_The Kingdom of Christ._
Great God! whose universal sway
The known and unknown worlds obey;
Now give the kingdom to thy Son;
Extend his power, exalt his throne.
2 The heathen lands, that lie beneath
The shades of over-spreading death,
Revive at his first dawning light,
And deserts blossom at the sight.
3 The saints shall flourish in his days,
Dressed in the robes of joy and praise;
Peace, like a river, from his throne,
Shall flow to nations yet unknown.
Isaac Watts.
455 Missionary Hymn. 7s & 6s. D.
_Condition of the Heathen._ (1061)
From Greenland's icy mountains,
From India's coral strand--
Where Afric's sunny fountains
Roll down their golden sand--
From many an ancient river,
From many a palmy plain--
They call us to deliver
Their land from error's chain.
2 Shall we, whose souls are lighted
By wisdom from on high,
Shall we to man benighted
The light of life deny?
Salvation! oh, salvation!
The joyful sound proclaim,
Till earth's remotest nation
Has learned Messiah's name.
3 Waft, waft, ye winds, his story,
And you, ye waters, roll,
Till like a sea of glory
It spreads from pole to pole,
Till o'er our ransomed nature
The Lamb, for sinners slain,
Redeemer, King, Creator,
In bliss returns to reign.
Reginald Heber, 1819.