Adventist Pioneer Library

Waiting for Christ

What though the angry waves roll high

  • No. 809
  • Words Anon.
  • 4 stanzas
  • Words only in the original

Words

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1

What though the angry waves roll high,And darkness reigns around?Let hope be bright in every eye;Our ship is homeward bound.What though no moon nor stars appearAmid the gloom profound?We will not yield a place to fear;Our ship is homeward bound.

2

What though the lightnings glare above,And deafening thunders roar?Yet with the eye of faith and loveWe view the distant shore.We know that friends will meet us there,We loved in life before;And angel forms, all bright and fair,Line the immortal shore.

3

Then let the fearful thunders roar,And let the lightnings glare;We're nearing the eternal shore,And we are almost there.Then heave, ye waves, on every side,And onward, homeward bearOur fragile bark, 'gainst wind and tide;For we are almost there.

4

The coward peers, with trembling form,Into the gloom profound;But we can smile to view the storm;Our ship is homeward bound:And though for us, on time's dark waveNo place of rest be found,O let our hearts be true and brave;Our ship is homeward bound.

About this hymn

As printed Words only. As printed: running head «WAITING FOR CHRIST—CLOSING WORK.»; hymn number «809» (large) at the top of the right column of p. 265, under the music of hymn 808, with the bold italic reference line «989; 486.» (= sing to the tunes of hymns 989 or 486; the separator after 989 is printed as a semicolon, where hymn 808's line in the left column has a comma) beside the number; stanzas 1–4 in the right column, «Anon.» in italics after stanza 4, at the foot of the page. The first word «WHAT» is set in capitals and small capitals. In each stanza, lines 2, 4, 6 and 8 are indented. The print sets a thin space before «?», «;» and «:» («around ?», «eye ;», «roar ?», «storm ;», «bound :»); it is closed up here. No meter is printed (the text is C. M. D., like the two tunes referred to). Pencil marks of the exemplar (a note above the number, an arc under «on time's» in stanza 4) are not printed matter and are not transcribed. Spelling, punctuation and capitals are the print's.

Source
The Seventh-day Adventist Hymn and Tune Book (Battle Creek: Review & Herald, 1886/1888)
Where
Waiting for Christ · No. 809 · printed page 265
Checked
lyrics verified (fork reading; parent check pending) · 2026-10-02