The Sower Went Forth Sowing

The sower went forth sowing; The seed in secret slept Through days of faith and patience, Till out the green blade crept; And warmed by golden sunshine, And fed by silver rain, At last the fields were whitened To harvest once again O praise the heav'nly Sower Who gave the fruitful seed, And watch's and water'd duly, And ripen'd for our need.

Behold! The heav'nly Sower Goes forth with better seed, The word of sure Salvation, With feet and hands that bleed; Here in His church 'tis scattered, Our spirits are the soil; Then let an ample fruitage Repay His pain and toil. O beautiful the harvest Wherein all goodness thrives, And this the true thanksgiving, The first-firsts of our lives.

Within a hallowed acre He sows yet other grain, When peaceful earth receiveth The dead He died to gain; For, though the growth be hidden, We know that they shall rise; Yea, even now that they ripen In sunny paradise. O summer land of harvest, O fields for ever white With souls that wear Christ's raiment With crowns of golden light!

One day the heav'nly Sower Shall reap where He hath sown, And come again rejoicing, And with Him bring His own; And then the fan of judgement Shall winnow from His floor The chaff into the furnace That flameth evermore O holy, awful Reaper, Have mercy in the day Thou puttest in Thy sickle, And cast us not away.