'H.K.' His Realities and Visions (Paperback)

Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: FOLLOWING IN every Hymn-Book is a song that comes to us from long ago, and that everybody likes to sing. It has two great thoughts?' Come ' and ' Follow.' It was written to be sung antiphonally?that is to say, by two voices or two choirs of voices, one, in each verse, asking a question; the other answering. A choir on one side of the church sang? Art thou weary, art thou languid, Art thou sore distrest? and a choir on the other side answered? Come to Me, saith One, and, coming, Be at rest. If you read the hymn through to the end, you will find that each verse is built on the same plan. A question is followed by an answer. The question is asked by the coming sinner, or on his behalf?the sinnerwho, in his sore distress, needs a Friend, a Friend who has Himself suffered, a crowned and conquering Friend, One who will never leave, never fail, no, not even when all else passes away? What His guerdon here? What hath He at last? Will He say me nay? Is He sure to bless? And the answer is given by the witnessing Church on behalf of the dear Lord whom she knows and loves so well? Many a sorrow, many a labour, Many a tear. Sorrow vanquished, labour ended, Jordan past. Not till earth, and not till heaven Pass away. Saints, apostles, prophets, martyrs. Answer, Yes I I often hear the hymn sung in this way, and the effect is not only very beautiful, but instructive and impressive. Is not this the one reason why, instead of simply reading them, we chant Psalms and sing hymns, that they may mean the more to us, and that their memory may linger in our hearts,as the fragrance of musk and lavender and roses lingers in drawers and boxes ? We must remember that antiphonal singing is ancient, so also are refrains and choruses and other simple devices in wor...