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THE JOURNEY TO EMMAUS.
“Did not our heart burn within us, while He talked with us by
the way?”—
St. Luke xxiv. 24.
Sad was the disciples' walk
O'er a sorrow-clouded way,
Full of doubts and fears their talk,
That mysterious Easter-day;
When the Lord “Himself drew near,”
All perplexities to clear.
O'er a sorrow-clouded way,
Full of doubts and fears their talk,
That mysterious Easter-day;
When the Lord “Himself drew near,”
All perplexities to clear.
169
From some silent olive-shade,
Or some grove of pillared palm,
Gently His approach He made,
With kind voice and aspect calm;
Asking, “Why so sad to-day,
As ye commune by the way?”
Or some grove of pillared palm,
Gently His approach He made,
With kind voice and aspect calm;
Asking, “Why so sad to-day,
As ye commune by the way?”
“Know'st thou not,” they said, “the things
Which all Palestine have stirred
And with which Jerusalem rings?”
“What things?” asked He, that the word
To disciples' heart most dear
Might salute the Master's ear.
Which all Palestine have stirred
And with which Jerusalem rings?”
“What things?” asked He, that the word
To disciples' heart most dear
Might salute the Master's ear.
Now their gloom to brightness turned
When the Lord began to speak;
And each heart with comfort burned,
And with happiness each cheek;
Hills and meadows seemed to smile
And look lovelier mile by mile.
When the Lord began to speak;
And each heart with comfort burned,
And with happiness each cheek;
Hills and meadows seemed to smile
And look lovelier mile by mile.
170
When the Lord “Himself drew near”
Soon they felt their sorrow cease;
Shades of evening disappear
In the light of inward peace;
As their Master walked between—
All unknown though not unseen.
Soon they felt their sorrow cease;
Shades of evening disappear
In the light of inward peace;
As their Master walked between—
All unknown though not unseen.
So whenever love's soft glow
Warms our heart in praise or prayer,
By that sign we surely know
That the Lord Himself is there;
Chilling doubts before Him melt—
All unseen though not unfelt.
Warms our heart in praise or prayer,
By that sign we surely know
That the Lord Himself is there;
Chilling doubts before Him melt—
All unseen though not unfelt.
When our way is sad and lone,
And our comforts small and few,
And the landmarks are not known,
Or a mist obscures the view,—
If our sky begins to clear,
'Tis because the Lord draws near.
And our comforts small and few,
And the landmarks are not known,
Or a mist obscures the view,—
If our sky begins to clear,
'Tis because the Lord draws near.
171
What though now He sits above,
Wielding His dominion wide,
Still His Name pronounced in love
Draws him quickly to our side;
And His presence we discern
When our hearts within us burn!
Wielding His dominion wide,
Still His Name pronounced in love
Draws him quickly to our side;
And His presence we discern
When our hearts within us burn!
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