William Baxter Ministering Angels (1845)

 

T H E   L A D I E S '   R E P O S I T O R Y .
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CINCINNATI, DECEMBER, 1845.

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O r i g i n a l .
M I N I S T E R I N G   A N G E L S .
BY WILLIAM BAXTER.
ANGELS minister'd to Jesus,
    When the subtil tempter fled
From the mountain of temptation--
    When his darts had vainly sped.
Down to earth they fly from heaven:
    See, what crowds are gather'd round!
And the scene of his fierce trial
    Now becometh hallowed ground.

Angels minister'd to Jesus
    In the garden, when he lay
Praying unto God, his Father,
    That the cup might pass away.
He was strengthen'd there to drink it,
    For our fallen, guilty race,
And his followers' purest feelings
    Linger round that sacred place.

Angels minister'd to Jesus
    On the morn he left the tomb,
When the dawn of day eternal
    Burst upon its cheerless gloom:
Down they strike the fearful soldiers,
    Roll the massive stone away,
And behold, in death's dominion,
    Life now holds its sovereign sway.

Angels minister'd to Jesus
    When he took his upward flight,
From the world he came to ransom,
    To the glorious realms of light:
See, they form his willing escort,
    As his chariot mounts the sky,
And the golden gates of glory
    At their challenge open fly.

They will minister to Jesus
    When the skies are backward roll'd,
And revealed high in heaven,
    All the world their Judge behold;
They will gather all his children
    To their dear Redeemer's side,
Free from earth and all its sorrows,
    With him ever to abide.

 

[The Ladies' Repository 5 (December 1845): Pg.]

ABOUT THE ELECTRONIC EDITION

      William Baxter's "Ministering Angels" was first published in The Ladies' Repository, and Gatherings of the West: A Monthly Periodical Devoted to Literature and Religion, Vol. 5, No. 12, December 1845, p. 376. This volume, edited by E. Thomson, was published in Cincinnati by L. Swormstedt and J. T. Mitchell for the Methodist Episcopal Church. The poem was reprinted in The Millennial Harbinger, Third Series, Vol. 3, No. 8, August 1846, p. 461.

      Addenda and corrigenda are earnestly solicited.

Ernie Stefanik
Derry, PA

Created 8 April 2000.
Updated 28 June 2003.

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