahs unceasing arise,
And join the full chorus that gladdens the skies!
"REJOICE EVERMORE."
OH, what bliss! what tidings glorious!
Drooping soul, thy gladness know,
Christ, thy King, is all victorious!
Satan's chains lie trampled low!
To the arms He nobly wielded,
Vaunting Death himself hath yielded!
Let, then, all misgivings leave thee,
Earthly things no longer grieve thee;
Upward flying,
No more groaning! no more sighing!
Oh, what joy! what love unbounded!
Here on earth begin the song;
Harps on high by angels sounded,
Ceaselessly the strain prolong.
FIERCE the flames are rising high!
Men of iron hearts are nigh!
Who within them nought can feel,
But their furious, blinded zeal!
Yet no shriek, no groan, they hear,
That can tell the martyr's fear!
Dauntless in the midst is he,
Fettered to the burning tree:
Shouts of wrath his ears assail,-
Shouts that would the stoutest quail,
But he stands in meekness there,
And his lips are moved in prayer;
Looking upward to the skies,
Victory! in death he cries!
And victorious, thus he dies.
What could thus his strength uphold?
Thus to be in suffering bold!
In that dreadful hour of pain,
Christ was whispering, ""Tis thy gain!"
For a time thou must be tried,
Soon set free, and purified;
Upward shall thy soul ascend,
Safe to me, thy well-known Friend!
And the burning fire shall prove,
Thou hast known my endless love;
Nobly hast thou borne the cross,
Counted all thy life but loss;
Henceforth thou my glory share,
Take the martyr's crown to wear,
Safe from anguish, free from care
In gloomy grandeur darkness quits the earth,
And morning, mounted upon saffron clouds,
In smiling loveliness resumes the sway:
All nature wakes; a thousand varied hues,
Vivid and sparkling, meet the orb of day,
As bright he rises from his eastern home;
Up heaven's high arch in majesty he moves,
Like some glad pilgrim in the cause of love,
And sheds abroad one universal joy.
From every grove sweet sounds are hymning forth
The grateful melody of thankful love;
The dew-drops falling from the trees and flowers,
With incense floating on the morning air,
In one accord send all their freshness up:
Man only seems ungrateful! forth he goes,
With strengthened energies to daily toil;
With the rich hue of health upon his cheek,
And yet no gratitude within his heart!
Who bade the morning take the place of night?
Who sent the sun upon his daily course?
And decked all nature in a garb of joy?
Who but Jehovah? who but the Supreme?
The Architect Omnipotent! All-wise!
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