Sometimes a light surprises
by William Cowper
Published in the Olney Hymns (1779), Book iii., No. 48 (7.6.7.6)
3. "It can bring with it nothing,
but He will bear us through;
who gives the lilies clothing
will clothe His people, too;
beneath the spreading heavens
no creature but is fed;
and He who feeds the ravens
will give His children bread."
4. Though vine nor fig tree neither
their wonted fruit should bear,
though all the field should wither,
nor flocks nor herds be there,
yet God the same abiding,
His praise shall tune my voice;
for while in Him confiding,
I cannot but rejoice.
1. Sometimes a light surprises
the Christian while he sings;
it is the Lord who rises
with healing in His wings;
when comforts are declining,
He grants the soul again
a season of clear shining,
to cheer it after rain.
2. In holy contemplation,
we sweetly then pursue
the theme of God’s salvation,
and find it ever new.
Set free from present sorrow,
we cheerfully can say,
“E'en let the unknown morrow
bring with it what it may.”
Verse 1 is one of those verses that I recall on dark days. I love the way Cowper uses light and shining, to speak of the Lord’s healing work in the dark storms of life. Verse 4 smacks of the reality unpacked in Habakkuk 3:17-18. We may not face the terrors of the Babylonian empire and following economic downfall, but we can, whatever our struggles, rejoice in the LORD. The rejoicing theme is repeated and expanded in the following line, as the song calls the singer to ‘take joy’. It is our responsibility to do that.
Thank you Mr Cowper.
“Though the fig tree should not blossom,
nor fruit be on the vines,
the produce of the olive fail
and the fields yield no food,
the flock be cut off from the fold
and there be no herd in the stalls,
yet I will rejoice in the LORD;
I will take joy in the God of my salvation.”
