Book of Worship with Hymns and Tunes ‎#567

567. How blest the righteous when he dies!

1 How blest the righteous when he dies!
When sinks a weary soul to rest!
How mildly beam the closing eyes!
How gently heaves t'expiring breast!

2 So fades a summer cloud away;
So sinks the gale when storms are o’er;
So gently shuts the eye of day;
So dies a wave along the shore.

3 A holy quiet reigns around,
A calm which life nor death destroys;
And nought disturbs that peace profound
Which his unfettered soul enjoys.

4 Life’s labor done, as sinks the clay,
Light from its load the spirit flies,
While heaven and earth combine to say,
“How blest the righteous when he dies!”

Amen.

Text Information

• First Line: How blest the righteous when he dies!
• Author: Anna L. Barbauld (1809)
• Meter: L. M.
• Language: English
• Publication Date: 1899
• Topic: Death: of Christians; Funerals

Tune Information

• Name: STELLA
• Arranger: Henry F. Hemy
• Meter: L. M.