Psalm 132: Arise, O King of Grace Arise

Update 12/29/21: Sheet music for this song is now available at gregscheer.com.

At Church of the Servant, we’re doing a series on the Psalms of Ascent. That’s the good news. The bad news is that there are certain Ascent Psalms which are slim pickings from a congregational song point of view. Psalm 132 is one of these, as was made abundantly clear last night as I was rushing to prepare music for a Guitarchestra rehearsal that was rapidly approaching.

As I searched hymnary.org, I found a good text by Isaac Watts called “Arise, O King of Grace, Arise,” that teases out Christological imagery from the Psalm in a way that only Watts can do. I valiantly tried to finish setting music to it by rehearsal time, but I was thwarted by making copies, unlocking doors and other mundane tasks.

But today I completed the song, and I want to make sure the good folks of the Guitarchestra have a chance to familiarize themselves with it before the next rehearsal. See the link above for scores. So put down your turkey and get practicing! (People who aren’t Gstra members are also welcome to try it out.)