Come, We That Love The Lord
Come, We That Love the Lord
Come, we that love the Lord,
And let our joys be known;
Join in a song with sweet accord,
And thus surround the throne.
Let those refuse to sing
Who never knew our God;
But children of the heav’nly King
May speak their joys abroad.
The men of grace have found
Glory begun below;
Celestial fruit on earthly ground
From faith and hope may grow.
The hill of Zion yields
A thousand sacred sweets
Before we reach the heav’nly fields,
Or walk the golden streets.
Then let our songs abound,
And every tear be dry;
We’re marching thro’ Emmanuel’s ground
To fairer worlds on high.
UNLESS SONGWRITERS compose the music themselves, they usually have no control over what music accompanies their text. The prolific hymnwriter Isaac Watts wrote “Come, We That Love the Lord” and published it in 1707. In 1763 Aaron Williams put it together with a tune called St. Thomas. However, in many denominations in the United States, the hymn underwent a transformation. Perhaps because of the popularity of Negro spirituals, gospel songs of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries emphasized a chorus, just as the spirituals did. So the old Watts stanzas were attached to a chorus called “Marching to Zion” and set to a rousing gospel tune by Brooklyn clergyman Robert Lowry.
Lowry had a brilliant idea—let the adults sing the complicated hymn stanzas, and then let the kids join in on the familiar and lilting chorus, “We’re marching to Zion, beautiful city of Zion.”
Praise the Lord! Sing to the Lord a new song. Sing his praises in the assembly of the faithful. O Israel, rejoice in your Maker. O people of Jerusalem, exult in your King. Praise his name with dancing, accompanied by tambourine and harp.
Psalm 149:1-3
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