“Come, You Faithful, Raise the Strain,” ELW 363
Devotion
Come, you faithful, raise the strain
of triumphant gladness!
God has brought forth Israel
into joy from sadness,
loosed from Pharaoh's bitter yoke
Jacob's sons and daughters;
led them with unmoistened foot
through the Red Sea waters.
'Tis the spring of souls today:
Christ has burst his prison,
and from three days' sleep in death
as a sun has risen.
All the winter of our sins,
long and dark, is flying
from the Light to whom we give
laud and praise undying.
Now the queen of seasons, bright
with the day of splendor,
with the royal feast of feasts
comes its joy to render;
comes to glad Jerusalem,
who with true affection
welcomes in unwearied strain
Jesus' resurrection!
Neither could the gates of death,
nor the tomb's dark portal,
nor the watchers, nor the seal
hold you as a mortal:
but today, among your own,
you appear, bestowing
your deep peace, which evermore
passes human knowing.
Alleluia! now we cry
to our Lord immortal,
who triumphant burst the bars
of the tomb's dark portal;
Alleluia! with the Son
God the Father praising;
Alleluia! yet again
to the Spirit raising.
The wide range of images in this hymn reflects the wide-ranging mind of its author, John of Damascus. In the first verse, John connects the watershed story of the Exodus with Jesus' resurrection. He reminds us that, because of Easter, God has "loosed" God's people not only from "Pharaoh's bitter yoke" but also from the universal yoke of death.
In the next two verses, John refers to spring, "the queen of seasons," noting that Jesus has "burst his prison" thus springing souls from death's strong bonds. Then he notes the "deep peace" that God's promise brings that "evermore passes human knowing." Death is our "last enemy," the last power that can separate us from the one who made us and sustains us. This "springtime" of the Easter season, full of new life and hope, reminds us once again that no power can separate us from God’s loving purpose for us.
Prayer
God of grace and glory, you remind us in so many ways that, because of Jesus, darkness and grief, loneliness and pain, suffering and sorrow can never define who we are or how we live. We live as your children, comforted by your eternal presence, wrapped in your unconditional love, sent out in the assurance of your resurrection promise to proclaim to a weary world that there is always hope. Because you are the author of that hope. Amen.