When o’er the fame of friend or foe,
The sha­dow of dis­grace shall fall; in­stead
Of words of blame, or fa­tal blow—
Let some­thing good be said.

Refrain

And so I charge ye by the thor­ny crown,
And by the cross on which the Sav­ior bled,
And by your own soul’s hope of fair re­nown:
Let some­thing good be said.

Forget not grace, no sin­ner yet
May fall so low but Christ can lift his head,
While cheeks of shame with tears are wet;
Let some­thing good be said.

Refrain

No ge­ner­ous heart may turn aside
To deeds of love—if they in sin be dead,
But may awak­en glo­ri­fied,
If some­thing good be said.

Refrain

If cru­el words em­bit­ter thee,
Turn to the cross on Cal­va­ry, where said
The Sav­ior: O for­give, and see
That some­thing good be said.

Refrain