|An Anchor of the soul, both sure and stedfast.| -- Heb. vi.19.
J. A. Rothe, 1758.
tr., Emma Frances Bevan, 1899
My soul hath found the steadfast ground,
There ever shall my anchor hold --
That ground is in my Saviour Christ,
Before the world was from of old --
And that sure ground shall be my stay,
When Heaven and Earth shall pass away.
That ground is Thine Eternal Love,
Thy Love that through all ages burns --
The open arms of mercy stretched
To meet the sinner who returns;
The Love that calleth everywhere,
If men will hear or will forbear.
God willeth not we should be lost,
He wills to save the sons of men;
For this His Son came down from Heaven,
For this returned to Heaven again;
For this He standeth at the door,
He knocketh, waiteth, evermore --
Unseen, unheard, He calleth yet;
Rejected, still He waits to bless --
The Shepherd never will forget
His lost sheep in the wilderness;
Though far as east from west they stray,
He seeketh them by night and day.
O deep, deep sea, where all our sins
By God are cast, and found no more!
There is no condemnation now,
The Lord hath healed our deadly sore;
Because the voice of Jesu's Blood
Still cries for mercy unto God.
In that deep sea of love I sink
In perfect peace and endless rest,
And when my sins condemn my soul,
Cling closer to my Saviour's breast --
For there I find, go when I will,
Unchanging love and mercy still.