Hymn
O Father of the Found and Freed
Words: Ryan Daniel Cornett
Music: Arr. from George Frideric Handel
Tune: BRADFORD
Meter: C.M.
Stanza 1
O Father of the found and freed,
Thy hand lifts up the least;
Thou callest strangers to Thy courts,
And paupers to Thy feast.
Stanza 2
The orphan hears a Father's voice,
A song of welcoming;
The wayward one, brought home, is made
A child of the King.
Stanza 3
A wild shoot from a withered root
Is joined to holy stock;
The sheep once lost is sought and claimed
For the Good Shepherd's flock.
Stanza 4
Thus grows Thy great and blessed house,
From many tribes, one blood;
A kindred from all lands and years,
The family of God.
Stanza 5
Behold what names are on Thy scroll
In ink no time can fade!
What heirs of everlasting grace,
In royal robes arrayed!
About the song
This hymn celebrates the wondrous grace of adoption into God's family, by which strangers, orphans, and wayward sinners are welcomed as beloved children of the King. Through images of feasting, grafting, shepherding, and heavenly inheritance, it rejoices in the gathering of Christ's redeemed people from every nation into one everlasting household.
Themes
Scripture references
Psalm 113:7-8; Luke 14:21; Luke 15:20-24; John 10:14-16; Romans 8:15-17; Romans 11:17-18; Galatians 4:4-7; Ephesians 2:12-22; 1 John 3:1-2; Revelation 3:5; Revelation 7:9-10