Continuing in my series Then Sings My Soul: The Hymns of My Youth with some Gaither songs, we arrive this week at Palm Sunday. I thought this week I would feature Bill and Gloria Gaither’s song about the coming of the King. The lyrics of course reveal that the event in mind is the rapture and not the triumphal entry that we celebrate on Palm Sunday, but nonetheless… it represents another fixture among the hymns and songs of my youth.
The song was written sometime in the early 70’s, and reflects well a hope in the return of Christ. This is actually a refreshing perspective on the subject given some of the mania of that era focusing on the rapture as an imminent ominous event that instilled fear into so many, as can be seen in certain books and movies of that era (you know which ones I’m talking about). It reminds me somewhat of certain other books and movies of the current era (you know which ones I’m talking about) that are not helpful — not to mention not being close to theologically accurate in my view. Contrast the lyrics of this song which portrays the stoppage of daily activities not in horror at being “left behind,” but in reverence for the coming of the King — and such great joy for those for whom he returns.
The King is Coming
The marketplace is empty,
No more traffic in the streets,
All the builders’ tools are silent,
No more time to harvest wheat;
Busy housewives cease their labors,
In the courtroom no debate,
Work on earth is all suspended
As the King comes thro’ the gate.O the King is coming,
The King is coming!
I just heard the trumpets sounding,
And now His face I see;
O the King is coming,
The King is coming!
Praise God, He’s coming for me!Happy faces line the hallways,
Those whose lives have been redeemed,
Broken homes that He has mended,
Those from prison He has freed;
Little children and the aged
Hand in hand stand all aglow,
Who were crippled, broken, ruined,
Clad in garments white as snow.chorus
I can hear the chariots rumble,
I can see the marching throng,
The flurry of God’s trumpets
Spells the end of sin and wrong:
Regal robes are now unfolding,
Heaven’s grandstand’s all in place,
Heaven’s choir now assembled,
Start to sing “Amazing Grace!”chorus
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