Posted on by DPW

 

“Rock of Ages,” “He Hideth My Soul In the Cleft of the Rock,” and “O Safe To The Rock That is Higher Than I.”

The picture shows the actual  rock where the writer took refuge from the storm.

 Rock of Ages

With full respect given to Augustus Toplady (1763)  who wrote these beautiful words.

Rock of Ages, cleft for me, Let me hide myself in Thee;
Let the water and the blood, From Thy riven side which flowed,
Be of sin the double cure, Save me from its guilt and power.

Not the labor of my hands Can fulfill Thy law’s demands;
Could my zeal no respite know, Could my tears forever flow,
All could never sin erase, Thou must save, and save by grace.

Nothing in my hands I bring, Simply to Thy cross I cling;
Naked, come to Thee for dress, Helpless, look to Thee for grace:
Foul, I to the fountain fly, Wash me, Savior, or I die.

While I draw this fleeting breath, When mine eyes shall close in death,
When I soar to worlds unknown, See Thee on Thy judgment throne,
Rock of Ages, cleft for me, Let me hide myself in Thee

Traditionally, it is held that Toplady drew his inspiration from an incident in the gorge of Burrington Combe in the Mendip Hills in England. Toplady, a preacher in the nearby village of Blagdon, was travelling along the gorge when he was caught in a storm.Finding shelter in a gap in the gorge, he was struck by the title and scribbled down the initial lyrics on a playing card.The fissure that is believed to have sheltered Toplady is now marked as the “Rock of Ages”, both on the rock itself and on some maps, and is also reflected in the name of a nearby tea shop.

He Hideth My Soul, written by Francis J. Crosby (1763)

  • A wonderful Savior is Jesus my Lord, A wonderful Savior to me; He hideth my soul in the cleft of the rock, Where rivers of pleasure I see.A wonderful Savior is Jesus my Lord, He taketh my burden away, He holdeth me up and I shall not be moved, He giveth me strength as my day.
    • Refrain: He hideth my soul in the cleft of the rock, That shadows a dry, thirsty land; He hideth my life in the depths of His love, And covers me there with His hand, And covers me there with His hand.
  • With numberless blessings each moment He crowns, And filled with His fullness divine, I sing in my rapture, oh, glory to God! For such a Redeemer as mine.
  • When clothed with His brightness transported I rise To meet Him in clouds of the sky, His perfect salvation, His wonderful love, I’ll shout with the millions on high.

Safe to the Rock, written by William O. Cushing

O safe to the Rock that is higher than I, My soul in its conflicts and sorrows would fly; So sinful, so weary, Thine, Thine, would I be; Thou blest “Rock of Ages,” I’m hiding in Thee.

Hiding in Thee, hiding in Thee, Thou blest “Rock of Ages,” I’m hiding in Thee.

In the calm of the noontide, in sorrow’s lone hour, In times when temptation casts o’er me its power; In the tempests of life, on its wide, heaving sea, Thou blest “Rock of Ages,” I’m hiding in Thee.

How oft in the conflict, when pressed by the foe, I have fled to my refuge and breathed out my woe; How often, when trials like sea billows roll, Have I hidden in Thee, O Thou Rock of my soul.

 

 

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