MY SAVIOUR, WHOM ABSENT, I LOVE

My Saviour, whom absent, I love,
Whom, not having seen, I adore;
Whose Name is exalted above
All glory, dominion, and power.

Dissolve Thou the bonds that detain
My soul from her portion in Thee;
Ah! strike off the adamant chain
And make me eternally free.

When that happy era begins,
When arrayed in Thy glories I shine,
Nor grieve any more by my sins
The bosom on which I recline.

O then shall the veil be removed
And round me Thy brightness be poured!
I shall meet Him whom absent I loved,
I shall see whom unseen I adored.

And then, nevermore shall the fears,
The trials, temptations, and foes,
Which darken the valley of tears,
Intrude on my blissful repose.

Or, if yet remembered above,
Remembrance no sadness shall raise;
They'll be but new signs of Thy love,
New themes for my wonder and praise.

Thus the stroke which from sin and from pain
Shall eternally set me free,
Will but strengthen and rivet the chain
Which binds me, my Saviour, to Thee.