Bless Christ! for he was poor,
Once fed like sparrows in the sky
And clothed like fields where lilies lie.
He holds God’s reign secure.

Bless Christ! for he would mourn
Jerusalem and weep to bring
Its brood beneath his mother-wing.
Now is his joy reborn.

Bless Christ! so meek his hand
Would crush no thin bruised reed, nor dare
Snuff out a smoldering wick. His share
Is all the Promised Land.

Bless Christ! who hungered till
God’s fire should fall on earth like rain,
Who thirsted for his bath of pain.
Now he may have his fill.

Bless Christ! his mercy’s art
Would treat the ailing, not the well,
And seek lost sheep in Israel.
His mercy shows God’s heart.

Bless Christ! in purity
He entered through the narrow gate
And trod a road both rough and straight.
Now God is his to see.

Bless Christ! the peaceful one
Who gave unworldly peace, and thus
His peace was his farewell to us.
He truly is God’s Son.

Be blest, O Christ, our Lord!
Betrayed, denied, condemned, and jeered,
Once flogged and crowned, then nailed and speared,
Now great is your reward!