Who Are These, and Whence Came They?

Not from Je­ru­sa­lem alone

To Heav’n the path as­cends;

As near

as sure

as straight the way

That leads to the ce­les­ti­al day

From far­thest realms ex­tends;

Frigid or tor­rid zone.

What mat­ters how or whence we start?

One is the crown to all;

One is the hard but glo­ri­ous race

Whatever be our start­ing place—

Rings round the earth the call

That says

Arise

de­part!

From the balm breath­ing

sun loved isles

Of the bright south­ern sea

From the dead north’s cloud sha­dowed pole

We gather to one glad­some goal

One com­mon home in Thee

City of sun and smiles!

The cold

rough bil­low hin­ders none;

Nor helps the calm

fair main;

The brown rock of Nor­we­gian gloom

The ver­dure of Ta­hi­tian bloom

The sands of Miz­ra­im’s plain

Or peaks of Le­ba­non.

As from the green lands of the vine

So from the snow wastes pale

We find the ev­er op­en road

To the dear ci­ty of our God;

From steppe

or Bur­man vale

Or ter­raced Pa­les­tine.

Not from swift Jor­dan’s sac­red stream

Alone we mount ab­ove;

Indus or Dan­ube

Thames or Rhone

Rivers un­saint­ed and un­known—

From each the home of love

Beckons with heav’n­ly gleam.

Not from gray Ol­iv­et alone

We see the gates of light;

From Mor­ven’s heath or Jung­frau’s snow

We wel­come the des­cend­ing glow

Of pearl and chry­so­lite

And the un­set­ting sun.

Not from Je­ru­sa­lem alone

The Church as­cends to God;

Strangers of ev­ery tongue and clime

Pilgrims of ev­ery land and time

Throng the well trod­den road

That leads up to the throne.