Earth’s Mighty Maker, Whose Command

Earth’s mighty Maker, whose command
Raised from the sea the solid land,
And drove each billowy heap away,
And bade the earth stand firm for aye:

That so, with flowers of golden hue,
The seeds of each it might renew;
And fruit trees bearing fruit might yield—
And pleasant pasture of the field;

Our spirit’s rankling wounds efface
With dewy freshness of Thy grace:
That grief may cleanse each deed of ill,
And o’er each lust may triumph still.

Let every soul Thy law obey,
And keep from every evil way;
Rejoice each promised good to win
And flee from every mortal sin.

O Father, that we ask be done,
Through Jesus Christ, Thine only Son;
Who, with the Holy Ghost and Thee,
Doth live and reign eternally.

Author: St. Ambrose of Milan

Year: 397

This is an English translation of the Latin hymn 'Telluris ingens Conditor' from the 4th-century Ambrosian office for Wednesday. While Ambrose is traditionally credited with the original Latin text, some scholars debate exact authorship among early Latin hymn writers; the translation is by J. M. Neale or similar 19th-century translators.