"Nails So Sacred, So Divine" ... hymn for Good Friday

Nails are such a vivid part of the story of Good Friday ... the passion and death of Christ. And yet I had a difficult time finding a hymn with "Nails" as a theme.

Such a brutal death; being nailed to a cross. The nail piercing through Jesus' hands and feet are such a profound image of pain and suffering that he bore on our behalf. That's what makes the nail sacred and holy; that for me is also sacramental in the image of the nails, especially as I hold one in my hand as a means of meditation and reflection. The nails represent all the indifference, arrogance, pride, discrimination, hatred, hypocrisy and negligence that make up our corporate and individual sin. And by God's grace, those sins are defeated forever. What a gift!

The sadness of course, is that Jesus continues to be nailed to the cross throughout all time, including our own. And, if we are honest, we know we are at times complicit; we contribute to the wrongs and injustices of others. 

And yet, God on Good Friday makes it all right; through the nails of cross, God gives hope and promise that we grasp on to with faith and hope. Our anxieties are calmed; and all by God's love and through God's mercy. What a gift; a profound gift!

The words to this hymn reflect the theology of Nails and all that happened on Good Friday. It lifts up the painful truth that it was all for us and our forgiveness and reconciliation with God. What a profound truth that is at the center of our faith as we wait with hope and anticipation for the rest of the story, the hope and promise of new life on Easter morning. The last verse leaves us with a sense of hope and a reminder of the good news of what this day is about. 

The tune I chose is one that is used for a Lenten hymn, "Song 13". The tone and rhythm are somber enough to be appropriately Good Friday. And yet, the tune can be uplifting too by the last verse. 

I hope you enter into a reflection on what the nails of Good Friday mean for you; your theology of the nails hammered and what they represent for you.

"Nails So Sacred, So Divine"

Tune: Song 13
Meter: 7777

Nails so sacred, so divine
Piercing flesh and heart and soul
Hammered as a holy sign
God’s intent to make us whole.

Nails profound with mystery
Piercing Jesus’ hands and feet
Death no more, God’s victory
Sins forever to defeat.

First the nail of arrogance
Then a spike for all our pride
Followed on by negligence
As the Saviour hung and cried.

Nails are fastened day by day
Though the years and ages pass
Victims still become the prey
Wrongs, injustice still amass.

Holy nails within our palm
Sacramental sign of grace
Our anxiety to calm
Love’s great story to embrace.

Text: copyright, The Rev. Canon Mark Kinghan, 2015. Not to be reproduced or redistributed in any form without the express written permission of the author.