O Heavenly Jerusalem

O heavenly Jerusalem,
Of everlasting halls,
Thrice blessèd are the people
Thou storest in thy walls.

Thou art the golden mansion,
Where saints forever sing,
The seat of God’s own chosen,
The palace of the king.

There God forever sitteth,
Himself of all the Crown,
The Lamb, the Light that shineth,
And never goeth down.

Naught to this seat approacheth
Their sweet peace to molest;
They sing their God forever,
Nor day nor night they rest.

Sure hope doth thither lead us;
Our longings thither tend;
May short lived toil ne’er daunt us
For joys that cannot end.

To Christ the Sun that lightens
His Church above, below,
To Father, and to Spirit,
All things created bow.

Author: Unknown

This is an English translation of the Latin hymn 'Urbs beata Jerusalem' (also known as 'Blessed city, heavenly Salem'). The original medieval Latin text is anonymous (often dated to the 6th-8th century). Multiple English translations exist; this particular rendering does not closely match the most common ones by J. M. Neale or others, so the translator remains unidentified in standard hymnals.