It was written by American Roman Catholic priest, teacher, playwright and author Willard F Jabusch (1930-2018), and published in 1973 in the 20th Century Folk Hymnal, Volume 3.
The song was also included in Jabusch's 1984 publication, Hispanic Hymns for Gringo Musicians (ref) - and this, together with a certain awkwardness in some of the phrasing, suggests it may have originally been translated from another language.
Today it is in McCrimmon's Celebration Hymnal for Everyone, and Kevin Mayhew's Hymns Old and New (Catholic 2009 - and possibly other editions) - and these are the best source of sheet music for it.
It was originally set to a traditional Catalan tune. CCLI suggests that an alternative tune was written by Colin Mawby and published by Kevin Mayhew in 2005, but this was not used in the 2009 publication and is not currently listed on their website. (It may be included in a different publication.)
The Catalan tune has a 3/4 time signature, and in the key of F the first few notes are C F A FG B A GFEF.
No downloadable versions have been found, of either performances or the sheet music. If you know where to find one, please leave a message in the Comments box near the bottom of the page.
The song was also included in Jabusch's 1984 publication, Hispanic Hymns for Gringo Musicians (ref) - and this, together with a certain awkwardness in some of the phrasing, suggests it may have originally been translated from another language.
Today it is in McCrimmon's Celebration Hymnal for Everyone, and Kevin Mayhew's Hymns Old and New (Catholic 2009 - and possibly other editions) - and these are the best source of sheet music for it.
It was originally set to a traditional Catalan tune. CCLI suggests that an alternative tune was written by Colin Mawby and published by Kevin Mayhew in 2005, but this was not used in the 2009 publication and is not currently listed on their website. (It may be included in a different publication.)
The Catalan tune has a 3/4 time signature, and in the key of F the first few notes are C F A FG B A GFEF.
Downloads
This section may contain affiliate links: I earn from qualifying purchases on these. Free downloads are provided where possible (eg for public domain items).No downloadable versions have been found, of either performances or the sheet music. If you know where to find one, please leave a message in the Comments box near the bottom of the page.
Examples
Small group with guitar and flute - with words on-screen:
Singer with organ - watch on YouTube
Singer with guitar:
Lyrics
Original
Now watch for God's coming, be patient till then;
Like sunshine at noontime he'll brighten all men;
Who hope in the Lord will possess fertile land;
The poor he will welcome and grasp by the hand.
Man's steps are directed, God watches his path;
He guides he and holds him and saves him from wrath,
And though he may fall, he will not go headlong,
For God gives sound footing and keeps him from wrong.
So wait for his coming, be patient till then;
The wicked are armed and would kill honest men.
Their arms shall be broken, no refuge they'll see,
But saved are the needy, by God's own decree.
Now those who do evil will wither like grass,
Like green of the springtime they fade and they pass,
So trust in the Lord and to him give your life,
He'll bring heart's desires and peace in our strife.
Updated to use inclusive language:
Now watch for God's coming, be patient till then;
Like sunshine he'll brighten all women and men;
Who hope in the Lord will possess fertile land;
The poor he will welcome and grasp by the hand.
Our steps are directed, God watches our path;
He guides us and holds us and saves us from wrath,
And though we may fall, we will not go headlong,
For God gives sound footing and keeps us from wrong.
So wait for his coming, be patient till then;
The wicked are armed and would kill honest men.
Their arms shall be broken, no refuge they'll see,
But saved are the needy, by God's own decree.
Now those who do evil will wither like grass,
Like green of the springtime they fade and they pass,
So trust in the Lord and to him give your life,
He'll bring heart's desires and peace in our strife.
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