A pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb.
Revelation 22:1
Words & Music: D. N. Howe, in Gospel Echoes, edited by Robert G. Staples (Oskaloosa, Iowa: Central Book Concern, 1877), number 60 (🔊 pdf nwc).
If you know Howe’s full name, or where to get a good photo of him (head & shoulders, at least 200×300 pixels),
They sing of a river whose value and worth
Exceeds richest treasure or gem,
Whose flowing is unto the ends of the earth,
Whose mission the ransom of men.
Refrain
The river of life, the river of life,
The river of life, is flowing for you,
Is flowing for you, is flowing for me.
The river of life is flowing for all.
They tell us the bliss of that life giving stream,
Whose waters are rivers of love;
But is it not better to taste than to dream
Of raptures of Canaan above?
Refrain
They say that this river of healing is free
To all who will wash and be whole;
But it is not wiser for each one to see
This river of life in his soul?
Refrain
What joy to the hearts now immersed in the stream
That flows from our Savior’s own side;
They feel that in them dwells this heavenly theme—
They’re filled with the bliss of that tide.
Refrain