Jesu, the word of mercy give

General information

Jesu, the word of mercy give (sometimes given as Jesus, the word of mercy give) is a hymn by Charles Wesley. As a hymn of six four-line (Common Meter) verses, it appeared as Hymn 434 in A Collection of Hymns for the use of the People called Methodists, 1780. The hymn is a combination of two shorter texts previously published in volume 1 of Charles Wesley's Short Hymns on Select Passages of the Holy Scriptures, 1762: verses 1-2 consist of Hymn 638 on p200 of that book, while verses 3-6 are the first two eight-line verses (of three) of Hymn 397 on pp127-128.

Settings by composers

• John Newton — Jesus, the word of mercy give  English SATB

 

Text and translations

English text

1  Jesu, the word of mercy give,
And let it swiftly run;
And let the priests themselves believe,
And put salvation on.

2  Clothed with the spirit of holiness,
May all thy people prove
The plenitude of gospel grace,
The joy of perfect love.

3  Jesus, let all thy lovers shine,
Illustrious as the sun;
And bright with borrowed rays divine
Their glorious circuit run:

4  Beyond the reach of mortals spread
Their light where'er they go:
And heavenly influences shed
On all the world below.

5  As giants may they run their race,
Exulting in their might;
As burning luminaries, chase
The gloom of hellish night:

6  As the bright Sun of righteousness,
Their healing wings display;
And let their lustre still increase,
Unto the perfect day.

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