Bishop of Souls, Regard Our Cry

Bishop of souls

re­gard our cry

Our faith­ful guide with strength sup­ply

And hide his life ab­ove;

The teach­er teach

the lead­er lead

The pas­tor ev­ery mo­ment feed

With Thy suf­fi­cient love.

His hands con­firm

his breast in­spire

And touch his lips with hal­lowed fire

That zeal of char­ity;

That apo­sto­lic spir’t im­part

And make him af­ter Thy own heart

And count him wor­thy Thee.

Harden to ad­amant his brow

His wis­dom and his mouth be Thou

His might in­vin­ci­ble:

Arm him in all the arms di­vine

Send forth this mes­sen­ger of Thine

To shake the gates of hell.

Thy pow­er be in his weak­ness seen

A spec­ta­cle to fiends and men

Support him with Thy mind:

Nor let the pas­tor die for want

Nor let the stand­ard bear­er faint

Assailed by all man­kind.

Be with him in that dark­est hour

When hell ex­erts its ut­most pow­er

Thy min­is­ter to op­press;

Reviled

for­sak­en and be­trayed

In all things like his mas­ter made

Yet kept in per­fect peace.

When ev­ery hu­man friend is fled

Stand by him at his great­est need

Nor suf­fer him to fear;

Strongly up­held by Thee alone

To make the preach­ing ful­ly known

That all the world may hear.

Unto Thy heav’n­ly king­dom keep

And grant him there in joy to reap

What He in tears did sow;

Late to Thy para­dise re­move

And let him to his throne ab­ove

In glo­ri­ous tri­umph go.

When rea­dy to be of­fered up

Give him to speak th’im­mor­tal hope

That fills his swell­ing heart:

“Now let­test Thou Thy serv­ant

Lord

According to Thy faith­ful Word

In per­fect peace de­part.

“The long

good fight I fought and won

I all my course on earth have run

And passed my mourn­ing days;

Have kept the faith by Je­sus giv’n

And haste to my re­ward in Heav’n

A crown of right­eous­ness.

That glo­ri­ous wreath which now I see

The Lord

the right­eous Judge on me

Shall at that day be­stow

On me

and all my breth­ren here

Who long to see my Lord ap­pear

And love His work be­low.

So be it

Lord

for whom we stay

O haste the long ex­pect­ed day

And call our friend to share

The heav’n­ly joy of saints de­ceased

And let us all with him be blessed

And die to meet him there!