To Jordan Came Our Lord, the Christ

To Jor­dan came our Lord the Christ

To do God’s plea­sure will­ing

And there was by Saint John bap­tized

All right­eous­ness ful­fill­ing;

There did He con­se­crate a bath

To wash away trans­gress­ion

And quench the bit­ter­ness of death

By His own blood and pas­sion;

He would a new life give us.

So hear ye all

and well per­ceive

What God doth call bap­tism

And what a Christ­ian should be­lieve

Who er­ror shuns and schism:

That we should wa­ter use

the Lord

Declareth it His plea­sure;

Not simple wa­ter

but the Word

And Spir­it with­out mea­sure;

He is the true Bap­tiz­er.

To show us this

He hath His Word

With signs and sym­bols giv­en;

On Jor­dan’s banks was plain­ly heard

The Fa­ther’s voice from Heav­en:

This is My well-be­lov­èd Son

In whom My soul de­light­eth;

Hear Him. Yea

hear Him ev­ery one

Whom He Him­self in­vit­eth

Hear and ob­ey His teach­ing.

In ten­der man­hood Je­sus straight

To ho­ly Jor­dan wend­eth;

The Ho­ly Ghost from Heav­en’s gate

In dove­like shape des­cend­eth;

That thus the truth be not de­nied

Nor should our faith e’er wa­ver

That the Three Per­sons all pre­side

At bap­tism’s ho­ly lav­er

And dwell with the be­liev­er.

Thus Je­sus His dis­ci­ples sent:

Go teach ye ev­ery na­tion

That lost in sin they must re­pent;

And flee from con­dem­na­tion:

He that be­lieves and is bap­tized

Obtains a migh­ty bless­ing;

A new-born man

no more he dies

Eternal life pos­sess­ing

A joy­ful heir of Heav­en.

Who in this mer­cy hath not faith

Nor aught there­in dis­cern­eth

Is yet in sin

con­demned to death

And fire that ev­er burn­eth;

His ho­li­ness avails him not

Nor aught which he is do­ing;

His in­born sin brings all to naught

And mak­eth sure his ru­in;

Himself he can­not suc­cor.

The eye of sense alone is dim

And no­thing sees but wa­ter;

Faith sees Christ Je­sus

and in Him

The Lamb or­dained for slaugh­ter;

She sees the cleans­ing fount­ain red

With the dear blood of Je­sus

Which from the sins in­her­it­ed

From fall­en Ad­am frees us

And from our own mis­do­ings.