Go to dark Gethsemane
Ye that feel the Tempter's power,
Your Redeemer's conflict see,
Watch with Him one bitter hour;
Turn not from His griefs away
Learn of Jesus Christ to pray.
Follow to the judgment-hall
View the LORD of life arraing'd;
Oh, the wormwood and the gall!
Oh, the pangs his soul sustain'd!
Shun not suffering, shame of lass;
Learn of Him to bear the cross;
Calvary's mournful mountain climb
There, adoring at His feet,
Mark that miracle of times,
GOD'S OWN Sacrifice complete
"It is finish'd" hear Him cry;
Learn of Jesus Christ to die.
This is a hymn entirely unknown to me - I discovered it in a dusty and battered hymn book picked up recently from the bottom of a pile of books at a second hand shop. The capitalisation and punctuation is as it lies in the book, no author is given and neither is there a date of authorship.
I love the 'look' to Jesus in temptation, suffering and death as the model for our lives. Jesus is much more than an example to us, but he is at least that. As I read the words of this hymn the words of Hebrews 4:11-16 came to me...
..Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience. For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account.Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need...
I am thankful that the one who we look to for Salvation is the One who understands our frailty and has dealt with in in justice, mercy and so grants us confidence to come to Him for grace in temptation, suffering or death; or every and any other circumstances of life.
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10 months ago
2 comments:
Ah, great hymn with which to start the year. It's in most hymnals - an updated words version has even made it into Praise!. It has a final resurrection verse:
Early hasten to the tomb
where they laid His breathless clay;
All is solitude and gloom:
Who has taken Him away?
Christ is risen! He meets our eyes;
Saviour, teach us so to rise.
My hymnals ascribe it to a James Montgomery, 1771-1854. He wrote many good hymns! E.g. Stand up and bless the Lord, ye people of his choice. Hail to the Lord's Anointed, great David's greater Son. Angels from the realms of glory. Prayer is the soul's sincere desire. 'For ever with the Lord!' - Amen, so let it be! Worth looking up some of those (and more!) if you don't know them :)
Rosemary, thanks for the additional verse and the attribution. This is a REALLY old an dusty book that we picked up here. There are no authorial attestations to any of the hymns. So I guess when I write one up from this particular book I should go searching on the web.
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