Traditional: Collected Lyrics
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Public-domain lyrics

The Great Mission

Traditional

“The Great Mission” as printed in The Army and Navy Hymnal (1920).

Traditional: Collected Lyrics Text 400 1920 · historical text
Public domainHymnSacred song
Complete public-domain lyrics

This text comes from The Army and Navy Hymnal, a historical songbook transcribed on Wikisource and reproduced from the pinned revision linked below.

Verse 1

THE Spirit of the Lord is upon me; because the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek;

He hath sent me to bind up the broken-hearted,

To proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound;

To proclaim the year of the Lord's favor, and the day of vengeance of our God;

To comfort all that mourn; to appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them a garland for ashes,

The oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness;

That they may be called trees of righteousness,

The planting of the Lord, that he may be glorified.

Verse 2

YEA, saith the Lord, It is too light a thing that thou shouldest be my servant, to raise up the tribes of Jacob and to restore the preserved of Israel:

I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth.

Thus saith the Lord, In an acceptable time have I answered thee, and in a day of salvation, have I helped thee;

And I will preserve thee, and give thee for a covenant of the people,

Saying to them that are bound, Go forth; to them that are in darkness, Show yourselves.

They shall feed in the ways, and on all bare heights shall be their pasture.

They shall not hunger nor thirst; neither shall the heat nor sun smite them:

For he that hath mercy on them will lead them, even by springs of water will he guide them.

Sing, heavens; and be joyful, earth; and break forth into singing, mountains:

For the Lord hath comforted his people, and will have compassion upon his afflicted.

Credits

Written by Traditional

Traditional words. Historical text published in The Army and Navy Hymnal (1920); public domain. No claim to a modern recording or arrangement.

Source & text edition

The Army and Navy Hymnal (1920), “The Great Mission”

The 1920 published edition is in the public domain in the United States (pre-1931 publication). Entries whose credited author died more than 70 years ago are also in the public domain in life-plus-70 jurisdictions; traditional and anonymous entries are public domain. Pages whose scan quality is below the proofread threshold are held for review.

How to read this historical text and its source

Read the source on Wikisource

View copyright evidence · Transcription terms (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Retrieved 2026-10-26. Line spacing and section labels are adapted for reading. The displayed text follows the linked edition. Editorial notes and abstract artwork are by 52lyrics.
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