Christ My Song - 478
It tarries long - Not in vain
(Horatius Bonar/Johannes Thomas Rüegg)
Not in vain.
1. It tarries long, and seems to say,
God hath forgotten me;
yet it shall come, and when it comes,
good shall the answer be. (PDF - Midi)
2. It seemeth sad so long to watch,
thus tossed on stormy sea;
but day shall break, and when it comes,
good shall the answer be.
3. Weary of sin and strife, the soul
cries out in vain to thee;
yet not in vain, – deliverance comes;
good shall the answer be.
4. The night is long, the sky is dark,
in vain we bow the knee,
pleading for light: it comes at last;
good shall the answer be.
5. The battle goes against us, yet
we fight and will not flee;
help, Lord! He hears, and when it comes,
good shall the answer be.
6. How long! how long! the Church thus pleads
in hours of agony;
but not in vain, her cry is heard:
good shall the answer be.
7. How long! creation cries in bonds,
still longing to be free;
the groan is heard, and when it comes,
good shall the answer be.
Horatius Bonar, Hymns of the Nativity, 1879, 49-50.
There 6,1 reads (too short): "How long! the Church thus pleads".