The days of Paradise were few

Author: James Montgomery
Published in 1 hymnal

Representative Text

The days of Paradise were few,
Man lived not long in innocence;
He sinn'd, and sin his offspring slew,
Death pass'd on all for his offence.

Adam survives throughout his race,
We do our father's deeds by choice;
Like him, we shun our Maker's face,
And tremble at our Judge's voice.

Yet is our Maker still our Friend;
Man yet may meet his Judge with joy;
God, in our nature, did not send
His Son to punish and destoy.

He sent Him forth to seek and save
The lost, the dying, and the dead,
Cancel the curse, despoil the grave,
And bruise for ever Satan's head.

Thou, who thy Son to us didst give,
That none who trust in Him should die;
Give us to Him that we may live;--
To His atoning blood we fly.

Behold His sacrifice of love,
So freely offer'd in our stead;
Behold Him at the throne above,
And save the souls for whom He bled.

Sacred Poems and Hymns

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Author: James Montgomery

James Montgomery (b. Irvine, Ayrshire, Scotland, 1771; d. Sheffield, Yorkshire, England, 1854), the son of Moravian parents who died on a West Indies mission field while he was in boarding school, Montgomery inherited a strong religious bent, a passion for missions, and an independent mind. He was editor of the Sheffield Iris (1796-1827), a newspaper that sometimes espoused radical causes. Montgomery was imprisoned briefly when he printed a song that celebrated the fall of the Bastille and again when he described a riot in Sheffield that reflected unfavorably on a military commander. He also protested against slavery, the lot of boy chimney sweeps, and lotteries. Associated with Christians of various persuasions, Montgomery supported missio… Go to person page >

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