4th century BC
Plato
- Idealism — forms over particulars
- The Republic ethic: “God is not the author of evil”
Notes
I have always had an ear for the phrases that quietly reveal or conceal what a person believes. This song is about that - the shibboleths, the words that cut the night in two. Some of them divide brothers who actually agree. Some of them, like God helps those who help themselves, are simply wrong and repeated without thinking. Either way, words carry weight, and the song says we should learn it.
But notice the song does two things at once, and the second is the harder one. It is willing to name a bad phrase - it even stops to say plainly that I hold particular redemption, Christ's death for His chosen, not a sufficient-for-all formula. So it does not pretend all language is equal. And yet the head of the song, the line it opens and closes on, is the corrective: grace speaks low and steady, soft and true. You can be right about the words and still handle a brother wrong.
That is the whole instruction of verse three. Be patient when they miss it. Guide softly toward the truth of Christ, not pushing hard our way. A shibboleth can draw a line straight through the body of Christ. Grace redraws it as a family table. Care about the words - and never more than you care about the person saying them.
Lyrics
[HEAD]
Words can draw a line, cut the night in two,
But grace speaks low and steady, soft, and true.
Words can draw a line, cut the night in two,
But grace speaks low and steady, soft, and true.
[VERSE 1]
Shibboleths, words that divide,
Phrases that are often misused,
A way to distinguish groups apart,
But sometimes, they are simply misconstrued.
Some say Christ's sacrifice was sufficient for all,
But efficient only for the elect, it's true.
But to me, that doesn't make sense,
For Christ's death was only for His chosen few.
[VERSE 2]
There are other phrases that we may hear,
From believers who don't quite understand.
They repeat them without thinking,
And sometimes, they are out of hand.
God helps those who help themselves,
The Holy Spirit is a gentleman.
Good luck, and hold to God's unchanging hand -
These phrases can be misleading, and not grand.
[BRIDGE]
As we grow in grace and knowledge,
We learn the weight of every word.
We shed old lines we once repeated,
And speak the truth that should be heard.
[VERSE 3]
Be patient when they miss it,
When their language goes astray.
Guide softly toward the truth of Christ,
Not pushing hard our way.
We're family in the gospel,
All redeemed and set apart.
So speak with grace and mercy,
Let love be where we start.
[OUTRO]
Words can draw a line, cut the night in two,
But grace speaks low and steady, soft, and true.
Words can draw a line, cut the night in two,
But grace speaks low and steady, soft, and true.
Commentary