(Go here for lead sheets and chord charts.)
Lyrics
Hark, the glad sound! the Savior comes
The Savior promised long
Let every heart prepare a throne
For Him to reign upon
He comes, the prisoners to release
In Satan’s bondage held
The gates of hell before Him burst
The iron fetters yield
The Savior comes, the Savior comes!
The Savior promised long
O may our hearts prepare a throne
For Him to reign upon
He comes, from thickest films of vice
To clear the mental ray
And on the eyes oppressed with night
To pour celestial day
He comes, the broken heart to bind
The bleeding soul to cure
And with the treasures of His grace
To bless the humble poor
His silver trumpets publish loud
The jubilee of the Lord
Our debts are all remitted now
Our heritage restored
Our glad hosannas, Prince of Peace
Thy welcome shall proclaim
And heaven’s eternal arches ring
With Thy beloved name
Words: Philip Doddridge, 1735, alt. Zac Hicks, 2007
Music: Zac Hicks, 2007
©2009 Unbudding Fig Music (ASCAP)
Video Tutorial: How to Play “Hark the Glad Sound”
About
“Hark, the Glad Sound!” is a forgotten hymn, except in the most traditional churches. Presbyterian pastor Philip Doddridge penned this glorious congregational poem especially for the season of Advent. What is particularly remarkable about this Advent hymn is that it blurs the line between the two realities to which Advent points: Jesus first coming and second coming. It is simultaneously historical and eschatological, looking back and looking forward. Consider the line in verse 2:
He comes, from thickest films of vice to clear the mental ray
And on the eyes oppressed with night to pour celestial day
Is this referring to what Christ did or what He will do? Yes! Doddridge offers us the “already/not yet,” biblical view of the kingdom of God. I, as the songwriter, took a bit more liberty than normal with the hymn text. The line, “Let every heart prepare a throne for Him to reign upon,” is my own, replacing “Let every heart prepare a throne and every voice a song.” I was just off the heels of having read the transformative book, Instruments in the Redeemer’s Hands, by Paul David Tripp, whose principal point is that all outward sin is rooted in inward idolatry. And an idol is that which reigns on the throne of our hearts in place of Christ. The thought and its implications are much more profound than can be explained here, but I wanted to bring that out a bit more…especially since Advent is a time in which we can reflect quite deeply on ourselves in relation to Christ’s “coming” to us. The adjusted lyric easily morphed into a chorus line, the theme of which I obviously wanted to dominate and color the entire song.