The Cyber Hymnal ‎#8400

8400. Who, From The Gloomy Shades Of Night

1 Who, from the gloomy shades of night,
When the last tear of hope is shed,
Can bid the soul return to light,
And break the slumber of the dead?

2 No human skill that heart can warm,
Which the cold blast of nature froze;
Recall to life the perished form,
The secret of the grave disclose.

3 But Thou, our saving God, we know,
Canst arm the mortal hand with power;
To bid the stagnant pulses flow,
The animating heat restore.

4 Thy will, ere nature’s tutored hand
Could with young life, these limbs unfold,
Did the imprisoned brain expand,
And all its countless fibers told.

5 As from the dust, Thy forming breath
Could the unconscious being raise;
So can the silent voice of death
Wake at Thy call, in songs of praise.

6 "Since twice to die is ours alone,
And twice the birth of life to see;
O let us, suppliant at Thy throne,
Devote our second life to Thee."

Text Information

• First Line: Who, from the gloomy shades of night
• Title: Who, From The Gloomy Shades Of Night
• Author: Mrs. Morton
• Meter: LM
• Language: English
• Source: Sacred Poetry by Jeremy Belknap (Boston: Apollo Press, 1795)
• Copyright: Public Domain
• Notes: Alternate tune: DARWENT from "The American Vocalist"

Tune Information

• Name: PENFIELD
• Composer: Lowell Mason (1839)
• Meter: LM
• Key: a minor or modal
• Source: The Modern Psalmist (Boston: John H. Wilkins & Richard B. Carter, 1839)
• Copyright: Public Domain