Wesley Corpus

Depart ye ransom'd souls, depart, The house of bondage quit; be clean: Call'd to be saints, be pure in heart, Abhor the loathsome touch of sin. 1Charles records corporate singing of this stanza in his MS Journal as early as June 28, 1741. 2"Uttermost" changed to "absolute" in 2nd edn. (1745) only. 3This and the prior three stanzas first appeared as Hymn XVII in HGEL (1741), 33. Page 114 Vessels of mercy, sons of grace, Be purg'd from every sinful stain, Be like your Lord; his word embrace, Nor bear his hallow'd name in vain. For not as fugitives that try By hasty flight t' escape the foe, Ye from the power of sin shall fly, But calmly in full triumph go. The Lord shall in your front appear, And lead the pompous triumph on; His glory shall bring up the rear, And perfect what his grace begun. Behold the servant of my grace, My Son shall heavenly wisdom shew, Deal gently with the sin-sick race, And minister my life below. His mighty arm, his high right-hand, Still the pre-eminence4 shall have, Shall bow the world to his command, And magnify his power to save. Vilest of all the sons of men Him in his days of flesh they view'd, His body mangled, torn with pain, His visage marr'd with tears and blood. The world on him they doom'd to die, With fresh astonishment shall gaze, Amaz'd their Saviour to descry, O'repower'd with his stupendous grace. The suffering sin-atoning God Shall kindly raise them from their fall, Sprinkle the nations with his blood, And tell them, he hath died for all. 4Ori., "preheminence"; changed in 3rd edn. (1756). Page 115 The nations shall receive his word, And kings to his command submit, The lords of earth shall call him Lord, And lay their crowns before his feet. Fountain of power, when he is near The gods of earth are gods no more, Poor guilty worms they bow, they fear, And fall, and silently adore. Children of wrath and slaves of sin They now shall see their lost estate; Shall see the blood that makes them clean The power that makes them truly great. Shall now, in Jesus taught to trust, Accept the grace on all bestow'd, This their best title, and their boast, Servants of Christ, and sons of God. Wrestling Jacob.5