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Words: Charles Wesley, Hymns Occasioned by the Earthquake, March 8, 1750, second edition, 1756.
Music: "Abiding Grace," John Spencer Camp, circa 1905
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Courtesy of Wesleyan University |
By faith we find the place above,
The Rock that rent in twain;
Beneath the shade of divine love,
And in the clefts remain.
Jesus, to Thy dear wounds we flee,
We sink into Thy side;
Assured that all who trust in Thee
Shall evermore abide.
Then let the thundering trumpet sound,
The latest lightning glare,
The mountains melt, the solid ground
Dissolve as liquid air.
The huge celestial bodies roll,
Amidst that general fire,
And shrivel as a parchment scroll,
And all in smoke expire!
Yet still the Lord, the Savior reigns,
When nature is destroyed,
And no created thing remains
Throughout the flaming void.
Sublime upon His azure throne,
He speaks the almighty word;
His fiat is obeyed! 'tis done;
And Paradise restored.
So be it! let this system end,
This ruinous earth and skies,
The new Jerusalem descend,
The new creation rise!
Thy power omnipotent assume,
Thy brightest majesty!
And when Thou dost in glory come,
My Lord, remember me!
Note: These verses are part of a larger hymn. Here are the remaining verses, shown in Wesley's hymnal before the ones above.
Woe to the men on earth who dwell,
Nor dread the Almighty's frown,
When God doth all His wrath reveal,
And shower his judgments down!
Sinners, expect those heaviest showers,
To meet your God prepare;
For, lo! the seventh angel pours
His phial in the air.
Lo! from their seats the mountains leap,
The mountains are not found;
Transported far into the deep,
And in the ocean drowned.
Who then shall live, and face the throne,
And face the Judge severe?
When heaven and earth are fled and gone,
O where shall I appear?
Now, only now, against that hour
We may a place provide;
Beyond the grave, beyond the power
Of hell, our spirits hide.
Firm in the all destroying shock,
May view the final scene;
For, lo! the everlasting Rock
Is cleft to take us in.
Hymns supplied through the gracious generosity of the Cyber Hymnal Website