Outside the holy city

Outside the holy city

Author: James Gordon Gilkey (1915)
Tune: ALL HALLOWS (Martin)
Published in 8 hymnals

Printable scores: PDF, MusicXML
Audio files: MIDI

Representative Text

1. Outside the holy city
Unnumbered footsteps throng,
And crowded mart and streets of trade
Fling back a swelling song.
The voices echo nearer,
In flaming hope they sing:
Throw down your branches at His feet!
Hosanna to the King!

2. Once more beside a city
The Son of David waits,
Once more the children throng to bring
A welcome at the gates.
Within are hearts sore burdened
And feet that go astray;
O Christ of God, come near and walk
Our city streets today!

3. The branches that we offer
Are no unmeaning sign;
Take Thou the hands we lift on high
And make them wholly Thine.
No songs of shallow welcome
Are these we raise to Thee;
O give us faith to face the cross
And set Thy city free!

4. A distant music mingles
With all our songs today,
The chorale from a city fair
Where sin has passed away.
There rides the Christ triumphant
And victor songs ring clear;
O God, give us the strength to build
With Christ that city here!

Source: The Cyber Hymnal #4977

Author: James Gordon Gilkey

Born: September 28, 1889, Watertown, Massachusetts. Died: July 1964, Weekapaug, Rhode Island. Buried: Springfield Cemetery, Springfield, Massachusetts. Gilkey graduated from Harvard College (1912) and Union Theological Seminary. He was a teacher and chaplain at Amherst College, then, starting in 1917, pastored at the South Congregational Church, Springfield, Massachusetts, until retiring in 1954. In 1926, he was the commencement speaker at the University of Connecticut. Gilkey’s works include: A Faith for the New Generation, 1926 The Certainty of God, 1928 Secrets of Effective Living (New York: The Macmillan Company, 1927) Solving Life’s Everyday Problems, 1930 Meeting the Challenge of Modern Doubt (New Y… Go to person page >

Text Information

First Line: Outside the holy city
Author: James Gordon Gilkey (1915)
Language: English

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The Cyber Hymnal #4977
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The Cyber Hymnal #4977

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