The Cyber Hymnal ‎#9588

9588. Beneath Our Feet And O'er Our Head

1 Beneath our feet and o’er our head
Is equal warning given;
Beneath us lie the countless dead,
Above us is the heaven.

2 Their names are graven on the stone;
Their bones are in the clay;
And, ere another day is gone,
Ourselves may be as they.

3 Death rides on every passing breeze,
He lurks in every flower;
Each season has its own disease,
Its peril every hour.

4 Our eyes have seen the rosy light
Of youth’s soft cheek decay,
And clouds descend in sudden night
On manhood’s middle day.

5 Our eyes have seen the steps of age
Halt feebly toward the tomb;
And yet shall earth our hearts engage,
And dreams of days to come?

6 Turn, mortal, turn, thy danger know;
Where’er thy feet can tread,
The earth rings hollow from below,
And warns thee of her dead.

7 Turn, Christian, turn, thy soul apply
To truths divinely given;
The bones that underneath thee lie
Shall live for hell or Heaven.

Text Information

• First Line: Beneath our feet and o’er our head
• Title: Beneath Our Feet And O'er Our Head
• Author: Reginald Heber, 1783-1826
• Meter: CM
• Language: English
• Source: Published posthumously in Hymns Written and Adapted to the Weekly Church Service of the Year (London: J. Murray, 1827)
• Copyright: Public Domain

Tune Information

• Name: MEAR
• Arranger: Aaron Williams, 1731-1776
• Meter: CM
• Key: F Major
• Source: English tune