Scripture Verse

Who hath heard such a thing? Who hath seen such things? Shall the earth be made to bring forth in one day? Or shall a nation be born at once? For as soon as Zion travailed, she brought forth her children. Isaiah 66:8

Introduction

portrait
Philip Doddridge (1702–1751)

Words: Phi­lip Dodd­ridge (1702–1751). Pub­lished post­hu­mous­ly in Hymns Found­ed on Va­ri­ous Texts in the Ho­ly Scrip­tures, by Job Or­ton (Shrop­shire, Eng­land: Jo­shua Ed­dowes & John Cot­ton, 1755), num­ber 121: A na­tion born in a day; or the ra­pid pro­gress of the Gos­pel de­sired.

Music: Old 100th at­trib­ut­ed to Lou­is Bour­geois, in Four Score and Se­ven Psalms of Da­vid (Ge­ne­va, Swit­zer­land: 1551) (🔊 pdf nwc).

If you know where to get a good pic­ture of Bour­geois (head & shoul­ders, at least 200×300 pix­els),

Lyrics

Behold with pleas­ing ec­sta­sy
The Gos­pel stand­ard lift­ed high,
That all the na­tions from afar
May in the great sal­va­tion share!

Why then, al­migh­ty Sav­ior, why
Do wretch­ed souls in mill­ions die?
While wide th’in­fer­nal ty­rant reigns
O’er spa­cious realms in pon­der­ous chains?

And shall he still go on to boast
Thy cross its en­er­gy hath lost?
And shall Thy ser­vants still com­plain
Their la­bors, and their tears are vain?

Awake, all con­quer­ing arm, awake,
And hell’s ex­ten­sive em­pire shake;
Assert the hon­ors of Thy throne,
And call this ru­ined world Thine own.

Thine all suc­cess­ful pow­er di­splay;
Produce a na­tion in a day;
For at Thy word this bar­ren earth
Shall tra­vail with a ge­ne­ral birth.

Swift let Thy quick­en­ing Spi­rit breathe
On these abodes of sin and death!
That breath shall bow ten thou­sand minds,
Like wav­ing corn be­fore the winds.

Scarce can our glow­ing hearts en­dure
A world, where Thou art known no more;
Transform it, Lord, by con­quer­ing love;
Or bear us to the realms above.