Scripture Verse

What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder. Mark 10:9

Introduction

portrait
John Keble (1792–1866)

Words: John Ke­ble, 1857.

Music: Eden (Bos­ton) Sac­red Hymns and Tunes (Bos­ton, Mas­sa­chu­setts: 1880) (🔊 pdf nwc).

Alternate Tunes:

Background

This hymn was sung at the mar­ri­age of Lucy Maud Mont­go­me­ry, au­thor of Anne of Green Ga­bles. It’s a good choice for wed­dings, and is still sung in mar­ri­age ce­re­mon­ies at Ca­ve­ndish, Prince Ed­ward Island, in the house where Mont­go­me­ry wed.

Lyrics

The voice that breathed o’er Ed­en,
That ear­li­est wed­ding day,
The pri­mal wed­ding bless­ing,
It hath not passed away.
Still in the pure es­pous­al
Of Chris­tian man and maid
The Ho­ly Three are with us,
The three­fold grace is said.

Be pre­sent, aw­ful Fa­ther,
To give away this bride
As Thou gav’st Eve to Ad­am,
A help­mate at his side.
Be pre­sent, Son of Ma­ry,
To join their lov­ing hands
As Thou didst bind two na­tures
In Thine eter­nal bands.

Be pre­sent, Ho­ly Spir­it,
To bless them as they kneel,
As Thou for Christ, the Bride­groom,
The heav’n­ly Spouse dost seal.
O spread Thy pure wing o’er them,
Let no ill pow­er find place
When on­ward to Thine al­tar
Their hal­lowed path they trace.

To cast their crowns be­fore Thee
In per­fect sac­ri­fice,
Till to the home of glad­ness
With Christ’s own Bride they rise.
To Fa­ther, Son, and Spir­it,
Eternal One and Three,
And was and is for­ev­er,
All praise and glo­ry be.

illustration
Garden of Eden
Jacob de Backer (1555–1590)

This verse is used only with 76.76 tunes, such as Matrimony, above.

For dower of bless­èd child­ren,
For love and faith’s sweet sake,
For high mys­ter­ious un­ion
Which naught on earth may break.