With whom shall I dwell, says the Lord? With whom shall I share all my glory?
Where is the Maiden of my delight, for whom I have written this story?To whom shall I go, says the King? To whom shall I look with elation?
Whom shall I destine to be my Queen, and the Mother of my New Creation?
She dwells on the Earth, says the Lord, she dwells in the Vale of Decision;
Despised and rejected and misunderstood, but clothed with a heart of compassion.
She abandoned her home, says the King, to worship me out in the desert;
Poor in the spirit, with tears in her eyes, my wings were her only true covert.
She took precious seed from my hand, and cast it down into the darkness;
Her sister berated her wasteful ways, and the rest of the world thought it madness.
But these were the ways of her Lord, and this was the mind of her Master.
She held to the promise of life to come, and equated it not with disaster.
The seed in due course came alive, and the word of the Lord was enacted;
The Woman of Sorrows, acquainted with grief, looked up as her faith was perfected.
So Rebecca shall come to her Lord; tears of grief become tears of rejoicing,
And running to Isaac’s outstretched arms, darkened years shall be lost in embracing.
Composed 13th March 1976
Music, arranged as a tenor solo, available on request
