“City on a Hill”
Did you hear of the city on the hill?
Said one old man to the other
“It once shined bright and it would be shining still”
But they all started turning on each other.
You see, the poets thought the dancers were shallow
And the soldiers thought the poets were weak
And the elders saw the young ones as foolish
And the rich man never heard the poor man speak.
And one by one they ran away
With their made up minds to leave it all behind
And the light began to fade in the city on the hill
The city on the hill.
Each one thought that they knew better
That they were different by design
Instead of standing strong together
They let their differences divide.
And one by one they ran away
With their made up minds to leave it all behind
And the light began to fade in the city on the hill
The city on the hill and the world is searching still.
But it was the rhythm of the dancers
That gave the poets life
It was the spirit of the poets
That gave the soldiers strength to fight.
It was the fire of the young ones
It was the wisdom of the old
It was the story of the poor man
That needed to be told.
It is the rhythm of the dancers
That gives the poets life
It is the spirit of the poets
That gives the soldiers strength to fight.
It is the fire of the young ones
It is the wisdom of the old
It is the story of the poor man
That’s needing to be told.
One by one we’ll be running away
With our made up minds to leave it all behind
As the light begins to fade in the city on the hill
The city on the hill.
One by one we’ll be running away
With our made up minds to leave it all behind
As the light begins to fade in the city on the hill
The city on the hill.
Come home and the Father’s calling still
Come home to the city on the hill, come home.
~ lyrics by John Mark Hall, Matthew West
