Hymn: O solemn hour! O hour alone

O solemn hour! O hour alone,
In solitary night,
When God the Father’s only Son,
As Man, for sinners lost, undone,
Expires—amazing sight!
The Lord of glory crucified!
The Lord of Life has bled and died!

O mystery of mysteries!
Of life and death the tree!
Center of two eternities,
Which look with rapt, adoring eyes,
Onward, and back to Thee’
O cross of Christ, where all His pain
And death is our eternal gain.

O how our inmost hearts do move,
While gazing on that cross!
The death of the incarnate Love!
What shame, what grief, what joy we prove,
That He should die for us!
Our hearts were broken by that cry,
“Eli, lama sabachthani!”

Worthy of death, O Lord, we were;
That vengeance was our due;
In grace Thou, spotless Lamb, didst bear
Thyself our sins, and guilt, and fear;
Justice our Surety slew.
With Thee, our Surety, we have died;
With Thee, we there were crucified.

Quickened with Thee with life divine,
Raised with Thee from the dead;
Thine Own, now human and divine,
Shall with Thee in Thy glories shine,
The Church’s living Head!
We, who were worthy but to die,
Now with Thee, “Abba Father,” cry.

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Oct 23 2025

Un Hermano

III. A MYSTERY OF MYSTERIES

The Triune God (Father, Son, and Spirit) is a mystery—in fact a mystery of mysteries! Small and finite as human beings are, we can neither understand it thoroughly nor define it in a full way. John 1:1 says, “The Word was with God, and the Word was God. ” By the clause “the Word was with God, ” we understand that the Word and God are two, for the Word was with God. But “the Word was God” indicates that the Word and God are one, for the Word was God. Are They one or two? They are both. This is a mystery.

Second Corinthians 3:17 says that “the Lord is the Spirit. ” Here the Lord and the Spirit are one, for the Lord is the Spirit. Then the same verse speaks of “the Spirit of the Lord. ” This indicates that They are two. Are the Lord and the Spirit one or two? It is a mystery.

Notice that in Hebrews 1:8-9 the Son is addressed as God; then God is referred to as “His” God: “But as to the Son, Your throne, O God, is forever and ever.... Therefore God, Your God, has anointed You. ” How can you explain this? Can you say, “O God, Your God”? This is also a mystery.

Finally, in Revelation 1:4 , 4:5 , and 5:6 we read that the one Spirit of God ( Eph. 4:4 ) is called “the seven Spirits. ” Here is another mystery. Dear brothers and sisters, we must learn simply to accept the pure Word.

This mystery should not bother us too much, however. Many things relating to life are not understandable to men; we can only have a general idea of them. For instance, although we have life in our physical body, no one can explain this life thoroughly, for it is a mystery. Furthermore, there is a spirit within us—this is even more of a mystery. What is the life of man? And what is the spirit of man? No one can give a full explanation. If we cannot comprehend such a comparatively small mystery as man, we should not expect to be able to fully understand the great mystery of the Triune God—the Father, Son, and Spirit. There are many other unexplainable things in the universe. Electricity is one example. With our limited minds we can only understand that some things are so, but we cannot perceive why they are so. If we cannot fully understand something like electricity, how much less can we understand the Triune God!

Summary

Although we cannot understand this mystery of the Trinity of the Godhead, we can receive and enjoy this mysterious God. We cannot understand, but we can enjoy! In former days men had no knowledge of vitamins, yet they greatly enjoyed their benefit. Praise the Lord! The Triune God is not for us to understand, but to enjoy. All that He is for us to enjoy is revealed in the Scriptures. Although we cannot fully understand it, we may, according to all that is declared in the Bible, accept whatever is said and enjoy Him.

A Lesson Book, Level 2:

The Triune God—the Triune God

and the Person and Work of Christ

Chapter 1 (LSM)

Jul 19 2023

Edna Leung

Hong Kong, Hong Kong

Indeed a nugget esp. in stanza 5. Searched in the Brethen archives online and did not see stanza 5 there. In the Little Flock hymnal stanza 5 was added (captured below) but appreciate the further improvement in the Hymnal.net version. We are made human and divine - this is the mystery of mysteries!

"Quickened with Him with life divine,

Raised with Him from the dead;

His own, and all His own are Thine,

Shall with Him in His glories shine,

His church's living Head!

We, who were worthy but to die,

Now with Him, "Abba, Father," cry."

Sep 15 2008

Daniel

Worcester, MA, United States

What a redemption wrought by our Savior and Leader! He's the Tree of Life that died on the cross of wood and not only there alone but we were there too. Br. James touches God's economy with stanza 5 concerning our status in the Lord's resurrection by the "big" birth; our becoming God-men, both human and divine! How marvelous to find such nuggets of gold in the hymns!

O solemn hour! O hour alone

O solemn hour! O hour alone

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