Forth went the heralds of the cross,
No dangers made them pause;
They counted all the world but loss,
For their great Master’s cause.
Through looks of fire, and words of scorn,
Serene their path they trod;
And to the dreary dungeon borne,
Sang praises unto God.
Friends dropped the hand they clasped before,
Love changed to cruel hate;
And home to them was home no more;
Yet mourned they not their fate.
In all his dark and dread array,
Death rose upon their sight;
But calmly still they kept their way,
And shrank not from the fight.
They knew to whom their trust was given,
They could not doubt His word;
Before them beamed the light of heaven,
The presence of their Lord.
O, may a faith as true be ours,
And shed as pure a light
Of peace across the darkest hours,
And make the last one bright!
Source: A Book of Hymns for Public and Private Devotion (15th ed.) #165
Gaskell, William, M.A., son of Mr. William Gaskell, was born at Latchford (a suburb of Warrington, on the Cheshire side of the Mersey), 24 July, 1805. He was educated at Manchester New College and at the University of Glasgow, where he graduated M.A. in 1825. In 1828 he became co-pastor with the Rev. J. G. Robberds at Cross Street Unitarian Chapel, Manchester, a position he held until his death. Mr. Gaskell was a man of cultivated mind and considerable literary ability. His publications include Lectures on the Lancashire Dialect, 1853, a small volume of Temperance Rhymes, 1839, and various theological works. In 1832 he married Elizabeth Cleghorn Stevenson, who afterwards attained celebrity as the authoress of Mary Barton, and of other popul… Go to person page >
My Starred Hymns
My FlexScores
My Hymnals
My Purchased Files