There where the judges gather
A Greater takes His seat;
“How long,” He asks the judges,
“Will ye pronounce deceit?
How long respect the persons
Of them of ill repute?
How long neglect the orphaned,
The poor and destitute?

“Deal justly with the needy,
Protect the fatherless,
Deliver the afflicted
From those who would distress.
But you are wholly blinded,
You do not understand;
Therefore foundations totter,
Injustice rocks the land.”

He speaks, “I named you rulers,
Sons of the Most High God,
But you shall die as mortals,
And perish by My rod.”
Arise, Thou God of judgment,
Thy sovereignty make known;
For Thine shall be the nations,
The peoples Thou shalt own.

Where’er His creatures gather,
The unseen God is near;
Let rulers fear their Ruler,
Their Judge let judges fear.
How long, ye earthly judges,
Will ye pervert the right?
How long shall wicked persons
Have favor in your sight?

Do justice for the helpless,
The orphan’s cause maintain.
Defend the poor and needy,
Oppressed and wronged for gain.
When rulers walk in darkness,
When judges truth forsake,
The cornerstones are crumbled,
The firm foundations shake.

The most high God has called you
And set you up on high,
But ye to Him must answer,
For ye like men must die.
Arise, O God eternal,
Thou Judge of all the earth,
Through all Thy ransomed nations
Send now Thy justice forth.

O Lord our God, arise!
The cause of truth maintain,
And wide o’er all the peopled world
Extend Thy blessèd reign.

Thou Prince of life, arise!
Nor let Thy glory cease;
Far spread the conquests of Thy grace,
And bless the earth with peace.

Thou Holy Ghost, arise!
Expand Thy quick’ning wing,
And o’er a dark and ruined world
Let light and order spring.

All on the earth, arise!
To God the Savior sing;
From shore to shore, from earth to Heav’n,
Let echoing anthems ring.

O God, our Maker, throned on high,
The earth is Thine, and Thine the sky,
Th’adoring sun obeys Thy will,
And countless stars Thy laws fulfill.

The length’ning light of summer day,
The winter frost, Thy power display,
Nature proclaims Thy sovereign skill;
Man, and man only, spurns Thy will.

The wicked sit on earth’s high seat,
And tread the holy ’neath their feet;
Good goes so crookedly astray,
Bright deeds lie hidden oft away.

Great God! Who seest from above,
Regard us with Thy pitying love,
Perplexed by doubts, with toil and strife,
We ask more light—we long for life.