The judge stands before the door.
James 5:9
Words: John Needham, Hymns Devotional and Moral on Various Subjects (Bristol, England: S. Farley, 1768), number 233.
Music: Windsor Christopher Tye, 1533; arranged in the Booke of Musicke, by William Daman, 1591 (🔊 pdf nwc).
Alternate Tunes:
If you know where to get a good picture of Needham or Tye (head & shoulders, at least 200×300 pixels),
He’ll come, the Judge will surely come,
Ye atheists mock no more;
His chariot wheels are hastening on,
The Judge is at the door.
Swift glide the streams of time along
To bring the awful day;
Each flying hour withdrawing says
The Judge will not delay.
See where the mighty angel stands,
Embracing sea and shore;
To Heaven he lifts his hand, and swears
That time shall be no more.
He swears—behold, the Judge descends
His office to complete;
The tribes of Adam trembling stand
Before the judgment seat.
Prepare, my soul, to meet thy judge,
Thy life throughout survey;
From evil cease, and learn the good
If Thou wouldst stand that day.
Washed in Thy Savior’s blood thy robes
Shall be both clean and white;
A holy soul can view its judge,
And triumph in the sight.