The Earth Belongs unto the Lord

The earth belongs unto the Lord,
And all that it contains;
The world that is inhabited,
And all that there remains.
For the foundations thereof
He on the seas did lay,
And He hath it establishèd
Upon the floods to stay.

Who is the man that shall ascend
Into the hill of God?
Or who within His holy place
Shall have a firm abode?
Whose hands are clean, whose heart is pure,
And into vanity
Who hath not lifted up his soul,
Nor sworn deceitfully.

He from th’Eternal shall receive
The blessing him upon,
And righteousness, ev’n from the God
Of his salvation.
This is the generation
That after Him inquire,
O Jacob, who do seek Thy face
With their whole heart’s desire.

Ye gates, lift up your heads on high;
Ye doors, that last for aye,
Be lifted up, that so the King
Of glory enter may.
But who of glory is the King?
The mighty Lord is this;
Ev’n that same Lord, that great in might
And strong in battle is.

Author: Unknown

Year: 1650

This is a metrical rendering of Psalm 24 from the 1650 Scottish Psalter (also known as the Scottish Metrical Version). The text is traditional and of unknown individual authorship, though it is part of the collaborative effort by the Westminster Assembly and Scottish revisers.