Devotional Verses Founded on and Illustrative of select Texts of Scripture [by Bernard Barton] |
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THE BRAZEN SERPENT. |
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THE BRAZEN SERPENT.
“And the Lord said unto Moses, Make thee a fiery serpent, and
set it upon a pole: and it shall come to pass, that every one that
is bitten, when he looketh upon it shall live.”
—Numbers, xxi. 8.
Type of that holier tree,
Whereon the Son of God for sinners died,
The wounded gaz'd on thee,
With fearful hope thy brazen serpent eyed.
Whereon the Son of God for sinners died,
The wounded gaz'd on thee,
With fearful hope thy brazen serpent eyed.
Hadst thou such healing power
On those who look'd to thee for aid divine,
Unless, in that dread hour,
Their inward faith confirm'd thy outward sign?
On those who look'd to thee for aid divine,
Unless, in that dread hour,
Their inward faith confirm'd thy outward sign?
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Or will His death suffice,
Who died upon the cross that we might live,
If faith, the pearl of price,
His grace vouchsafe not unto us to give.
Who died upon the cross that we might live,
If faith, the pearl of price,
His grace vouchsafe not unto us to give.
But with that peerless boon
The cross of Christ as far exceeds thy power,
As does the blaze of noon
The shadowy splendours of the twilight hour.
The cross of Christ as far exceeds thy power,
As does the blaze of noon
The shadowy splendours of the twilight hour.
For thine could do no more
Than make the impotent in body whole;
But His can yet restore
Light, life, and joy to the immortal soul.
Than make the impotent in body whole;
But His can yet restore
Light, life, and joy to the immortal soul.
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