Scripture Verse

…looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat. 2 Peter 3:12

Introduction

portrait
Philip Doddridge
1702–1751

Words: Phi­lip Dodd­ridge (1702–1751). Pub­lished post­hu­mous­ly in Hymns Found­ed on Va­ri­ous Texts in the Ho­ly Scrip­tures, by Job Or­ton (Shrop­shire, Eng­land: Jo­shua Ed­dowes & John Cot­ton, 1755), num­ber 342: The cir­cum­stanc­es of Christ’s se­cond ap­pear­ing.

Music: Mi­nal, Ger­man cho­rale, ar­ranged from Con­rad Koch­er (1786–1872) in Car­mi­na Sac­ra, by Lo­well Ma­son, (Bos­ton, Mas­sa­chu­setts: John H. Wil­kins & Ri­chard B. Car­ter, 1844), page 45 (🔊 pdf nwc).

portrait
Conrad Kocher
1786–1872

Lyrics

My wakened soul, extend thy wings,
Beyond the verge of mortal things;
See this vain world in smoke decay,
And rocks and mountains melt away.

Behold the fiery deluge roll,
Through heaven’s wide arch, from pole to pole;
Pale sun, no more thy luster boast:
Tremble and fall, ye starry host.

This wreck of nature all around,
The angel’s shout, the trumpet’s sound,
Loud the descending Judge proclaim,
And echo His tremendous name.

Children of Adam, all appear
With reverence round His awful bar;
For, as His lips pronounce, ye go,
To endless bliss, or endless woe!

Lord, to my eyes this scene display
Frequent through each revolving day;
And let Thy grace my soul prepare
To meet its full redemption there.