The Minstrel of Zion ‎#58

58. "Oh! who would remain"

1 Oh! who would remain in this prison of clay,
When friends and companions are hasting away--
Away to the climes of the blessed and free,
Where death never comes, and where pure spirits be.

2 Oh! could we but go with the friends that we love,
And taste their enjoyments in glory above;
No more would we fancy this desert below,
Where tears of deep anguish so frequently flow.

3 How many are there, in white garments array'd:
Who once with us here in this wilderness stray'd:
How happy are they, with their pilgrimage done;
As pure as the angels--as bright as the sun.

4 Methinks, in their songs, as they circle the throne,
They think of the past, and the friends they have known;
And when old companions come home to the skies,
What greetings are there, and what raptures arise!

5 Ye comrades of youth, and ye friends of ripe years,
Oh! when shall I join you? when banish my tears?
When shall the dull days of mortality cease?
Oh! when shall I live with my Saviour in peace?

Text Information

• First Line: Oh! who would remain in this prison of clay
• Title: "Oh! who would remain"
• Publication Date: 1845
• Notes: Now Public Domain.

Tune Information

• Name: OH! WHO WOULD REMAIN
• Meter: P. M.*
• Key: F Major or modal
• Notes: Now Public Domain. P. M. *Select Melodies, Hymns 3, 60, 62, 142, and 175.