Jerusalem the Golden
And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.
And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.
And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.
And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.
And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful.
(Revelation 21:1-5 KJV)
Jerusalem the Golden is a hymn, composed by Alexander Ewing in 1853. He took the words from an ancient Medieval hymn, written by Bernard of Cluny in the 1100s. Alexander Ewing, and many other contemporary hymn writers of his day, were not impressed with the hymns of Isaac Watts which had highly influenced and infiltrated the Church in their day.
Alexander very much heeded the Lord’s command in Jeremiah 6,
Thus saith the Lord,
Stand ye in the ways, and see,
and ask for the old paths, where is the good way,
and walk therein,
and ye shall find rest for your souls.
(Jeremiah 6:16a KJV)
For some, Jerusalem the Golden is a familiar hymn, but for most, Jerusalem the Golden is a nugget of gold, yet to be dug up out of the ground.
What makes Jerusalem the Golden such a beautiful song are the lyrics themselves. Originally written in the middle of the Medieval age, Jerusalem the Golden is a window with which we can peer through and see the state of the theology of the Church in this time, and it is beautiful. Say what you will about the Medieval Church, but these boys knew their Bibles. And not only did they know their Bibles, they knew the symbolism and typology of the Bible. And now, in 2023, we can embrace and sing this hymn in our churches, and begin to revive the high theology of our forefathers. We can walk the old paths again, and find rest for our souls.
Jerusalem the Golden, with milk and honey blest!
Beneath thy contemplation sink heart and voice oppressed.
I know not, oh, I know not, what joys await us there;
What radiancy of glory, what bliss beyond compare.
They stand, those halls of Zion, all jubilant with song,
And bright with many an angel, and all the martyr throng;
The Prince is ever in them, the daylight is serene;
The pastures of the blessed are decked in glorious sheen.
There is the throne of David; And there, from care released,
The song of them that triumph, the shout of them that feast;
And they, who with their Leader have conquered in the fight,
Forever and forever are clad in robes of white.
O sweet and blessed country, the home of God’s elect!
O sweet and blessed country, that eager hearts expect!
Jesus, in mercy bring us to that dear land of rest;
Who art, with God the Father and Spirit, ever blest.
