Category Archives: Hymns

Now the Shades of Night Are Gone ~ Hymn

Now the Shades of Night Are Gone

Now the shades of night are gone
Now the morning light is come.
Lord, may we be Thine today;
Drive the shades of sin away.

Fill our souls with heav’nly light,
Banish doubt and cleanse our sight.
In Thy service, Lord, today
Help us labor, help us pray.

Keep our haughty passions bound,
Save us from our foes around;
Going out and coming in,
Keep us safe from every sin.

When our work of life is past,
Oh, receive us safe at last!
Night of sin will be no more,
When we reach the heav’nly shore.

Words attributed to Samson Occom (1723-1792)

I With Thee Would Begin ~ Hymn

I With Thee Would Begin

I with Thee would begin, O my Savior so dear,
On the way that I still must pursue;
I with Thee would begin every day granted here,
As my earnest resolve I renew
To be and remain Thine forever.

I with Thee would begin and go forth in Thy Name,
Which alone doth salvation bestow;
Fold me close to Thy breast where found joy all who came,
There is refuge for me, too, I know,
Though all in this world is confusion.

Let Thy Word all divine be my lamp in whose light
I may constantly keep to Thy way;
And each day wouldst Thou cleanse me anew, make me white
In the blood shed for me on that day
The cross Thou didst suffer, Lord Jesus.

I with Thee would begin—yea, and hear one more prayer,
I would close with Thee, too, my brief day,
And when daylight has failed, let me sleep in Thy care,
Until waking Thy child Thou dost say,
“Come, live with Me ever in Heaven.”

words: Karolina W. Sandall-Berg, circa 1875, translated from Swedish to English A. Samuel Walgren (1885-1940), music W. Theodor Soderberg, 1884.

ht: Cyberhymnal

I read this paragraph by Cliff Barrows about this hymn in Crusader Hymns and Hymn Stories;

“In its original form, this is a Swedish hymn. Because the translation is literal, you may find that the sentence structure is occasionally inverted and the meaning is a bit obscure. But if you make the effort to understand, you will find that it is a prayer that we may start anew- right now – in the strength of Christ with guidance from His Word. And if you take the trouble to sing it, you will enjoy its “Swedish style” melody.”

The King Shall Come When Morning Dawns ~ Hymn

The King Shall Come When Morning Dawns

The King shall come when morning dawns,
And light triumphant breaks;
When beauty gilds the eastern hills,
And life to joy awakes.

Not as of old a little child
To bear, and fight, and die,
But crowned with glory like the sun
That lights the morning sky.

O brighter than the rising morn
When He, victorious, rose,
And left the lonesome place of death,
Despite the rage of foes.

O brighter than that glorious morn
Shall this fair morning be,
When Christ, our King, in beauty comes,
And we His face shall see.

The King shall come when morning dawns,
And earth’s dark night is past;
O haste the rising of that morn,
The day that aye shall last.

And let the endless bliss begin,
By weary saints foretold,
When right shall triumph over wrong,
And truth shall be extolled.

The King shall come when morning dawns,
And light and beauty brings:
Hail, Christ the Lord! Thy people pray,
Come quickly, King of kings.

Words: Unknown au­thor; trans­lat­ed from Greek to Eng­lish by John Brown­lie in Hymns of the Russ­ian Church, 1907.

ht: cyberhymnal

Lo, How a Rose E’er Blooming ~ Hymn

Lo, How a Rose E’er Blooming

Lo, how a Rose e’er blooming from tender stem hath sprung!
Of Jesse’s lineage coming, as men of old have sung.
It came, a floweret bright, amid the cold of winter,
When half spent was the night.

Isaiah ’twas foretold it, the Rose I have in mind;
With Mary we behold it, the virgin mother kind.
To show God’s love aright, she bore to men a Savior,
When half spent was the night.

The shepherds heard the story proclaimed by angels bright,
How Christ, the Lord of glory was born on earth this night.
To Bethlehem they sped and in the manger found Him,
As angel heralds said.

This Flower, whose fragrance tender with sweetness fills the air,
Dispels with glorious splendor the darkness everywhere;
True Man, yet very God, from sin and death He saves us,
And lightens every load.

O Savior, Child of Mary, who felt our human woe,
O Savior, King of glory, who dost our weakness know;
Bring us at length we pray, to the bright courts of Heaven,
And to the endless day!

Michael Praetorius (1571-1621)

Words: 15th Cen­tu­ry car­ol (Es ist ein Ros ent­sprung­en); vers­es 1-2 trans­lat­ed from Ger­man to Eng­lish by // The­o­dore Bak­er, 1894. Verses 3-4, Fried­rich Lay­ritz, trans­lat­ed by Har­ri­et Rey­nolds Krauth, 1875. Verse 5, trans­lat­ed or writ­ten by // John C. Mat­tes, 1914.

As With Gladness, Men of Old ~ Hymn

As With Gladness, Men of Old

As with gladness, men of old
Did the guiding star behold
As with joy they hailed its light
Leading onward, beaming bright
So, most glorious Lord, may we
Evermore be led to Thee.

As with joyful steps they sped
To that lowly manger bed
There to bend the knee before
Him Whom Heaven and earth adore;
So may we with willing feet
Ever seek Thy mercy seat.

As they offered gifts most rare
At that manger rude and bare;
So may we with holy joy,
Pure and free from sin’s alloy,
All our costliest treasures bring,
Christ, to Thee, our heavenly King.

Holy Jesus, every day
Keep us in the narrow way;
And, when earthly things are past,
Bring our ransomed souls at last
Where they need no star to guide,
Where no clouds Thy glory hide.

In the heavenly country bright,
Need they no created light;
Thou its Light, its Joy, its Crown,
Thou its Sun which goes not down;
There forever may we sing
Alleluias to our King!

Words: William C. Dix, 1860

He wrote this hymn on the day of the Epi­pha­ny, while sick in bed; it was first pub­lished in his Hymns of Love and Joy.

Jerusalem, Lift Up Thy Voice ~ Advent

Jerusalem, Lift Up Thy Voice

Jerusalem, lift up thy voice!
Daughter of Zion, now rejoice!
Thy King is come, whose mighty hand
Henceforth shall reign o’er every land.

He comes to every tribe and race,
A Messenger of truth and grace:
With peace He comes from Heaven above
On earth to found His realm of love.

In God’s eternal covenant,
He comes for our salvation sent.
The star of hope moves on before,
And hosts assemble to adore.

Let all the world with one accord
Now hail the coming of the Lord:
Praise to the Prince of heavenly birth
Who bringeth peace to all the earth.

Words: Johan O, Wallin, 1814, trans­lat­ed from Swed­ish to Eng­lish by Ernst W. Olsen (1870-l958)

Thou Virgin-Born Incarnate Word ~ Hymn

Thou Virgin-Born Incarnate Word

Thou virgin-born incarnate Word,
Begotten of the Father,
Blest Son of Mary, David’s Lord,
In Thy dear Name we gather.
As Thou hast promised, be Thou nigh,
And hear us as we testify,
“Thou art the Christ, our Savior.”

The herald in the wilderness
Prepares the way before Thee;
With him let us Thy Name confess,
With him let us adore Thee.
Grant that we hearken to his cry,
“Repent, the kingdom draweth nigh,”
And seek Thee, Christ our Savior.

Thou art indeed God’s holy Son,
Beloved of Him so dearly,
The mighty works that Thou hast done
Reveal Thy Godhead clearly:
The blind can see, the sick are healed,
The lips once dumb are now unsealed,
All power is Thine, dear Jesus!

Thou art our Peace, our Righteousness,
The Rock of our salvation.
Clothed in Thy garb of holiness,
We fear no condemnation.
Thy blood has cleansed away our sin,
Through Thee eternal life we win,
O crucified Redeemer!

Words: Anna B. Hoppe, 1920.

Sing to the Lord of Harvest ~ Hymn

Sing to the Lord of Harvest

Sing to the Lord of harvest,
Sing songs of love and praise;
With joyful hearts and voices
Your alleluias raise.
By Him the rolling seasons
In fruitful order move;
Sing to the Lord of harvest,
A joyous song of love.

By Him the clouds drop fatness,
The deserts bloom and spring,
The hills leap up in gladness,
The valleys laugh and sing.
He filleth with His fullness
All things with large increase,
He crowns the year with goodness,
With plenty and with peace.

Bring to His sacred altar
The gifts His goodness gave,
The golden sheaves of harvest,
The souls He died to save.
Your hearts lay down before Him
When at His feet you fall,
And with your lives adore Him,
Who gave His life for all.

To God the gracious Father,
Who made us “very good,”
To Christ, who, when we wandered,
Restored us with His blood,
And to the Holy Spirit,
Who doth upon us pour
His blessèd dews and sunshine,
Be praise forevermore!

Words: John S.B. Monsell, 1866

O Give Thanks To Him Who Made ~ Hymn

 

O Give Thanks to Him Who Made

O give thanks to Him Who made
Morning light and evening shade;
Source and Giver of all good,
Nightly sleep and daily food;
Quickener of our wearied powers,
Guard of our unconscious hours.

O give thanks to nature’s King,
Who made every breathing thing;
His, our warm and sentient frame,
His, the mind’s immortal flame.
O how close the ties that bind
Spirits to the Eternal Mind!

O give thanks with heart and lip,
For we are His workmanship;
And all creatures are His care:
Not a bird that cleaves the air
Falls unnoticed; but who can
Speak the Father’s love to man?

O give thanks to Him Who came
In a mortal, suffering frame—
Temple of the Deity—
Came for rebel man to die;
In the path Himself hath trod
Leading back His saints to God.

Words: Josiah Conder, 1836

ht: Cyberhymnal

Onward We Will Go ~ Hymn

 

Onward We Will Go

With our Savior close beside us,
Onward will we go;
With His loving hand to guide us,
Onward will we go.
Since His truth abideth ever,
And His love no power can sever,
Since His promise faileth never—
Onward will we go.

In the strength of His salvation,
Onward will we go;
Heeding not the world’s temptation,
Onward will we go.
Though the clouds may gather o’er us,
This our watchword and our chorus:
“He has trod the way before us;
Onward will we go.”

Every trial meekly bearing,
Onward will we go;
Each another’s burden sharing,
Onward will we go.
By His mighty arm defended,
By the heav’nly guards attended,
Till our life work here is ended,
Onward will we go.

Words: Fanny Crosby (1820-1915)