I wonder if the Battle Hymn of the Republic should be considered as a gift from God, through Julia Ward Howe. She wrote it in 1862, having reportedly gotten the lines during a night’s sleep. Although originally inspired by the Civil War, they are timeless, or perhaps suited for the end of the ages.
Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord;
He is trampling out the vintage where the grapes of wrath are stored;
He hath loosed the fateful lightning of His terrible swift sword:
His truth is marching on.
The first thought is to recognize the terrible events of the Civil War as precursors to the revelation of God’s glory on the earth, specifically the imminent return of Jesus to set things right by ruling over the earth. The glory of His promised kingdom will be realized through His physical presence.
The grapes of wrath refer to those various biblical passages in which Jesus is symbolically treading in a winepress. Is it God’s wrath or mankind’s wrath that we see in riots and civil unrest? Can they be separated? If it is God’s wrath, what should be our response?
His sword is usually identified as the Word, proceeding out of the mouth of Jesus. But if His sword also slays, might not plague and pestilence be seen as such? Humankind standing before the throne of God for judgment? His word is truth, which marches on in this sense, that He does not play favorites, but reveals the condition of all men’s hearts.
(Chorus)
Glory, Glory, hallelujah!
Glory, glory, hallelujah!
Glory, glory, hallelujah!
His truth is marching on.
Glory, the weight of God’s presence, is experienced through the praise of YHWH, the eternal, self-existent, unconditional One. Ultimately, His truth will be revealed, because He marches on relentlessly. He will continue His work, with our participation or despite our rejection.
I have seen Him in the watch-fires of a hundred circling camps,
They have builded Him an altar in the evening dews and damps;
I can read His righteous sentence by the dim and flaring lamps:
His day is marching on.
Whether the campfires of homeless migrants or burning buildings torched by rioters, flames show His presence among humankind. The Holy Spirit anoints with tongues of fire, our God is a consuming fire. But ... just as the Army of the Potomac in 1862 was ultimately to destroy rebel forces three years later, God will use the oft-misguided efforts of man to carry out His verdict and sentence.
(Chorus)
I have read a fiery gospel writ in burnished rows of steel:
"As ye deal with my contemners, so with you my grace shall deal";
Let the Hero, born of woman, crush the serpent with his heel,
Since God is marching on.
Although current events point to a forceful and violent judgment, we are cautioned to humility. All have sinned and come short of the glory of God. (Romans 3:23) We should remember that the Lord’s Prayer includes the conditional petition “Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.” (Matthew 6:12) The end result of the gospel will be the fulfillment of Genesis 3:15, when Jesus - born of woman, born under the Law - finally defeats and destroys the devil and his kingdom. We can worship God in the present circumstances as they are indicators of his continuing work now, before His return in person.
(Chorus)
He has sounded forth the trumpet that shall never call retreat;
He is sifting out the hearts of men before His judgment-seat;
Oh, be swift, my soul, to answer Him! Be jubilant, my feet!
Our God is marching on.
The trumpets of the book of Revelation fulfill the trumpets commanded in the feasts of the Law. (Numbers 10:10) They announce the offerings and remind us to look to God. In martial use, they were throughout history used to sound commands in the field for the troops to hear signals of movement. God will never command His kingdom to retreat, although in one case, He will remove His people from the earth to go to be in His presence, as He judges all who remain on the earth. (1 Corinthians 15:52, 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17)
The judgments of God are both often mentioned in Scripture, and in our hearts as we sense His conviction regarding right and wrong. We make a choice to follow or reject them. This is not human tribunals’ version of justice, but the revelation by God through our own circumstances and the condition of our hearts. We are encouraged to respond to Him quickly, when He speaks and acts in our lives, because the final judgment will inexorably come. We should dance with joy at the signs of His imminent return.
(Chorus)
In the beauty of the lilies Christ was born across the sea,
With a glory in His bosom that transfigures you and me.
As He died to make men holy, let us die to make men free,
While God is marching on.
Jesus was born in a humble manger, more likely surrounded by hay and straw than the lilies where Moses was placed. But His divinity incarnate is able to transform us. (2 Corinthians 3:18) He died to deliver us from the power and penalty of sin. We are encouraged in this life to free humans, not just from chattel slavery, but from the bondage of sin. Let us do this now, while God is at work in our world, before that final judgment day.
(Chorus)
He is coming like the glory of the morning on the wave,
He is Wisdom to the mighty, He is Succour to the brave,
So the world shall be His footstool, and the soul of Time His slave,
Our God is marching on.
To what shall we compare the glory of the parousia (coming) mentioned at the outset? The sun shining on the ocean. The strong need His wisdom to act wisely, the courageous need His continuing encouragement to faint not in the day of His action. In the end, His kingdom will be established for all eternity on the earth as it is in heaven. We should celebrate that current events are signs of His imminence.
