HYMNS FROM THE MORNINGLAND

HYMNS
FROM THE MORNINGLAND

BEING
TRANSLATIONS, CENTOS
AND SUGGESTIONS
FROM THE SERVICE BOOKS OF
THE HOLY EASTERN CHURCH

WITH INTRODUCTION
BY
JOHN BROWNLIE, D.D.

Author of
“Hymns and Hymn Writers of the Church Hymnary”
“Hymns of the Greek Church,” “Hymns from the Greek Office Books”
“Hymns of the Holy Eastern Church”
&c., &c.

(SIXTH SERIES)

PAISLEY: ALEXANDER GARDNER
Publisher by Appointment to the late Queen Victoria
1911

LONDON:
SIMPKIN, MARSHALL, HAMILTON, KENT & CO., LMD.

PRINTED BY ALEXANDER GARDNER, PAISLEY.

PREFACE

This sixth series of hymns from the Greek Offices is sent forth in the hope that some of the flowers that bloom in the gardens of the East, in which our Lord prayed and His Apostles tilled, may serve to beautify the homes of the faithful in Western lands. Cut flowers lose their beauty and freshness soon, but not infrequently their perfume remains; and roots transplanted do not always continue to put forth leaves and blossoms in that richness which adorns them in their native soil; but if in the case of the culled flowers, which are here presented, some of their perfume may chance to linger, it will probably serve to suggest their original attractiveness. That they may, in some capacity, be used to adorn the worship of Christ in our sterner clime, is the earnest prayer of the translator.

J. B.

Trinity Manse,
Portpatrick, July, 1911.

INDEX OF FIRST LINES

PAGE [Introduction] xi HYMNS [My God, shall sin its power maintain] 3 Christmas— [Hark! upon the morning breezes] 9 [Hail to the morn that dawns on eastern hills] 11 [Hail to the King, who comes in weakness now] 13 [Ye saints, exult with cheerful song] 15 [He came because the Father willed] 17 [Now the King Immortal] 19 [When o’er the world Augustus reigned] 21 [O Light resplendent of the morn] 23 Passiontide— [O wounded hands and feet] 27 [When Jesus to the judgment hall] 29 [They brought Him to the hill of death] 31 [“Watch with Me,” the Master said] 33 [They cried, “Let Him be crucified!”] 35 [O darkest night that ever fell] 37 [Nailed to the cross the Saviour dies] 39 [O Son of God, afflicted] 41 [This be our prayer, O Saviour of our souls,] 43 Easter— [Lo, in its brightness the morning arising] 49 [In the dark of early morn] 51 [Glory to God! The morn appointed breaks] 53 [Glory to God! The Christ hath left the tomb] 55 [Rise, O glorious orb of day] 58 Ascension— [Borne on the clouds, the Christ arose] 63 [Lift up the gates] 65 [Borne on the wings of light] 67 Pentecost— [Like the beams that from the sun] 71 [Come, Holy Ghost, in might] 73 [Spirit of God, in love descend] 75 [Lord, may Thy Holy Spirit calm] 77 [O God, the Holy Ghost] 78 Various— [When Jesus to the Jordan came] 83 [When on the mount the Lord appeared] 85 [Behold, the King of Zion rides] 87 [Waving in the autumn breeze] 89 [When in the clouds of heaven] 91 [Rest in the Lord, O servant by His grace] 93 [Thou dost not pass a lonesome way] 95 [The man who erring counsel shuns] 97 [Lord, a band of foes increasing] 99 [Light of my life, O Lord, Thou art] 101 [From the hills the light is streaming] 103 [The day declines to night] 105 [Lord, let us feel that Thou art near] 107 [Come, praise with gladness, the Lord of all creation] 109 Penitence and Love— [Now, with my weeping would I cleanse my soul] 115 [O God of love, on bended knee] 117 [O God, in mercy hear] 119 [Come to the Christ in tears] 122 [Forgive my heart its vain regrets] 124 [Far let me flee from worldly sin] 126 [Lord of mercy, at Thy gate] 128 [Burdened with a heavy load] 130 [Lord of a countless throng] 132 [Let all the world abroad] 134 [Thou Saviour of our sinful race] 136 [Where the Lord reveals His presence] 138 [O love of God, surpassing far] 140 [O God of our salvation] 142 [O Jesus, when my guilty fears] 144 [Lord, I am Thine, for Thou hast died for me] 146 Aspirations— [Lord, let our eyes the things unseen behold] 151 [Wake to the songs that lips unsullied sing] 153 [Bring to the Christ your fears] 155 [Lord, soothe my anxious, troubled soul] 158 [Surpassing great the gift of God] 160 [My hope is firmly set] 162 [The time is drawing near] 164 [I will not yield my sword] 166 [If in the cause of right I must] 168 [The Christ on Olive’s mount in prayer] 170 [Like music at the stilly hour] 172 [O Lord, Thou in the hour of need] 174 [My harp upon the willows, grave] 176 [To Thee my soul enraptured sings] 178 Modern Greek Hymns— [Christ The Word! Thine Incarnation] 183 [Come, keep this Feast, who holy things revere] 186

INTRODUCTION

Critics are of three classes:—the laudatory, who, if they see anything to complain of, make no complaint; the severe, who, if they see anything deserving commendation, say nothing about it; and the discriminating, who see both and say it, and at the same time throw out hints which as a rule are both acceptable and helpful. Particularly is this the case when the advice tendered confirms a growing conviction on the part of a writer.

One cannot work continuously at a subject, and all the while get the thoughtful criticism of his observers, without improving his methods. From a review of a recent volume by the writer, the following is taken:—“It seems to us that it is in the adaptation, rather than strict translation, that the wealth of thought and emotion buried in the service books of the Eastern Church will be minted into coin of golden praise meet for sanctuary use, and comparable in worth and beauty to the splendid currency of these latter days.” This is strictly true, and it is the conviction which has for some time possessed the author, with the result that he has been giving less attention to translation, or transliteration, and more attention to suggestion, adaptation, and reminiscence. One cannot spend a day with the Greek service books (say with the Triodion, which contains the incomparable Lenten and Easter offices) without having his mind filled with thoughts the most beautiful, thoughts which can sometimes be expressed in almost identical phrase with the original, but which oftener, in order to do them justice by revealing them in all their richness, require to be dwelt upon, expanded, and clothed in appropriate western phrase. This is without doubt the best way in which to deal with the praise material of the Greek service books, and the present writer has set himself in this volume to act according to that conviction. Here, there are fewer translations than in any former volume, and the greater number of the hymns are reminiscences of the Greek.

The contents of this book may be ranged under three categories:—A few translations or renderings, as literal as it is possible or desirable to make them; centos, or patchwork, i.e., pieces which are not versions of any particular hymn in the original, but which are made up of portions of various hymns; and suggestions, or reminiscences of the Greek. In the case of the last, the best that can be said of them is that they owe their existence in the present instance, to the Greek. While to the ordinary reader there may be nothing in these suggestions to indicate their source, no one who is acquainted with the praise of the Eastern Church will fail to detect here and there certain marks which inevitably announce their origin. In most cases initial Greek headlines have been dispensed with, for the reason that they can serve no useful purpose, nor indicate with any certainty the source of any particular hymn.

When one rises from a contemplation of Christian worship as it is presented to him in the ancient forms of the Apostolic Church, it is with pain that his ears are assailed with charges which he knows to be as lacking in truth as they would be if they were levelled against ourselves. God knows how far we have all drifted from our ideal, and those who have the best excuse, not the farthest. But this offensive and ungrateful spirit is surely unbecoming on the part of those who owe so much to the Church which they censure. If Christian love would abound on all sides, how soon would the wounds of Christ’s Body heal! If those deep wounds are to be bound up, it will only be by pouring in oil and wine. Controversy and argument have been tried for centuries. They have failed. We must all begin where the beloved St. John so feelingly bids us,—“Little children, love one another.” Love implies humility, and if we are humble, and stoop to love, we will find hearts all over the world only longing and praying for the balm of that Divine oil. Then dogmatic differences will be solved in a new manner, and much more.

It is not a pleasant task to revert to the censures which are hurled against the Eastern Church, by critics who are obviously ignorant of her past history, and who seem to have taken no trouble to acquaint themselves with her present position; but when one is continually met with the same offensive statements, offensive because untrue, there is only one thing to be done, and that is to meet them with the truth, and refute them on every possible occasion, in the hope that in the end the truth will be vindicated.

The charges have certainly not the charm of variety; they are painfully monotonous:—The Greek Church is “dead,” and “non-missionary.” Certainly non-missionary, if dead! To say of any organization, church or other, that it is dead and non-progressive, is to say the worst that could be said.

Dead! And what are the signs of death in the Eastern Church? Truly they are marvellously unusual. Is it because she preserves the beauty, dignity, and quiet solemnity, which must ever be associated with true worship, and refuses to admit methods which are alien to it? Many of our Churches have become societies, or guilds (a familiar term in these days), in which are included every attraction which can appeal to the eyes of the world. A Pleasant Sunday Afternoon, is the guise in which the worship of God is presented to men who are not attracted by the calm and rest of God’s house; and the methods employed are bringing with them their inevitable results. We fear the Church is in danger of forgetting that its prime function is to preserve the Holy Worship of God, and by its means to establish the saints in The Faith; and that its mission is to go down to the world, inspiring those who are there with the spirit of Christ; returning at the appointed time to observe the worship of God in His house, and bringing with it those who are weary with the toil of life, that they may be refreshed; and is allowing the world to invade its sanctuary, and scare away the spirit of true worship. It is not enough to say that present-day methods must be observed, that people will not come to church unless it conforms to the spirit of the times. The human soul will still desire to dwell in the house of the Lord, to behold His beauty and to enquire, when it feels impelled by the Blessed Spirit of God,—when it longs for peace and spiritual refreshment which can only be found in communion with the Divine. Doubtless, to the pushful spirit of the age, the Church which preserves in calm dignity the form of worship which has been handed down to it through the ages, and tenaciously adhered to in the midst of persecution and martyrdom, and refuses to admit the methods of the concert hall, the debating society, and the lecture room, must appear to be a dead Church indeed. So be it!

But, it is asked, what evidences are there that the Greek Church is a living Church? What is she doing in the field of literature, theological in particular? And in aggressive Christian work at home and abroad?

From this enquiry we cannot exclude the Greek Church in Russia, for, while in the ancient sphere of that Church’s operation (in Greece, and Turkey, and Asia Minor) much is being done in the domain of education in her schools and theological colleges, and in theological literature, it is in Russia, where none of the grievous hindrances to activity exists which for 600 years have frustrated many of her efforts at home, but where free scope and encouragement for its exercise are guaranteed, that most evidence of progress is seen.

Here is the testimony of one who cannot, prima facie, be deemed unprejudiced.^[1] A few years ago, Father Aurelio Palmieri was sent to Russia by the Vatican to procure books and manuscripts for the Russian section of the Papal library at Rome. He writes in the Tserkoviya Viedomosto (December 6, 1904):—“It is time to render justice to the truth, and to put an end to those many calumnies, which are propagated against Russia by envious and interested persons—persons who desire to deprive her of her influence, and to rob her of her prestige. In the Russian universities, the instruction given is far more serious than that given in our own Italy; and the magnificent Ecclesiastical Academies, all under religious influence, at St. Petersburg, Moscow, Kieff, and Kazan, make us feel a sense of sadness at the miserable and insufficient instruction that is given to our own Italian clergy. Let us say frankly, that in our Italy, and even at Rome, we possess no such establishments which for beauty of organization, capable professors, and wealth of libraries, can rival these Russian Ecclesiastical Academies. To convince people of the truth of my assertion, I need only refer them to the superb official organs of these Academies ... and set out what a vast quantity of scientific works [this Father Palmieri does] is brought together in these collections of Russian theological writers, and how far we in Italy are from giving to the study of theology the development which it receives in Russia.... I invite the scholars, not only of Italy, but of every nation, to make acquaintance with the innumerable collection of books now in the Vatican. They will there find convincing testimony to the intensity of the intellectual work in Russia, and to the scientific vitality of her Church....”

Again, in his book, La Chiesa Russa (Florence, 1908), he deplores, not the ignorance of the East, but the ignorance of the West. “It is deplorable,” he says, “that the intense scientific production of Russia is almost totally ignored by the West.... A great nation like Russia is not a negligible quantity affected by an intellectual quagmire (p. 671). The Russian Ecclesiastical literature is rich in monographs on particular subjects, and above all in Patristic theology. In this sphere of research, Russian Orthodoxy can even outrival the German science.” Such is the testimony of one of the most cultured men in Italy.

The question is sometimes asked, What is the Greek Church doing at the present time in the department of hymnody, in which her ancient offices are so rich? Much; but as present day compositions are not used in the canonical services, the supply of such material is not encouraged as it would be in other circumstances, and as it is in the West, where the demand for material for congregational hymnaries is so persistent. But the Greek Church can boast of many hymn writers in her communion, whose compositions would do no discredit to our Western hymnaries. Any bookseller in Athens would supply a catalogue of Greek hymnological work to any interested enquirer.

The writer has before him at this moment a volume of hymns, ΤΡΙΑΔΙΚΟΝ (Athens, 1909), the work of Bishop Nektarios, who for many years was head of the great Rhizareion Theological College in Athens. The volume contains about two hundred pieces suitable for use during the Church seasons, and for general use. They were, however, composed, so the author writes, to be read reverently, or sung privately, in the household. The language of the hymns composed by present day hymn-writers has the modern flavour, and so presents difficulties which, however, the student who has a knowledge of the language of the service books can readily overcome, with the help of a grammar and dictionary of modern Greek; for, while modern Greek is nine-tenths similar to ancient Greek (i.e., modern Greek of the first class, for there are several classes, according to the grade of society) it has yet one-tenth which differs, and it is that tenth which causes trouble. Such hymns are used at services extra ecclesiam,—at meetings, church schools, colleges, and monasteries, or at any other non-canonical service. They are, as a rule, set to attractive music, often by eminent musicians. The translation of two hymns from the fore-mentioned collection by Bishop Nektarios, are included in this volume at [pp. 183-6].

So, even in the department of hymnody, the Greek Church is showing no signs of falling away, and, although she refuses to admit modern productions into her Church services, and adheres to the hymns of her early hymn-writers (an attitude, by the way, very similar to what we in Scotland maintained until very recent times, when psalms alone were permitted in our canonical services, to the exclusion of all hymns), she has yet a band of hymn-writers who uphold a noble succession, and keep adding to her treasury of praise, encouraged in their gracious work by the countenance which the Church gives to its use on all possible occasions.

But the commonest charge levelled against the Greek Church is that of being non-missionary; and the charge which is so utterly untrue, is deemed sufficient to relegate her to the limbo of the effete and worthless. The truth is, that the missionary zeal, and activity of that Church, are among the most outstanding features of her history; and when we consider the terrible odds against which she has had to contend, both in Europe and Asia, we wonder at the success that has been achieved.

Let us bear in mind that the population of Russia alone is about 170,000,000, that the natural increase goes on at the rate of four millions annually, and that in twenty years the population will amount to about 250,000,000. Think of the mighty task laid upon the Church to keep abreast of such a growth, and at the same time to keep the Faith alive in the mass,—for the great majority of this vast population are attached to the Orthodox Church. And this is the task to which the Greek Church addresses herself, to carry the blessings of Christianity to the farthest Russian outpost, and to keep the flame alive where it has already been kindled. Yet this is the Church which English-speaking Christians call non-missionary. “If we take the English Church, for example, which prides itself on its missions, and if we exclude all its missions from the category of mission work which lie within the vast Empire of England’s dominions beyond the seas (that is to say, from India, Africa, Canada, Australia, to English sailors, etc.), we would find how very few and weak English missions really are. What a poor role, then, do English missions play outside English lands! Why, then, do English folk gird at the great Russian Church for a lack of missionary zeal when she is labouring hard in her immense county in Europe and Asia for Christ? In Siberia and Asia generally she is ever spreading the Faith, and that among many tribes and tongues and peoples; and she has missions in Japan, China, Persia, Palestine, Alaska, the Aleoutine Islands, and elsewhere.”^[2]

What the Greek Church is doing in Russian dominions, she is doing also in her ancient lands, although under quite different auspices. In Turkey and Asia Minor she keeps the flame aglow amid adverse conditions, and provides spiritual food for her vast household. Besides, she is the most active missionary agency in the Levant.

But enough has been said. If we could only overtop the mountains of prejudice, and we fear we must add, for it is the parent of prejudice, ignorance, which divide the West from the East, we should be able to look down not upon a barren wilderness, but a fruitful vineyard, in which the servants of Christ are working under the eye of their Master, even as we are working in our separate sphere. Let us think about these things.

^[1]Vide an article in the Re-union Magazine, by F. W. Groves Campbell, LL.D., March, 1910 (London: Cope & Fenwick).

^[2]Vide footnote, p. xviii.

HYMNS

“I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live!”

I

My God, shall sin its power maintain,

And in my soul defiant live!

’Tis not enough that Thou forgive,

The cross must rise, and self be slain.

II

Then in my life Thy love reveal,—

As by The Christ Who bore the cross,

So by my sacrifice and loss,

And by the bitter pangs I feel.

III

O God of love, Thy love declare,—

’Tis not enough that Christ should die,

I too, with Him, in death must lie,

And in my death His anguish share.

IV

Lord, is it nothing now, to Thee?—

Yea, it is much, that well I know,

For Thou hast memory of the woe

That filled Thy soul at Calvary.

V

And Thou wilt come with gracious aid,

When, burdened on the awful road,

I fall beneath the grievous load

Upon my fainting spirit laid.

VI

Nor let me feel Thou hast no care,

Though arrows fly, and darkness fall;

Sin must be slain, but when I call

Thou art attentive to my prayer.

VII

O God of love, Thy power disclose,—

’Tis not enough that Christ should rise,

I, too, must seek the brightening skies,

And rise from death, as Christ arose.

VIII

And from the cross, and to the grave

Descend; and when the morning breaks,

To life anew the soul awakes

That sin nor death shall e’er enslave.

IX

The cross is love: the Christ’s, and mine;—

’Tis life to die, and death to live,

And not enough that God forgive,

If I would live the life divine.

CHRISTMAS

Δόξα ἐν ὑψίστοις Θεῷ.

I

Hark! upon the morning breezes,

In the darkness, ere the waking,

Music sweet the senses pleases,

Soft upon the stillness breaking;—

“Glory, Glory!” this the singing,

Welcome to Immanuel bringing.

II

Shepherds at their watch beholding

Angels clad in glistening whiteness,

Heard the wondrous news unfolding

’Mid that dazzling scene of brightness;—

“Glory, Glory!” peace, and kindness,

Light is breaking on our blindness.

III

Glorious morn! The sun uprising,

Shone upon a world rejoicing;

God is with us, truth surprising;

List to song the message voicing,—

“Glory, Glory!” ages told it,

Heavenly voices now unfold it.

IV

God adored, our nature wearing!

Ah, such condescending meekness!

Stooping to a world despairing,

οἱ ποιμένες τὸ θαῦμα κηρύττουσιν.

I

Hail to the King, Who comes in weakness now,

No wreath of gold encircleth His brow,

Lowly His state,—in lowly worship bow;

Hail to the King!

II

Born of His Maiden Mother, pure as snow,

Son of our God, begotten long ago,

Ere yet the stream of time began to flow;

Hail to the King!

III

Nowhere was found a shelter for His head,

Humble He lay, e’en where the oxen fed,

No couch nor crib, a manger was His bed;

Hail to the King!

IV

Herdsmen were there who heard the angels sing;

Wise men from far who myrrh and incense bring,

No other hand bestowed an offering;

Hail to the King!

V

Hail to the King! O Christ upon Thy throne,

Look on the souls which Thou didst make Thine own,

When by Thy Birth and Death Thou did’st atone;

Hail to the King!

Εὐφραίνεσθε Δίκαιοι· οὐρανοὶ ἀγαλλιᾶσθε·

σκιρτήσατε τὰ ὄρη, Χριστοῦ γεννηθέντος.

Christmas.

I

Ye saints exult with cheerful song,

Ye heavens be glad this morn,

And let the mountains leap for joy,

For Christ on earth is born.

II

Behold the Virgin Mother holds

The Child in warm embrace,—

The One-begotten Son of God,

Incarnate Word of grace.

III

And shepherds from their lonely watch,

By angel guidance given,

At Bethlehem found the Promised Child,

And praised the God of heaven.

IV

And heavenly choirs their music poured,

Upon the stillness, then,

Ascribing glory unto God,

And peace on earth to men.

V

Lo, wise men from the Morningland,

Their costly treasures bear,

And at the manger worshipped low,

And laid their offerings there.

VI

Now, with the angel host who sang,

We join our thankful praise,

To God the Father, God the Son,

And Holy Ghost, always.

Ὁ Πατὴρ εὐδόκησεν,

Stichera Idiomela. Christmas.

I

He came because the Father willed,

And from the midst of heaven’s renown,

The promise to our world fulfilled,

And won a kingdom for His crown.

II

He came because He willed to bear

The burden that His love imposed;

And all our lot of sorrow share,

Until the day in darkness closed.

III

Ah! angels hailed that morning bright,

And in the heavens their carols sung;

But God Himself was hid in night,

When sin and death their arrows flung.

IV

But not to sink beneath their power,

The God-man girt Him for the fray;

And from the darkness of that hour,

There sprang the light of endless day.

V

And wounded souls the triumph knew;

Fresh courage to the faint was given;

And e’en the dead to life anew,

Rose in the glorious might of heaven.

VI

For sin was crushed, and death was slain;—

All hail, the great victorious Son,

Who mounts the throne of heaven again,

To rule the kingdom He has won.

Χριστὸς ὁ Βασιλεύς.

I

Now the King Immortal

Comes to claim His own,—

Shepherds at their watch by night,

Hail the glory of the light—

They, and they alone.

II

Heralds from the heaven-land,

Tell His Advent clear;—

Where the sound of hurrying feet?

Where the crowds come forth to greet?

Where the loyal cheer?

III

Angels, on the night winds

Have their carols thrown,—

Theirs, the music rapturous, sweet,

Theirs, the songs the Monarch greet,

Theirs, and theirs, alone.

IV

Ah, the silent night hours,

Ah, the slumberers, prone,—

Mortals wake, arise, adore,

Angels, shepherds, honours pour,

They, and they, alone.

V

Jesu, King Immortal,

Mount thy rightful throne;

Loyal hearts their plaudits pour,

Heavenly choirs in songs adore,

They, not they alone.

Αὐγούστου μοναρχήσαντος ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς,

ἡ πολυαρχία τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἐπαύσατο.

By Cassia the Recluse.

Menaeon Dec. 25.

I

When o’er the world Augustus reigned,

The rule of kingships felt decay;

And when our Lord appeared as Man,

The idol shrines were swept away.

II

One earthly power the people knew,

One world-embracing rule obeyed;

Then Gentiles to the Godhead knelt,

And undivided homage paid.

III

And when the monarch’s will was known,

A census of the tribes was told;

Then, in the name of Christ their God,

His faithful subjects were enrolled.

IV

For great Thy mercy is to us,

O God, our King, Whose rule we own,

And we will render while we live,

One glory to Thy name alone.

νῦν πάντα πεπλήρωται φωτὸς.

I

O Light, resplendent of the morn

On golden pinions upwards borne,

That usherest in the day;

We rise responsive to the call,

As night removes her dusky pall,

And speeds her flight away.

II

O Light, that, from the Father’s face,

Shone on our world with winning grace,

When darker night prevailed;

We rise to greet Thine Advent bright,

All hail! majestic in Thy might,

When darkness is assailed.

III

O let my soul Thy rising see;

From every cloud my vision free,

And on my pathway shine;

Then shall my course, in safety trod,

Lead ever nearer to my God,

The source of light divine.

IV

O Jesus, Morn of better day,

Thou Light of lights, Whose gladsome ray

Gives light, and life, and cheer;

Light to my soul, and life impart,

And fill with joy my inmost heart,

And scatter night and fear.

PASSIONTIDE

I

O wounded hands and feet!

O heart, with spear thrust torn!

O brow, with blood drops falling down,

Beneath the stinging thorn!

O Jesus, Lord divine,

Why was such anguish Thine?

II

The angels were amazed,

The sun refused his light,

And they who knew that Christ was God,

Turned from the woeful sight;—

O Jesus, Lord divine,

Why was such anguish Thine?

III

My soul, can’st thou not tell?

Why such a sacrifice?

Hast thou no needs, for which alone

The cross can find supplies?

O Jesus, Lord divine,

Why was such anguish Thine?

IV

For thee the cross was reared;

For thee the Christ was slain;

For thee He sojourned with the dead,

And rose to life again;—

O Jesus, Lord divine,

Thus was the anguish Thine.

I

When Jesus to the judgment hall

By cruel men was led,

He wore a purple robe of scorn,

And thorns upon His head;—

They called Him King, and bowed the knee,

And paid Him homage, mockingly.

II

“Away! let Him be crucified!”

The impious shouts proclaim;

And forth they led the Son of God

To die a death of shame;

And passing thence amid’ the crowd,

Beneath a ponderous cross He bowed.

III

Behold Him nailed upon the cross

And left alone to die,

While from the awful scene of death

His timid followers fly;—

In agony He groaned and sighed,

And faint, He bowed the head, and died.

IV

Ah, cruel death for Him to die,

Ah, vilest death of shame,—

Who, to redeem our guilty souls,

From God, in pity came;—

The glory of the Father’s throne

He left, to make our souls His own.

V

O Jesus, to Thy cross I cling,

For Thou, my Lord, art there,

Who, in Thy love, True Man became,

My load of sin to bear;

And lo, I lift my eyes to heaven,

For God in mercy hath forgiven.

I

They brought Him to the hill of death

Where ruthless felons died,

And there, upon a cross of shame,

The Christ was crucified;

By wicked men the nails were driven,

And God, in silence, looked from heaven.

II

They bade Him find His help in God,

If He were Christ indeed,

And save Himself, as He had saved

So many in their need;

Such taunting words like venom stung,

And God beheld the arrows flung.

III

They wagged their heads in mocking scorn,

And bade the Christ come down,—

While from His wounds the blood-drops fell,

And from the thorny crown;

The spear uplifted pierced His side,

And God beheld the crimson tide.

IV

All dark at noon, the sun refused

His wonted light to shed,

For sin and death had God defied,

And Christ His Son was dead;

And God had turned His face away,

Nor heard the Christ in anguish pray.

V

All hail the Resurrection morn!

The light returns again,

And Christ is throned at God’s right hand

Who once for man was slain;

And God extends His pardoning grace,

Nor hides the brightness of His face.

I

“Watch with Me,” The Master said,

And the night around Him fell,

While the snares of sin and hell,

On His awful path were spread.

II

But they slumbered while He prayed;—

They who were His constant care,

Heard no echo of His prayer,

When His soul was sore dismayed.

III

Then He held the cup of woe,

And the prayer to God was made,—

Thrice in agony He prayed,

That He might the draught forego.

IV

But the will of God was done,

In the garden, on that night,

And He rose in all the might

Of the well-beloved Son.

V

Ah, my soul, thy Lord behold,—

Wake from slumber, hear Him pray,

All thy griefs are borne away,

By His agony, untold.

VI

And the strength of God is thine

When the will of God is done

In obedience, as a son,

Conscious of a love divine.