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anne cousin

O Christ, What Burdens Bowed Thy Head

Words: Anne Ross Cundell Cousin (b. Apr. 27, 1824; d. Dec. 6, 1906)
Music: Substitution, by Ira David Sankey (b. Aug. 28, 1840; d. Aug. 13, 1908)

Note: Anne Cundell was the daughter of a medical doctor in England, Dr. David Cundell. She married William Cousin, a Presbyterian pastor in Scotland. Mrs. Cousin wrote a great deal of poetry, including her better known hymn Immanuel’s Land (“The sands of time are sinking…”)

Ira Sankey loved her hymn O Christ, What Burdens Bowed Thy Head, and wrote a tune for it. On the Cyber Hymnal page (see link below) are found two touching incidents from Mr. Sankey, relating to the song–which he called “a hymn very much blessed.” Though the tune Substitution works for the hymn, I believe the other suggested by the Cyber Hymnal, Consolation (Ulster) is even better.

(Stanza numbers in brackets below refer to the stanza number in The Cyber Hymnal. Find the link at the bottom of the article.)

The hymn, though it deals with deep theological issues, has a simple formula. Each of the original six stanzas follows this pattern:

Because Christ did this for me,
I enjoy this blessing.

Substitution, the name Mr. Sankey chose for his melody, summarizes the point made so emphatically by the hymn. It rehearses the infinite value of the substitutionary death of Christ.

“I declare to you the gospel…that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures” (I Cor. 15:1-4). “Who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree” (I Pet. 2:24).

He took our place on the cross and, through faith in Him, wonderful blessings come to us. As the hymn begins, we are told that the Lord Jesus took our heavy burden of sin upon Himself. “The Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all” (Isa. 53:6). Because of that, through faith in Christ, the load is lifted from the soul.

(1) O Christ, what burdens bowed Thy head!
Our load was laid on Thee;
Thou stoodest in the sinner’s stead,
Didst bear all ill for me.
A Victim led, Thy blood was shed;
Now there’s no load for me.

The second stanza brings to mind the scene in the garden of Gethsemane, when Christ faced the abhorrent cup. Though He cringed at the thought, Jesus accepted the cup, in submission to the will of God the Father (Matt. 26:36-39). Now, as a result, our cup is a cup of blessing, instead of a curse.

(2) Death and the curse were in our cup:
O Christ, ’twas full for Thee;
But Thou hast drained the last dark drop,
’Tis empty now for me.
That bitter cup, love drank it up;
Now blessing’s draught for me.

With stanza three we are back once more in Isaiah. “He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed” (Isa. 53:5). Peter sees in that the Saviour’s sacrifice, “by whose stripes you were healed” (I Pet. 2:24). In the words of Mrs. Cousin, “Jehovah lifted up His rod….Thy bruising healeth me.”

(3) Jehovah lifted up His rod;
O Christ, it fell on Thee!
Thou wast sore stricken of Thy God;
There’s not one stroke for me.
Thy tears, Thy blood, beneath it flowed;
Thy bruising healeth me.

Finally, the hymn ends with an allusion to Galatians 2:20, and perhaps Colossians 3:3 as well: “You died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.” Anne Cousin captures the twin realities of the believer’s eternal position (or standing), and his practical condition (or state) in daily life.

☼ I in Christ is my legal position. I am clothed in His righteousness (Gal. 3:27), and thus freed from condemnation. Through my union with Christ, I shall share His glory and, with all the saints, eternally live “to the praise of His glory” (Eph. 1:12, 14; Col. 3:4; I Pet. 5:1).

☼ Christ in me is my practical condition, empowered to live out His life by the indwelling Spirit of God. “I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me” (Gal. 2:20).

(6) For me, Lord Jesus, Thou hast died,
And I have died in Thee!
Thou’rt ris’n—my hands are all untied,
And now Thou liv’st in me.
When purified, made white and tried,
Thy glory then for me!

Questions:

  1. Can you make a list of blessings represented by this hymn that are ours because Christ died for us?
  2. What other hymns do you know that clearly teach Christ’s substitutionary death for us, and our position in Him?

Links:

The Sands of Time Are Sinking

Words: Anne Ross Cundell Cousin (b. Apr. 27, 1824; d. Dec. 6, 1906)
Music: Rutherford, by Chrétien d’Urhan (b. Feb. 16, 1790; d. Nov. 2, 1845)

Note: This beautiful hymn has been cited as the longest hymn in the English language. With its nineteen stanzas, and nearly eight hundred words, it would certainly have few competitors! However, the nineteen stanzas are more technically a poem, written as a tribute to a godly Scottish pastor named Samuel Rutherford (1600-1661).
A strong evangelical preacher and warm-hearted minister, he suffered opposition from the state church. His dying words, which inspired the poem, were, “Glory, glory dwelleth in Immanuel’s land [i.e. heaven].” Many of the lines of this hymn are quotations from, or were inspired by, the correspondence of Samuel Rutherford.
Usually, hymn books use only four or five of Cousin’s stanzas: (1), (2), (13), (15), (17)–which does not make a particularly lengthy hymn. A number of stanzas of the poem contain biographical and historical references, and would not be as suitable for a hymn. For example:

(10) Fair Anwoth by the Solway, to me thou still art dear,
E’en from the verge of heaven, I drop for thee a tear.
Oh! If one soul from Anwoth meet me at God’s right hand,
My heaven will be two heavens, In Immanuel’s land.

For over thirty years, the sonorous voice of an announcer has intoned these words at the beginning of each episode of a television soap opera: “Like sands through the hourglass, so are the Days of our Lives.” It’s a picture of the inevitable passing of time. And there comes a day when, for each individual, the sands will run out. Apart from the return of Christ, each of us will sooner or later pass from this earthly scene.

Some face the end in sickness and pain, and perhaps in fear and dread of what may be on the other side of death. Others, Samuel Rutherford among them, have looked with delight and eager anticipation on being ushered into the presence of Christ. For the believer death is but a doorway to something far grander and more wonderful. It’s like the dawning of a new day.

(1) The sands of time are sinking, the dawn of heaven breaks;
The summer morn I’ve sighed for—the fair, sweet morn awakes:
Dark, dark hath been the midnight, but dayspring is at hand,
And glory, glory dwelleth in Immanuel’s land.

In a stanza seldom used today, the speaker testifies that even suffering death, many times over, would be well worth reaching “Immanuel’s Land.”

(5) The King there in His beauty, without a veil is seen:
It were a well spent journey, though seven deaths lay between:
The Lamb with His fair army, doth on Mount Zion stand,
And glory–glory dwelleth in Immanuel’s land.

(15) makes use of imagery from the Song of Solomon (cf. S.S. 6:3). “He brought me to the banqueting house, and his banner over me was love” (S.S. 2:4). Like Solomon’s beloved bride, the “poor vile sinner,” cleansed by the blood of the Lamb” will revel in a personal relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ. A relationship based on “His merit,” not our own (I Cor. 1:30; II Cor. 5:17; Eph. 1:3).

O I am my Beloved’s and my Beloved’s mine!
He brings a poor vile sinner into His “house of wine.”
I stand upon His merit—I know no other stand,
Not even where glory dwelleth in Immanuel’s land.

The book of Revelation speaks of the wedding celebration that will take place when the church, the spiritual bride of Christ, is finally united to Him.

Let us be glad and rejoice and give Him glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His wife has made herself ready. And to her it was granted to be arrayed in fine linen, clean and bright, for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints. Then he said to me, ‘Write: Blessed are those who are called to the marriage supper of the Lamb!’

Rev. 19:7-9

But in that day, surely we’ll not be enamoured with the beauty of our own garments, wonderful as they are. Our focus will be upon the surpassing glory of our heavenly Bridegroom.

(17) The bride eyes not her garment, but her dear bridegroom’s face;
I will not gaze at glory but on my King of grace.
Not at the crown He giveth but on His piercèd hand;
The Lamb is all the glory of Immanuel’s land.

Questions:

  1. What do the verses quoted suggest to you as to some of the spiritual qualities of Pastor Rutherford?
  2. Would this kind of longing for our heavenly home be a hindrance to living for Christ and serving Him here and now? (Explain your answer.)

Links:

Today in 1807 – Anne Bronte Born

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Anne Bronte

Anne Bronte is one of the Bronte sisters, with Charlotte and Emily, a great literary family of eighteenth-century England. In spite of their writing careers being severely shortened by ill health, their novels are now considered classics of English literature, especially Jane Eyre (by Charlotte), and Wuthering Heights (by Emily). Anne Bronte is best known for her story The Tenant of Wildfell Hall, which some have called the first feminist novel.

Anne Bronte might not be considered a hymn writer, but her poem Eternal Power of Earth and Air is a moving appeal to God for an increase of faith. The poem, worthy of a place in our hymnals, can be sung to the hymn tune Truro. It says in part:

Eternal Power, of earth and air!
Unseen, yet seen in all around,
Remote, but dwelling everywhere,
Though silent, heard in every sound.

If e’er Thine ear in mercy bent,
When wretched mortals cried to Thee,
And if, indeed, Thy Son was sent,
To save lost sinners such as me:

Then hear me now, while, kneeling here,
I lift to Thee my heart and eye,
And all my soul ascends in prayer,
Oh, give me, give me faith! I cry.

Without some glimmering in my heart,
I could not raise this fervent prayer;
But, oh! a stronger light impart,
And in Thy mercy fix it there.

Oh, help me, God! For Thou alone
Canst my distracted soul relieve;
Forsake it not: it is Thine own,
Though weak, yet longing to believe.

If I believe that Jesus died,
And, waking, rose to reign above;
Then surely sorrow, sin, and pride,
Must yield to peace, and hope, and love.

Hardly less perceptive and beautiful is her Music on Christmas Morn (which can be sung to the tune Pater Omnium). Those of us who have a special affection for Christmas carols will be able to identify with her theme. Here is part of the song:

Music I love–but ne’er a strain
Could kindle raptures so divine,
So grief assuage, so conquer pain,
And rouse this pensive heart of mine;
As that we hear on Christmas morn,
Upon the wintry breezes borne.

To greet with joy the glorious morn,
Which angels welcomed long ago,
When our redeeming Lord was born,
To bring the light of heaven below;
The powers of darkness to dispel,
And rescue earth from death and hell.

While listening to that sacred strain,
My raptured spirit soars on high;
I seem to hear those songs again
Resounding through the open sky,
That kindled such divine delight,
In those who watched their flocks by night.

With them, I celebrate His birth;
Glory to God, in highest heaven,
Good will to men, and peace on earth,
To us a Saviour King is given;
Our God is come to claim His own,
And Satan’s power is overthrown!

hourglass

(2) Today in 1892 – The Sands of Time sung

Anne Ross Cousin’s beautiful hymn The Sands of Time Are Sinking was the favourite of evangelist Dwight L. Moody. And in 1892 it was also sung at the bedside of Charles Spurgeon shortly before he died.

Based on the writings of Scottish clergyman Samuel Rutherford (1600-1661), Mrs. Cousin’s song may also hold the distinction of being the longest hymn in the English language. The original was 152 lines long, though most hymn books use only 32 lines. The language is passionate, representing an earnest longing for our heavenly home, mostly because the Lord Jesus Christ is there.

The sands of time are sinking, the dawn of heaven breaks;
The summer morn I’ve sighed for—the fair, sweet morn awakes:
Dark, dark hath been the midnight, but dayspring is at hand,
And glory, glory dwelleth in Immanuel’s land.

The Bride eyes not her garment, but her dear Bridegroom’s face;
I will not gaze at glory but on my King of grace.
Not at the crown He giveth but on His pierced hand;
The Lamb is all the glory of Immanuel’s land.