Are There Few That Be Saved?

Luke 13:23-24: "Then said one unto Him, 'Lord, are there few that be saved?' And He said unto them, 'Strive to enter in at the strait gate: for many, I say unto you, will seek to enter in, and shall not be able."

John 10:9-10: "[Jesus said unto them] 'I AM the door: by Me if any man enter in, He shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture. The thief cometh not but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I AM come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly."

Enter in by this prayer of consecration: Song:

I Surrender All

"All to Jesus I surrender, All to Him I freely give
I will ever love and trust Him, In His  presence daily live.

[Chorus]
I surrender all, I surrender all,
All to Thee my Blessed Savior, I surrender all.

All to Jesus I surrender, Humbly at His feet I bow,
Worldly pleasure all forsaken, Take me, Jesus, take me now.

All to Jesus I surrender, make me Savior wholly Thine,
Let me feel the Holy Spirit, Truly know that Thou art mine.

All to Jesus I surrender, Lord I give myself to Thee,
Fill me with Thy love and power, Let Thy blessing fall on Me.

All to Jesus I surrender, Now I feel the sacred flame,
O the joy of Thy salvation, Glory, glory to His name."

-Words by J.W.Van De Venter

Revelation 5:1 (C) Time to Open The Sealed Scroll

CALCULATING THE “SEVENTY WEEKS” AND THE “TIME OF THE END,” (I.E. “TIME, TIMES AND DIVIDING OF TIMES”) UP TO “THE APPOINTED TIME,” (DANIEL CHAPTER 9 UP TO REVELATION 1:3: “THE (APPOINTED) TIME IS AT HAND.”)

Daniel 9: 24-27 RSV: "(24) Seventy weeks of years are decreed concerning your people and your holy city, to finish the transgression, to put an end to sin, and to atone for iniquity, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal both vision and prophet, and to anoint a most holy place, [or thing, or one]. (25) Know therefore and understand that from the going forth of the word to restore and build Jerusalem to the coming of an anointed one, a prince, there shall be seven weeks. Then [“and” KJV] for sixty-two weeks it shall be built again with squares and moat, but in a troubled time. (26) And after the sixty-two weeks, an anointed one shall be cut off, and shall have nothing; and the people of the prince who is to come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary. Its end shall come with a flood, and to the end there shall be war; desolations are decreed. (27) And he shall make a strong covenant with many for one week; and for half the week he shall cause sacrifice and offering to cease; and upon the wing of abominations shall come one who makes desolate, until the decreed end is poured out on the desolator. (Dan. 9:24-27 RSV)

Greek- Sun-Time (=S) Hebrew Moon-Time (=M) Sun years are 365.25 days. Moon years are 354.3 days. Further complicating the process, the records we have are often of regnal years, which do not coincide with either solar or lunar calendars. Time reckoning cannot, therefore, be precise. Bright says that there was a year’s difference in Hebrew and Greek time-reckoning for this period. Oxford Annotated Apocrypha (OAA) says, “(Time) reckonings in the Seleucid era varied in different places…dates given are approximate.” (p. 222 n. 8-9) God’s reckoning is perfect, but our perception of it is often “through a glass darkly.”

 BC 

648 [Sun time is given first; Moontime next in this article, Author.]

667 Manasseh carried captive, 2 Chronicles 33:11-13. Although Manasseh was released and returned to rule in Jerusalem, this might be considered the first phase of the later deportations. [The nation was no longer its own from this time.]

606-5 624 

King of Judah and many captives including Daniel carried captive to Babylon.  Daniel was in captivity seventy moon-years when Cyrus’ edict came forth in 538-9/ (S); 555- (M). (See below).

588 606-5 Jerusalem destroyed, captives taken including Jeremiah. Jeremiah proclaims God’s decree to rebuild Jerusalem: Jeremiah 30:1-3, “The Word (“decree”) that came to Jeremiah.” (See Hebrew #1697, dâbâr= “decree.”) See especially: Jeremiah 30:18; 31:4, 38-40; 33:7-13. 

Note that Daniel 9:25-6, dates both a seven-week period and a 62-week period from “the decree to rebuild Jerusalem.” First, the coming of an anointed one would be seven weeks (of years), or 49 years. This was literally fulfilled in Cyrus. It would have been 49-50 moon-years from God’s decree through Jeremiah (605 BC [M]) to Cyrus’ decree (555 [M]). Cyrus is called “God's anointed” in Isaiah 45:1. (For end of 62-week period, see below at date 169-8(S).)

539-8

555 There were three decrees besides God’s decree through Jeremiah: They are: (1) Cyrus’ decree; (2) Darius decree to uphold Cyrus’ decree, 519(S)/534(M); Ezra 6:1-12; (3) Artaxerxes’ decree to finish and beautify the house, 457(S)/471(M), Ezra 7:11-17.

  Cyrus’ decree to rebuild Jerusalem, 2 Chronicles 36:22; Ezra 1:1-4. At this time Daniel prayed for the release of the captives. Daniel had been captive 70 years, (624-5 – 555 [M]). The seventy years captivity had been fulfilled. Note that God forsook the Temple also for seventy years, (588-518[S]), but not the same seventy. 

536 553  Work begins on Temple, Ezra 3:8. Enemies hinder and stop work.

520 536 Haggai gives word of the Lord, (1:8); work resumes on Temple.

519-8 534 Darius decree to uphold the previous decree of Cyrus, Ezra 6:14.

   Zechariah 1:12-16. Prophecy that 70 years of captivity are over and that God has returned to Jerusalem and it will be rebuilt. Zechariah refers again to “70 years” at chapter 7:5.

515 531 Temple finished: Ezra 6:14-15. (Temple had been abandoned for approximately 70 years, (605 [M] to 531[M].

?457 471 Artaxerxes decree to rebuild the House: Ezra 7:11-16.

171 176  In Daniel 9:25, “Then for sixty-two weeks,” the word translated “then” is from the Hebrew vau consecutive which is most often translated “and,” but sometimes left untranslated. It could, therefore, be translated: “And sixty-two weeks,” indicating that the 62 weeks, as well as the seven week period, was dated from the decree to rebuild Jerusalem. This is verified by the historical record for the first invasion of Jerusalem by Antiochus IV Epiphanes came at this time. See 2 Maccabees 4.22. See also note at 2 Maccabees 5.1 that this is considered the first phase of the later invasions. 

169-8 173 End of 62-week period, 434 years, (606-7 – 173[M]). After 62 weeks from the date of God’s decree, an anointed one was to be cut off, (Dan. 9:25-6). This would bring us to the date of the slaughter of Onias III in 173 (M). Daniel 9:27 says the abomination of desolation would be set up at this time.

  
 Abomination of desolation: Priests war over office of High Priest. Onias III, (An 'Annointed One', a High Priest, the last legitimate High Priest to hold office is slain, 2 Maccabees 4:34. Antiochus IV takes and plunders the Temple: Josephus’ Ant. 12.5.4. 1 Maccabees 1.54: “…on the 15th of Chislev (167 BC [S]) they erected a desolating sacrilege.”  See also Bright, pp. 422-3, citing 1 Maccabees 1:29-35, 41-64; 3:45; 2 Maccabees 5:22-26; 6:1-11, 18-31.

   Josephus (Ant. 12.7.6) says this was according to Daniel’s prophecy given “408” years earlier. Note: Josephus, or a translator, was probably trying to convert the Hebrew moon-years of Daniel to the Greek sun-years. 408 sun-years equal 420 moon-years, (or 60 weeks of years). However, the text mistranslated may have already been converted and the 420 sun-years would have been the equivalent of 434 moon-years, (i.e. the 62 Weeks of Dan. 9:25), and another translator erred in re-converting it, mistaking the process, taking the “420” to be moon-years instead of sun-years.

   If the 62 weeks are added to the seven weeks, we come out one “week” short of the “70 weeks.” This final “week” may, then, have been counted as “divided” or “halved” in the “Time, Times, and Dividing of Times,” i.e., the 245 years [M]: 70 +2(70) +35 = 245.

   If 70 years of captivity are counted in addition to this “420,” the full “Seventy Weeks of Years” were fulfilled at this point. This would require counting the captivity from the time Manasseh was taken captive to Babylon in about 667 BC [M], (2 Chron. 33:11-13), to the first invasion by Antiochus in 176 BC. 

This marks the end of the “Seventy Weeks” and begins the “Time, Times, and Dividing* of Times,” or perhaps also called “the time of the end.” I believe that this is the time when the “woman” of Revelation chapter 12, that is “Israel,” went into eclipse. (*'Dividing' is from Hebrew pelag in Daniel 7:25, and may also be translated “half.” However, “half” in Daniel 12:7 is from chêtsîy.)

“TIME, TIMES AND DIVIDING OF TIMES” UP TO “THE APPOINTED TIME”

168-7 173   Daniel 7:23-27. Vs. 25: “…times and laws… they shall be given into his hand until a time, and times and the dividing of times.” Vision seen in about 556-39 BC [S]. (Note that Book of Daniel, as we have it, is not in chronological order.)

   Daniel 11:31-35. Vs. 35: “…end is yet for a time appointed.” This vision in about 539-8 BC [S]. 

Daniel 12:6-11. Vision seen in about 539-8 BC [S]. Verse. 6 the “Man” asks: “How long to the end of these wonders?” The answer is: “It shall be for a time, times and an half….and from the time…the abomination of desolation is set up, there shall be a thousand, two hundred and ninety days.” We do not know how the translators have handled the original message in converting Greek time to Hebrew and vice versa. This may have been intended to designate a 42 or 43 month period, which would be approximately a 3 ½ year period [S].

   1 Maccabees 4.36-61 and 2 Maccabees 10.1-9 tell of the cleansing of the Temple after the desecration of Jason and Antiochus IV. The day of rededication was exactly 3 years from the time of its pollution, but 3 ½ years after the capture of Jerusalem, (OAA p. 231 n.52-59). This “time, times and dividing of times,” however, did not mark the final end, but only served to fulfill a pattern. 

   In Daniel 12:8 he does not understand, so he asks: “What shall be the end of these things?”  He is told to seal up the book and go to his rest and that he will stand in his lot at the end of the days. It is clear that the “end” is to come at an “appointed time”: Daniel 11:27, 29, 35. Revelation 1:3 says that time is "at hand."

Revelation 5:1 (B): "... a scroll written within and on the back, sealed with seven seals."

Revelation 5:1:  “And I saw in the right hand of him who was seated on the throne a scroll written within and on the back, sealed with seven seals.”

The sealed book was "written within and on the back side.” As the book was actually a scroll, the writing within could not be read until it was opened, that is, unsealed. This indicates that it was a testament, a will. According to the then current practice of making a testament, the writing on the back side named the one who was qualified to open the seals. That was usually the Heir. In this particular case, it designated the Lamb as the Heir, and so He only was qualified to open the scroll and to read what was within.

The scene shows that the Testator was very wealthy, for John wept much when no one was immediately found who qualified to open the scroll. When the Lamb, Christ, appeared as the qualified Heir, the hosts of heaven sang and rejoiced.

In the Sealed Book of Daniel 9:24-27 we have the prophecy of the end of Daniel’s Nation, City and People. In Daniel 10:1 we find that the “time appointed was long.” Daniel’s prophecy came in about 535 BC, more than 500 years, before the New Testament era a “long time”. However, there was an appointed time set for this prophecy to come to pass and the people living in the New Testament era knew that the time was at hand, Revelation 1:3.

Also in Daniel Chapter 10 we see that Daniel’s vision of “the Man Clothed in Linen” was similar to the vision of John the Revelator in Revelation 1 of the “Son of Man, clothed with a garment down to the foot,” both of which garments indicated those of the High Priest, (Leviticus 16:4; Ezekiel 44:17).

Read Daniel chapter 12.

If this scroll of Revelation 5:1 was indeed that which Daniel had sealed, we know that it contained the prophecy which Daniel did not understand. Daniel 9:24-27 shows that seventy weeks, 490 years, were decreed upon the fleshly nation of Israel and the Holy City, Jerusalem. Then in Daniel 12:7-12, another "time, times and an half" (KJV) were decreed: "And I heard the man clothed in linen, which was upon the waters of the river, when he held up his right hand and his left hand unto heaven, and sware by him that liveth for ever that it shall be for a time, times, and an half; and when he shall have accomplished to scatter the power of the holy people, all these things shall be finished."

Daniel was not able to understand it in his lifetime, (Daniel 12:8), but was promised that he would rest and stand in his lot at the "end of the days," that is, at the end of the 490 years, plus the “time, times and dividing of times," (RSV). 

The Book of Daniel was to be sealed until that "time of the end," (Daniel 12:4, 9). The Book of Revelation, however, was not to be sealed awaiting a future time, (22:10), but was to be fulfilled immediately, indicating that the time of the "end" which Daniel had specified had come. And in Revelation 10:6-7 we hear the angel declaring: "...There will be no more delay! (7) But in the days when the seventh angel is about to sound his trumpet, the mystery of God will be accomplished, just as He announced to His servants the prophets," (NIV)

Many scholars have conclusively shown that this time was fulfilled and the events were accomplished in history at Calvary and the destruction of Jerusalem forty years later in 70 AD. The Book of Revelation shows the fulfillment of Daniel's prophecy of the end of the fleshly kingdom. 

That Daniel's prophecies have been literally fulfilled should not be a cause for stumbling but rather a source of certainty that they are indeed the word of God. That they have been fulfilled makes it all the more certain that they will be fulfilled again upon the entire planet after the Gospel has gone throughout the world as a witness. They serve as a sign of the end of the whole earth in due time.

For those who are interested to see the historical fulfillment of Daniel's prophesies, I will post my chart of “Calculating the Seventy Weeks,” the “Time, Times, and Dividing of Times,”and “The Time of the End” on pages 21-24 of Revelation in Context. These charts show how Daniels’ prophecies were fulfilled and bring us up to “The Appointed Time,” which was in 70 AD.

BETWEEN THE DEAD AND THE LIVING

Numbers 16:48: “And he stood between the dead and the living; and the plague was stayed.”

   This passage is about the plague that came upon those who murmured against God’s  anointed leaders while Israel was on their wilderness journey to the Promised Land. God’s wrath fell upon them and fourteen thousand seven hundred died. But the Lord inspired Moses to provide an atonement and Aaron took holy fire from the altar in a censor and ran among the congregation and stood between the living and the dead and the plague was stayed.

    Jesus came to save us from the plague of sin which has come upon the human race because of the sin of Adam. He stands now between the living and the dead. 

     Ephesians 2:1-6 RSV: “And you He made alive, when you were dead through the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience. Among these we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, following the desires of body and mind, and so we were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. But God, Who is rich in mercy, out of the great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead through our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ, (by grace you have been saved), And raised us up with Him, and made us sit with Him in the heavenly places in Christ  Jesus.”

    John 5:24 RSV: “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears My words and believes Him Who sent Me, has eternal life; he does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life.”

    Will you choose Life in Christ or die in the plague of sin?

REVELATION 5:1 - THE SEALED SCROLL

For the covenant community of the New Testament era, mention of a "Sealed Book" would have immediately suggested the Book which was given to Daniel to be sealed "until the time of the end." Jesus referred to the Book of Daniel, (Matt. 24:15; Mark 13:14), in terms showing that His audience was thoroughly familiar with it. 

Many references throughout the New Testament show they expected that the "end" which Daniel had prophesied was near at hand. Since Daniel's book was to be sealed "until the time of the end,” (Daniel 12:4, 9), and knowing that time had come, they would expect the Sealed Book to now be opened. And this is indeed what we see happening in Revelation 5. So the Sealed Book of Revelation can only be properly understood in the context of the Book of Daniel. 

Revelation 5 begins with the Sealed Book, which in that era of time would have been in the form of a scroll. This Sealed Scroll is important because it forms the basis for chapters 5 through 11. 

Chapters 5-7 describe the opening of the first Six Seals of the scroll. 

Chapter 8 describes the opening of the Seventh Seal which contains the Seven Trumpets. 

Chapters 8 and 9 then contain the sounding of the Seven Trumpets. 

Chapter 10 then describes the last page of this Scroll as “A Little Scroll Open.” This “Little Scroll,” which is the last page of the original Sealed Scroll, is handed over from the Angel to John the Revelator, who was to prophecy to "many peoples, and nations, and tongues, and kings," 10:11. The final prophecy, specifically to the genetic descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, was fulfilled and the prophecy is now for the whole human race. 

Chapter 11 brings us to the sounding of the Seventh Trumpet. 

All of these details will be studied at length as we get to them in order. 

For some further literary context, we will also give the relevant background material from the Book of Enoch, a writing familiar to the Christians of the New Testament era. Here Enoch was seeing in a vision the history of the world from the time of the Babylonian captivity, that is, the 500+ years from Daniel’s time to the New Testament era. Historical records show that Enoch's vision did come to pass.

Enoch sees the Lord call seventy Shepherds and give them each some sheep. The Lord then calls a man, a Recorder, to keep record of how the Shepherds treat the sheep. The cruel Shepherds give the sheep to wild beasts and the Recorder writes it in a book and delivers it to the Lord Who reads it and seals it. 

The second part of Enoch's vision covers the time of the return from Babylonian captivity up to the time of Alexander the Great, the cruelty of the Shepherds is again recorded and shown to the Lord, Who again seals it up. 

In the third period of the vision, Enoch sees the Graeco-Syrian domination up to the Maccabean revolt; then their last assault upon the Jews, and how the Maccabees were given a “Great Sword.” 

The Recorder writes the last twelve of the Seventy Shepherds, who had destroyed more than their predecessors, and delivers it to the Lord Who then smites them in wrath. The Lord then establishes His throne in “the Pleasant Land,” the Sealed Books are opened and the fallen angels, the Shepherds, and the apostates are judged.

This passage from Enoch shows that there was a tradition of historical prophecy where successive eras of time are recorded in sealed books. Just as Daniel prophesied the future historical events, so did Enoch. This gives us a precedent for interpreting Revelation 5:1 and following as the opening of the Book which Daniel sealed, which would be a spiritual record of the historical events that transpired from the time of Daniel to the time of the end of the Nation of Israel, the City, Jerusalem, and the People, the Jews. 

Thus we see in Revelation 6:17, after six of the seals of the Book have been opened, “For the Great Day of His Wrath has come, and who shall be able to stand?” His wrath came in 70 AD with the destruction of Jerusalem, the slaughter of millions of Jews, and the dispersion of hundreds of thousands. 

It might be compared to a court case where the Lord sets an appointed time for the legal hearing, gathers evidence upon the offending servants and seals it until the time of the hearing. At the appointed time the sealed evidence is opened and the Lord’s wrath begins in judgment against the wicked servants. 

The Lord set an appointed time for the "end" of the Jewish people, nation and city in Daniel 9:24-27. The Book of Revelation records the evidence gathered during that time and the judgment that followed it. 

God then established His kingdom in Christ in the "Pleasant Land," the heavenly city of the New Jerusalem, Revelation 21-22.

STUMBLING BLOCKS: IDOLATRY AND FORNICATION

Revelation 2:14: “But I have a few things against thee, because thou hast there them that hold the doctrine of Balaam, who taught Balak to cast a stumbling block before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed unto idols and to commit fornication.”

This was part of Jesus’ warning to the Church at Pergamos. It refers to the account in Numbers chapters 22-24. God had brought Israel out of Egypt and they were on their way to Canaan. At this point they were on the border of the land of Moab. Balak was the king of the Moabites at that time and when he saw the great multitude and strength of Israel he feared them. He was allied with the nation of the Midianites and they decided to call upon Balaam, a man known to have divine powers, to curse the Israelites. 

So they sent their messengers to Balaam with their proposal and with a promise of reward if he would come and curse Israel. However, the Lord God talked with Balaam and told him not to go with them. So Balaam refused to go. Balak then sent more and more prominent men with greater promises of reward. At first Balaam refused but asked them to stay overnight saying: “I pray you, tarry ye also here this night, that I may know what the Lord will say unto me more.”

Did he really need more instructions? We see from this that he was tempted and hoping that the Lord would let him go and receive the reward. The Lord did come to him that night and told him to go, but warned him not to say anything but only what He told him to say. Balaam got up the next morning and started out with them, but God was angry with him, knowing that he had a great temptation to get the reward regardless. So God sent His angel to arrest Balaam. Balaam’s donkey saw the angel and would not go past him. After Balaam beat his donkey a few times, the donkey spoke and told him what he saw. 

Then the Lord opened Balaam’s eyes to see the angel with his sword drawn to slay him, and Balaam repented. But he went on, met Balak and proceeded with the ceremony. However, he found that he could only speak blessings, not curses, and thus brought Balak’s wrath upon himself. So Balaam “went back to his own place.”

But the story doesn’t end there. In Numbers 31:16 we find that Balaam had found another way to get that great reward from Balak. Although Balaam could not curse Israel, through subtlety he told Balak how to cause Israel to bring the curse upon themselves by worshiping idols and committing fornication. Balaam then went to the Midianites and taught their women to seduce the Israelite men to idolatry, and hence to fornication.  

The Midianite women put into practice what Balaam had taught them. Numbers chapter 25 describes the great sin of idolatry and fornication and the resultant wrath of God upon the Israelites. There was a great slaughter and also many deaths from a plague. Moses knew this was an act of war against Israel. He sent the Israelites to war against the Midianites to avenge themselves of their great loss. They slew every man of them, including Balaam, but spared the women. Moses angrily required them to also slay all of the mature women who had caused them to sin, because of the teaching of Balaam, Numbers 31:16.

It is this example that Peter uses to warn the Christians about the unjust: “Having eyes full of adultery, and that cannot cease from sin; beguiling unstable souls; an heart they have exercised with covetous practices; cursed children. Which have forsaken the right way, and are gone astray, following the way of Balaam the son of Bosor, who loved the wages of unrighteousness,” 2Peter 2:14-15.

 Jude also refers to this example in verse 11: “Woe unto them! For they have gone in the way of Cain, and ran greedily after the error of Balaam for reward, and perished in the gainsaying of Core.”

So the message to the Church at Pergamos is a powerful warning against covetousness, greed and idolatry leading to fornication. These are acts of war. 

Romans chapter 14 teaches us about our responsibility not only to carefully follow the Lord personally, but also to consider our brother: “Let us not therefore judge one another any more: but judge this rather, that no man put a stumblingblock or an occasion to fall in his brother’s way…. It is good neither to eat flesh, nor to drink wine, nor anything whereby thy brother stumbleth or is made weak,” 14:13, 21. [Note my emphasis on “anything.”]

ANTIDOTE FOR FEAR

                Franklin Roosevelt in preparing the nation for WWII said: "We have nothing to fear but fear itself." That was not really so in that instance. However, we find that the Bible teaches us that we do not need to fear if we are abiding in the Lord Jesus Christ. We can sing with the Psalmist:

“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.
(2) Therefore will not we fear though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea;

(3) Though the waters thereof roar and be troubled,

      Though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof. Selah.

(4) There is a river, the streams whereof shall make glad the City of God,

     The holy place of the tabernacles of the Most High.

(5) God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved:

     God shall help her and that right early.

(6) The heathen raged, the kingdoms were moved;

     He uttered His voice; the earth melted.

(7) The Lord of Hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah.

(8) Come, behold the works of the Lord, what desolations He hath made in the earth.

(9) He maketh wars to cease to the ends of the earth;

     He breaketh the bow, and cutteth the spear in sunder;

     He burneth the chariot in the fire.

(10) Be still, and know that I AM God:

     I will be exalted among the heathen,

     I will be exalted in the earth.

(11) The Lord of Hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah.” Psalm 46.

                For a sure, lasting and very present help in trouble and an antidote for all kinds of fear, memorize this Psalm. That way you can have it with you at all times. Be blessed.

[Note: The "City of God" is now the New Jerusalem, the Bride of Christ, His Body, the Church, Revelation 3:12. We, His saints, are the tabernacle of the Most High, 1Corinthians 3:16; 6:19.]

Song: HE HIDETH MY SOUL, by Fanny J. Crosby.

“1. A wonderful Savior is Jesus my Lord, A wonderful Savior to me;

    He hideth my soul in the cleft of the rock, where rivers of pleasure I see.

CHORUS

He hideth my soul in the cleft of the rock, That shadows a dry thirsty land;

He hideth my life in the depths of His love, And covers me there with His hand.

And covers me there with His hand.

2. A wonderful Savior is Jesus my Lord, He taketh my burden away,

     He holdeth me up and I shall not be moved; He giveth me strength as my day.

3. With numberless blessings each moment He crowns, And filled with His fullness divine,

     I sing in my rapture, ‘Oh, glory to God, For such a Redeemer as mine.’

4. When clothed in His brightness transported I rise, To meet Him in clouds of the sky,

     His perfect salvation, His wonderful love, I’ll shout with the millions on high.

CHORUS:

He hideth my soul in the cleft of the rock, That shadows a dry thirsty land;

He hideth my life in the depths of His love, And covers me there with His hand.

And covers me there with His hand.”