How Many Generations Dead

How many ge­ne­ra­tions dead

Dwell in the dust on which we tread!

How many yet may spring to birth

When we are seen no more on earth!

Till

of past

pre­sent and to come

Time shall cast up the des­tined sum

And

name by name

through that amount

Call ev­ery soul to strict ac­count.

Where’er en­se­pul­chered they lie

Each then must an­swer

Here am I!

And once

but once

all Ad­am’s race

Meet for a mo­ment face to face.

Then shall the King on ei­ther side

As sheep from goats

the throng di­vide

And those to bliss

and these to woe

Rejoicing or la­ment­ing go.

How small to that as­sem­bly this!

Yet heirs like them of woe or bliss:

Were the last trum­pet now to sound

With sheep or goats would we be found?

Guilty we plead

O Judge of all!

Guilty in­to Thine hands we fall;

The friend of sin­ners still art Thou;

Save or we per­ish

save us now!