How sad will it be, in the day of the Lord,
For those bound to earth, as with fetters and cord;
Whose range is confin'd to this globe and its girth,
Who're strangers to heaven, and "dwellers on earth.”
The tree that most firmly is fix'd in the ground,
And, fed by its moisture, with glory is crown'd,
Will suffer the keenest from drought and from dearth,
And so, in the judgments, with "dwellers on earth.”
The kindred of Cain, far away from the Lord
Their cities have built, where their names they record;
In science they've skill, they have music and mirth,
And spread like a bay-tree, these "dwellers on earth.”
But soon "the great trouble" shall come on the world,
And judgments most fearful on men shall be hurl'd,
And there shall be wars, desolation, and dearth;
When anguish shall seize all the "dwellers on earth.”
Delusions and lies will by them be believed,
For, blinded by Satan, by him they're deceived:
Ah, what will their Babels and buildings be worth,
When they shall fall with them, as "dwellers on earth!”
But those whose foundation is Jesus, the Lord,
For loss in this world have a blessed reward;
Partakers by faith of the heavenly birth,
Their home is in heaven, and not upon earth.
O ye who are building for blessing below,
Your fabric will fall, and o'er whelm you in woe;
But, resting on Christ, on His work and His worth,
The doom you'll escape of the "dwellers on earth.”