The Cyber Hymnal ‎#4883

4883. O God, the Rock of Ages

1. O God, the rock of ages,
Who evermore hast been,
What time the tempest rages,
Our dwelling place serene:
Before Thy first creations,
O Lord, the same as now,
To endless generations,
The everlasting Thou.

2. Our years are like the shadows
On sunny hills that lie,
Or grasses in the meadows
That blossom but to die;
A sleep, a dream, a story
By strangers quickly told
An unremaining glory
Of things that soon are old.

3. O Thou, who dost not slumber,
Whose light grows never pale,
Teach us aright to number
Our years before they fail;
On us Thy mercy lighten,
On us Thy goodness rest,
And let Thy Spirit brighten
The hearts Thyself hast blessed.

4. Lord, crown our faith’s endeavor
With beauty and with grace,
Till, clothed in light forever,
We see Thee face to face:
A joy no language measures,
A fountain brimming o’er,
An endless flow of pleasures,
An ocean without shore.

Text Information

• First Line: O God, the rock of ages
• Title: O God, the Rock of Ages
• Author: Edward H. Bickersteth, Jr. (1860)
• Meter: 76.76 D
• Language: English
• Copyright: Public Domain
• Notes: In his book "The Two Brothers," 1871, Bickersteth gives the date of this hymn as 1862, but in his annotation on the hymn as published in The Hymnal Companion, 1880, he said it was written in 1860. Alternate tunes: GREENLAND (HAYDN)Greenland (Haydn), Johann M. Haydn, arranged in B. Jacob's National Psalmody, 1819; MIRIAM, Joseph P. Holbrook, 1865

Tune Information

• Name: SCHUBERT
• Composer: Franz Schubert
• Arranger: William W. Gilchrist (1895)
• Meter: 76.76 D
• Incipit: 53322 31122 44353
• Key: G Major
• Copyright: Public Domain