The Wideness in God’s Mercy

Souls of men, why do you scatter
Like a crowd of frightened sheep?
Souls of fools, why will you wander
From a love so true and so deep?

Was there ever a kinder shepherd –
Half so gentle, half so sweet
As the Savior who welcomes us
To come and gather around His Feet?

He is God who looks so mighty
But He's mightier than it seems.
It's His Father and His fondness
Going far beyond our dreams.

There's a wideness in God's mercy
Like the wideness of the sea.
There's a kindness in His justice
Which is more than liberty.

There's no place for earth's shallow sorrows
Once a soul has flown to Heaven.
There is no place for earth's failings
Where wondrous judgement is given.

There is welcome for the sinner,
Grace poured out as in a flood.
There is mercy and grave with our Savior
Felt forever in His healing blood.

There was grace enough for thousands,
For the new world that was as great as this.
There was room for this fresh creation
From that upper room of bliss.

For the love of God is broader
Than the measure of man's mind.
And the heart of the Eternal,
Who is always wonderfully kind.

There is a plentiful redemption
In Christ's blood that has been shed.
There is joy for all the members
In the sorrow of the Head.

Not just all we owe to Jesus;
It is something more than all.
Greater good because of evil,
Larger mercy through the fall.