Passion-Tide

The Way of Sorrows Thou hast trod,
Dear suffering Saviour, Lamb of God!
And now, O nameless agony!
They nail Thee to the cruel Tree.

With bleeding brow and breaking heart,
Thou bearest, Lord, Thy baleful part;—
And sorer far than we can see,
Thy Passion’s painful mystery.

Yet here, triumphant o’er our sins,
Thy blessed reign on earth begins,—
And boundless empire waits for Thee,
O thorn-crowned King of Calvary!

Before Thy Cross the world shall bow;
Victor, because the Victim, Thou:—
Thy dying love, O Christ, shall be
The bond that draws all hearts to Thee.