Glad Tidings of Great Joy

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The Almighty spake, and Gabriel sped

Author: George Richards
Tune: CHRISTMAS (Holyoke)
Published in 3 hymnals

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Representative Text

1 Th'Almighty spake, and Gabr'el sped,
Upborne on wings of light;
Jehovah's glory round him spread,
And chang'd to day, the night.

2 Swift down to earth th'Archangel flew,
From God's eternal throne;
His shining robe of rainbow hue,
The stars, moon, sun, outshone.

3 One note of peace was heard on high:
Glad tidings roll'd around:
Ten thousand thousand left the sky,
To catch Salvation's sound.

4 Shout, shout for joy— rejoice, O earth:
Hail, hail this glorious morn;
Rejoice! rejoice, in Jesus' birth,
To day are nations born.

5 From Zion's hill to worlds above,
Re-echo'd back the strain;
And golden harps, attun'd to love,
Thus swept Ephratah's plain.

6 He comes! He comes! the Saviour God.
Good will, peace, joy for men.
Glad tidings shout to all abroad,
So be it, Lord— Amen

Source: Psalms, Hymns and Spiritual Songs: selected and original, designed for the use of the Church Universal in public and private devotion #CXV

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Author: George Richards

Richards, George, born near Newport, Rhode Island, circa 1755. For some years he was Purser and Chaplain in the United States Navy, and also taught a school in Boston. In 1789 he became an Universalist preacher, ministered at Portsmouth, New Haven, 1793-1809, and from 1809 in Philadelphia, where, his mind having given way under trouble, he died by his own hand, March 16, 1816. With S. Lane he edited the Universalist Hymn Book, published at Boston, 1792. This was one of the earliest collections of that body. It contained 49 of Richards's hymns. In 1801 he published A Collection of Hymns, Dover, New Hampshire, which contained 6 additional hymns by himself, and in 1806, also at Dover, a second edition of the same, greatly enlarged, with anothe… Go to person page >

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First Line:	The Almighty spake, and Gabriel sped
Title:	Glad Tidings of Great Joy
Author:	George Richards
Meter:	8.6.8.6
Language:	English
Copyright:	Public Domain