Richard Jukes
(1804-1867)
With steady pace the pilgrim moves
Toward the blissful shore,
And sings with cheerful heart and voice,
“‘Tis better on before!”
His passage through a desert lies,
Where furious lions roar;
He takes his staff, and smiling says,
“‘Tis better on before.”
When tempted to forsake his God
And give the contest o’er,
He hears a voice which says, “Look up!
‘Tis better on before.”
When stern affliction clouds his face,
And death stands at the door,
Hope cheers him with her happiest note,
“‘Tis better on before!”
And when on Jordan’s bank he stands,
And views the radiant shore,
Bright angels whisper, “Come away!
‘Tis better on before!”
And so it is, for high in Heaven
They never suffer more;
Eternal calm succeeds the storm—
‘Tis better on before!
