Service Book and Hymnal of the Lutheran Church in America ‎#332

332. O holy city, seen of John

1 O holy city, seen of John,
Where Christ, the Lamb, doth reign,
Within whose foursquare walls shall come
No night, nor need, nor pain,
And where the tears are wiped from eyes
That shall not weep again!

2 Hark, how from men whose lives are held
More cheap than merchandise,
From women struggling sore for bread,
From little children's cries,
There swells the sobbing human plaint
That bids thy walls arise!

3 Give us, O God, the strength to build
The city that hath stood
Too long a dream, whose laws are love,
Whose ways are brotherhood,
And where the sun that shineth is
God’s grace for human good.

4 Already in the mind of God
That city riseth fair;
Lo, how its splendor challenges
The souls that greatly dare,
Yea, bids us seize the whole of life
And build its glory there.

Text Information

• First Line: O holy city, seen of John
• Author: Walter Russell Bowie, b.1882
• Language: English
• Publication Date: 1958
• Topic: City, Nation, World; The Life in Christ: Petition and Intercession; Church Life and Work: The Kingdom of God

Tune Information

• Name: FORD COTTAGE
• Composer: Frederick C. Maker, 1844 - 1927
• Meter: 8 6, 8 6, 8 6.
• Key: C Major
• Copyright: From Christian Worship and Praise, Henry H. Tweedy, Editor. Copyright Harper and Brothers.