"Be Ready, All" by H. R. Jeffrey:

"Be Ready, All" by H. R. Jeffrey: 

Loukas 12:40  You also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour you do not expect.

Receive Christ Jesus Now Delay no More

Complete Lyrics

The hymn consists of four stanzas: 

Stanza 1
In the awful day that's coming,
When Heaven's trump shall sound,
And call the world to judgment,
Oh, where shall we be found?
Shall we cry for rocks and mountains
To hide us in that day,
From Him who comes in glory,
With all His bright array? 

Stanza 2
The Lord is coming shortly,
According to His word,
Taking vengeance on the wicked,
And them that know not God;
Oh, who shall then be able
In that awful day to stand?
"Thou shalt be no longer steward,"
Will be the stern command. 

Stanza 3

Shall we begin to trem­ble,

While look­ing on that sight,

And take our march in ang­uish,

Down to eter­nal night?

Oh, what an aw­ful pic­ture!

To some it will come true;

And oh, my bro­ther, sis­ter,

Stanza 4

Shall it be I or you?

Oh, souls, be up and do­ing,

We have no time to lose;

There’s life and death be­fore us—

Oh, which one will you choose?

Then let us all take warn­ing,

And heed the Sav­ior’s call,

Be robed in white adorn­ing,

Then we’ll be rea­dy, all.

Musical Tune Information

• Tune & Origins: Named after its first line, both the words and music were composed by H. R. Jeffrey in 1885.
• Meter & Key: Features an 8.6.8.6 D (Common Meter Double) structure and is typically in A♭ major / F minor.
• Hymnal Appearances: Found on page 398 of [Evening Light Songs].