O Root of Jesse II

There is nothing so hopeless as a tree’s
 Stump whose root has been lopped of green
 Cut down, left lifeless, without its leaves To lie in lament, to sorrow only cling. O Root of Jesse, the stump from which 
Buds our righteousness, joy, and peace
 Who makes the scorned, the cut off rich,
 Who were despised, hated, counted least. O how may hope from this lifeless wood, This cursed, crossed tree raised above, Hanging with death, certainly no good Could spring in new life, sing wondrous love.
 Come quickly Root of Jesse, deliver and bring
 The peace which the nations long and sing.

© Randy Edwards 2016 artwork: The Jesse Tree in the Lambeth Psalter, unknown English miniaturist, c.1140s

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