Scripture Verse

These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. Hebrews 11:13

Introduction

Words: Will­iam H. Dra­per, 1894. Dra­per wrote this hymn for the re­op­en­ing of the Ab­bey Church, Shrews­bu­ry, Eng­land, af­ter its res­to­ra­tion.

Music: Dra­per Üt­ting­en ma­nu­script, 1754 (🔊 pdf nwc).

Alternate Tunes:

  • Kremser Dutch tune, in The Col­lect­ion, Adri­an­us Va­le­ri­us, 1625. Ar­ranged by Edu­ard Krem­ser, 1877 (🔊 pdf nwc)
  • St. Ca­ther­ine’s Court Ri­chard Strutt. Writ­ten for the Ju­bi­lee Ce­le­bra­tion of the Girls’ Friend­ly So­ci­ety, 1925, and first pub­lished in their Ju­bil­ee Hymn Book that year (🔊 pdf nwc)
portrait
William H. Draper
(1855–1933)
Wikimedia Commons

Lyrics

In our day of thanks­giv­ing
One psalm let us of­fer
For the saints who be­fore us
Have found their re­ward;
When the sha­dow of death
Fell up­on them, we sor­rowed,
But now we re­joice
That they rest in the Lord.

In the morn­ing of life,
And at noon, and at ev­en,
He called them away
From our wor­ship be­low;
But not till His love,
At the font and the al­tar,
Had girt them with grace
For the way they should go.

These stones that have ech­oed
Their prais­es are ho­ly,
And dear is the ground
Where their feet have once trod;
Yet here they con­fessed
They were stran­gers and pil­grims,
And still they were seek­ing
The ci­ty of God.

Sing praise, then, for all who
Here sought and here found Him,
Whose jour­ney is end­ed,
Whose per­ils are past;
They be­lieved in the Light;
And its glo­ry is round them,
Where the clouds of earth’s sor­rows
Are lift­ed at last.