{Hail Sovereign Love that First Began
by
J. Hyatt Brewer
Ps 32:7
WARD-Composer Unknown (arr. Lowell Mason)
Hail, Sovereign Love, that First Began
1 Hail, sovereign love, that first began
The scheme to rescue fallen man!
Hail, matchless, free, eternal grace,
That gave my soul a hiding-place!
2 Against the God who rules the sky
I fought with hand uplifted high;
Despised the mention of his grace,
Too proud to seek a biding-place.
3 But thus the eternal counsel ran
" Almighty love, arrest that man
I felt the arrows of distress,
And found I had no hiding-place.
4 Indignant Justice stood in view
To Sinai's fiery mount }
flew;
But Justice cried, with frowning face,
"This mountain is no hiding-place
Ere long a heavenly voice I heard,
And Mercy's angel-form appeared;
She led me on, with placid pace,
To Jesus, as my Hiding-place.
Should storms of seven-fold thunder roll,
And shake the globe from pole to pole,
No flaming bolt could daunt my face,
For Jesus is my Hiding-place.
On him almighty vengeance fell,
That must have sunk a world to hell
He bore it for a chosen race,
And thus became their Hiding-place.
A few more rolling suns, at most,
Will land me on fair Canaan's coast,
Where I shall sing the song of grace,
And see my glorious Hiding-place.