Hymn
The Swift Declining Day
The swift declining day,
How fast its moments fly!
While evening's broad and gloomy shade
Gains on the western sky.
Ye mortals, mark its pace,
And use the hours of light;
And know, its Maker can command
At once eternal night.
Give glory to the Lord,
Who rules the whirling sphere;
Submissive at his footstool bow,
And seek salvation there.
Then shall new lustre break
Through death's impending gloom,
And lead you to unchanging light,
In your celestial home.
The Swift Declining Day — Text from Laudes Domini, 1890. Public domain. https://yeshuanow.com/hymns/the-swift-declining-day
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Questions about this hymn
Who wrote The Swift Declining Day?
The words of The Swift Declining Day were written by Philip Doddridge; the version here was published in 1890. The library holds 55 more hymns by Philip Doddridge, including Children Dedicated to Christ and O God of Bethel, by Whose hand.
Is The Swift Declining Day public domain?
Yes. The words here are taken from Laudes Domini, published in 1890. Works published before 1931 are out of copyright in the United States, so you can print, project, perform and record this hymn freely. How we source and check every hymn.
What is the metre of The Swift Declining Day?
The Swift Declining Day is in Short Metre (6.6.8.6). Hymns in the same metre can usually be sung to the same tunes — for example, Communion with Christ and with Saints, Morning and The Lord My Shepherd Is.