O Thou, the central orb

General information

Lyricist Henry Ramsden Bramley

Settings by composers

• Orlando Gibbons SSAATBB
• Charles Wood SATB

Text and translations

English text

O Thou, the central orb of righteous love,
Pure beam of the most High, eternal Light
Of this our wintry world, Thy radiance bright
Awakes new joy in faith, hope soars above.

Come, quickly come, and let thy glory shine,
Gilding our darksome heaven with rays Divine.

Thy saints with holy lustre round Thee move,
As stars about thy throne, set in the height
Of God's ordaining counsel, as Thy sight
Gives measured grace to each, Thy power to prove.

Let Thy bright beams disperse the gloom of sin,
Our nature all shall feel eternal day
In fellowship with thee, transforming day [ray?] [clay?]
To souls erewhile unclean, now pure within. Amen.