From Olivet’s Sequestered Seats

From Ol­iv­et’s se­ques­tered seats

What sounds of trans­port spread?

What con­course moves thro’ Sa­lem’s streets

To Si­on’s ho­ly head?

Behold Him there in low­li­est guise

The Sav­ior of man­kind!

Triumphal shouts be­fore Him rise

And shouts re­ply be­hind:

And

Strike they cry

your loud­est string:

He comes—Ho­san­na to our king!

Nor these alone

that pre­sent train

Their pre­sent king ad­ored;

An ear­li­er and a lat­er strain

Extol the self-same Lord.

Obedient to His Fa­ther’s will

He came—He lived

He died;

Congratulating voic­es still

Before and af­ter cried

All hail the Prince of Da­vid’s line!

Hosanna to the Man di­vine!

He came to earth: from eld­est years

A long and bright ar­ray

Of prop­het bards and pa­tri­arch seers

Proclaimed the glo­ri­ous day:

The light of Heav’n in ev­ery breast

Its fire on ev­ery lip

In tune­ful chor­us on they pressed

A good­ly fel­low­ship:

And still their peal­ing an­them ran

Hosanna to the Son of Man!

He came to earth

thro’ life He passed

A man of griefs; and lo

A no­ble ar­my fol­low­ing fast

His track of pain and woe:

All decked with palms

and strange­ly bright

That suf­fering host ap­pears;

And stain­less are their robes of white

Tho’ steeped in blood and tears!

And sweet their mar­tyr an­them flows

Hosanna to the Man of woes!

From ag­es past des­cends the lay

To ag­es yet to be

Till far its ec­hoes roll away

Into eter­ni­ty.

But oh! while saints and an­gels high

Thy fi­nal tri­umph share

Amidst Thy fol­low­ers

Lord

shall I

Tho’ last and mean­est there

Receive a place

and fee­bly raise

A faint ho­san­na to Thy praise?