Habakkuk 2:1, 14 and 20
“I will stand at my watch
and station myself on the ramparts;
I will look to see what He will say to me,
and what answer I am to give to this complaint…”
“…The earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord…”
“The Lord is in His holy temple. Let all the earth keep silence before Him.”
The memory comes back each time I hear this beautiful hymn. As a second-grader in Christian School, our class enjoyed music instruction weekly and learned many of the old classics, including this poignant, timeless hymn and other songs that I recall to this day. It was sung at President Ronald Reagan’s funeral, and President George W. Bush requested that it be performed at the memorial service in the National Cathedral for victims of September 11, 2001.
This week marks a time 161 years ago, from July 1-3, 1863, when a battle began in and around the small town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The conflict resulted in the largest number of casualties of the entire Civil War and it was a turning point in the conflict between the states. “The Battle Hymn of the Republic” was already making its mark by that time, and it is said that Abraham Lincoln was brought to tears when he first heard it. It continues to have a significant place in our nation’s history. Written by Julia Ward Howe during the height of the Civil War, it expresses what it means to sacrifice and fight battles for the values America represents. This hymn became an anthem for national identity and purpose, and battles forged between good and evil. It uses no reference to time or place, thus making it timeless in its imagery.
As we read the words or perhaps sing them aloud, may we as Americans be inspired anew by the words and pray that they might still influence the character of our citizens and our nation. The Lord God is marching on toward the day when He will right all the wrongs and will rule the universe from His holy temple. Glory, glory hallelujah!
“The Battle Hymn of the Republic”
Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord;
He is trampling out the vintage where the grapes of wrath are stored;
He hath loosed the fateful lightning of His terrible swift sword;
His truth is marching on.
[Chorus]
Glory, glory! Hallelujah!
Glory, glory! Hallelujah!
Glory, glory! Hallelujah!
His truth is marching on.
I have seen Him in the watchfires of a hundred circling camps;
they have builded Him an altar in the evening dews and damps;
I can read His righteous sentence by the dim and flaring lamps
His day is marching on.
He has sounded forth the trumpet that shall never call retreat;
He is sifting out the hearts of men before His judgment seat;
O be swift, my soul, to answer Him! Be jubilant my feet
Our God is marching on.
In the beauty of the lilies Christ was born across the sea,
with a glory in His bosom that transfigures you and me;
as He died to make men holy, let us die to make men free,
while God is marching on.
[Chorus]
Glory, glory! Hallelujah!
Glory, glory! Hallelujah!
Glory, glory! Hallelujah!
While God is marching on.
