O SAY, WILL YOU BE THERE?
By Sel.
Beyond this life of hopes and fears,
Beyond this world of grief and tears,
There is a region fair;
It knows no change, and no decay,
No night, but one unending day;—
O say, will you be there? Its glorious gates are closed to sin,
Naught that defiles can enter in
To mar its beauty rare;
Upon that bright eternal shore,
Earth's bitter curse is known no more;—
O say, will you be there? No drooping form, no tearful eye,
No hoary head, no weary sigh;
No pain, no grief, no care;
But joys which mortals may not know,
Like a calm river, ever flow;—
O say, will you be there? Our Saviour, once a mortal child,
As mortal man, by man reviled,
There many crowns doth wear;
While thousand thousands swell the strain
Of glory, to the Lamb once slain;—
O say, will you be there? Who shall be there? The lowly here,
All those who serve the Lord in fear,
The world's proud mockery dare!
Who, by the Holy Spirit led,
Rejoice the narrow path to tread,—
These, these, shall all be there! Those who have learned at Jesus' cross
All earthly gain to count but loss
So that his love they share;
Who, gazing on the Crucified,
By faith can say, “For me he died,”—
These, these, shall all be there!