The ground on which this day we stand

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The ground on which this day we stand

Author: James Montgomery
Published in 2 hymnals

Representative Text

The ground on which this day we stand,
Holy henceforth shall be,
For thus, Lord God of sea and land,
Thine own we render Thee.

Maker and Builder Thou, of all
Around us and above,
314
On Thine Almighty Name we call
To crown our work of love.

If, moved by Thee, in dust we lay
A true foundation here,
Though heaven and earth must pass away,
Thy counsel shall appear.

An earthly temple to Thy praise,
Our labouring hands would pile;
Do Thou a spiritual temple raise,
Within its walls, the while.

Of living stones that temple frame,
Founded on Christ alone,
Inscribed with His exalted name,
By all men read and known.

From thence, as time and tide roll by,
May ransom'd souls ascend,
Safe in their Father's home on high,
Eternity to spend.

Sacred Poems and Hymns

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Author: James Montgomery

James Montgomery (b. Irvine, Ayrshire, Scotland, 1771; d. Sheffield, Yorkshire, England, 1854), the son of Moravian parents who died on a West Indies mission field while he was in boarding school, Montgomery inherited a strong religious bent, a passion for missions, and an independent mind. He was editor of the Sheffield Iris (1796-1827), a newspaper that sometimes espoused radical causes. Montgomery was imprisoned briefly when he printed a song that celebrated the fall of the Bastille and again when he described a riot in Sheffield that reflected unfavorably on a military commander. He also protested against slavery, the lot of boy chimney sweeps, and lotteries. Associated with Christians of various persuasions, Montgomery supported missio… Go to person page >

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Text Information

Text Information

First Line:	The ground on which this day we stand
Author:	James Montgomery
Meter:	8.6.8.6
Language:	English
Copyright:	Public Domain

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Notes

The ground on which this day we stand. J. Montgomery. [Laying the Foundation Stone of a Church.] Written for the lay¬ing of the foundation stone of Holy Trinity Church, The Wicker, Sheffield, erected by the Misses Harrison (compilers of the Weston Hymn Book), which took place on June 30th, 1847. It was written at the earnest request of the Incumbent, though much against Montgomery's own wish, as he judged that on that subject he had written enough, and had "nothing more to say" (Memoirs, vol. vii. p. 78). The hymn was included in Montgomery's Original Hymns, 1853, No. 294, in 6 stanzas of 4 lines.

-- John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology (1907)

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