“Rock of Ages”
A Sermon for the Season of Lent
This is a favorite hymn about “the rock,” written by Augustus Toplady in the 1700’s. What a name, Toplady. Obviously from England. Why is this such a favorite hymn? It has both a lovely tune and great imagery.
The rock is a well-known image in Scripture. Isaiah 28:16: “Thus says the Lord God, ‘Behold, I am laying in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone, of a sure foundation. He who believes will not be in haste.”
That verse is quoted in Romans 9:33, 1 Peter 2:6, and is also behind other things. When it says in 1 Cor 3:11: “There is no other foundation,” it is obviously referring to this imagery. We know from manuscripts which aren’t Biblical that they collected all kinds of lists of verses about the rock, the foundation.
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