O Day of Rest and Gladness (EN 139)

1

O day of rest and gladness, O day of joy and light,

O balm of care and sadness, most beautiful, most bright:

On Thee, the high and lowly, through ages joined in tune,

Sing holy, holy, holy, to the great God Triune.

2

On Thee, at the creation, the light first had its birth;

On Thee, for our salvation, Christ rose from depths of earth;

On Thee, our Lord, victorious, the Spirit sent from Heaven,

And thus on Thee, most glorious, a triple light was given.

3

Thou art a port, protected from storms that round us rise;

A garden, intersected with streams of paradise;

Thou art a cooling fountain in life’s dry, dreary sand;

From thee, like Pisgah’s mountain, we view our promised land.

4

Thou art a holy ladder, where angels go and come;

Each Sunday finds us gladder, nearer to Heaven, our home;

A day of sweet refection, thou art a day of love,

A day of resurrection from earth to things above.

5

Today on weary nations the heavenly manna falls;

To holy convocations the silver trumpet calls,

Where Gospel light is glowing with pure and radiant beams,

And living water flowing, with soul refreshing streams.

6

New graces ever gaining from this our day of rest,

We reach the rest remaining to spirits of the blessed.

To Holy Ghost be praises, to Father, and to Son;

The church her voice upraises to Thee, blessed Three in One.