Wesley Corpus

The spirits of the just Made perfect here in love, With these, and all the heavenly host, She finds her place above; One with the saints in light, The witnesses of God, She wash'd her robes, and made them white In the Redeemer's blood. Her soul was cleans'd below, And sav'd from sin's remains, Whiter on earth than Salmon's snow, She now with Jesus reigns; Long in the furnace try'd, Long in the vale distrest, The Lamb at last hath call'd his bride Up to the marriage-feast. With stedfast faith and hope Let us her steps pursue, Chearful like her the cross take up, Like her the world break thro'; Like her our faith approve, And patiently endure, And make, by all the works of love, Our heavenly calling sure. Page 17 Hymn XII. (On the Death of Mrs. F. C.12) Thanks be to God alone Thro' Jesus Christ his Son! He who hath for all obtain'd, Gives our friend the victory; Sister, thou the prize hast gain'd, Died for him who died for thee. The mortal hour is past, Thou hast o'ercome at last, Freed from pain, for ever freed, Ended is thy glorious strife, Death, the latest foe, is dead, Death is swallow'd up of life. Thy13 lamb-like innocence Is soon departed hence, From the world of sin and pain Thou art clean escap'd away, Sav'd from sin's infectious stain, Taken from the evil day. Stranger to guilty fears Thou liv'd'st thy twenty years, From the great transgression free; Never did the poison spread, Jesus, e'er it rose in thee, Jesus crush'd the serpent's head. His Spirit's gentlest art Open'd thy simple heart, The eternal gospel-word, Lydia-like thou didst receive, Fall before thy bleeding Lord, Own him, and with ease believe. 12A manuscript precursor of this hymn appears in MS Thirty, 152-55. There it is specified that this hymn is for Miss Frances (Fanny) Cowper (1716-42), of Enfield Chase, who died at the house of Selina, Countess of Huntingdon in May 1742. See the note on Hymn X above. 13"Thy" changed to "the" in 3rd edn. (London, 1753) and following. Page 18 Soon as thy heart did feel The pardon-stamping seal, Heard thy soul the warning cry, "Here thou hast not long to stay, Rise, my love, make haste to die, Rise, my love, and come away!"