When comes the hour of failing breath,
And I must wrestle, Lord, with death,
When from my sight all fades away,
And when my tongue no more can say,
And when mine ears no more can hear,
And when my heart is racked with fear;
When all my mind is darkened o'er,
And human help can do no more,
Then come, Lord Jesus, come with speed,
And help me in my hour of need,
Lead me from this dark vale beneath,
And shorten then the pangs of death.
All evil spirits drive away,
But let Thy Spirit with me stay
Until my soul the body leave;
Then in Thy hands my soul receive,
And let the earth my body keep,
Till the Last Day shall break its sleep.
Joyful my resurrection be,
Thou in the Judgment plead for me,
And hide my sins, Lord, from Thy face,
And give me Life of Thy dear grace!
I trust Thee utterly, my Lord,
For Thou hast promised in Thy Word.
Oh weep not, mourn not o'er this bier,
On such death none should look with fear;
He died as dies a Christian man,
And with his death true life began.
Coffin and grave we deck with care,
His body reverently we bear,
It is not dead, but rests in God,
And softly sleeps beneath the sod.
It seems as all were over now-
The heavy limbs, the soulless brow—
Yet through these rigid limbs once more
A nobler life, ere long, shall pour.
These dead, dry bones again shall feel
New warmth and vigour through them steal;
Reknit and living they shall soar
On high where Christ lives evermore.
The buried grain of wheat must die,
Withered and worthless long must lie,
Yet spring to light all sweet and fair,
And proper fruits shall richly bear;
Even so this body made of dust,
To earth we once again entrust,
And painless it shall slumber here,
Until the Last Great Day appear.
Ah, would that promised Day were here
When Christ shall once again appear;
Then shall He call, nor one be lost,
To endless life earth's buried host.
Jerusalem, my happy home,
Name ever dear to me,
When shall my labours have an end
In joy, and peace, and thee?
When shall these eyes thy heaven-built walls,
And pearly gates behold,
Thy bulwarks with salvation strong,
And streets of shining gold?
Apostles, martyrs, prophets, there
Around my Saviour stand;
And soon my friends in Christ below
Will join the glorious band.
Jerusalem, my happy home,
My soul still pants for thee;
Then shall my labours have an end
When I thy joys shall see.
Praise to the Father and the Son,
Praise to the Spirit be;
Praise to the blessed Three in One;
Through all eternity.
Hark, the song of Jubilee,
Loud as mighty thunders roar,
Or the fulness of the sea,
When it breaks upon the shore!
Hallelujah! for the Lord
God Omnipotent shall reign:
Hallelujah! let the word
Echo round the earth and main.
He shall reign! from pole to pole
With illimitable sway:
He shall reign! when, like a scroll,
Yonder heavens have passed away:
Then the end-beneath His rod
Man's last enemy shall fall:
Hallelujah! Christ in God,
God in Christ, is all in all.
The saints on earth and those above
But one communion make;
Joined to their Lord in bonds of love,
All of His grace partake.
One family we dwell in Him,
One Church, above, beneath ;
Though now divided by the stream,
The narrow stream of death.
One army of the living God,
To His command we bow;
Part of the host have crossed the flood,
And part are crossing now.
Praise to the Father, and the Son,
Praise to the Spirit be;
Praise to the blessed Three in One;
Through all eternity.
Brief life is here our portion,
Brief sorrow, short-lived care :
The life that knows no ending,
The tearless life is there.
O happy retribution,
Short toil, eternal rest!
For mortals and for sinners
A mansion with the blest!
And now we fight the battle,
And then we wear the crown
Of full and everlasting
And passionless renown.
Midst power that knows no limit, And wisdom free from bound, The beatific vision
Shall glad the saints around:
And peace, for war is needless,
And rest, for storm is past,
And goal from finished labour,
And anchorage at last.
There God, our King and Portion,
In fulness of His grace,
Shall we behold for ever,
And worship face to face.
To thee, O dear, dear country!
Mine eyes their vigils keep :
For very love, beholding
Thy happy name, they weep:
The mention of thy glory
Is unction to the breast,
And medicine in sickness,
And love, and life, and rest.
O one, O only mansion!
O paradise of joy!
Where tears are ever banished,
And smiles have no alloy :
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