The new-made sun, when nature all was hushed, Revealed his glory in the eastern sky; Earth virgin-like in his grand presence blushed, As though the great Creator now were nigh!

Then was disturbed the sleep of ancient night, Her sable pinions trembled as with fear; And from the vast expanse she took her flight, Full conscious that the sun’s approach was near.

For a brief time the stars in fair array All gazed in admiration at the sight; And with their wings, while dawning was the day, In pure reverence hid their faces bright.

Expectantly in chaos’ dullest reignp6 For light’s remotest sign Earth looked so long; As now the sun made his appearance fine, Earth sang with all the stars creation’s song!

The billows of the deep to see the spell Themselves upheaved as in a gentle fray; Alternately the surges backward fell, As they rose rushing to salute the day!

The modest meads above the waters rose, And Nature, all enchanted, upright stood; The forward hills up from their long repose Awoke to gaze upon the shining flood.

The mountains and the valleys that were made Were rising from the void as from a sea To be adorned with herbs and the green blade By the sun’s warmth which nurseth life so free.

Earth’s docile waters went with murmuring rare And formed the rivers, seas, and oceans high; The dry land freely breathed the quickening air, While its tall summits climbed the crystal sky.

The tender soil beneath the fervent heatp7 Brought forth abundant grass by God’s command; And Nature’s graceful sway with flowers sweet Decked all the surface of the smiling land.

The densest fog, that intervened between The sun and earth, had vanished all away, And in his lustrous splendor now was seen The fruitful Earth rejoicing in his ray.

For times as countless as the sparkling dew, In mist the sun did set, remote from Earth; When now so near, his presence he withdrew, Deprived Earth was of her exultant mirth.

While sadly weeping for the missing light, The moon and stars in solemn silence came, As from a holier region into sight, To comfort lonely Earth with meeker flame.

The sun returned in a diviner gleam, As from the glare of suns of higher mould; Earth with a kinder smile received his beam Than since she had emerged from Chaos old.

Another kingdom through the lowest onep8 Crept, walked, and played, endowed with instinct keen; And while ascending on his turn, the sun Rained on them all his warmth and varied sheen.

While o’er the flowery fields behemoth went, Beneath his weight they seemed to bend to dales; As in the stream he stretched himself content, It backward ran, submerging all the vales.

The mighty seas with life were teeming now, And smoothly through the waves it made its way; The whale above the surface raised his brow, And sent the waters streaming to the sky.

As a new planet populous, complete, Earth now in vain was searching for her king. To occupy the throne in the retreat Of Paradise, where reigned eternal spring.

As usual now the dawn unlocked the gate Of joyous, radiant day and beauty rare; The sov’reign sun, while forth he came in state, Revealed the Man enthroned in Eden fair.

The seventh day, most blessèd, perfect rest,p9 The only Sabbath ever was, may be, That Satan bold hath not annoyed the breast That worships God in holy ecstasy!

Again, the sun arose and Nature smiled, As smiles a babe that wakes from restful sleep; But man in crime and fear appearèd wild; He wished the sun had never left the deep!

Of good and evil he had tasted now, As we through childhood pass to riper years; The brightest crown that decked a human brow He had exchanged for shame and bitter tears!

He would have hid in darkness and in night, Sin held the heights were Innocence had trod; Remorse and guilt in darkness will delight, But purity of heart delights in God.

The sense of sin, the consciousness of wrong,p10 The source of all our weakness insecure, Was like a tide arising in him strong, While now he thought of Him who made him pure!

As night retreats before the dawn of day, As God’s approach man hid himself in fear; But mercy’s first and most pathetic lay, The voice of God found his unwilling ear!

The wretched fallen man was found by grace, For God is love—let heaven and earth rejoice! The way of blessèd life to all the race Was pointed by the Lord’s inquiring voice.

The Promised One shall bruise the serpent’s head, What depth of life contians the Promise free! Though by the Tempter vanquished, sinful, dead, Man in the Promised One shall victor be!

And by the Promise prime the love of God Shone like the new-made sun of ancient day In the dull night which darkened Eden’s sod, And cheered the man o’ercome by dire dismay.

It bridged the dreadful gulf that Sin had made,p11 Dividing God and man—his youngest child; And, also, it dispelled the fatal shade That hid from his God’s gracious presence mild.

The Promise hath a voice more potent, kind, Than the creative word “Let there be light”; It caused the star of hope to Adam’s mind To rise in its celestial glory bright.

As he from Eden’s sacred heights was sent, Despoiled of sanctity and gifts unseen, With him the first and richest Promise went, To make his future bearable, serene.

Though guarded is the way of life’s fair tree, And shut the golden gates of Paradise; Though sin’s results sweep over land and sea, The Promise points the man to calmer skies.

Though fowl and beast their cruelty have shown, And wrath’s stern angel in the sky resides, Though clouds flash lightnings and dull thunders groan, Yet man looks upward where his God abides.

Though dimmer is the night and all her train,p12 And paler now the brightness of the sun, Though heaven and earth are quaking as in pain, Man may find comfort in the Promised One.

Though intellect is dull and passions boil, And conscience pricks and love perverted is, Though tilling daily the unyielding soil, Man in the Promise may find rest and bliss.

Angelic innocence and ease are past, And converse with Jehovah face to face; Still helpful hope remains in error’s blast Of true communion with the Lord by grace.

He sorely recollects in grosser clime The milder day when first himself he knew; How changed his state from that enraptured time, When Eden’s glory dazzled on his view!

Though heaven from Earth seems further to have gone, And seldom on the breeze spreads angel’s wing, Though exiled, sin-stained, of himself undone, Supported by the Promise man can sing.

Jehovah in his truthful Promise dwellsp13 To succor, to enlighten, and to cheer; And man—a sinner—in the Promise spells That he who seeks the Lord will find him near.

God’s precious Promise!—the Redeemer’s star, Aurora, hail!—haste, usher in the day; Salvation in its essence from afar Beams in thy gracious, empyreal ray!

As guides the morning star the traveller’s feet, Ere comes the sun the firmament to span, So safely guided by the Promise sweet And lesser lustres was the mind of man.

The Book of Nature,—heaven, land, and sea, Charmed, like the serpent’s eye, the observer keen; And man by nature may observant be, And find the Author in what’s known and seen.

The Voice of Conscience,—that mysterious strain,p14 Which with prompt aptness recommends the light, Claimed for the truth its native right to reign, And form the character of man aright.

The Fall’s stern Lesson,—that most fatal turn, Which soils the records of the human race, The which effects triumphantly would burn, Had God left man unaided by his grace.

Creative ancient Lore,—to man revealed, Conveyed by sire to son from age to age; The truth by honest minds was not concealed, But wholly spoken by each pious sage.

O mean of God! with holy warmth aglow, Each in his period by the Spirit taught, Taught what they knew or what in vision saw, Truth’s noblest teachers of sublimest note!

These were the lights, but in the centre hung The Promise fair, supreme in kind and scope; And from the love of Godhead it had sprung, Portraying man’s Avenger and his Hope.

When sun is set, the moon and stars retracep15 Their nightly course to brighten earth and sky; And oh! when God withdrew his radiant face, In tenderness his Promise sparkled nigh!

And in the presence of the lesser lights, And the potential Promise, man went forth, And in him all the race, to climb the heights From which he fell, and reach his native worth.

How steep the rugged mount, how rough the road, While the subtle beast is crouching by the way; And of alluring mood in every mode, Moved by insatiate lust to seize the prey.

The origin of sin, the fertile root, Dark Jealousy—infernal, cunning lust, Watching its hour, then, as to frenzy wrought, It strikes the innocent victim to the dust.

Alas! the lad devout,—one of a twain, Who of true heart brought choicest sacrifice, Now by his brother of sheer malice slain, So ever would the fool dispatch the wise!

His guiltless soul soared on the wings of love,p16 To Him he served with most sincere desire; And lo! new notes were struck through realms above— Redemption’s anthem by the angelic choir!

The slayer from the presence of the Lord,— His father’s house, God in the human heart, Was driven sternly forth, as by the sword Of righteous indignation, to a land apart.

The benign God who watches o’er the flower That blooms and withers in the waste obscure, Will fain endow the struggling soul with power To walk with him and all his cares endure.

To walk with God man’s highest aim should be, All earthly honor soon shall pass away; But they who ground themselves in piety Secure a fame that never shall decay.

To walk with God is privilege supreme, The grandest movement of the human soul; By meditating on the ideal theme, The soul at last shall reach its destined goal.

Lo! “Enoch walked with God, and he was not;p17 For God took him” to dwell among the blest; He cast aside his last imperfect spot On some dark cloud as he went Home to rest.

The Promise proved to him a tree of life, From which he picked immortal fruit by faith; And having conquered every human strife, He soared to bliss above the vale of death!

There was a star hung on the brow of night, There was a path from darkness into day, Whereby the penitential spirit might Perceive the truth and know its righteous way.

But yet the flow of sin had risen high, And bore upon its flood the chosen seed; Corruption swayed, all flesh had gone astray, It was the reign of violence and greed.

The Spirit of Jehovah turned aside,p18 And as in bitter disappointment wept; And ever upward swelled the furious tide, And fierce against the purposes of God it swept!

The Spirit will not always strive with man, Abandoned by the Lord, how sad his state; Impelled by evil thoughts, how soon he saw His sinful course and met his fearful fate!

The faithful man—one of the righteous race Who in the heinous age most worthy stood, Found in the eyes of God redeeming grace; He and his house escaped the deadly flood.

The ark! the ark! the refuge of the brave, Divinely planned, but built by human skill: Man is more mighty than the wrathful wave When he with God co-operates at will.

Ah! Noah’s admonitions were in vain; The precious load is sealed within the ark; And Nature holds her breath, as in deep pain, And lo! the east at break of day is dark!

Chaotic silence reigns in every nook,p19 And birds of prey mid flight fall dead with fear; And flocks and herds, astounded, upward look, As if they knew that their end was near!

But oh! the tremblings of the human heart, The wailings of the myriads rend the air; And not a ray of hope the skies impart; It is too late for tears—too late for prayer!

They envied now the creatures of the ark, Obediently at Noah’s call they came; Each took its place by instinct in the bark, And the ferocious for the time were tame.

While envying thus the creatures their strong-hold, A denser darkness gathered all around; Ere long a fatal storm all signs foretold, And clouds of thunder settled on the ground!

Jehovah now sends forth his vengeful ire, A mortal tremor apprehends the earth; The thunderbolts, as massive bars of fire, Burst the fraught clouds and give the Deluge birth.

A cataract of rain each cloud outpours,p20 O’er values and meads in solid flow it drives; Anow the oceans overleap their shores, And blackest death on human beings thrives!

The Deluge onward leads his surging train, And moaning, upward swells, all white with wrath; With a victorious roar the stormy main Makes all the highest mounts his easy path!

Thrown open were the floodgates of the sky, And broken were the fountains of the deep; The righteous God in judgment did pass by, And Earth, redeemed by flood, falls now to sleep.

But piloted by God the loaded ark On the majestic waters smoothly goes; To note her course there’s not the slightest mark, The sole survivor of a flood of woes!

The gentle breezes, as the breath of God, O’er all the surface dark begin to blow; And calmly backward, at the Almighty’s nod, To their alloted bounds the waters go.

The God who called the elements to war,p21 Spoke to the troubled Deluge—“Peace, be still.” The truth-containing ark floats to the bar, And rests on Ararat’s exalted hill.

Out of the waters, as it did of yore, The earth emerges as in joy and peace. To be destroyed by deluge never more, Till the last day the seasons shall not cease.

Sweet smelling odors from the altar rise, And Noah triumphed by the Promised Light; The sign of covenant shines in the skies, The beamy, vari-colored rainbow bright!

The race survives! the upright wins the meed; Victoriously he crossed the raging flood, And guided by the Light he will proceed To combat evil and to love the good.

Hail! Holy Light, the Uncreated Word,p22 Throughout the ages in the darkness, shine, Until in human form thou wilt, O Lord, Expound thyself to man as truth divine!

But self-willed man, presumptuous and vain, By evil disposition ever driven, Attempts, as e’er, unaided to attain A perfect safety and a glorious heaven!

While thus attempting his own fate to mould, And build his structures and the skies ascend, All his proud systems, as the tower bold, In utter Babel—deep confusion end!

Benighted man to worship self resigns, Self-love conducts him to the sordid pelf; And in his false ambition he declines, As at the start, the Deity for self!

He doth not worship idols truly so, But his fond thought embodied in the form, He’ll bend the knee and as a suppliant go To his thought-image which he deems the norm!

He dreams and dreams, and worships what he dreams,p23 And his unreal dreams imagines true; In these he trusts, and leaves the living streams Of truth divine for his strange notions new!

Self-idolized and self-deluded man From Heaven’s presence vaguely wanders yet; And from his thoughts excludes the only plan Whereon he should his chief affections set.

Hence now from Shinar’s fertile, flowery plain, The godless tribes by the divine decree, Speaking various tongues, are scattered amain To people the whole earth from sea to sea.

Each tribe its own peculiar thought pursue, Confusing errors with the truths of Heaven; The earth by skill and courage they subdue, But yet to evil and vain-glory given!

As ere the flood, sin vitiates the mind, And in its blindness into wildness starts; With reckless rush these tribes of human kind Depart from God though guilty conscience smarts.

They leave the Light as they before the flood,p24 Blind builders of their future men are still; The means they had—they might have understood The statutes of the Everlasting Will.

But there is not an epoch—not an age Wherein the human race went all amiss; Each period had its wise and holy sage That led the rest to God and endless bliss.

True heroes of the Light! they lived above This earth, and saw what only faith can see; They saw through space and time the land of love, Eternal life and immortality.

Though Noah’s generation quenched the light, And in their stubbornness rebellious came; The family of Eber thought aright, And trod the paths that lead to holy fame.

The branches wither, but the stock remains, And through the scent of waters bud again; So human nature its prime stem retains And by Divinity it blooms in men.

And Eber bloomed and flourished as a palm,p25 As Noah his ancestor, as a saint; He lived above the many in the calm That springs from doing good without restraint.

They were not spotless men; but men that strove To know the Perfect, worship, and obey;— Men in close harmony with truth and love, Who fought for God while others turned astray.

Behold the moon when fairest is not clear, But in the beauty we forget the stains; In the best lives some blemishes appear, We see the blemish, but forget their pains!

Brave men of sterling worth and true renown, Who faithfully Jehovah did adore, Here gained their peace, and an immortal crown Beyond the bounds of time’s tempestuous shore.

Thou Source of holy thought and constant stay, The power and fire of the sacred muse, Teach me thy tuneful strains, approve my lay, And into it thy influence infuse!

Idolatry, mankind’s besetting fault, Is practised now by God’s most favored race; Man’s wild imagination, like a bolt, Hath left the path of piety and grace.

Each family its darling idols keep, The teraphim,—what superstitious trust! But there is one whose faith is not asleep, The father of the faithful and the just.

How frequent now the Voice Supreme is heard, Wherever in their sojourns dwell the wise; How frequent now the Angel of the Lord Delights to visit Earth in various guise.

In dreams and visions of the silent night,p27 When man and nature are at peaceful rest, The great, illustrious Visitor from light Makes his appearance on his high behest.

The Unseen Being in the Angel seeks, Assuming form and simple majesty, The tents of men, and to the Patriarchs speaks, As friend to friend in true humility.

He spoke to Adam and with Enoch walked, And Noah heard the influential voice; Again to one the Lord in mercy talked,— One in whose seed the nations shall rejoice.

Led by the Light and the divine command, To be a stranger on this earthly ball He leaves his kindred and his native land, In true obedience to the heavenly call.

Man’s highest reason and true faith are one, Faith is the fruit and reason is the tree, When Abraham goes his godly course to run, Of all the race most rational is he.

Thou man of faith and holy vision, go,p28 And the Eternal Word will be thy guide; Go, teach mankind the living God to know, And gaze upon thy fair possessions wide.

From Ur of Chaldees, crossing Haran’s ford, He and few kindred reached the promised land, Wherein, at the appointed time, the Lord, The Promised One made bare his mighty hand.

The highest Promise of propitious Heaven, The prime, the all-sufficient, central one, Again was to this favored prophet given, In that of Isaac—his immediate son.

Hail! Prince of faith, the friend of God, the blest, From plain to hill in Canaan he did roam; And in the Promise found the heavenly rest, The Saviour meek and the celestial home.

By his strong faith in God’s great Promise high He would have sacrificed his only son, Had not the Angel from the open sky Stayed his firm hand as though the deed were done.

The Angel of the Lord was ever surep29 To bless and comfort him as needs might be; And once, with his attendant angels pure, He did adorn his hospitality.

The cogent Promise, like a fixèd star, Which lightened all the ages’ darkest night, Sheds now abroad a brighter lustre far Than when it beamed on Eden’s faded light.

Son of the Promise—Isaac, Abraham’s heir, Most holy man of God, so meek and wise, Fit type he is of Him who did appear To work his way from Earth to Paradise.

He was a thoughtful meditative soul, With nature’s truths conversant—pleasant fields He could himself in any strait control, What lessons of submission Isaac yields.

To him again the glorious Light unveiledp30 Himself at Geran and the Promise gave; And full of days, the Patriarch, bewailed By his two sons, found rest beyond the grave.

The fulgent Promise’s grand descent through time, Till the fulfilment in the Promised One, Is infinite mor splendid and sublime Than the inspiring course of nature’s sun.

By its irradiant gleam through thickest gloom The faithful people trod the righteous way; And heaven-born faith beheld the vernal bloom Of that fair world where shines eternal day.

Inscrutable are all Jehovah’s ways, Jacob the youngest son the Promise bears; Though tossed by troubles almost all his days, True faith in God his character declares.

When fleeing from his brother Esau’s wrath,p31 Asleep at Bethel in a lucid dream He saw from Earth to heaven a sunny path, Illumined by Jehovah’s brilliant beam.

O what a vision! what supernal sight!— There heaven on earth was present to the eye; How glorious always is a starry night, But then transformed to heaven was all the sky.

The golden ladder lining the ascent, The angels moving up and down the steep, As by Divinity they had been sent To guard a lonely pilgrim in his sleep.

He humbly saw and heard the blessèd Lord, And clearly felt he had been sought and found; And, like his fathers, he received the word Of sacred Promise in its sweetest sound.

When he awoke, that God was there he knew, Bethel, the house of God, called he the place; And from the hallowed height the pilgrim true Pursued his course, sustained by faith and grace.

To them who love to trace the Holy Light,p32 Who look beyond the valley of despair, How precious Bethel’s memorable height, Where God met Jacob in a vision fair.

Like him each mortal must his Saviour meet Ere he begins his character to mend; And from his Bethel, well-equipped, discreet, He will set forth to conquer to the end.

Lo! he who knows the Lord he also knows The evil of his heart to some degree; And as self-consciousness expands and grows, He fully feels that victor he shall be.

The sun was set, the dew fell thick and fast;p33 And thoughtful night sat on the dusky throne; There nothing stirred save Jabbok’s stream; at last The anxious Patriarch was left alone.

And O! from early night to rosy morn He wrestled with a Man in earnest prayers; He held to him, as to salvation’s horn, With fervent supplications and with tears.

And when the struggle did most earnest grow, And Jacob the departure did delay, As mist before the sun, so vanished now The Angel’s human form and all was day!

“For breaking is the day,” the Angel said, “Let me go,”—the contest had been long and hard; But fearless faith in Jacob answer made: “Thy flight except thou bless me I’ll retard”!

Prevail he did. The Heavenly Being spoke:p34 “Not Jacob,—Israel shall thy name be called.” And, while the sun creation’s beauty woke, He as a prince with God and man was there installed!

In agony of soul the Patriarch wept, While yearning to prevail with the Most High; The Lord found him in Bathel as he slept, But he in Peniel found the Lord for aye.

In fond remembrance of the victory gained, Peniel—the face of God—named he the place, For there the title Israel he obtained, And there he saw Jehovah face to face.

He who hath seen the beauty of the Lord, A deeper knowledge of him he desires; And on the dewy mountains of the Word, In Peniel he’ll prevail ere he expires!

So Israel now confirmed in faith and free From burdensome anxiety and fear, Resumed his homeward march; and, as a sea After storm, Esau’s face was calm and clear.

Faith stills the roughest storm that ever blew, And on the hill of triumph sets the soul; The teaching of the Sacred Page is true,— He who makes peace with God makes peace with all.

In Canaan then he wandered to and fro, A man of trials as he thought the while; As years passed the Patriarch came to know That every cloud was but Jehovah’s smile.

In Goshen, also, by the flowing Nile, When fast his life was ebbing to the main, Inspired by Heaven, he saw the Light the while, The coming Shiloh and his glorious reign.

Hail! honored Judah and thy royal tribe,p36 From thee in time shall come the Promised One; To him the people shall all praise ascribe When his day breaketh as the rising sun.

The Voice Divine for ages had been mute, And prompting Inspiration was suppressed; The Israelites were now of no repute, For in captivity they were oppressed.

Their glorious state and fame in days of old Had been forgotten,—sorely they were tried; And lashed and burdened by the Egyptians bold, In anguish daily to the Lord they cried.

Heard was their cry! The All-seeing One above Beheld their bondage and their servile plight; And their grand deliverance planned in love, And caused the star of hope to shine so bright.

How wondrous are the purposes of God,p37 Unfolding like the morning to the view; When crushed was Israel by an iron rod, Then Moses came proud Egypt to subdue.

And lo! by Egypt he was nursed, and trained In all the wisdom of that ancient day; And worthily her glory he maintained When leading her strong armies in the fray.

How goodly and how winsome when a child, His infant smile won Pharaoh’s daughter’s grace, And as he grew, he grew in manhood mild, He was the meekest man of all the race.

His Hebrew passion in his fortieth year Nerved his strong arm to strike a deadly blow Too soon as yet! to save thy life, in fear To yonder Midian thou must quickly go.

Be patient, wait, control thyself, prepare;p38 The mind of Him thou servest truly know: To strike ere the opportune time beware, Be sure that God himself inspires thy blow.

One intelligent stroke, directed true, By him who sees with single eye the goal, Will always better execution do Than numberless attempts by a dull soul.

Though versed in Egypt’s science and fine art, A scholar of the scholars, broad and keen, He had one task to learn—to know his heart And sympathize with Majesty Unseen.

Hail! solitude, fond nurse of finest thought, Where earth, sun, moon, and stars in silence sleep, There to the tops of Horeb he was brought To muse in loneliness and watch the sheep.

On that historic mount for forty yearsp39 In meditations deep he groped for light; And for his people felt and wept the tears, While growing darker was the weary night.

But Heaven’s long silence shall be broken soon, The ray of freedom purples all the sky, The race shall yet enjoy the brightest noon, The Angel of Jehovah hovers nigh.

For he, the highest manhood of mankind, In that far age, one day had led the sheep Back of the desert, and his eagle-mind Stood wholly lost in pure reflections deep.

There he beheld a vision strangely fair, The bush was burning, yet unscathed remained. The Angel of the Lord was in the glare, The Self-existent who our peace ordained.

Perplexed, he turned to look upon the flame,p40 Not knowing how to solve such perfect spell; But when he heard announced the Holy Name, He knew the Presence and he prostrate fell.

He heard the mind of Him whose word is sure, He knew his weakness and he knew his might; All might he knew was in the Presence pure, In him was darkness; in the Presence—light.

The Light shone in the darkness, and the Might Made even Moses’ weakness more than strong; He by the Presence had the might and right To humble Egypt and redress her wrong.

His noble mission now he well did know, To God he gave what Egypt wished—his will; Sweet harmonies through all man’s nature flow When God enjoins and man aims to fulfil.

Through life he triumphed by the Presence mild,p41 As blooming nature triumphs in the spring; God spoke to him as father to a child, And made him great as prophet, priest, and king.

Invisible to man thou art, O Lord, When wilt thou come to dwell among the race? That they may hear from three the living word, That they may know and see thee face to face.

Thou didst reveal thy counsels in the past, At long intervals to the chosen seed; O wilt thou come to dwell with man at last, And know by being man thyself his need?

Thou didst appear in symbol and in sign, In dream and vision; in the burning bush; Wilt thou forgo thy blessèd state and deign To know and feel as man, to smile and blush?

Thou didst, O Lord, in fiery pillar and cloud,p42 In angel-form on special times appear; From Horeb once was heard thy voice aloud When all the tribes were struck with awe and fear.

Thou mad’st thy dwelling in the holy place, For periods long there was thine earthly rest; When wilt thou come to wear a human face, And bear a human heart within thy breast?

How long, how long the world must wait again, And through dark types and shadows look at thee, And be content to follow holy men, As straying sparks of thy divinity?

O thou alone canst put all doubt to flight, And make man feel that death doth not end all; For thou wilt bring eternal life to light, And show the priceless value of the soul.

Thy first great prophet, Moses, spoke of thee,p43–44 That thou wouldst come and dwell in human guise, That man should hearken to thee and be free, And take thy yoke upon him and be wise.

When shall “a child” be born, both God and man;— Of whom thy holy prophets nobly speak? When wilt thou come to be the Promised One, And bruise the serpent’s head and save the weak?

When wilt thou come to be a man of grief, And know the sorrows that humanity bears, And find by weeping how much calm relief To the full breast there is in shedding tears?

O when wilt thou redeem thine oracles old, And cause thy chosen people to rejoice, And bring thine “other sheep” within the fold, And teach them all to know thy tender voice?

Each harmless dove and lamb, that e’er was slainp45 In plaintive accents mildly queried when? And all thine ancient prophets, sacred train, Looked for the perfect Guide and King of men.

When wilt thou come to die as love divine, And on thy death raise thy eternal throne; And in the glory of the Father reign, And bear the palm of victory alone?

Forgive these queries, Lord, thou hast been born, And fought and won, and died and risen too; And in thy rising, we behold the morn, The bright aurora of each victor true!

The Promised One came to this earth To walk as manhood ought to walk, And talk as manhood ought to talk, And crown the excellence of birth.

He came we know, but why came He? We do not know the wherefore all,— We fell, and constantly we fall,— Life still hath its forbidden tree.

He came the Father to obey, To seek and save that which was lost, To show that God at any cost Would have us hope and live for aye.

He freely came to live and die,p47 And rise again and conquer death; And breathe in man the living breath Of godward life and purpose high.

When did He come? When all the wise Expected that the hour was near, When God would speak to men more clear Than he had done in ancient days.

That a great prophet would arise, And all sweet harmony restore, As it should be and was of yore, Ere sin made discords in the praise.

When all the world expectant stood, And stillness reigned from sea to sea, As deep as that we feel when we Pass through a lone and distant wood.

When prophets pure had ceased to be,p48 And all the Oracles were mute; And men thought more how to dispute Than how to make men good and free.

When after ample time, the race, Though wisely led by sages brave, Had wholly failed themselves to save, But sinking deeper in disgrace.

When fading fast was Grecian art, And Beauty fell to wicked lust, And Virtue wept as in the dust, And vainer grew the human heart.

When Rome was in her fullest swing, And her best orators in bloom, And when she wished for wider room, And made the world her glory ring!

While thus in splendor sparkled Rome,p49 As God responds to human need, As he performs what he decreed, The Christ in Canaan made his home.

And now His wondrous birth had been foretold, As that of John, his great forerunner stern; And thus was the foretelling of John’s birth:

His father Zacharias was a priest, A godly man but childless—a reproach. He and his wife Elizabeth were old, And stricken well in years. They had no hope Of knowing what is true parental love, But Zacharias had not ceased to pray.

It came to pass while in his course as priest,p50 While serving in the Temple of the Lord, That unto him appeared an angel bright. Perplexed was Zacharias and afraid, But softly unto him the angel spoke:—

“Fear not, thou chosen one, thy prayer is heard, Thy wife Elizabeth shall bear a son, And thou shalt name him John: Thou shalt have joy And at his advent many shall rejoice; For in the sight of God he shall be great.

“And he shall neither taste strong drink nor wine; And with the Holy Ghost shall he be filled, Even from his mother’s womb. And he shall turn A multitude of people to the Lord, And go before him in Elijah’s power, To make the fatherhood of man more true, And disobedient children wise and just, And to prepare a people for the Lord.”

But Zacharias doubtfully replied:p51 “Thy servant, heavenly messenger, is old, My consort, also, well advanced in years; Grant me a sign that this shall come to pass.”

The angel answered more severe than soft: “I am the angel Gabriel, that stands In the celestial presence of the Lord, And have been sent to speak to thee, and show Thee these glad things. Lo! thou shalt be dumb, And to speak not able, until the day That these things be performed; because my words, Which are potential, thou believest not.” And in due season they were all fulfilled.

The Christ’s nativity was thus foretold: In six months after, the same messenger was sent By Heaven unto a Galilean maid, Who dwelt in Nazareth—a virgin fair, Who was espoused to Joseph, David’s son; And by the name of Mary she was known.

The angel when he came accosted her:p52 “Hail! thou art highly favored of the Lord, And high above all women thou art blest.”

The angel’s salutation troubled her, And, as she pondered it, he further spoke:—

“Fear not, for thou hast favor found with God: Behold, thou shalt conceive and bear a son, And Jesus thou shalt call his name. He shall Be great, and called the Son of the Most High. God shall give him his Father David’s throne; And o’er the house of Jacob he shall reign; And of his kingdom there shall be no end.”

Then Mary to the angel meekly said: “A virgin as I am, how shall this be?”

The angel gently to direct her mind Said: ”The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, And the power of the Highest shade thee, Therefore, that Holy Thing which shall be born Of thee shall e’er be called the Son of God.

“And lo! Elizabeth, thy childless cousin,p53 She hath conceived a son in her old age; And this with her six months ago occurred; For nothing is impossible with God.”

The Virgin full of faith and trust in God Replied: “Behold the handmaid of the Lord; Be it unto me according to thy word.” The angel from her presence then withdrew.

So reads the substance of the Sacred Text, The very corner stone of Christian faith.

We turn to gaze upon His birth, And blending with simplicity We see the true sublimity, And hear the heaven-ecstatic mirth.

Believe the birth and all is clear,—p54 That of a Virgin, pure as morn, The Christ, both God and man, was born, How natural then his works appear!

This is the mystery of soul, Divine and human consciousness, The very God,—but man no less; And yet one Being, Lord of all.

Conception above human rhyme; The only real mystery Wrought by Supernal energy, The crowning miracle of time.

From such a birth alone could spring A life of such humility, A life of perfect sanctity Of which the sacred muse did sing!

The place was Bethlehem—place of fame,p55 For there once lived a poet terse, Who tuned his harp and played his verse, And blessed the village with his name.

The night was more than calm and clear; The moon and stars to fields of blue Had come as to a great review, Their flocks the shepherds watched with care.

A messenger from heaven above Descended in a stream of light, And towards the shepherds winged his flight, And to them spoke these words of love:

“Fear not, ye shepherds, for, behold, I bring glad tidings of great joy, Which shall the people’s minds employ, As by the ancient prophets told.

“For unto you is born this day,p56 Where David learned the inspired chord, A Saviour who is Christ the Lord, And in a manger he doth lay.”

And with the angel in a cloud Of glory floating in the air, Were multitudes of angels fair, Who praised the Lord in accents loud.

The music swelled from glen to glen: “All glory be to God on high, He reigns supreme through earth and sky, Peace be on earth; good will to men.”

And through the air there came again, As from the distance of the stars, The echo of the stirring bars, “Peace be on earth; good will to men!”

The rustic shepherds were amazedp57 At words of such sublimest sound; They felt they stood on holy ground, As to the distant sky they gazed.

Aroused by what the angel said And what they saw, the shepherds mild To Bethlehem went to see the Child, Sustained by hope and awed by dread.

The Babe they found; and word for word In accents soft they did unfold Their news till all their tale was told; They knew the Child was Christ the Lord.

And they who heard them wondered all; But Mary kept them in her heart, And ever pondered well each part Of the report in her deep soul.

Repeating often what they heardp58 And praising God for the event, Back to their sheep the shepherds went, The Child they knew was Christ the Lord.

And, as the shepherds, so shall we The Saviour find if try we will, And know that he is with us still, And in good men his image see.

Each step we take through what hath been, We touch a Purpose broad as heaven By which we constantly are driven To feel and grope for the Unseen.

We witness revolutions strange, Old empires fall, new empires rise; But lo! the Purpose of the skies Shines through them all without a change.

Since the first beam of blessèd light,p59 The human heart longed to embrace Divinity among the race, And know the Great Unknown aright!

Imperfect were the lights of old, Imperfect were the virtues spun; But lo! in Christ the perfect sun Are glories that can ne’er be told.

In him all truths shine and accord, And in his presence we are dumb; He is the flower, the crown, the sum, Of all perfections, Christ the Lord.

When to the Temple He was brought, An infant on his mother’s breast, Clear faith beheld in him her rest By holy inspiration wrought.

Simeon held him in his arm,p60 He knew him as the Promised One, He knew him as the Light of men, And in his heart he felt the charm

And power that come alone by faith; And he rejoiced that he had seen, By heavenly intuition keen, The Lord’s salvation in his death.

Anna the prophetess at this Approached,—a holy soul was she, And there proclaimed her faith, that He The Child was the Expected Bliss.

Obscure once was the orb of day, A lonely beam in chaos old; So were the worlds that roll so bold And flaming through the spacious sky.

Obscure was earth at nameless date,p61 All things of time were once but small, But latent strength will after all Make what is small the truly great.

And lo! obscure the Saviour’s birth, Obscure in a terrestrial sense; Supernal greatness can dispense With all vain-grandeur of the earth.

We here behold the truly great, Great was the way Christ came to earth; Great was the melody and mirth, Lo! here the greatness rides in state.

O blame not Earth, she did the best That the conditions could afford, When as an infant Christ the Lord Was gently laid upon her breast.

Although the lights burned low and dim,p62 She sent to Bethlehem from afar The best of men, led by a star, To welcome and to worship him.

Should all the stars that grace the sky Be swept away by that day’s blast, And be forgotten in the past, The wise men’s star shall never die!

All hail to the star of the East, All hail to the men that she led; The wisest were they, for they read In the star the sign of the feast.

All hail to the sons of the East, The kinsmen of Jethro and Job; God’s temple to them was the globe, And the presence of God was their feast.

Their journey was tedious and long,p63 They travelled by faith and by sight; And the star, the star of the Light, Was ever their solace and song.

True seekers of truth and of grace, True worshippers also were they; Their Saviour they sought far away Where planets beam brightly in space.

They came from the East like the morn, But guided they were by a star, A signal of peace, not of war, The King of the Jews had been born.

They studied the lore of the skies, They moved as the star moved above, The moved by the Spirit of love In search of the King of the wise.

They moved by the Spirit within,p64 They earnestly willed to embrace The Saviour, the truth, and the grace, They sought full redemption from sin.

All hail to the Saviour of men, The Light of the Gentiles is He; The captives ere long shall be free, And Darkness must flee to his den!

When by the city’s busy gate, Jerusalem, as through the throng, They calm and solemn moved along, They often did their mission state.

“Pray, tell, where is He—we come from afar— Where is He that is born King of the Jews? That him we may worship, tell us the news, For, lo! in the east we have seen his star.”

As through the startled streets they moved,p65 The city, like an ocean free, Was troubled through and through to see The wise in quest of whom they loved.

Astonished must have been the Jews To hear the mission of the men; So must have been the wise again To know that it was such a news.

And lo! it seems so strangely odd, That ignorant of Jesus’ birth Then was the joy of the whole earth, The City of the living God.

The Magi must have felt the pause, As deeper their anxiety burned, But ah! their dream, ere they returned, Might have explained to them the cause.

Could they have read King Herod’s art,p66 Or understood his subtle mien, They might in Ignorance have seen A Providence that knows the heart.

Directed by the king were they, And by the proud Sanhedrin he, That Bethlehem still the place should be; And knowing all they had to say,

“Go,” said the king, “search, be not dim; For my thoughts with yours well accord; When you have found Him, bring me word That I may come and worship him.”

And “go” they did. To them appeared Again the star of perfect ray; And leading to the Child the way, Stood o’er the place and brightly glared.

Glad of the star, how short the road,p67 Of distance now they made no note, As only of the Child they thought, And whom they worshipped as their God.—

That God they sought in every chord Of Nature’s harmony sublime; And in the lights and shades of time, They found at last in Christ the Lord.

Lo! priests of Nature’s fane were they, But seekers for the Holy Place; The veil they lifted,—face to face They saw the Lord himself that day.

Earth in her choicest gifts was there, Her gold, her frankincense, and myrrh; And in the wise mankind, like her, Gave homage due and treasures rare.

Rejoice! man shall be made anew,—p68 Tribe after tribe, until the whole Be Christianized from pole to pole, Then peace shall reign and justice too.

Earth’s record is of good and bad, Of the true God and Satan bold; And men, blind to the truth, have sold The good for evil. This is sad.

As lawlessness hates what is right, And as a truant hates the rod, And as a foolish man hates God, So Darkness ever hates the Light.

The good doth bruise the serpent’s head, The serpent too doth bruise its heel; This life is joy and pain we feel, Eternal hope bedimmed by dread.

Since the beginning this was so;p69 Man sold the good for evil then; And this repeats itself in men, And some are worse than bad, we know.

Such was king Herod—king no more! Incarnate cruelty was he, Unstable as a storm-lashed sea, And hankering after human gore.

By dream God slew his jealous aim, And sent the star-led Magi home On roads by which they did not come, They knew not Herod’s will nor time.

By dream the Child in haste was sent To distant Egypt, there to stay Till Herod’s reign would wane away, And his wrath be a past event.

King Herod might have bruised His heel,p70 When he disturbed his childish rest; But Herod’s brutal power at best Did only wound his earthly weal.

Ye little ones! be bright and trim, For as a child Christ suffered pain; And Bethlehem’s children bear again The palm of suffering for him.

Ah! Herod’s wrath caused him to slay These flower-martyrs—infants dear! Their memories to Christ adhere As flowers to spring and light to day.

Unconscious they of any blame, Yet slain they were by cruel hand; Immortal are they as a band Of martyrs young. They live in fame.

Men like the seasons come and go, And some are like the spring,—they strew In all their circles flowers new, And fling around fresh life and glow.

Some are like winter, men that blast Good will and hope and love, whose breath, Wherever they go, spreads plague and death; And these they leave in wills at last.

Men like the seasons come and go; They play their part in life and die; But Principles remain and try Through other minds to work and grow.

So Herod left the stage of life; And left upon Judea’s throne One of his sons, and he was prone To stir the evil world to strife.

When from the ancient Land of Corn,p72 God called his Son to Canaan fair, He warned fond Joseph not to rear The Holy Child where he was born.

So Nazareth His home he made, Among the hills a simple town, That would be yet without renown, If Jesus there had never stayed.

A proper place to nurse a bard, A prophet bold or a seer keen, Where the deep voice of the Unseen In Nature’s anthems might be heard.

Great is this favored hill-town’s fame, The feet of Christ the streets have trod; The narrow roads, the common sod Are now as sacred as her name.

Christ grew as other children grow,p73 He learned as other children learn; And as a child he had to earn His real character below!

He grew in knowledge of the truth, He grew in wisdom heavenly bright, And soon the consciousness of light From God broke in upon his youth.

The deep Divinity within Aroused him to his highest aim, He felt that God to him laid claim, That He was sent to battle sin.

And this at twelve as Scriptures tell: We wonder not that doctors wise Were stricken with profound surprise, As in the law He reasoned well.

His “Father’s business” was his theme,p74 The most sublime of any thought; His “Father’s business” in him wrought Itself to be his thought supreme.

Dare we say more? O dare we think That in the mind of One so young, Eternal consciousness had sprung And therein stayed? From this we shrink.

Christ’s first recorded words are bold: “O wist ye not that I must be About my Father’s business?” He Thus spoke when a child twelve years old.

What child of twelve that ever spoke Such words of mighty weight as these, Such words that flow with such an ease And carry such far-reaching stroke?

The keynote of his teaching these,—p75 So worthy of the ripest sage, The central truth of every age, Expound them any way you please.

These words we have and only these, Till He came forth to Jordan’s bank, Where John proclaimed his message frank, The message of eternal peace.

Christ was obedient as a child, And men’s good will and grace He won; The “wist ye not” of her dear son Clung to the Virgin’s bosom mild.

In private life for eighteen years, He learned to know our hopes and fears; His daily bread He might have found By toiling hard these years around!

He might have gazed upon the skyp76 When stars bedecked the azure clear, And said: “By me these hosts appear, By me their lamps were lit on high.”

When sun arose to run his race Through clouds of purple, gold, and red, He might have upward looked and said: “By me that orb was hung in space.”

But all is silence—all we know, As by the Scriptures we are taught, That of the Father’s will He thought, And in God’s favor He did grow.

So here we tread, as on the shore Of boundless truth, the Father’s will; Christ now prepared to fain fulfil The will of God; and we should more.

The sympathy of God hath been So powerful with the world of men, That in the lines of every pen That wrote its annals it is seen.

By Him who reigns, men for the hours Step constantly upon the scene; The march of truth hath ever been Triumphant against brutal powers.

The truth divine from age to age Through glorious souls expressions find; And wholly vanquished leaves behind All those who doth against it rage.

The truth of Scripture is the same, Through it is moved from mould to mould; The New’s the essence of the Old, And both are lit by the same flame.

As truth evolves from stage to stage,p78 More brightly shine the stars of time; John, therefore, is the star sublime, As he is next the Perfect Sage.

The banks of Jordan echoed loud His ringing voice, whose accents stern Called to the Lord a quick return, As wrath o’erhead hung like a cloud.

Strange was his manner and his dress, And strange to us his meat and drink; Strange must have been his voice, we think, And his new mission strange no less.

A prophet of the desert he, A prophet from the desert too; His herald voice to Jordan drew The multitudes to hear and see.

John was a prophet bold and true,p79 And to repentance called the land; And by his powerful command The people sought his doctrine new.

They congregated at his cry, And were baptized in Jordan’s flood; And thus he cried: “Repent, do good, For Heaven’s Kingdom draweth nigh.

“Repent! repent! and flee from wrath, Believe in God and make life sweet; The graces in repentance meet, And bearing fruit prove true your faith.

“Return to God, seek life, not death, Be now baptized and save the soul, And give to God your powers all, And live according to your faith.

“Baptize I do with water pure,p80 But One is coming after me Who shall baptize most worthily— And with the Holy Ghost and fire.”

John like a tiller did prepare The soil for Christ the seed to sow; And as a herald he did go To form the way and him declare.

The Promised One now left his home, And never to return to stay; And towards the Jordan trod the way, As many others there did roam.

He went his history to make,p81 And to obey the herald’s call, And to perform his mission all, Which did the realms of darkness shake.

He had an equal record bright, Ere He the Son of Man became, A record of eternal fame, The glory of the world of light.

He made his record—which absorbs The words almighty “Let there be”— He made it in eternity As into begin rolled these orbs.

He made it in great majesty As on the verge of chaos bound, He spoke those words, and at the sound These worlds were built in harmony.

The wordless eloquence of night,p82 As forth she turns her brilliant car, And the deep voice of every star, Proclaim to us his record right.

Each day that breaks whate’er it brings, Each storm that blows o’er land and sea, And heaven and earth and all that be— Creation—all his record rings.

And when we touch the mystery Of life in all its various forms, We feel that we are all but worms, And wholly lost, O life, in thee.

As on a blade or plant we gaze, Or lovely flower in the shade, We touch the power of Him who made Life wonderful in every please.

As we ascend along the linep83 From plant to brute and brute to man, Life in these spheres we cannot span, What, then, of Him—the life divine!

While scanning all these lands and seas, And this grand universe around, And listening to the quiet sound Within, who shall from worship cease?

Away with all unrighteousness! Shall we not give the Christ his due, When in the presence of such view We witness his almightiness?

When Christ descended into this Terrestrial world as man to dwell, What He did leave no muse can tell,— Who can describe the Heavenly bliss?

Who can the life of God portray?p84 What do we know, in mind so dim, Of the true blessedness of Him Who dwells in everlasting day?

And in the thought we feel as lost, And in the thought we lose all pride, And humbly in His presence hide— The Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.

Communion above human thought, In absolute and blessèd one Between the Father and the Son, By inward operations wrought.

The true ideal perfect bliss, The absolute society Existing from eternity, What blessed happiness is this!

The Father’s bosom Jesus leftp85 And its profound felicity, When He put on humanity And dwelt in time as in a cleft.

He laid aside the sov’reign crown That with the Father He had borne, A crown like an eternal morn, And of unspeakable renown.

He laid aside the sceptre bright, By which He ruled the glorious train Of angels in the heaven-domain Of indescribable delight.

Ah! Jesus left the sov’reign throne, That doth above all princedoms stand, The throne of absolute command, That as the Son had been his own.

He left all that the Son of Godp86 Could leave, when He became as well The Son of Man. He bade farewell To crown and throne and royal rod.

Himself of no repute He made, Though rich He was, yet became poor; He did forgo his heavenly power, And, as a man, lived in the shade.

Lo! this is love and love divine, Eternal love, transcending ours; It knows no ebb, no bounds, no hours, Such love, O Lord, alone is thine.

The gifts of God are like the dew In eastern skies that nightly fall, Or like the morn that crowns this ball With floods of light and bounties new.

They come like manna with each morn,p87 To gather them our daily work; Too oft from even this we shirk, And in their midst we live forlorn.

Life is a blessing, not a curse, And full of joy and peace and rest, By love divine and human blest, With better future and not worse.

Of all the gifts that God hath given This stricken earth from time to time, And many they, Christ is the prime, He is the crowning gift of Heaven.

God gave to man this world’s control, With all its seas and fertile ground; Of all these gifts that glow around, The Christ is the best gift of all.

Throughout all time the race He blestp88 With priests and prophets—leaders wise; But stars decline when suns arise, Of all God’s gifts Christ is the best.

We now the vital truth recall, Whate’er the future hath in store, And it is this; and shall grow more, The Christ is the best gift of all.

It is the law of Love to give, And sacrifice for others’ weal; Love is a principle, we feel, That shall not die; its fruits shall live.

And this is true of mine and thine, It ever pines to freely give, And lo! by giving it doth live, And grow more like the love divine.

Of love divine what shall we say?p89 Divine it is: Can we say more? We stand and look creation o’er, We see the depth and feel the spray.

When of the love supreme we think, All earthly things are less than small; For here we see God all in all, And in infinitude we sink!

Most blessèd theme and most sublime, Source of all goodness—love divine; It brightens all the orbs that shine Before the Throne in space and time.

It is the life of all the songs That make the ecstasy of heaven; The living source of all gifts given To myriads of angelic throngs.

We kneel before thee, Love Divine,p90 As being in the Holy Place; And thee in Christ we do embrace, For thou art Christ and Christ is thine.

Christ is the gift of the divine, And love divine in him doth dwell; And of this love He came to tell, That we may to this love incline.—

That we may to this love incline, That we may of this love partake; And of this love our Saviour spake; He is himself the love divine.

Christ is the light, Christ is the love, Christ is the truth, Christ is the grace; And He is one of our own race, He is the way to heaven above.

As God in Christ to man is knownp91 So man in Christ is known to God; Lo! God in Christ is understood, And Christ knows really his own.

Moved by his love, moved from within, He came as gentle as a dove, As winged by his eternal love, To show the truth and die for sin.

Not for his friends He came to die, Of finite love this is the most, He came for sinners that were lost To sacrifice Himself for aye.

To thee, O gracious Lord, we sing, To thee in faith we pray; And all our sins to thee we bring, Lord, wash them all away.

We glory in they boundless love,p92 We triumph by thy grace; When shall we come to heaven above To see thee face to face?

Teach us to sing the heavenly song, Though in the desert, Lord; And by thy Spirit make us strong, And guide us by thy Word.

When comes the time to fall asleep, Thou, Morning Star, we pray— Conduct us safe across the deep In thine own blessèd way.

Of any life what do we know? Each life well spent is half concealed, Nay, less than half is e’er revealed,— The roots before the tree must grow.

Of the best lives what do we know? Half is concealed, nay, more and more; We see few waves upon the shore And by them judge the depth below.

We turn to John and hear a cry, A voice arising from the deep, A voice that did awake from sleep A nation in the long gone by.

And in the wilderness he cried:p94 “The highway of the Lord make straight.” And with the voice there spread such light That into every heart it pried.

And on the banks of Jordan’s flood The Lord himself appeared one day, And through the throng He made his way, And praying by the Herald stood.

Were I an artist I would paint Two figures great—without restraint; And John would be of stately grace, And manhood beaming in his face; His forehead broad and strong as Mars, His eyes as deep and clear as stars; And flowingly his locks he wore, A prophet, he, and to the core.

In the Christ’s features I would place The best expressions of the race, And in each feature—in each line,p95 I would have blushing the divine;— A perfect man—a perfect face, The glory of the human race.

O had the banks of Jordan known Who was to come to tread their sod, That Christ the Lord—the Son of God, They would more velvety have grown.

And as we view them standing there, The Herald and his Lord sublime, The greatest two that grace all time, Their very presence charmed the air.

And viewing them, as now we do, The Herald and his Blessèd Lord, We think the water of the ford, As at the sight, slid slower through.

To be baptized the Saviour came,p96 He needed not the cleansing rite, But there He stood as one contrite, Who knew not sin nor any blame.

The Herald knew his Lord and feared, He knew him by celestial ken, He knew him as the Light of men, He felt his Lord had now appeared.

The Prophet of the Jordan spoke: “Com’st thou to be baptized of me? I need to be baptized of thee; Be thou the priest; grant me thy yoke.”

Replied the Greater to the Less: “I came to be baptized of thee, And suffer now it so to be; We should fulfil all righteousness.”

The Saviour came not to destroy,p97 He came to honor and to bless; Obedience leads to righteousness, And knowing God and endless joy.

The Saviour came not to destroy, This all men knew and still know well; He came to show as well as tell How we should act in his employ.

The truths, that lit time’s ancient heights, Contain by him a worthier fee; As to fulfil the law came He, He gave new lustre to old lights.

John suffered him—John did obey, The law of God the prophet knew; For lights on lights and glories true In meek obedience ever lie.

As from the stream the Saviour came,p98 The heavens oped, and on him shone, Above the brightness of the sun, From earth to heaven a holy flame.

The Holy Spirit, as a dove, Descended in the splendor bright, And on the Saviour did alight, A living charm of holy love.

And from the sky above there fell The Father’s voice: “This is my Son, My only and belovèd one, And I in him am pleasèd well.”

John by obedience grew more strong In his belief, that Christ the Lord He had baptized in Jordan’s ford; It added spirit to his song.

As to the Godman, dare we sayp99 That, by the Dove and spoken word, He felt more sure that He was Lord Than He had felt before that day?

O blest obedience! it doth bring Its own reward to you and me; It is indeed a fruitful tree Wherein the birds of Eden sing.

Obedience to the Word divine Brings rich contentment to the breast; The Dove of peace doth on it rest, The light of God doth on it shine.

Obedience wise! dispel our fear And fix our gaze on heaven above; Teach us to seek the land of love And triumph over trials here.

Rest, golden ladder, on our sod,p100 From rod to rod, from grace to grace, We all may climb till face to face In glory we shall stand with God.

The Slanderer of God and man Around the Jordan lurked unseen, Whose mortal enmity had been So deep against the Promised One.

We trace the origin of him, And as in Holy Writ revealed, And, like his works, it is concealed, Surrounded us by darkness dim.

The origin of him implies The origin of evil too, A problem old and ever new, So Satan is from earliest days.

A spirit, he, of powers broad,p101 And superhuman, strong and keen, Who comes and goes at will unseen, Created long ago by God.

A subtle fallen angel, he, The leader of the throng accurst, Who did rebel and choose the worst For nothing but for being free.

When he did fall we do not know; He fell before mankind did fall; He is the fertile cause of all Unrighteousness and wrathful woe.

Where did he fall? We know he fell, And unredeemingly is lost; He fell and his rebellious host As skies of stars from heaven to hell!

As we through all the ages glancep102 We witness his demeanor vile, Assuming various names the while, Whom we might call the God of chance.

To him each age a name did weave, According to the form he bore, A serpent he was called of yore, For by that brute he tempted Eve.

And lo! among the sons of God He came and went, but bridled he; Then curbed the Demon seemed to be By Him who wields the sov’reign rod.

But, as more free to speed in space, He held with Michael high debate, With Michael the archangel great, Concerning Moses’ burial place.

About the time of Jesus’ birthp103 Known was his power and founded well; In Palestine the Prince of hell Possessed men’s souls and claimed the earth.

His enmity against the Son Waxed furiously as time went on; War was proclaimed in Eden’s shade, When God the primal Promise made.

In many struggles of renown It seemed that Satan bore the crown; And everlastingly he wrought To quench the Light in human thought.

But now the Christ had been declared, The Son of God the Tempter feared, He felt the direful combat nigh When he would lose or win for aye. The Tempter burned to strike the blow, And the Messiah overthrow.

And now the Son of God began His task,—to suffer and to do, And to reveal Himself anew Beneath the stars as the God-man.—

Began his victories to win, Of which the hosts of heaven sing, The victories that richly bring Complete salvation from all sin.

He now began to fain undo The Devil’s work and build his own, And to lay down the corner stone Of endless reputation true.

He now began to win a crown Of glory—the Messiah’s claim; And this was his eternal aim As He his precious life laid down.

A crown outshining others far,p105 The “many crowns” which John did see, A crown of perfect brilliancy, Each pearl of which shines like a star.

A crown of living pearls, unknown On earth and only found in heaven; The crown that was to Jesus given By God the Father as his own.

The crown of glory and of grace, To this all other crowns are naught; The crown that the Messiah sought When dying for the human race.

Immortal crown beyond compare, A crown of universal reign, The crown the Father did ordain That the victorious Christ should wear.

He now began to win a thronep106 By being tempted and not sin, By suffering such pangs within, Whose depths the Saviour knows alone.

To win the throne of deathless praise, Whose splendor doth outshine the sun; That which was given the Promised One When He ascended to the skies.

He now began to know the fears Encircling man on every hand; And by experience understand The deep philosophy of tears.

He now began to feel the weight Of his great mission in his soul, The weight of bringing to us all True immortality to light.

For lo! the Son of God was led,— Led by the Spirit of the Lord, As He departed from the ford, Into a dreary desert dread;

By Satan to be tempted there, The virtueless, sin-hardened sprite, Who loves the wrong and hates the right And breathes unqualified despair.

God doth not tempt a soul to sin, And neither can He tempted be; But God Incarnate, as we see, Was tempted painfully within.

We wonder not that we are taught By Christ to pray, as for our bread, That we should not be ever led To trial foul as He was brought.

The Tempter’s subtlety He knows,p108 He felt the force of utmost test; The Son of God seemed at his best To stand impeccably his blows.

So strong, seductive, guileful too, And Satan-like was his attempt, And which would fell, if we exempt The Saviour, any hero true.

How mighty was the issue great! For in the balance hung as even The destiny of earth and heaven, But Jesus kept his first estate.

No fate of such momentous weight Was ever hung on one event, When shameless Wrong with full intent Attempted to subvert the Right.

High was the Tempter’s aim and fell,p109 And proud of Eden’s victory, He hoped to make—so daring he— Of Christ the Lord a slave of hell!

But Christ withstood the strong assault; In Him at last the Tempter found Material strange,—more deep, more sound Than he had met since his revolt.

How real and how vain was this! How real Satan’s vain attempt, How real Jesus’ high contempt When He the Tempter did dismiss.

How real Christ’s experience is! More real than of any one; Lo! Christ is the Ideal Man As on his throne He sits in bliss.

The Saviour fasted forty days! And in the dreary wilderness He lived as in forgetfulness, While sun did set and sun did rise.

The Saviour fasted forty days! And in the distant desert nude, But not alone in solitude, While sun did set and sun did rise.

The Saviour fasted forty days! And in the desert wild He stayed, And to the Father there He prayed While sun did set and sun did rise.

The Saviour fasted forty days! Exposed to the inclement air, And prowling beasts’ ferocious stare While sun did set and sun did rise.

The Saviour fasted forty days!p111 With the wild beasts He made his home, And there among them He did roam, While sun did set and sun did rise.

The Saviour fasted forty days! As the Law-giver did before, And as Elijah did of yore, While sun did set and sun did rise.

The Saviour fasted forty days! And oh! how real was his fast In the dark shadows of the vast, While sun did set and sun did rise.

The Saviour fasted forty days! The dew of heaven upon him fell, And lurking there, the Prince of hell, While sun did set and sun did rise.

The Saviour fasted forty days!p112 Preparing for his work was He, Prepared the Tempter seemed to be While sun did set and sun did rise.

The Saviour fasted forty days! From his temptation and his fast He came victoriously at last, The Light of men henceforth shall rise!

To look at Him we come again: We glory in his victory And in the matchless dignity With which He foiled the foe of men.

When Christ by fasting long grew weak,p113 And gnawed by hunger’s sharpest tooth, The Tempter from his covert booth Approached him and essayed to speak.

The Saviour gazed and knew the foe, Though changed from his malignant mien; For through his Pharisaic sheen Discernible were marks of woe.

The Tempter feared,—he knew that eye, To him so terrible to behold; But falsely garbed, he, waxing bold And trusting to succeed, did say:

“The word hath reached this barren vast, That thou shalt wield a sov’reign rod, And that thou art the Son of God, If thou art He break now thy fast.

“For hunger’s pangs are keen and dread,p114 And cannot long be borne by thee; Be thine own stay if thou art He, Command these stones to turn to bread.

“By whom thou wert to this wild led I know not. Hope comes not to thee; Sustain thyself if thou art He, Command these stones to turn to bread.

“It is but right that life be fed; Exert thy power if thou art He, Protect the life entrusted thee, Command these stones to turn to bread.”

The Saviour thus made answer brief: “Lo! it is written and well known, Man doth not live by bread alone, But by God’s will. He’ll send relief.”

The foe tried Christ where He was frail,p115 Though sinless, He yet hunger knew, The hunger of prime manhood too, By trusting God He did prevail.

The Christ stooped not to selfish end To use his power—self-love is sin, Though strongly urged—urged from within, Though tried in weakness by the fiend.

He glorified his duty clear By trusting God though He should die; And lo! to those who watch and pray The gracious angels do appear.

The Tempter—Christ consenting—changed The scene of combat—half dismayed; Christ on the Temple’s spire he laid As with one move of wing estranged.

And judging him as other men,p116 That being human though divine, The human may to sin decline, So he to Christ thus spoke again:

“The Christ these people long to see, Of whom the prophets spoke of old, The Son of God, therefore the bold, Cast thyself down if thou art He.

“They will require full signs of thee, In signs and wonders they believe; What better sign canst thou achieve? Cast thyself down if thou art He.

“Ere they shall put their trust in thee, Thou by a sign thy truth must prove, Forthwith all unbelief remove, Cast thyself down if thou art He.

“Declare thyself the Christ to bep117 By this descent and quell all fear; Pretenders constantly appear. Cast thyself down if thou art He.

“What hath the Son of God to fear? For it is written, as I see, The angels shall take charge of thee, Cast thyself down,—thy help is near.

“Trust in the promise given thee, Doubt not the promise of thy Lord; But trust in him, believe his word, Cast thyself down if thou art He.”

Christ to the demon thus replied As He his vain desire denied:

“As I am, Satan, not exempt From thy annoyance painful, hear Again that which is written clear: ‘The Lord thy God thou shalt not tempt.’ ”

The Saviour shunned presumptuousnessp118 And the persistent Tempter foiled; Within the bounds of law Christ toiled, The law of love and righteousness.

He exercised restraining power, And loved obedience more than fame; Unhurt He stood above all blame, And in the midst of Satan’s fire.

Presumptive man! tempt not thy Lord, But first of all do thou thy best; Divinity will do the rest, Or rather will due aid afford.

His field of action once again, The Tempter changed, and on the crown Of loftiest mount he set Him down, And further tried the King of men.

He caused to come before his sightp119 The mighty kingdoms of the earth, In all their regal pomp and worth, Then Darkness thus spoke to the Light:

“These are my realms that thou dost see, And they that reign are they that live; And all these things to thee I’ll give, If thou wilt deign to worship me.

“These are my realms; by me kings reign; And what is life devoid of power; These kingdoms I will make thy dower, If thou wilt deign to worship me.

“To reign man’s aim shall ever be, And over all thou shalt be king; All kingdoms shall thy glory sing, If thou wilt deign to worship me.

“The truly great—all men like thee—p120 Have been, and should be, powerful kings; Thou shalt be heir of all these things, If thou wilt deign to worship me.

“Of what avail shall be to thee All knowledge in this world of mine? Success and fame I will make thine, If thou wilt deign to worship me.

“Of what avail shall be to thee All virtues though they are divine? These kingdoms shall be ever thine, If thou wilt deign to worship me.

“Conceding thou wert born to reign, Thy throne to gain how helpless thou; These kingdoms I will give thee now, If thou to worship me will deign.”

Thus Christ replied to Satan grim:p121 “Hence, Satan, hence! behold the word: ‘Thou shalt not worship but thy Lord, Him shalt thou serve and only him!’ ”

The Saviour stood, but Satan fell, Fell from the mount where stood the Just, Fell like a bolt to lowest dust, Fell as he fell at first—to hell.

So Satan fell, but dauntless he, He fell to rise in darkness dim; Another bruise awaited him, Severer bruise on Calvary.

So Satan fell as stricken sore, But soon resumed his woeful work Of tempting Christ from ambush dark, And his disciples evermore.

The Saviour stood as victor fair,p122 And as the Son of Man He stood; He stood as our Ideal Good, He stood his nature to declare.

The Saviour stood as victor true, And from the mount He soon espied The firmament being glorified, As hosts of angels nearer drew.

They ministered to Jesus’ need Such aid as only angels can; And strengthened thus, the Son of Man Began his public life indeed.

To Christ we look for sympathy, Encouragement, and succor staid; And by his sympathy and aid We hope to win the victory.

In all points tempted in man’s guise,p123 And yet without being stained by sin; And lo! in all the points wherein Christ suffered He can sympathize.

And knowing suffering as He Experienced here, He doth extend To us who frequently offend His sympathetic succor free.

And he who suffers also grows More sympathetic with the race; It is a quality of grace That Jesus truly only knows.

Unsoiled by sin in any wise, Untouched by changes insecure, The sympathy of Christ is pure, And stedfast as the heavenly skies.

And at the thought we feel opprest,p124 And at the thought we wonder much, That Jesus Christ can be in touch Today with every human breast.

And like Himself his sympathy Is ever present—ever near, To strengthen faith and subdue fear, And help us on to victory.

The Saviour by his life and death Himself perfected as our king; And from his life the muse would bring Few touching facts to nourish faith.

Deep is the life of any soul, And deeper far than deepest thought; But lo! the life that Jesus wrought Is the profoundest life of all.

And by the sparse recorded factsp126 We know his life as here He dwelt, The life of Him who taught and felt, Who threw his character into acts.

He went about performing good, But yet his Godhead He concealed; At first it was but half revealed, And very slightly understood.

He seemed reluctant to unfold His heavenly origin to men; Though closely guarded, now and then It sparkled through the human mould;

It sparkled through the human cloud That shrouded his Divinity; And in the quick rapidity Wherewith He vanished from the crowd;

It sparkled in his deeds of power,p127 And in his thoughts divinely rich, And in the fortitude with which He calmly met his latest hour!

And as we touch the life supreme— The sweetest harp—the life of Christ, O may the muse-evangelist Be kindled by the heavenly theme!

As from his test returned the Lord And intermingled with the throng, That by the Jordan wound along, The Herald struck the living chord:

“Behold the Lamb of God,” he cried. The breeze embraced the joyful sound And all the vocal hills around “Behold the Lamb of God” replied.

The Lamb of God which takes awayp128 The sin of those who in him trust, The Lamb appointed ere the dust Of time was weighed and night knew day.

“Behold the Lamb of God,” he cried. Around the echo loitered long While at the Saviour gazed the throng, And many hearts on him relied.

The Herald’s voice doth still resound From land to land, from shore to shore, And will, till time shall be no more, And the lost sheep of God be found.

The spotless Lamb whom Mercy chose, Divine Humanity is He; He died for our iniquity, And in his merits we repose.

The perfect Lamb whose blood was shedp129 Amid the gloom on Calvary; Whereby we see Humanity Arising to its fountain-head.

Unselfish Herald of the Christ, His brilliant star was setting fast; The Light of God and men at last Beamed forth in glory through the mist.

And bearing now the Herald’s seal, Few of true faith to him did cling; They found in him the Christ–their King, They followed him through woe and weal.

Men dropped their calling at his call, And brooked by faith the future dark; The fishermen forsook their bark, And gave to him their lives—their all.

All worldly prospects, wealth, and name,p130 At Jesus’ feet they fain did place; An hour beneath his radiant face Was more to them than wealth and fame.

True hope spring in each honest breast, Indefinite, yet hope serene; And nourished by his teaching keen, Became the hope of blessèd rest.

O what a privilege had they Who followed here his righteous feet; And held with him communion sweet Beneath the radiance of his eye!

The eye that made the maniacs mild, And struck the demons bold with awe, And wept in pity o’er our woe, And cheered the bosom of a child!

In Cana dawned the wedding hour, The home of peace and festive joy; There the Messiah did employ First his high miraculous power.

Not in the seat of learning where For ages clustered all the wise; Ah! Prejudice had dimmed the eyes Of those who sat in judgment there.

But lo! in Cana He put forth His power supreme in mighty deed, Among the friends who knew their need, Who valued well his sterling worth.

Some truest twain by love tried long Had been made one by golden tie, Made one in will and heart for aye, And merry was the marriage song.

The wine did cease, but Christ was there,p132 The good fails not when present He, His is the fruit of every tree And vine throughout creation fair.

“Fill ye the waterpots,” He said, The water heard the voice divine, And lo! it sparkled into wine Of choicest taste and rarest red.

The gentle voice of Christ divine Turns darkness into brightest day, And mourning into joyful lay,— The bitter cups of life to wine.

The worldly spirit of those days, Disdaining every sacred cord, Had turned the Temple of the Lord Into a house of merchandise.

Each feast was but a market day,p133 The Temple but a market place; The tempting shekel was the grace For which too many there did pray.

His “Father’s house”—the house of prayer, Thus to a “den of thieves” was turned; And seeing this, the Saviour burned With holy zeal at such a fair.

Asserting then his Sonship proud, As by the force of filial love, The money-changers out He drove Without a murmur from the crowd.

The oxen went as they were driven, The timorous sheep without being led; Each harmless lamb, with back-turned head, Walked out before the Prince of heaven.

The oxen questioned not his right,p134 His majesty the creatures knew; The traders from his presence flew, Not daring to provoke his might.

But rulers of a selfish mind Soon doubted his authority; What blindness like the bigotry Of those who see and yet are blind!

When sown by word or wondrous sign, Truth never fails to find good ground; And as pure grain, it doth abound In golden harvest. Truth divine

By native force strikes through the soul, And strongly works conviction there; And, conquering, it leaves a glare Of wisdom through the powers all.

So Nicodemus, ruler rare,p135 Believed Christ’s works divinely wrought; But wishing to conceal the thought To him by night he did repair.

Christ took his theme—the birth anew, The nature by the Spirit given, Whereby man realizes Heaven On earth in his experience true.

The consciousness of spiritual strife Is a development within, By which the tendency to sin Is conquered by the holy life.

“Man must be born again,” He said— Be born of God—born from above— Born to a life of growth in love Of which Messiah is the head.

And by the love of God we soarp136 Above the troubles of this ball; And by his love, despite the fall, We live in Christ forevermore.

The greatest truths that tongue can tell, While resting in the cool retreat With aching limbs and weary feet, The Saviour spoke by Jacob’s well.

“God is the Spirit,” muttered He. And not confined to any place; But present he throughout all space, Invisible, eternal, free!

Earth is made sacred by the breast That worships God in truth aright; Man is the temple where the Light Ineffable delights to rest.

Ah! greater than all works of artp137 And temples of imposing size, Is the deep spirit of the wise, The piety of the human heart.

Another truth He uttered there; “And I that speak to thee am He”— The Christ that was to come and be; First there Himself He did declare.

Not to the learned of the fold, Not to the proud self-righteous host; But to a woman that was lost First his Messiahship He told.

Though soiled by sin, how apt was she, When taught by Jesus, to embrace The highest truths of saving grace, And the divine Messiah see.

The women of Samaria foundp138 The world’s Redeemer—found the Christ, And like a true evangelist, She went announcing him around.

Thrice blessèd Sychar—crowned with grace, Where Jesus had reception sweet, And two days’ rest for weary feet While wandering here from place to place.

Who hath the fancy to describe The wonders of the Nazarene, As He, with countenance serene, Healed all the sick of every tribe?

And as He walked through Galilee, Diseases fled from all the land; For by the waving of his hand He set the sick-bound captives free.

Capernaum knew his mighty sway;p139 The son of one of untold wealth He there restored to perfect health From Cana—twenty miles away.

At will, by simple touch or word, He made the sick and dying well; Each miracle was like a bell Declaring him to be the Lord.

And thus aroused the sick and lame, The palsied and the tortured soul, All came to him and were made whole, New life pulsated through each frame.

The minds that were but discords rude, All self-control and reason lost, The slaves of Satan and his host, The Christ restored to sweetest mood.

The demons trembled at his sight,p140 For stay of wrath they cried aloud; But Christ dislodged the hostile crowd As day dislodges darkest night.

The born-blind eyes He made to see, And that foul death—the leprosy, At his mere touch and mastery, Relaxed its hold and ceased to be.

He gave the deaf the power to hear, The dumb heard him and lo! they spoke, And at his voice the dead awoke And were restored to bosoms dear.

These signs and wonders stirred the heart Of Jewry and of Galilee, And Tyre and Sidon by the sea; His mighty deeds moved every part.

The people were not slow to seep141 A superhuman power in him; The honest minds were not so dim As not to know Divinity.

They flocked to hear his words of grace As from his sacred lips they fell; Each word bore its peculiar spell, As in each heart it found a place.

What oratory rare was his! What easy flow of eloquence That moved in cadence with the sense, For all was nature crowned with bliss!

Could we have heard his gentle voice In Synagogue, on mountain free, Or by the Lake of Galilee, How would our longing hearts rejoice!

Could we have seen his Godlike mien,p142 So heavenly meek, so sweetly stern, Then in His presence we would learn Not what man is, but might have been.

Attracted by his works divine, His people all in full accord Heard from his lips the living word, As thirsty ground receives the rain.

Fatigued by working for the race, In shady nook, on mountain peak, He oft in solitude did seek The favor of his Father’s face.

Descending Hattin’s verdant slope, And meeting his disciples there, He gave them in the open air The Oracles of Life and Hope:

Oh, blessèd they who know their need,p143 Who are self-conscious of their sin— Of their deep poverty within, For they with God shall reign indeed.

Oh, blessèd they of mournful mind, Who seek in tears what they have lost, Who sorrow for themselves the most, For they shall sweetest solace find.

Oh, blessèd are the truly meek, Who try to honor only worth; For lo! they shall possess the earth, And grow in grace from week to week.

Oh, blessèd they who ever yearn And hunger after righteousness, Who seek the highest happiness, For they the great reward shall earn.

Oh, blessèd they who mercy know,p144 Who love their foes and do forgive; The merciful shall ever live, They shall obtain what they bestow.

Oh, blessèd are the pure in heart Whose wills, like springs, are clear and bright, Who live by faith and love the light, They shall see God and not in part.

Oh, blessèd are the peaceful ones, Who ever treat the righteous road; For they shall be the heirs of God, And shine in glory like the suns!

Hail! Holy Land, thy name we greet, Thy fame and consecrated soil; Thou dost remind us of the toil Of Him who made our lives so sweet.

Thy lofty mounts and mellow meads, Thy purling brooks and restless sea, All Jewry and all Galilee Reminds us of his wondrous deeds.

Today around thy mountain-domes Traditions linger like the clouds; For there the Christ fed fainting crowds, Ere He dismissed them to their homes.

With lifted hand and solemn mien,p146 Oft on the grassy desert slope, He showed to multitudes the hope That springs from knowing the Unseen.

Approaching was the evening hour, And knowing hunger’s pangs as He, The multitude in sympathy He fed by his miraculous power.

The scant supplies the Christ did bless, And broke and gave—exhaustless they. They in his hands did multiply, He gave, but they grew nothing less.

Five loaves, two fishes—what were these Betwixt so many? By his will They might have fed more numbers still, As many as the Christ did please.

“Waste not the fragments,” said the Lord;p147 And what remained of the repast Was fondly gathered all at last, Twelve baskets full was the reward.

To those who sought the lessons given He also gave sustaining food; To those desirous to be good He taught the principles of Heaven.

Tiberias! restless, wilful sea, Unruly, passionate, and wild; And yet at times so tame and mild And quiet as a sea can be.

Gennesareth! thou seem’st to be Beneath the brows of mountains high, As up thou lookest to the sky, The dark blue eye of Galilee.

The slightest gales disturb thy rest;p148 Too apt thou art to rise and roar, And dash thyself against the shore, As if deep anger swelled thy breast.

Did any one thy wrath restrain, And calm thee when the winds did rise? Ah! none but He who made the skies, And set thy bounds, O mighty main!

Ah! none but He—the Nazarene, He calmed thy waves when tempest-tost, When thou didst rise and rage the most, And made thee like a saint serene.

No will but his thou didst obey, No voice but his thou e’er didst know, The will and voice that led thy flow To where thou rollest to this day.

Great kings and emperors have stoodp149 Upon thy shores from age to age; But thou didst not restrain thy rage, Nor when they sailed thy tossing flood.

Thou heedest not the sailor’s sigh, The crying of the shipwrecked crew; To all—to Gentile and to Jew Thou art the self-same sea for aye.

But lo! the Christ—the Man Divine, Him thou didst know and know of old— Know since thy water sweetly rolled At his command to be a main.

O didst thou feel within the breast, Whenever He stepped upon thy shore, An inclination to adore, And from thy shore retreat and rest?

When from a ship close to thy shorep150 The living truths He did impart, O didst thou feel in thy deep heart A calm thou didst not know before?

When to and fro He sailed on thee, Conducting all from woe to weal, O didst thou then, Tiberias, feel More honored far than any sea?

Roll on, O Sea, as doth thy name, Though time hath changed thy scenes around, Though towns have crumbled to the ground, Thou, as thy Master, art the same.

Before we leave Tiberias’ strand, And in these songs bid it adieu, We turn two incidents to view, Dramatic, supernatural, grand!

While the Disciples hoisted sail,p151 The Shepherd of the scattered sheep— The Saviour soon fell fast asleep, Worn by the day’s laborious toil.

The sun beyond the hills had set, Unrippled was the sea and bright, As twilight darkened into night, No sign of storm approached as yet.

The cities vanished in the dark, The tumult from the shore did cease; And softly blew the scented breeze As seaward lightly sailed the bark.

The night bedecked with stars the sky, And wore the moon upon her breast, While He in sleep found needed rest; No sign of tempest yet was nigh.

“The gentle breeze, the plying oar,”p152 Said the Disciples, “ere we know, If this fair night continue so, Will set us on the other shore.”

But suddenly the moon turned pale, The stars enwrapped themselves in gloom As they announced the coming doom, And from the mountains blew the gale!

And at the signal of the blast, The sea began to roar and rise, And darkest clouds swept through the skies, Till clouds and waves touched fronts at last!

And up and down the ship was tossed Though skilful seamen with her wrought; Ah! bravely with the storm they fought, But every surge pronounced them lost!

Then like dread demons from the cloudp153 The blazing, forkèd lightnings flashed, And thunder upon thunder crashed, And loudest roarings grew more loud!

The sea was but confession deep As into utter madness hurled, As if wild chaos ruled the world; And yet the Christ was sound asleep!

Experienced as they were and brave, The beaten boat was knocked about So ruthlessly—they had no doubt That they would perish in the wave!

They thought of Him who was asleep: “How worn and weary He must be;” And of themselves they thought—“Could He Now save us from the maddened deep?”

“Awake the Master,” some one said, “Awake the Master.”—At the word They cried: “We perish, save us, Lord!” He woke, He rose, and answer made:

“Doubt not! believe! Why did ye fear? Ye winds and surges, peace, be still!” The storm fell dead before His will, The sea fell calm, the sky shone clear!

Roll on, O Sea, His power proclaim, Though time hath changed thy scenes around, Though towns have crumbled to the ground, To rise and roar is still thy aim.

As evening set the shades afloat, The Saviour, with a weary look, Retired, it seemed, to mountain nook, But sent the Twelve home by a boat.

Departing from the multitude, For by them He was sorely pressed, He climbed the mountain as in quest Of perfect rest in solitude.

The Twelve embarked, the night was gay, From wave to wave the ship did float As smoothly as from note to note, Repose and calm breathed in the sky.

But unexpectedly a change Stole over sky, wind, sea, and shore; They knew the passage well of yore, But not so rough as now—so strange.

As by a cruel whirlwind caught,p156 Long on the sea were they delayed; So long that they were half dismayed, But still the storm they stoutly fought.

They tacked the sail and plied the oar, Nor very far they had to go,— Four or five miles, or somewhat so, But yet they failed to reach the shore.

They seemed to be held clear mid way, As by a strange mysterious fate From early eve till very late, Though toiling in the blast and spray.

But lo! approaching through the storm, And walking on the crested tide, Light as a shadow, they espied, Or thought they did, a human form.

Bestirred by fear they gazed and gazed,p157 But nearer through the mist and spray Came the strange form—“A spirit,” cried they, As troubled as they were amazed!

And still He walked and to them drew, As if the deep were solid ground; They cried for fear!—In sweetest sound These friendly words to them He threw:

“Hail! it is I; be of good cheer.” Then Peter said: “O Lord, bid me If it be thou to come to thee.” “Come,” said the Christ, “and do not fear.”

He walked the sea as he did list, Firm as his faith, firm as his Lord; His feet and faith did well accord, He walked while he saw only Christ.

But when he saw the wind and sea,p158 His faith on Christ lost her strong hold; He like his faith became less bold; His faith soon sank and so did he.

“Lord, save me,” Peter cried aloud! “Why is thy faith so weak and dim?” The Saviour said, as He raised him, And held him dripping like a cloud. Christ gently helped him to the boat, The Peter who was ever brave, Whom He delighted well to save, And train to strike faith’s highest note!

Winds ceased to blow and waves to brim. As from the storm thus they were freed, The Twelve exclaimed: “Thou art indeed The Son of God.” They worshipped him.

Methinks the surges whispered soft,p159 As He stepped lightly on their breast: “Divinity touchèd now our crest, As o’er the main He walked aloft.”

Roll on, thou Sea, proclaim the praise To generations yet unborn; Proclaim it till the latest morn; Then thou wilt cease to roar and rise.

As Christ would now his death declare, Of his Disciples He took three To some high mount apart, to see As much of Heaven as they could bear.

What mount it was we do not know; We may conjecture, and were we To mention any, it would be Mount Hermon with its crowns of snow.

Christ had his friends—his chosen three,p160 And those they were who knew him best; Whose sympathy relieved his breast, For understood He longed to be!

He chose the Twelve and from them three,— The inmost circle of the heart, So formed by birth and grace; apart Therein the Saviour was most free.

His deep affinity we meet Oft in the sphere of mind and grace; As Christ was man, it lit his face, And made the cross of life more sweet.

Who were these three—these blessèd three? The rock-like Peter—he was one, The Sons of Thunder—James and John, Lo! John, the most beloved was he.

Night winged her shades as up they trod,p161 The Saviour and his chosen three, Up Hermon’s dewy peaks may be, To be with Nature and with God.

Still was the night and calm the sea, And clear as sanctity the sky; And up the mount they wandered high, Communing with Eternity.

And through each floating, fleecy cloud, The stars beamed forth in sacred glow; That lofty solitude was so That Silence almost spoke aloud.

On that secluded, sublime height, Engaged in a sublimer prayer, While they—the three—half slumbered there, Around the Saviour glared a light.

His face beamed as the radiant sun,p162 His garments shone as white as snow, As the Divine did overflow The earthly in the Blessèd One.

And shaded by a cloud unique, Elijah, Moses—heirs of light, Appeared in glory heavenly bright, And of his death to him did speak.

When Peter saw the vision fair, He spoke, enraptured by the spell, And while he spoke from the cloud fell A voice, like music, through the air,

The voice of the Eternal Throne: “This is my Son beloved, him hear.” The vision then did disappear, And to the three Christ came alone.

“Be not afraid,” said He, “arise.” As down the mountain they did go To mix again with life below, The morning purpled all the skies.

The conqueror of death is He, For this high mission He was born; And in death’s chamber—dismal urn, He lit the lamp of life to be.

Three times He met the fatal foe, Three times He won the glorious strife, Three times He called the dead to life, As He passed through this world of woe.

Ah! Jairus wept whelmed by despair, His daughter lay in death’s embrace; But Jesus made the soul retrace Its flight and animate the fair.

The second was the widow’s son, Her only son, maybe her stay; As dust to dust they did convey, Who met them but the Promised One?

As to the grave the dead was borne They met the Lord of life mid way, And lo! that cold and lifeless clay Beheld a resurrection morn.

Touched by the mother’s grief and pain, The Christ, who knows a mother’s heart, Could not but utmost aid impart, Restored her son to life again.

To Bethany we now repair, As often did the Light of men, To seek the fire of song again, On that warm hearth He brightened there.

The happy hearth made still more sweet By Him who found a vacant chair, Come when He would, awaiting there, And ready hands and willing feet.

The home of Lazarus—the host, Of Mary, Martha, sisters dear, The home of faith and practice clear, And, as it seems, of Christ almost.

At least it was his fond retreat, His oasis in the wilderness, When with his presence He did bless Judea and the Temple meet.

Ah! there He found refreshing rest,p166 And whiled away the dreary night, As one of that warm circle bright, He was their honored blessèd guest.

’Twixt parting day and coming night, Worn by the labors of the day, He oft returned to them to stay Till dewy morn again shone bright.

The cavil of hypocrisy, The bigotry of scribe and priest, Who claimed the most and knew the least, Touched not the home in Bethany.

For once inside that cottage door, The cry of opposition ceased; Time after time the Christ was pleased To see the shadows on that floor.

Through Kedron’s vale He oft did go,p167 And o’er the brow of Olivet, As from Hypocrisy’s deep threat, To balmy Bethany below.

Judea witnessed many signs Wrought by the Lord, but Prejudice Continued still to blind the eyes Of those self-seeking, shrewd divines.

The born-blind man walked to and fro; That he could see was now well known; But blindest malice would not own The Promised One who made him so.

That He was the expected Christ In yonder Temple He had taught; What mortal hatred this had wrought Is told by each Evangelist.

While roaming from this anger dread,p168 And knowing what would happen too, Though called He stayed, and though He knew That Lazarus indeed was dead.

Yes, dead he was and in the grave, And dissolution had set in; Three days at least He lay within The sepulchre—that limestone cave.

When Christ came to the scene of death, “Hadst thou been here,” each sister said, “My brother, Lord, would not be dead,” Exhibiting in him their faith.

As Christ was nigh by a full cry And tears they eased their hearts of grief. They looked to him for some relief, Deploring much his long delay.

“Where have ye laid him?” queried He—p169 The Resurrection and the Life— The Christ who knows the keenest strife, And thus they answered: “Come and see.”

As He had said, he only slept, For Christ beheld the shore beyond; Yet in his spirit Jesus groaned, And touched by weeping, Jesus wept!

But still their faith in him He tried By bidding them to move the stone; Then in a powerful solemn tone “Come, Lazarus, come forth,” He cried.

He that was dead, lo! he came forth, Bound as they laid him dead below; “Loose him,” said Christ, “and let him go.”— A living proof of Jesus’ worth.

Christ called him from the boundless deepp170 Back into bounds and daily cares, To heal bruised hearts and dry sad tears, And show that death is but a sleep.

He broke the barriers of the grave, As God doth all things—by his word, As the Messiah, as the Lord, Whom Heaven had sent the world to save.

The final storm commenced to brew, And Christ was driven to and fro, As the sweet Psalmist long ago, And that his hour was nigh He knew.

He strayed to seek the far-off sheep,p171 He taught and headled from ground to ground, Perea gladly heard the sound Of the Everlasting Gospel deep.

And as He moved from place to place, With him the people moved along, Charmed with the melody of the song That called them to the God of grace.

While on his way He with delight Enlightened many a Zacheus’ mind, And cured Timeus’ son—the blind, But He himself walked into night!

One glorious day remained in store, Wherein He triumphed for the hour; He exercised his sov’reign power To ride in state as kings of yore.

Not as an earthly potentate, Arrayed in purple and fine gold, Escorted by bright legions bold, Not thus He came to his sad fate.

But as the wisest of the wise, And as the meekest of the meek, He entered on that mournful week That gave fresh hope to future days.

The Paschal Lamb was chosen that day,p173 The greatest feast of all the year, The Paschal Lamb of God for aye In that great feast did then appear.

As by a prophet long foretold, That oracle came now to pass, He on the stately, peaceful ass Entered the Citadel of gold.

It was His day! He claimed but one, A joyful tribute to his life; The nation hailed the Son of Man And drowned in praises scorn and strife!

From Olivet the pass was made,p174 While loud Hosannas filled the air; From spur to spur, from shade to shade, He came so meek and yet so fair.

Up Kedron’s valley came the song, Hosanna in the highest sing! Hosanna sang the mighty throng, Hosanna to Messiah-King!

They waved palm-branches in the breeze, They threw their garments in his way; Hosanna to the Prince of Peace, They hailed him as their king that day!

And mightier, mightier rolled the praise, Hosanna to the Lord on high; Hosanna echoed through the skies, Hosanna to Messiah’s sway!

As the procession moved along,p175 The lips of babes refined the strain; Christ ever comes with palms and song As He did then in peace to reign!

The fatal storm began to blow, The days of Christ grew few and sad; As if the demons made men mad, They hunted him they would not know.

Day after day they tried to snare With plot on plot the Son of Man; But plot on plot and plan on plan Returned them naught but dark despair.

He proved himself as keen as they, And keener than their subtle arts; He mirrored their treacherous hearts In parables clear from day to day.

They knew him not, so lowly He;p176 The gorgeous Letter never knew The simple Spirit deep and true That looks to Heaven and makes men free.

They knew him not. Had He come clad In heavenly powers to restore The throne of David as of yore, Him they would welcome and be glad!

But Jesus came to set aside The rites these men had made so dead; And to establish here instead His Everlasting Kingdom wide.

This truth flashed on them like the sun! Though witnessing his works of might, The Letter struggled with the Light, And dying, slew the Promised One.

He by his death became of rightp177 The King of Kings, the Triumphed Lord; And it became a vacant word, A temple emptied of the Light.

Now numbered were His days and hours, That hour was nigh—the fatal one, That hour wherein the Son of Man Yielded himself to cruel powers!

That hour of unforgotten cry, Dark as a cloud was winding up, That hour that gave the bitter cup Of woe to Christ, who drank it dry.

Betrayed, as He had long foreseen, By one He cherished as a friend, By one who had his selfish end, Whatever its nature might have been.

Betrayed by one who knew him well,p178 By one who should have died for him,— One of the Twelve, by Judas grim, Made faithless by the Prince of hell.

The false Betrayer to the fold, Though having sold in truth the Lord For a slave’s price—a mean reward, Returned again—hypocrisy bold!

He should have known, and well knew he, That Jesus read the hearts of men; But this dissembler came again And mixed with the Disciples free.

As Satan moved in days of yore Among the sons of God, so now— He—Judas–moved with shameless brow Among the Eleven—a spirit sore.

And sore for what? God only knows.p179 But sore—sore as an evil sprite, As Satan is—sore at the right, Sore to betray Christ to his foes!

Sore may be for temporal power, Which he had thought the Christ would wield; Sore that his office did not yield Less pains, more ease, and better dower.

Sore for the alabaster box Of precious ointment—spikenard— Which Mary “wasted” on her Lord; Sore as a sulky hellbound fox.

Ah! sore as he had ever been, Sore to be seen and worshipped too, That he was false and others true, Sore that his dark deceit was seen!

And yet with the Disciples hep180 Still mixed, and in the fold he stayed, To seize the Christ he had betrayed, And consummate his treachery!

Not as the son of darkness grim, Not as a wolf within the fold, But, as his true Disciples old, Christ with compassion treated him!

As ere the feast He washed their feet, He washed the feet of Judas too; Christ gave the Traitor service true, And he received the service sweet!

And lo! with Him who knew his greed He sat at the Passover’s meat; He supped with Him—let us repeat— Whom he had wickedly betrayed!

Being shown by Christ his heart completep181 While feasting, he felt sorer still; To put in act his wicked will He made his fatal, lone retreat!

Congenial air! the Blessed Son, Among the company divine, Then took and blessed the bread and wine, The Holy Meal gave He each one.

And as He gave, “This do,” said He, “In fond rememberance of me.”

As they partook to them were given By Him the sweetest truths of all, Those truths that raise the trusting soul To breathe the living breath of Heaven.

And of the Comforter He spake,p182 The Spirit of truth whom He would send To guide them to their journey’s end, And in them thoughts of Him awake.

And of his “Father’s house” above, The house of many mansions fair, A fond discourse He did declare, And of their meeting there in love.

And for his faithful chosen sheep He breathed a solemn tender prayer, In whose high-priestly heavenly air We ever touch his spirit deep.

And singing then a soothing hymn, He to the well known garden drew, Discoursing still his sweet adieu, As He went through the shadows dim.

When April’s moon moved pale on high Through clouds made gray by April’s showers, And when the stars, like drooping flowers Of sadness, decked the weeping sky;

When all the throngs retired to sleep, And calm reigned o’er the City blest, All but his enemies were at rest, When Jesus crossed the Kedron deep.

Behold He crossed—He crossed the Brook! And as He entered into the dark, The hounds of hell in wrath did bark, And all the Powers of darkness shook!

But Heaven rejoiced. Triumphant strain,p184 Anticipating victory, Resounded though eternity From everlasting harps divine!

What strains poured forth the golden lyres Of Patriarchs and Prophets old, As they perceived their Saviour bold Confronting calmly Satan’s fires!

As Jesus and his sad Eleven Walked slowly to the Garden fair, The Evil One, wrought by despair, Encompassed him as well as Heaven.

That garden oft had been the place Where with the Father face to face He held communion sweet, profound, As He the depth of life did sound.

But now the Cross before him stood,p185 The agony of knowing death— Of yielding up his latest breath, And giving for the race his blood.

He shrank from death much more than we, In Him nor sin, nor death had naught; Ah! to the sinless Christ the thought Of death was pain beyond degree!

His nature from the agony shrank As purest innocence from sin; This was the cup—the fear within, And yet this cup of death He drank.

Withdrawing from his chosen three To Gethsemane’s deepest shade, In untold sorrow Jesus prayed That from this fear He might be free.

And while He prayed the Evil Power,p186 By Satan led, assaulted him, As if beneath the shadows dim It would have slain him in that hour.

Who can depict Christ’s agony As He returned from where He prayed, As one that was almost dismayed, In search of human sympathy?

His faithful three, o’ercome by sleep, Could not e’en watch with him one hour; Again He went to pray for power To Him who knew his anguish deep.

He was so smitten by the foe, That, as great drops of blood, his sweat Fell on the frosty ground, and yet His travail lasted and his woe!

And from the depth the Saviour cried:p187 “Not my will, Father, thine be done.” Such was the prayer of the Son, As He was in the garden tried.

Returning to the three again, And slumbering still the three He found, Although He yearned for the least sound Of sympathy from mortal men.

His sorrow grew in conflict grim! Withdrawing, again He wrought in prayer, And while He prayed an angel fair Reanimated hope in him.

Dejectedly withdrew the foe: We may in Gethsemane boast, Though all the race in Eden lost, Christ to the galling Cross did go!

“Sleep ye on now and take your rest.” Thus spoke the Saviour to the three, As from the garden’s agony He did emerge so self-possessed.

He was prepared now to restrain, Whate’er betide, his power within; And unto God for human sin Make ransom of his life divine.

And while He spoke through yonder gloom Approached the throng by Judas led, To take the Saviour to his dread, Precounseled, sacrificial doom.

The Traitor gave the token foul;p189 He kissed the Son, but lost his soul.

Approaching them, “Whom do ye seek?” Said Christ, and backward fell the foe; His majesty struck them with awe, They fell unnerved like sucklings weak.

Again He queried, “Whom seek ye?” “The Nazarene,” they answered all; And then He poured to death his soul While He thus answered—“I am he.”

When Peter saw being bound his Lord, He the fiery and faithful one, True to himself and days by-gone, As brave as swift struck with his sword.

Christ healed the wound, and thus said He:p190 “Peace, Peter, peace; put up thy sword; Were I delivered, how the word Of Scripture should accomplished be?”

Christ suffered to be led away, An angel among demons bold; Meek as a lamb as long foretold, He bore the shame without a sigh.

The angel that inspired him While in the garden’s agony sore, Could not describe the pains He bore In these dread hours of darkness dim.

Enrobed in clay, Divinity Was rudely taken by the throng, And treated like a child of wrong, And plunged in all ignominy!

Ah! stricken was the Teacher fair,p191 And scattered the Disciples were.

“Art thou the Christ—the Promised One— The hope of Israel and his stay, For whom the nation look and pray,— Art thou the Christ—art thou the Son

Of God?” So Caiaphas the proud And haughty pontiff—the high priest, Queried the Saviour. Not the least Disturbed,—calm as a summer cloud

The Saviour answered, “I am he.” Yes, He who found in Eden fair The race when lost in deep despair, And gave the primal promise free;

Whom Enoch loved and Abraham knew,p192 And Jacob wrestled with in prayer, The great “I am” who from the glare Spoke to the prophet Moses true.

Yes, He who led the chosen seed From bondage to the promised land, Who sits today at God’s right hand, And won for us the peaceful meed.

“Thou dost blaspheme,” the Pontiff cried, As he his holy vestment tore, “Away with Him, take Him before The ruler Pilate to be tried.”

Two honest hearts among the throng, Two honest hearts for him did beat, As He before the Pontiff’s seat Stood stricken and accused of wrong!

Ah! Peter’s heart, like John’s, was right,p193 His words voiced not his inmost soul; And notwithstanding his sad fall, He, weeping, followed still the Light.

Ah! Pilate weak, wilt thou the dust— Wilt thou condemn in thy brief reign— Wilt thou condemn the Man Divine— Condemn to cursèd death the Just?

With thou condemn the Son of God Who in thy judgment hath no fault? Wilt thou not use thy power to halt The rage of envy with thy rod?

A king He is, as He has said, But not of any earthly tribe, Whose power no angel can describe, Whose love is deep, whose ire is dread.

The foxy Herod, so shrewd he,p194 Hath sent him back to thee in scorn, Enrobed in scarlet, crowned with thorn, What, Pilate, shall the outcome be?

Lo! Speechless Herod found the Lord, As to the earth his queries fell; Before him He was dumb, but well Replied He, Pilate, to thy word.

Accused He is, but falsely so. The poorest of the land He fed, He healed the sick, He raised the dead, He honored thee and Caesar’s law.

Ah! thou dost hear the furious cry, Led by the wily rulers fell, And lo! again the urgent yell Arises! “Crucify! Crucify!”

Impartial Justice calls to theep195 To do what thou considerest right, Extinguish not the Blessèd Light, Whate’er the consequence may be!

Oh, hear again the common cry! “Not this man—Barrabas set free, Our king is Caesar—only he, Crucify Jesus! Crucify!”

Why didst thou, Pilate, scourge the Good? Thou canst not melt these hearts of stone, Thy sense of right and that alone Can only save his guiltless blood!

Thy consort Portia deems Him just, And so dost thou. Do what is right, Though day should turn to utter night And thy throne crumble into dust!

“If now this man thou wilt releasep196 Thou art not Caesar’s friend,” cry they: Wash not thy hands, O Pilate! Cease! Thou canst not wash thy guilt away, Although thy basin be the seas!

“Behold the man,” the Governor cried. Mysterious man indeed thought he, And fain he would have set Him free; But whom of fear he crucified!

Bound by the soldiers Christ was driven, Bearing the Cross which now doth bloom, To Calvary—the place of doom, The sacrifice of Earth and Heaven.

Scourged and exhausted as was He,p197 Beneath the heavy beam He fell; Though bruised by man and bruised by hell, The Saviour walked to victory.

And as He went, “Weep not for me, Ye Salem’s daughters,” muttered He, “But for yourselves and children weep; The holy wrath of God is deep.”

As Jesus’ cross was lifted up, “Forgive them, Father,” was his prayer; “Of what they do they are not aware; Put to my lips their bitter cup.”

Take back that stupefying drink! The pain of death the Christ would know, He would die conscious of his woe, From death’s keen pangs He would not shrink.

He to the Virgin spoke this word:p198 “Henceforth behold in John thy son”; To the beloved disciple John, “Behold thy mother,” said the Lord.

Vicarious pain! we do not know What Jesus suffered for the race, When God the Father hid his face, And Christ lamented in his woe!

“My God! my God! O why hast thou Forsaken me?” was Jesus’ wail; Alone the Saviour did prevail O’er all his foes on Calvary’s brow.

One malefactor did upbraid; The other in his anguish prayed:

“Remember me when thou wilt risep199 To thy eternal throne,” prayed he; “Thou shalt,” said Jesus, “be with me This very day in Paradise.”

“Lo! it is finished,” cried the Lord. When He had bowed his head in death Faith, Hope, and Love drew freer breath, And Justice sheathed his righteous sword.

Why didst thou, Sun, in darkness hide While He—the Son of God—did die? Could not thy brightness then abide The sight and hear his sorrowful cry?

Why didst thou quake, O Earth, that day When Christ was nailed upon the cross? O didst thou feel a partial loss Of that strong Power which is thy stay?

Creation shook, the dead did rise,p200 As to the grave He did descend; The Temple’s veil in twain did rend As He ascended to the skies.

As on the cross the Saviour died, He bruised the wily Serpent’s head, And spoiled the Powers of darkness dread, And by his death atonement made.

From Jesus’ death there sprang a power That works at present in all parts, That brought conviction to the hearts Of many in his dying hour.

What meant the keen Centurion’s nod As from the cross he did withdraw? He judged by what he heard and saw That Jesus was the Son of God.

O why did Joseph grow more brave,p201 And Nicodemus show his faith? They found fresh courage by his death, And Christ through Joseph found a grave.

In vain they sealed that massive stone, In vain they watched that garden grave, The Christ, that died mankind to save, Arose to occupy his throne.

For when the third day’s earliest gleam Awoke the garden’s blushing bloom, The Prince of Life rose from the tomb, And in its darkness left a beam.

Ah! Thomas felt the chastening rod, As he beheld the Risen One Among them as he oft had done, As he exclaimed, ”My Lord, my God!”

The resurrection of the Christp202 Made Peter firmer than a rock As a conductor of the flock, And as a bold evangelist.

The Risen Christ for forty days, As He was wont in days of old, Himself made visible in the fold,— So natural—without surprise.

From Olivet’s exalted clime, Surrounded by his people dear, He did ascend and disappear Till He shall come the second time.

And as we look beyond the sun To the sublimest power that be, Believing, we rejoice to see Enthronèd there the Promised One.

How beautiful this world of ours, And hung on naught in boundless space; How beautiful its varied face, And musical are all its powers.

How beautiful the starry way, And how divine the dreamy night, When earthly gloom, baptized with light, Appears more spiritual than the day.

How beautiful the wakeful morn, And how seraphic is the sun, As from his orbit he doth run The tuneful seasons to adorn.

How beautiful the aged hills,p204 The guardian angels of the dales, How beautiful the shady vales, And charming are the running rills.

We love this globe’s variety, These worlds of water and of land, As lands and oceans hand in hand Are melting into melody.

The wild notes of the woods we hail, And the majestic eagle’s flight; And oh! we love the deeper light That breaks through Nature’s silken veil.

We seek the deeper notes within, We listen for the “still small voice”; In all this world we do rejoice, In all but in its sorrowful sin.

Christ came this blemish to remove,p205 And cleanse it from its sinful stain, And make it all a pure domain Of everlasting peace and love.

This universal truth we feel, Whatever be our chosen creed, We feel it as we feel our need, That we have lost our pristine weal.

As in a dream we look behind To catch at something we have lost; It ever, like a flitting ghost, Slips from the grasping of the mind.

We cannot give it shape and form,p206 And yet that we have lost we know, Lost chart and anchor long ago, In some far-off, terrific storm.

We feel an emptiness—a sin, A constant longing of the heart, As if as yet we live apart From Him who gives true peace within.

Ah! nothing but the Infinite Can satisfy the longing heart; Ah! nothing but the nobler part Which Mary chose can set us right.

And learning at the Saviour’s feet, And drinking from the Fount of bliss, The inward voice in filled with his Most sympathetic Presence sweet.

Christ being human and divine,p207 He knows the mind of God and man; And having human will, He can Bear with these weaknesses of thine.

Him we obey and him we sing, To him we yield our heart and will; We are his subjects, and He still Supremely reigns in every thing.

He rules the sun and moon and stars, The golden seasons from him spring; He even rules the smallest thing, And over-rules the rage of wars.

Lo! by his power doth He uphold In being the creation all; His Providence is in the Fall, In budding Spring, and Winter old.

We do believe in all our care,p208 In all this world of shifting sand, That they who trust in Him shall stand, And be declared the victors fair.

This world hath many teachers seen, Their teaching still retains its youth, And charmingly they spoke of truth, Their memories still are dear and green.

They rose above their common kind, They wrote and sang of highest things; And as possessed of angel-wing, Exposed the regions of the mind.

They wrote of morals and of law, And of true liberty they taught; But of the truth and of the thought They spoke, and left the world in woe.

Of gods and goddesses they spoke,p209 And blindest destinties of men; The future of mankind was then Enwrapt in clouds and darkest smoke.

Then blessèd were the proud and bold, And blessèd were the men of might, And blessèd they who wronged the right, And slew the weak and crushed the old.

Then blessèd were the souls unkind, And the oppressor’s mighty hands, Then blessèd were the cruel bands That bound the freedom of the mind.

And as to Prophecy we look, And give the prophets bold our ear, Repeatedly these words we hear, “Thus saith the Lord,” throughout the Book.

They were the channel, not the stream,p210 They were the means, but not the grace; They bore, like Moses’ shining face, Reflections of the Spiritual beam.

They spoke as they were moved to speak, They wrote as they were moved to write; They thought and spoke when moved aright, But they themselves were mortals weak.

Deep voices they of Prophecy, And of the Christ they did foretell, Of Him who is the very well Of truth from all Eternity.

The Christ is the Prophet to be, Experienced, so true, unperplext, He knoweth this world and the next, The spring of all knowledge is He.

He knoweth our sorrows and strife,p211 He knoweth the passions of souls, He knoweth the dangerous shoals, The treacherous sand-banks of life.

He came from the Father above, He came on the wings of the dawn, And dwelt in the earth with his own, And died of his infinite love.

Though humble and low of estate, He perfectly knew The whole in each part, And as it were spoke From eternity’s heart, Creator of being and fate!

He stood on the rostrum of time,p212 But spoke all the wisdom of God; The flowers that grow on the heavenly sod He scattered in language sublime.

He spoke from the depth of his soul; He taught what He thought, He spoke what He knew, And as it were brought The Invisible to view; And brought life immortal for all.

And now we are taught in the Word Where we the Almighty may find; And now we may read the Absolute Mind In Christ our Redeemer and Lord.

The root of his being, He knew, Was grounded in Godhead—not birth, Immaculate Heaven and Earth Were wedded in Jesus anew.

The Prophet of prophets is He,p213 Ere long all the nations will meet, In faith and in hope at his feet, His glory eternal to see.

Before the ocean knew its shore, Before the stars in lustre shone, Ere in the sky beamed forth the sun, A prophet’s mantle Jesus wore.

Before an angel bright did soar Upon the breeze of life and love, In the eternal world above, A prophet’s mantle Jesus wore.

But as the Son of Man He wore A prophet’s mantle in full sway, And lo! as such He reigns to-day From sea to sea, from shore to shore.

He is his own authority,p214 His words performed what He did will; Each thought is like a living rill That ever flows in ecstasy.

How full of thought the words He spoke! They bloom in beauty like the flowers That breathe beneath the April showers, As just to life they had awoke.

The prophets all prefigured him, They were the lights before the dawn; Messiah shines and by his own Eternal light in darkness dim.

The fountain of all reason He, By him we reason as we ought; He is the spring of human thought, The very source of prophecy.

He taught, but not as others taught;p215 The powers of the world to come Struck those who heard him almost dumb; They found in him more than they sought.

He thought, but not as others thought; The most original was He In Time as in Eternity, And with authority He taught.

And as authority divine, He gave the old a larger scope; He raised the horizon of hope Much higher than the ancient line.

Faint heart! have faith, thy knocks repeat, Believe and knock, thy Priest is He; And though thy sins as crimson be, Thou mayst approach the mercy-seat.

And as thy priest him do adore:p216 He is the new and living way That leads to where the glory stay, Where mercy smiles forever more.

And lo! in him thou now dost have An able advocate above, An advocate whose plea is love, And who is mightiest to save.

And as thy priest He hath been made Infallible through suffering pain; His Priesthood ever shall remain, Though sun and moon and stars shall fade.

Priests for a time were they of old, And fallible as men were they; All shadows now have passed away, And as a tale that hath been told.

He entered not the Holy Placep217 By merits other than his own; He entered by his worth alone, And wrought the freedom of the race.

He standeth in the Holy Place, The Son of Man—the Son of God, The Prophet-Priest of royal blood, The great High Priest of truth and grace.

Thy Priest, thy Prophet, and thy King, Thy sole Redeemer and thy Lord; And may thy will with his accord, And may thy love his praises sing.

Through Him thou mayst approach the throne Of God and ever be forgiven, And find at last sweet rest in heaven, In knowing Him as thou art known.

The King of Glory founded here His heavenly kingdom great and bright, His kingdom of eternal light That brightens all the night of fear.

The King of Glory founded here His kingdom great of grace and love, Whose principles are from above, Whose perfect love excludes all fear.

The King of Glory founded here His kingdom of eternal right, His kingdom of eternal might, Whose law is love, whose might is near.

The King of Glory founded herep219 His Kingdom of eternal scope, Wherein doth spring eternal hope, Which brightens all our earthly sphere.

The King of Glory founded here His Kingdom of eternal grace, Wherein by faith we may embrace The Saviour as our kinsman near.

Christ is the Daysman of our race, We all in him are brethren dear, All difference now doth disappear Before the favor of his face.

Reign thou, O Christ, reign far and wide, Reign, like the sun, from east to west, Reign in thy Kingdom at thy best, And with thy chosen ones abide.

Reign thou that knowledge may increase,p220 That pains may ebb and pleasures flow, That faith in God and man may grow, And dark distrust and sin may cease.

Reign thou in the affairs of man, That all the nations may be one, And righteousness shine like the sun, And earth be Paradise again.