O THOU, TO WHOM IN ANCIENT TIME

by: John Pierpont (1785-1866)

THOU, to whom in ancient time,

The lyre of Hebrew bards was strung,

Whom kings adored in song sublime,

And prophets praised with glowing tongue;

 

Not now on Zion's height alone

Thy favored worshipper may dwell,

Nor where, at sultry noon, thy Son

Sat weary by the patriarch's well.

 

From every place below the skies,

The grateful song, the fervent prayer,

The incense of the heart, may rise

To heaven, and find acceptance there.

 

O Thou, to whom, in ancient time,

The lyre of prophet bards was strung,

To Thee at last, in every clime,

Shall temples rise, and praise be sung.

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