Who Thy Love, O God, Can Measure

One repeated phrase in this song is "Thy Son of love" and the context of God sending Christ to die for our sins reminds me of this parable of the vine-growers:
Luke 20 9-18  And He began to tell the people this parable: "A man planted a vineyard and rented it out to vine-growers, and went on a journey for a long time. At the harvest time he sent a slave to the vine-growers, so that they would give him some of the produce of the vineyard; but the vine-growers beat him and sent him away empty-handed. And he proceeded to send another slave; and they beat him also and treated him shamefully and sent him away empty-handed. And he proceeded to send a third; and this one also they wounded and cast out. The owner of the vineyard said, 'What shall I do? I will send my beloved son; perhaps they will respect him.' But when the vine-growers saw him, they reasoned with one another, saying, 'This is the heir; let us kill him so that the inheritance will be ours.' So they threw him out of the vineyard and killed him. What, then, will the owner of the vineyard do to them? He will come and destroy these vine-growers and will give the vineyard to others." When they heard it, they said, "May it never be!" But Jesus looked at them and said, "What then is this that is written: 'The stone which the builders rejected, this became the chief corner stone'? Everyone who falls on that stone will be broken to pieces; but on whomever it falls, it will scatter him like dust."


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Who Thy Love, O God, Can Measure
by F. Allaben


Who Thy love, O God, can measure-

Ephesians 3:18-19  May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God.

Love that crush'd for us its Treasure,

Of Christ in Isaiah 53:5 But He was pierced through for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; The chastening for our well-being fell upon Him, And by His scourging we are healed.

Him in who was all Thy pleasure,

Of Jesus in Matthew 3:17 and behold, a voice out of the heavens said, "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well-pleased."

Christ, Thy Son of love?

Jesus says in John 3:16 "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life."

Couldst Thou bruise Him, there forsaken

Of Christ in Isaiah 53:10 But the LORD was pleased To crush Him, putting Him to grief; If He would render Himself as a guilt offering, He will see His offspring, He will prolong His days, And the good pleasure of the LORD will prosper in His hand.

On the cross His love had taken,

Hebrews 12:2  fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

'Gainst Thy Son Thy sword awaken,

Of Jesus in Zechariah 13:7 Awake, O sword, against my shepherd, and against the man that is my fellow, saith the LORD of hosts: smite the shepherd , and the sheep shall be scattered: and I will turn mine hand upon the little ones.

'Gainst Thy Son of love?

1 John 4:10 In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins.

Couldst Thou crush Him, Man of Sorrow,-

Of Christ in Isaiah 53:3 He was despised and forsaken of men, A man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; And like one from whom men hide their face He was despised, and we did not esteem Him.

Pierce His soul with wrath's fierce arrow,

Of Christ in Zechariah 12:10 "I will pour out on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the Spirit of grace and of supplication, so that they will look on Me whom they have pierced; and they will mourn for Him, as one mourns for an only son, and they will weep bitterly over Him like the bitter weeping over a firstborn."

Melt that heart, rend joints and marrow-

Of Christ in Psalm 22:14  I am poured out like water, And all my bones are out of joint; My heart is like wax; It is melted within me. 

Doom Thy Son of love?

Of God in Romans 8:32 He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things ?

Cross that outraged Love Paternal!

In the parable of the vine-growers, Jesus says Mark 12:7-9 "But those vine-growers said to one another, 'This is the heir; come, let us kill him, and the inheritance will be ours!' They took him, and killed him and threw him out of the vineyard. What will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and destroy the vine-growers, and will give the vineyard to others."

Cross of agonies supernal!

Matthew 27:46 About the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, "Eli, Eli, Lama Sabachthani?" that is, "My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?"

Cross of grief of The Eternal!

Of Christ in Isaiah 53:4 Surely our griefs He Himself bore, And our sorrows He carried; Yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken, Smitten of God, and afflicted.

Cross of boundless love!

Psalm 36:5 Your lovingkindness, O LORD, extends to the heavens, Your faithfulness reaches to the skies.