LSB #516 "Wake, Awake, for Night Is Flying"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  Matthew 25:1-13, Isaiah 62:5-12, Revelation 19:6-9, Revelation 7:9-17

Matthew 25:1-13:  "1 'Then the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom.  2 Five of them were foolish, and five were wise.  3 For when the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them, 4 but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps.  5 As the bridegroom was delayed, they all became drowsy and slept.  6 But at midnight there was a cry, "Here is the bridegroom!  Come out to meet him."  7 Then all those virgins rose and trimmed their lamps.  8 And the foolish said to the wise, "Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out."  9 But the wise answered, saying, "Since there will not be enough for us and for you, go rather to the dealers and buy for yourselves."  10 And while they were going to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast, and the door was shut.  11 Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, "Lord, lord, open to us."  12 But he answered, "Truly, I say to you, I do not know you."  13 Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.'"

Isaiah 62:5-12:  "5 For as a young man marries a young woman, so shall your sons marry you, and as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so shall your God rejoice over you.

"6 On your walls, O Jerusalem, I have set watchmen; all the day and all the night they shall never be silent.  You who put the LORD in remembrance, take no rest, 7 and give him no rest until he establishes Jerusalem and makes it a praise in the earth.  8 The LORD has sworn by his right hand and by his mighty arm:  'I will not again give your grain to be food for your enemies, and foreigners shall not drink your wine for which you have labored; 9 but those who garner it shall eat it and praise the LORD, and those who gather it shall drink it in the courts of my sanctuary.'

"10 Go through, go through the gates; prepare the way for the people; build up, build up the highway; clear it of stones; lift up a signal over the peoples.  11 Behold, the LORD has proclaimed to the end of the earth:  Say to the daughter of Zion, 'Behold, your salvation comes; behold, his reward is with him, and his recompense before him.'  12 And they shall be called The Holy People, The Redeemer of the LORD; and you shall be called Sought Out, A City Not Forsaken."

Revelation 19:6-9:  "6 Then I heard what seemed to be the voice of a great multitude, like the roar of many waters and like the sound of mighty peals of thunder, crying out, 'Hallelujah!  For the Lord our God the Almighty reigns.  7 Let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and his Bride has made herself ready; 8 it was granted her to clothe herself with fine linen, bright and pure' - for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints.

"9 And the angel said to me, 'Write this:  Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.'  And he said to me, 'These are the true words of God.'"

Revelation 7:9-17:  "9 After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, 10 and crying out with a loud voice, 'Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!'  11 And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures, and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, 12 saying, 'Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to our God forever and ever! Amen.'

"13 Then one of the elders addressed me, saying, 'Who are these, clothed in white robes, and from where have they come?'  14 I said to him, 'Sir, you know.'  And he said to me, 'These are the ones coming out of the great tribulation.  They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.  15 'Therefore they are before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple; and he who sits on the throne will shelter them with his presence.  16 They shall hunger no more, neither thirst anymore; the sun shall not strike them, nor any scorching heat.  17 For the Lamb in the midst of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide them to springs of living water, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.'"

+++

The text from Matthew appears in the second half of the first verse.  In a way, it's surrounded by the text from Isaiah; the first few lines of the first verse describe the watchmen from Isaiah 62:6, who are later mentioned at the beginning of the second verse.  The text from Revelation 19 appears at the end of the second verse, which describes the arrival at "the marriage supper of the Lamb."

The text from Revelation 7 appears in the third verse, specifically in the lines "Now let all the heav'ns adore Thee, / Let saints and angels sing before Thee / With harp and cymbals' clearest tone... Where, joining with the choir immortal, / We gather round Thy radiant throne."

The line "Of one pearl each shining portal" in the third verse comes from Revelation 21:21:  "And the twelve gates were twelve pearls, each of the gates made of a single pearl, and the street of the city was pure gold, transparent as glass."

Messiah: No. 50 O death, where is thy sting

The text is from 1 Corinthians 15:55-56:  "55 'O death, where is your victory?  O death, where is your sting?'  56 The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law."

Handel's setting of this is great in pulling apart these phrases so that it can be seen (or heard) how parallel they are.

They're sung almost simultaneously, so that "death" and "grave" match up, as do "where is thy sting?" and "where is thy victory?".  I looked into the source for this text a bit more, and - apparently - it's a quotation of Hosea 13:14: "Shall I ransom them from the power of Sheol?  Shall I redeem them from Death?  O Death, where are your plagues?  O Sheol, where is your sting?  Compassion is hidden from my eyes."  I'm not sure if it's the case here (although it seems like it is), but some sections of the Old Testament (Psalms in particular) use this parallel structure, where almost the same thing is said in two different ways.  There are some other parts of the Messiah that are structured like this, but because it's a duet, the setting of "O death, where is thy sting?  O grave, where is thy victory?" is exemplary in musically illustrating that structure.

"Ringe recht" (TLH #155)

This is an-other shorter one, so I went through it three times.

"The Will of God Is Always Best"

A little over a year ago, I found a few things in "The Will of God Is Always Best," sung to the tune "Was mein Gott will" (Isorhythmic).

All of the music-related things I noticed occur in the same phrase, although it appears multiple times throughout the hymn:

The first two lines of the hymn are "The will of God is always best / And shall be done forever."  The second of those lines is sung to the phrase above, and "forever" is sung with a melisma (A G F# G), musically giving a sense of duration.

The first two lines of the fourth verses are "When life's brief course on earth is run / And I this world am leaving."  Again, the second of those lines is sung to the phrase above, and "leaving" is sung with a melisma (G F# G) for a sense of movement (although it's a bit more metaphorical).

In the third verse, the third and fourth lines are "When Satan sorely troubles me, / Then do not let me waver."  Here, "waver" is sung with that same melisma (G F# G), so while it's negated, there's a musical sense of its meaning.

In looking over the hymn again in order to write this post, I noticed that this phrase has a cross inscription.  I think its only connection to the text appears at the very end of the hymn (and while the lines here occupy the same musical space as those quoted above, there's an additional line break):  "From sin and hell, / And death as well, / By You the victo'ry reaping."  That last line is what's sung to the phrase above, and the cross inscription corresponds to "You the vict'ry."  It is through Christ's crucifixion and resurrection that we have that victory.

Previously, I'd also noticed a night/day merism at the end of the second verse:  "By night and day / God is my stay; / He never sleeps nor slumbers."  This is drawn from Psalm 121 and even maintains the alliteration ("sleeps nor slumbers") which is present in all of the English translations I referenced and which provides a sense of the constancy of God's care.

LSB #515 "Rejoice, Rejoice, Believers"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  Matthew 25:1-6, Revelation 5:11-14, Malachi 4:2, Matthew 13:35-37

Matthew 25:1-6:  "1 'Then the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom.  2 Five of them were foolish, and five were wise.  3 For when the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them, 4 but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps.  5 As the bridegroom was delayed, they all became drowsy and slept.  6 But at midnight there was a cry, "Here is the bridegroom!  Come out to meet him.'"

Revelation 5:11-14:  "11 Then I looked, and I heard around the throne and the living creatures and the elders the voice of many angels, numbering myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands, 12 saying with a loud voice, 'Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing!'  13 And I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, saying, 'To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever!'  14 And the four living creatures said, 'Amen!' and the elders fell down and worshiped."

Malachi 4:2:  "2 But for you who fear my name, the sun of righteousness shall rise with healing in its wings.  You shall go out leaping like calves from the stall."

Matthew 13:35-37:  "35 This was to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet:  'I will open my mouth in parables; I will utter what has been hidden since the foundation of the world.'

"36 Then he left the crowds and went into the house.  And his disciples came to him, saying, 'Explain to us the parable of the weeds of the field.'  37 He answered, 'The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man.'"

I think instead of Matthew 13:35-37, it should be Mark 13:35-37:  "35 'Therefore stay awake - for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or in the morning - 36 lest he come suddenly and find you asleep.  37 And what I say to you I say to all:  Stay awake.'"

+++

The text is public domain:

Rejoice, rejoice, believers,
And let your lights appear;
The evening is advancing,
And darker night is near.
The Bridegroom is arising
And soon is drawing nigh.
Up, pray and watch and wrestle;
At midnight comes the cry.

The watchers on the mountain
Proclaim the Bridegroom near;
Go forth as He approaches
With alleluias clear.
The marriage feast is waiting;
The gates wide open stand.
Arise, O heirs of glory;
The Bridegroom is at hand.

The saints, who here in patience
Their cross and suff'rings bore,
Shall live and reign forever
When sorrow is no more.
Around the throne of glory
The Lamb they shall behold;
In triumph cast before Him
Their diadems of gold.

Our hope and expectation,
O Jesus, now appear;
Arise, O Sun so longed for,
O'er this benighted sphere.
With hearts and hands uplifted,
We plead, O Lord, to see
The day of earth's redemption
That sets Your people free!

+++

The first two verses come primarily from Matthew 25:1-6 but also seem to draw from Mark 13:35-37.

Revelation 5:11-14 appears in the third verse, in the lines "Around the throne of glory / The Lamb they shall behold."  The verse contains some uncited references to Revelation.  "When sorrow is no more" comes from Revelation 21:4:  "'He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.'"  "In triumph cast before Him / Their diadems of gold" comes from Revelation 4:9-11:  "9 And whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to him who is seated on the throne, who lives forever and ever, 10 the twenty-four elders fall down before him who is seated on the throne and worship him who lives forever and ever.  They cast their crowns before the throne, saying, 11 'Worthy are you, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they existed and were created.'"

The "the sun of righteousness" from Malachi 4:2 appears in the last verse:  "Arise, O Sun so longed for, / O'er this benighted sphere."

Messiah: No. 49 Then shall be brought to pass

The text is from 1 Corinthians 15:54:  "When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written:  'Death is swallowed up in victory.'"

"Martyrdom" (TLH #154)

Because this is a shorter tune, I went through it three times.

"All Glory Be to God on High"

I wrote about "All Glory Be to God on High" last month, but when I lookt over the hymn again, I found an-other small feature to write about.

In the second verse, there are the lines "O Father, for Your rule is true / And just and changes never."  The second of those lines is sung to this phrase from the tune "Allein Gott in der Höh'":

"Changes" is sung with a melisma (Bb A G), so while it's negated, there's a musical sense of its meaning.

LSB #514 "The Bridegroom Soon Will Call Us"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  Matthew 25:1-13, Revelation 19:6-9, Revelation 7:9-17

Matthew 25:1-13:  "1 'Then the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom.  2 Five of them were foolish, and five were wise.  3 For when the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them, 4 but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps.  5 As the bridegroom was delayed, they all became drowsy and slept.  6 But at midnight there was a cry, "Here is the bridegroom!  Come out to meet him."  7 Then all those virgins rose and trimmed their lamps.  8 And the foolish said to the wise, "Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out."  9 But the wise answered, saying, "Since there will not be enough for us and for you, go rather to the dealers and buy for yourselves."  10 And while they were going to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast, and the door was shut.  11 Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, "Lord, lord, open to us."  12 But he answered, "Truly, I say to you, I do not know you."  13 Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.'"

Revelation 19:6-9:  "6 Then I heard what seemed to be the voice of a great multitude, like the roar of many waters and like the sound of mighty peals of thunder, crying out, 'Hallelujah!  For the Lord our God the Almighty reigns.  7 Let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and his Bride has made herself ready; 8 it was granted her to clothe herself with fine linen, bright and pure' - for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints.

"9 And the angel said to me, 'Write this:  Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.'  And he said to me, 'These are the true words of God.'"

Revelation 7:9-17:  "9 After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, 10 and crying out with a loud voice, 'Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!'  11 And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures, and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, 12 saying, 'Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to our God forever and ever! Amen.'

"13 Then one of the elders addressed me, saying, 'Who are these, clothed in white robes, and from where have they come?'  14 I said to him, 'Sir, you know.'  And he said to me, 'These are the ones coming out of the great tribulation.  They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.  15 'Therefore they are before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple; and he who sits on the throne will shelter them with his presence.  16 They shall hunger no more, neither thirst anymore; the sun shall not strike them, nor any scorching heat.  17 For the Lamb in the midst of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide them to springs of living water, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.'"

+++

Aside from the first stanza, the text is public domain:

There shall we see in glory
Our dear Redeemer's face;
The long-awaited story
Of heav'nly joy takes place:
The patriarchs shall meet us,
The prophets' holy band;
Apostles, martyrs greet us
In that celestial land.

There God shall from all evil
Forever make us free,
From sin and from the devil,
From all adversity,
From sickness, pain, and sadness,
From troubles, cares, and fears,
And grant us heav'nly gladness
And wipe away our tears.

In that fair home shall never
Be silent music's voice;
With hearts and lips forever
We shall in God rejoice,
While angel hosts are raising
With saints from great to least
A mighty hymn for praising
The Giver of the feast.

+++

The first verse comes from the text from Matthew 25.

The second and third verses come from Revelation 7.  The second half of the second verse describes the "great multitude" from verse 9 (although it's also present in Revelation 19:6), and the third verse expands on the "shelter[ing]" in verses 15-17.

The lines "From sin and from the devil, / From all adversity, / From sickness, pain, and sadness, / From troubles, cares, and fears" exhibit two rhetorical devices:  cataloguing (the list of ills from which God will deliver us) and anaphora (the repeated "from").  Both of these devices emphasize the amount and variety of these difficulties.

The fourth verse comes form Revelation 19.  The rejoicing described throughout the verse could be cited from Revelation 7 (which also contains "crying out with a loud voice"), but the focus is on "The Giver of the feast" and that feast is "the marriage supper of the Lamb" (verse 9).

+++

Between the setting of a marriage feast and the ranking mentioned in the line "With saints from great to least" (which - incidentally - contains a merism), the fourth verse also recalls the parable of the Wedding Feast in Luke 14:7-11.

The version of this hymn in Lutheran Worship contains some different verses, a different translation, or perhaps both.  The third verse begins:  "Then Christ, his glory sharing, / Will give us crowns of gold," which seems to be a reference to the end of Revelation 2:10:  "'Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life.'"  The verse ends with the lines "The Father with embraces / Will welcome us, each one, / Robed in the Spirit's graces / As princely as God's Son," and this welcome with embraces and a fine robe matches that at the end of the parable of the Prodigal Son in Luke 15:11-32.

Messiah: No. 48 The trumpet shall sound

The text is from 1 Corinthians 15:52b-53:  "For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed.  53 For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality."

It's pretty obvious, but I'll mention it anyway: taking a note from the text, there's a trumpet in this section (the top line of music).  Also, "the dead shall be raised" conforms to a rising melody.

I don't think I noticed this until looking at the notation, but one of the "we shall be changed" phrases also inscribes the cross figure, apparently illustrating that it's through believing in Christ's crucifixion and resurrection that we are changed:

"O mein Jesu, ich muss sterben" (TLH #153)

To-day's Easter, but I'm still making my way through the Lenten hymns in TLH.  There are also hymns for specific days in Holy Week, and if I maintain my schedule, I won't get to the Easter hymns until November.

"On Eagles' Wings"

About a year ago, I noticed some features in "On Eagles' Wings."

The first line of the refrain is "And He will raise you up on eagles' wings," sung to this phrase (the tune is also titled "On Eagles' Wings"):

There's an ascending melody with a rather large interval (a sixth) to reflect that "rais[ing]... up."

I also noticed a few things in the third verse:  "You need not fear the terror of the night, / Nor the arrow that flies by day; / Though thousands fall about you, / Near you it shall not come."  The middle two lines are sung to these phrases:

"Flies" and "thousands" are sung with melismas (C# B and A A Bb respectively), musically giving a sense of movement for "flies" and amount for "thousands."

LSB #513 "The Clouds of Judgement Gather"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  1 Peter 1:3-9, Luke 21:36, John 12:46, Revelation 7:13-17

1 Peter 1:3-9:  "3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ!  According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, 5 who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.  6 In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, 7 so that the tested genuineness of your faith - more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire - may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.  8 Though you have not seen him, you love him.  Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, 9 obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls."

Luke 21:36:  "'But stay awake at all times, praying that you may have strength to escape all these things that are going to take place, and to stand before the Son of Man.'"

John 12:46:  "'I have come into the world as light, so that whoever believes in me may not remain in darkness.'"

Revelation 7:13-17:  "13 Then one of the elders addressed me, saying, 'Who are these, clothed in white robes, and from where have they come?'  14 I said to him, 'Sir, you know.'  And he said to me, 'These are the ones coming out of the great tribulation.  They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.  15 'Therefore they are before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple; and he who sits on the throne will shelter them with his presence.  16 They shall hunger no more, neither thirst anymore; the sun shall not strike them, nor any scorching heat.  17 For the Lamb in the midst of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide them to springs of living water, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.'"

+++

The hymn's first verse seems to be drawn from Luke 21:36.  The lines "Be sober and be watchful, / Our judge is at the gate" have the same idea, even if they're expressed in different words.

The second half of the second verse describes "Jesus' blessed light," which comes from John 12:46, although "The light that has no evening, / That knows no moon or sun" also incorporated Revelation 21:23:  "And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb."

The third verse comes from 1 Peter 1.  The hymn describes heaven as "the home of fadeless splendor" and "inviolate, unfading," attributes taken directly from 1 Peter 1:4.  The hymn's description of "exiles mourn[ing]" seems to come from "you have been grieved by various trials" in 1 Peter 1:6.

The fourth and final verse seems to come from Revelation 7.  "Relief for all distressed" seems to refer to the forgiveness of sins, which is depicted in Revelation 7:14.  I think there's also a connection between the hymn's "true vision of true beauty" and revelation in a broader sense.

Messiah: No. 47 Behold, I tell you a mystery

The text is from 1 Corinthians 15:51-52a:  "51 Behold!  I tell you a mystery.  We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, 52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet."

"Wenn meine Sünd'" (TLH #152)

This was an unfamiliar tune in 6/4 and with a slew of accidentals, so it's probably not one of the better recordings I've made.

"Lord, Take My Hand and Lead Me"

A couple weeks ago, one of the hymns in the mid-week Lenten service was "Lord, Take My Hand and Lead Me."  I noticed an interesting feature at the beginning of the third verse.  The first line is "Lord, when the shadows lengthen," sung to this phrase from the tune "So nimm denn meine Hände" (it's plural in the German:  "So Take Then My Hands"):

The notes are all quarter notes until "lengthen," which is sung to a half note and a quarter note.  The increased note value of that half note gives a sense of that "lengthen[ing]."  It's also illustrated simply in the syllable count of the words:  in this line, "shadows" and "lengthen" are the only words with more than one syllable.

Writing about those features also gives me the opportunity to note something I realized about two years ago but didn't consider significant enough to write about on its own.  Later in the third verse are the lines "I know that You will strengthen / My steps toward home. / Then nothing can impede me."  Impede is related to the Latin word for foot (pes), so there's something of a link back to the "steps" in the previous line.  (Note, however, that since the text is translated, this may be specific to the English.)

LSB #512 "At the Name of Jesus"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  Philippians 2:5-11, Luke 1:31, John 1:1-4, Acts 1:10-11

Philippians 2:5-11:  "5 Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, 6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.  8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.  9 Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."

Luke 1:31:  "And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus."

John 1:1-4:  "1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  2 He was in the beginning with God.  3 All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made.  4 In him was life, and the life was the light of men."

Acts 1:10-11: "10 And while they were gazing into heaven as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white robes, 11 and said, 'Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven?  This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.'"

+++

The text is public domain:

At the name of Jesus
Ev'ry knee shall bow,
Ev'ry tongue confess Him
King of glory now.
'Tis the Father's pleasure
We should call Him Lord,
Who from the beginning
Was the mighty Word.

At His voice creation
Sprang at once to sight,
All the angel faces,
All the hosts of light,
Thrones and bright dominions,
Stars upon their way,
All the heav'nly orders
In their great array.

Humbled for a season,
To receive a name
From the lips of sinners
Unto whom He came,
Faithfully He bore it
Spotless to the last,
Brought it back victorious
When from death He passed;

Bore it up triumphant
With its human light,
Through all ranks of creatures
To the central height,
To the throne of Godhead,
To the Father's breast,
Filled it with the glory
Of that perfect rest.

In your hearts enthrone Him;
There let Him subdue
All that is not holy,
All that is not true:
Crown Him as your captain
In temptation's hour;
Let His will enfold you
In its light and pow'r.

Christians, this Lord Jesus
Shall return again
In His Father's glory,
With His angel train;
For all wreaths of empire
Meet upon His brow,
And our hearts confess Him
King of glory now.

Glory then to Jesus,
Who, the Prince of light,
To a world in darkness
Brought the gift of sight;
Praise to God the Father;
In the Spirit's love
Praise we all together
Him who reigns above.

+++

The first half of the first verse ("At the name of Jesus / Ev'ry knee shall bow, / Ev'ry tongue confess Him / King of glory now") comes from Philippians 2:10-11.  The last two lines of the first verse ("Who from the beginning / Was the mighty Word") and the whole of the second verse (referencing the Creation) are drawn from John 1:1-4.

The lines "Humbled for a season, / To receive a name / From the lips of sinners" in the third verse seem to combine the humility mentioned in the first half of the text from Philippians and "you shall call his name Jesus" from Luke 1:31.

The fourth and sixth verses come from Acts 1:10-11.  The fourth verse describes Jesus' Ascension, and the sixth describes how He will return.