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Hymns and Homilies
St Ephrem the Syrian, tr. Burgess, 1853
28. Hymn 28: Hymn for the Lord's Day
Glory be to the Good
Who hath honoured and exalted
The first day of the week,
In the four regions of the world;
In the beginning this day,
Was before the others,
In which were set in order,
The heavens and the earth.
On this our Lord arose,
From the midst of the sepulchre,
With power and might.
And the strength of a giant;
And on it the holy Church,
Adorns herself
With illustrious priests
Who minister to her.
On this day will appear,
The Lord, at the end of all things,
Riding on a chariot,
Of burning flame;
The King of Majesty,
Will quickly come down,
From His divine habitation.
The King Messiah,
Will direct his way,
To the hill of Jabes,
Which is Jerusalem.
He will set up His cross
On the tomb of Adam,
Where the Jews of old
Also set it up.
He will shout with His voice,
And the rocks will be rent,
And the dead will rise up,
From their burial places.
Again the earth shall be
Without form and void,
As was once its state,
At the beginning of all things.
And the King shall command
His mighty hosts,
Concerning penalties,
And concerning rewards.
And they shall collect together
The dust of Adam,
In the twinkling of an eye.—
From all regions,
They shall come to judgment,
And to a strict scrutiny;
And to render a reckoning,
And to a public trial.
And He will call the righteous
Into the Kingdom,
But send the wicked
Into the midst of Gehennah!
The wicked in their actions,
Will then resemble,
An eye which is blind,
In which there is no light.
They approach, they knock,
They intreat, they weep,—
“Lord! Lord! open
Thy door to us!”
And He shall say to them,
“Depart, ye cursed,
For I know not
Who ye are!”
In that hour,
When all tribes of men,
Shall stand in need
Of the forgiveness of sins;
We earnestly supplicate
This of Thee, oh Lord,
That Thy mercy may abound
Towards our offences.
This world quickly
Shall pass away,
And its beauty be destroyed
With all that is in it.
Awake my beloved!
And pray and intreat,
While there remains
A place for repentance:—
Before the Angel of Death
Shall overtake us
And we are removed
From the present world:—
Let us be steadfast
Every morning.—
To thee be glory
O Thou great in mercy!
To the Father and to the Son
And to the Holy Ghost,
Let us offer up praise
At all seasons!