Scripture Verse

I…heard the voice of many angels…ten thousand times ten thousand. Revelation 5:11

Introduction

portrait
John B. Dykes (1823–1876)

Words: Hen­ry Al­ford, Year of Praise 1867 (vers­es 1–3) & The Lord’s Pray­er Il­lus­trat­ed 1870 (verse 4).

Music: Al­ford John B. Dykes, in Hymns An­cient and Mo­dern, 1875 (🔊 pdf nwc).

portrait
Henry Alford (1810–1871)

Background

The glor­ies of the fi­nal re­sur­rec­tion day per­haps have no­where else been so tri­umph­ant­ly sung as in this hymn. Most of our songs are for the saints mil­i­tant; this is for the saints tri­umph­ant.

The victory of the re­deemed is well des­cribed here by the great Eng­lish theo­lo­gian. It is not ea­sy for a Chris­tian be­liev­er to read these lines witho­ut feel­ing a quick­en­ing heart­beat in an­ti­ci­pa­tion of the glor­ies that are to be re­vealed in the res­ur­rec­tion…

It was sung at the au­thor’s bur­ial, out in the church­yard, af­ter the so­lemn ob­se­quies had been con­clud­ed in the ca­thed­ral where he had so oft­en preached.

Nutter, p. 323

Lyrics

Ten thou­sand times ten thou­sand
In spark­ling rai­ment bright,
The ar­mies of the ran­somed saints
Throng up the steeps of light;
’Tis fin­ished, all is fin­ished,
Their fight with death and sin;
Fling open wide the gold­en gates,
And let the vic­tors in.

What rush of al­le­luias
Fills all the earth and sky!
What ringing of a thou­sand harps
Bespeaks the tri­umph nigh!
O day, for which cre­ation
And all its tribes were made;
O joy, for all its for­mer woes
A thou­sand­fold repaid!

O then what rap­tured greet­ings
On Ca­naan’s hap­py shore;
What knit­ting se­vered friend­ships up,
Where part­ings are no more!
Then eyes with joy shall spar­kle,
That brimmed with tears of late;
Orphans no long­er fa­ther­less,
Nor wi­dows de­so­late.

Bring near Thy great sal­va­tion,
Thou Lamb for sin­ners slain;
Fill up the roll of Thine elect,
Then take Thy pow­er, and reign;
Appear, De­sire of na­tions,
Thine ex­iles long for home;
Show in the heav’n Thy pro­mised sign;
Thou Prince and Sav­ior, come.