The Sower Went Forth Sowing
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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 sliver 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.
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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.
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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 forever white With souls that wear Christ's raiment With crowns of golden light!
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One day the heavenly Sower Shall reap where He hath sown, And come again rejoicing, And with Him bring His own; And then the fan of judgment 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.