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35

CAROLS FOR EASTER-TIDE.

XIII. Let the merry church bells ring.

1

Let the merry church bells ring,
Hence with tears and sighing;
Frost and cold have fled from Spring,
Life hath conquered dying:
Flowers are smiling, fields are gay,
Sunny is the weather;
With our rising Lord to-day
All things rise together.
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2

Let the birds sing out again
From their leafy chapel,
Praising Him, with Whom in vain
Satan sought to grapple:
Sounds of joy come fast and thick,
As the breezes flutter;
Resurrexit, non est hic,
Is the strain they utter.

3

Let the past of grief be past;
This our comfort giveth,
He was slain on Friday last,
But to-day He liveth:
Mourning heart must needs be gay,
Nor let sorrow vex it;
Since the very grave can say,
Christus resurrexit.
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XIV. The world itself keeps Easter Day.

1

The world itself keeps Easter Day,
And Easter larks are singing;
And Easter flowers are blooming gay,
And Easter buds are springing:
Alleluia, Alleluia:
The Lord of all things lives anew,
And all His works are rising too:
Alleluia, Alleluia!

2

There stood three Maries by the tomb,
On Easter morning early;
When day had scarcely chas'd the gloom,
And dew was white and pearly:
Alleluia, Alleluia:
With loving but with erring mind,
They came the Prince of Life to find:
Alleluia, Alleluia!
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3

But earlier still the Angel sped,
His news of comfort giving;
And “Why,” he said, “among the dead
Thus seek ye for the Living?”
Alleluia, Alleluia:
“Go, tell them all, and make them blest;
Tell Peter first, and then the rest.”
Alleluia, Alleluia!

4

But one, and one alone, remain'd
With love that could not vary;
And thus a joy past joy she gained,
That some-time sinner, Mary:
Alleluia, Alleluia:
The first the dear, dear form to see
Of Him That hung upon the Tree:
Alleluia, Alleluia!

5

The world itself keeps Easter Day,
Saint Joseph's Star is beaming,
Saint Alice has her primrose gay,
Saint George's Bells are gleaming:
Alleluia, Alleluia:
The Lord hath ris'n, as all things tell:
Good Christians, see ye rise as well!
Alleluia, Alleluia!
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XV. Let us tell the story.

1

Let us tell the story
How shame led on to glory;
How, the Foe defying,
Joy was born from sighing,
Strength from weakness, living sprang from dying:
The Lord is King,—the Lord bears sway;
The Lord hath made this glorious day
Of Easter.

2

Now upon Mount Sion
Upriseth Judah's Lion;
Now His might He showeth,
Mighty ones o'erthroweth,
Conq'ring and to conquer, forth He goeth:
And Heav'n above and Earth below
One common Alleluia know
At Easter.
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3

Ev'ry earthly battle
Is fought with armour's rattle,
And with war-steeds prancing,
And with helmets glancing,
And with pennons in the breezes dancing:
Another foe, another fight
Was fought before the morning light
At Easter.

4

Single warfare waging,
Embattled hosts engaging,
He, by none assisted,
He, by all resisted,
Met and conquer'd Hell, for conflict listed:
On Friday last His sword He drew;
The vanquish'd foe He overthrew
At Easter.
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XVI. Give ear, give ear, good Christian men!

1

Give ear, give ear, good Christian men!
The lay is worth a hearing:
We tell how grief hath ended woe,
And fear hath finished fearing:
And pain that lasted for a day
Hath brought eternal cheering!

2

Was ever battle won like this,—
Where He That lost was gaining:
And He That fell was triumphing,
And He That died was reigning:
And He That held the Reed of Scorn,
A Sceptre was obtaining?
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3

The winner then had such a foil
As crush'd him down for ever:
The wise was taken in his craft,
The strong in his endeavour:
And He, the Slain, was Victor still,
And he that slew Him, never!

4

Give ear, give ear, good Christian men!
The riddle is expounded:
From north to south, from east to west,
Its meaning shall be sounded:
On Easter Day was fought the fight,
Whereon the Crown is founded!
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XVII. A song, a song, our Chief to greet.

1.

A song, a song, our Chief to greet,
Our King to meet,
Returning in His glory:
A song of those that went before,
In days of yore,
And shadowed out His story.

2.

While Gaza's guards their vigils kept,
In Gaza's homes our Samson slept
The quiet sleep of mortals:
But rising up at midnight, tore
The brazen hinges from the door,
And bore away the portals.

3.

By many a hostile chief and band
Our Jephtha was assaulted;
To be the Lord of all the land
Our Joseph is exalted:
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Now David's Son and David's Lord
Hath fac'd the giant dreaded,
And with Goliath's own great sword
Goliath hath beheaded.

4.

With pitcher and with burning lamp,
He march'd to storm th'invader's camp,—
Our own, our royal Gideon:
The mortal pitcher shatter'd sore,
The Godhead's lamp to ruin bore
The vanquish'd host of Midian.

5.

Joshua leading, God preceding,
Israel stems the river:
Down Mount Tabor Barak's sabre
Glitters to deliver.
Alleluia, Alleluia.
Desert Edom owns our freedom
Thro' the blood-red waters:
David reigneth, and obtaineth
Joy for Sion's daughters.
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6.

Jehosaphat returns in peace,
By shouting myriads follow'd:
And Jonah finds his glad release,
Whom late the monster swallow'd.
He glories o'er Assyria's fall,
Our victor Ezekias:
By night he visits Salem's wall,
Our truer Nehemias.
Alleluia, Alleluia.

7.

Lord of breath,
Lord of death,
Lord of things celestial and infernal:
Guide and speed,
Guard and feed,
By the living waters lead
And the flowers eternal.
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8.

We, as yet, are toiling sore
On the sea's rough surges:
Thou art standing on the shore,
Where no troubles vex Thee more,
Where no tempest urges.

9.

Thou, Thou be nigh
While our vessel seeks the port:
Thou, Thou on high,
Crown us in Thy royal Court.

10.

Thou hast conquer'd, let us win:
Thou hast enter'd, take us in:
Thou hast vanquish'd Death and Sin,
Up to Heav'n ascending:
Let us all with Thee ascend;
Grant us after Thee to tend,
Thee the way to Thee the end:
End That hast no ending.
Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia.
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XVIII. Sing Alleluia, all ye lands.

1

Sing Alleluia, all ye lands!
Ye floods and oceans, clap your hands!
The King returns from glorious fight,
Whose arms have shatter'd Satan's might:
Our gladdest song shall therefore be
That God was reigning from the Tree!

2

The sling and five smooth stones have slain
The giant on the battle plain:
And Holofernes' falchion dread
Hath severed Holofernes' head:
Our Chief is crowned, for slain was He,
When God was reigning from the Tree!
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3

Alone, despis'd and set at nought
The press He trod, the fight He fought:
Alone He crush'd the Dragon down,
And so alone He wears the Crown:
The sun is bright, the clouds must flee,
For God was reigning from the Tree!

4

Jerusalem, arise and shine!
The glory of thy Lord is thine:
The victor's crown, the Royal Throne,
Are all His gift, and all thine own;
For all of His thine own shall be,
Since God was reigning from the Tree!
 

The allusion is to the old reading of Psalm xcvi. 10, so often quoted by early writers in their controversies with the Jews: “Tell it out among the nations, The Lord hath reigned from the Tree.”

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XIX. Days grow longer.

1

Days grow longer, sunbeams stronger,
Easter-tide makes all things new;
Lent is banish'd, sadness vanish'd:
Christ hath risen, rise we too!
Christmas meetings, Twelfth-night greetings,
Whitsun sports are glad and gay;
But the lightest and the brightest
Of our feasts is Easter Day.

2

Earthly story crowns with glory
Him who earthly foes o'ercame:
Victor's laurel ends the quarrel,
Honour dwells about his name:
Vanquished legions, conquered regions,
Kings depos'd and princes bound,—
Exultation, acclamation,
Fill his ears and float around.
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3

Then unending and transcending
Be the glory of the Son:
For transcendent and resplendent
Was the vict'ry He hath won:
Death hath yielded, life is shielded,
Satan bound, and Hell in chains:
Chas'd is terror, fled is error,
Grief is past, and joy remains.
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XX. The morning of Salvation.

1

The morning of Salvation,
And the Queen of days is here,
The Feast of every nation,
And the Feast of every year:
Pardon comes, failing never,
Peace is gained, gained for ever:
Sin no more God and man shall sever.

2

For Pharaoh and our foemen,
Horse and chariot, prince and slave,
His spearmen and his bowmen
Hurried down to dare the wave.
Helmets gleam'd, trumpets sounded:
Grief and joy rose confounded:
Horses pranc'd, chariots jump'd and bounded.
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3

All night their efforts doubled:
On they came with scoff and boast;
'Till God look'd forth, and troubled
All the bravest of their host.
Then the strong met the stronger;
Vengeance then slept no longer;
Then the wrong'd triumphed o'er the wronger.

4

True Moses of Thy people!
Thy renown and hard-won fame
They ring from every steeple,
And in every church proclaim:
Victor o'er bands infernal,
King amidst Pow'rs supernal,
Lead us on, up to joys eternal!
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XXI. Let the song be begun.

1

Let the song be begun,
For the battle is done,
And the victory won:
And the foe is scatter'd,
And the prison shatter'd:
Sing of joy, joy, joy;
Sing of joy, joy;
And to-day
Raise the lay,
Gloria in excelsis.

2

They that follow'd in pain
Shall now follow to reign,
And the crown shall obtain;
They were sore assaulted,
They shall be exalted;
Sing of rest, rest, rest;
Sing of rest, rest;
And again
Pour the strain,
Gloria in excelsis.
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3

For the Foe nevermore
Can approach to the shore
Where the conflict is o'er;
There is joy supernal;
There is life eternal;
Sing of peace, peace, peace;
Sing of peace, peace;
Earth and skies
Bid it rise,
Gloria in excelsis.

4

Then be brave, then be true,
Ye despis'd and ye few,
For the crown is for you;
Christ, that went before you,
Spreads His buckler o'er you;
Sing of hope, hope, hope;
Sing of hope, hope;
And to-day
Raise the lay,
Gloria in excelsis.
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XXII. The foe behind.

1.

The foe behind, the deep before,
Our hosts have dar'd and past the sea:
And Pharaoh's warriors strew the shore,
And Israel's ransom'd tribes are free.

2.

Lift up, lift up your voices now!
The whole wide world rejoices now!
The Lord hath triumph'd gloriously:
The Lord shall reign victoriously!

3.

Happy morrow,
Turning sorrow
Into peace and mirth!
Bondage ending,
Love descending
O'er the earth!
Seals assuring,
Guards securing,
Watch His earthly prison:
Seals are shatter'd,
Guards are scatter'd,
Christ hath risen.
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4.

No longer must the mourners weep,
Nor call departed Christians dead;
For Death is hallow'd into sleep,
And every grave becomes a bed.

5.

Now once more
Eden's door
Open'd stands to mortal eyes:
For Christ hath ris'n, and man shall rise.
Now at last,
Old things past,
Hope, and joy, and peace begin:
For Christ hath won, and man shall win.

6.

It is not exile, rest on high:
It is not sadness, peace from strife:
To fall asleep is not to die:
To dwell with Christ is better life.

7.

Where our banner leads us,
We may safely go:
Where our Chief precedes us,
We may face the foe:
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His Right Arm is o'er us;
He will guide us through:
Christ hath gone before us;
Christians! follow you!

8.

He shall soon deliver
From ev'ry woe,
Alleluia,
If His paths ye tread:
Pleasures, as a river,
Shall round you flow,
Alleluia,
When ye see your Head.

9.

With loins up-girt, and staff in hand,
And hasty mien, and sandal'd feet,
Around the Paschal Feast we stand,
And of the Paschal Lamb we eat.

10.

So shall He collect us,
Direct us,
Protect us,
From Egypt's strand:
So shall He precede us,
And feed us,
And lead us
To Canaan's land.
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Toils and foes assailing,
Friends quailing,
Hearts failing,
Shall threat in vain:
If He be providing,
Presiding,
And guiding
To Him again.

11.

Christ, our Leader,
Monarch, Pleader,
Interceder,
Praise we and adore:
Exultation,
Veneration,
Gratulation,
Bringing evermore.

12.

Once despis'd and once rejected
Was this Stone that, now elected,
To a Corner-Stone perfected,
As a glorious trophy stands erected.
Amen.
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XXIII. 'Twas about the dead of night.

1

'Twas about the dead of night,
And Athens lay in slumber;
Moonlight on the temples slept
And touch'd the rocks with umber;
And the Court of Mars were met
In grave and rev'rend number.
Evermore and evermore,
Christians, sing Alleluia.

2

Met were they to hear and judge
The teaching of a stranger;
O'er the ocean he had come
Through want, and toil, and danger;
And he worshipp'd for his God
One cradled in a manger.
Evermore and evermore,
Christians, sing Alleluia.
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3

While he spake against their gods,
And temples' vain erection,
Patiently they gave him ear,
And granted him protection;
'Till with bolder voice and mien
He preach'd the Resurrection.
Evermore and evermore,
Christians, sing Alleluia.

4

Some they scoff'd, and some they spake
Of blasphemy and treason;
Some replied with laughter loud,
And some replied with reason;
Others put it off until
A more convenient season.
Evermore and evermore,
Christians, sing Alleluia.

5

Athens heard and scorn'd it then,
Now Europe hath received it:
Wise men mock'd and jeer'd it once,
Now children have believed it;
This, good Christians, was the day
That gloriously achieved it.
Evermore and evermore,
Christians, sing Alleluia.
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XXIV. Easter Day comes on but slowly.

1

Easter day comes on but slowly,
Easter Eve hath failed wholly;
Dim and faint the tapers burn:
Vainly tow'rds the earthly prison,
Whence the Lord hath not arisen,
Faithful hearts and spirits yearn.
Hear thy doom, O man, and waken:
Dust thou art, of dust wast taken,
And to dust shalt thou return!

2

Of the hour that comes to sever
Thee, O man, and earth for ever,
We will speak, and thou shalt learn:
Working final separation,
Changing kindred and relation
For the ashes and the urn.
Hear thy doom, O man, and waken:
Dust thou art, of dust wast taken,
And to dust shalt thou return!
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3

Grace repelled and life expended,
Harvest past and summer ended,
Whither shall the sinner turn?
Righteous meed and final sentence,
Vain resolve and late repentance
Sadly, sadly, shall discern.
Hear thy doom, O man, and waken:
Dust thou art, of dust wast taken,
And to dust shalt thou return!

4

Wherefore, man, while yet thou mayest,
If thou fastest, if thou prayest,
Earthly care and pleasure spurn:
Dreams that cannot last despising,
And with Christ to-morrow rising,
Seek of heavenly joy to learn.
Hear thy doom, O man, and waken:
Dust thou art, of dust wast taken,
And to dust shalt thou return!
[End of Carols for Easter-Tide.]
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