And stand from sin Babel aloof.
The prophet's keen vision, transpiercing the ages,
Beheld us to Zion return;
We'll sing of our freedom, though Babylon rages,
We'll shout as her city doth burn.
The fig-tree is budding, the "evening" is shining,
We welcome the wonderful light!
We look for the Savior, for time is declining,
Eternity's looming in sight.
As he saw the church of God emerge out of confusion into the brightness which should characterize the evening of time, he wrote the following, which is given with music at the beginning of [Chapter I].