eHymns.org

Caspar Heunisch

Giovanni Pierluigi Da Palestrina

Alvin (Bud) Herman Manz in 2024

O word of joy, Eternity,
Which holds such charms and joy for me,
O Life without cessation!
Eternity, from sorrows free,
Such thoughts bring peace that I can be
Relieved from earth's vexation;
They fill my heart with sweetest cheer,
When trials and grief assail me here.

No splendor here can be unfurled
Which will remain, but with the world
Shall fall into destruction;
Eternity will e'er endure;
Its light and joys, divinely pure,
Are free from all corruption;
Yea, God to us did this reveal
Within His word of sweet appeal.

It matters not that we endure,
As martyrs also did of yore,
The cross and much affliction.
Although our suff'ring were amassed
And all upon the balance placed,
We'd find this full conviction:
Eternal life doth far outweigh
All trials for which it doth repay.

Behold the plight of the condemned,
How sad their fate without an end,
Those cast into perdition!
They ever die, but death comes not;
They weep and bear the saddest lot
In mournful, lost condition.
How great will then that glory be
For us who from this will be free!

Throughout the long eternity
The ransomed host shall dwell with Thee;
They never shall grow weary.
Rejoicing with the angels there,
The blest inheritance they share
In peace and endless glory.
As angels, they from manna live,
Which Christ, true to His promise, gives.

Ah, how I long now to depart
To satisfy my weary heart
With Thee, O life immortal!
When can I soon to Thee ascend
To where my thoughts do daily wend
And enter heaven's portal?
I would forget this world and strife
And work for sweet eternal life.