No. 132 Ceylon, Pb 372
Pentatonic, mode 3 (I II III — V VI VII)
How long, O Lord our Savior, wilt thou remain away?
Our hearts are growing weary of thy so long delay.
O when will come the moment when, brighter far than morn,
The sun-shine of thy glory will on thy people dawn.
How long, O gracious Saviour, wilt Thou Thy household leave?
So long hast Thou now tarried, few Thy return believe;
Immersed in sloth and folly, Thy servants, Lord, we see;
And few of us stand ready, with joy to welcome Thee.
How long, O heav’nly Bridegroom, how long wilt Thou delay?
And yet how few are grieving, that Thou dost absent stay;
Thy very bride her portion and calling hath forgot,
And seeks for ease and glory, where Thou, her Lord, art not.
The tune is a close relative of ‘Love Divine’ CHI 63, ‘Heavenly Welcome’ HH 482, ‘Baltimore’ SKH 53, ‘Garden Hymn’ REV 164, and a less close one to ‘Heavenward’, Christian Science Hymnal (1932), No. 136, which is an ancient Irish tune from the Petrie collection. Compare Petrie, No. 993.