1 The reign of Christ comes not by force:
no weapons clash, no legions fight;
it casts no shadow of remorse
but beckons all with truth and light.
2 The sov'reign rules through servant-hood,
befriends all those the world counts least,
denounces pride, calls meekness good:
this prince of peace, this royal priest.
3 His coronation is with thorns,
his monarch's show, a doomed man's march;
and yet this stone the builder scorns
becomes the keystone of the arch.
4 For now this once rejected king
has claimed again his heav'nly place;
Incarnate Love has robbed death's sting
and bids us share his reign of grace.
