O God of earth and alter, bow down and hear our cry.
Our earthly rulers falter, our people drift and die.
The walls of gold entomb us, the swords of scorn divide.
Take not Thy thunder from us but take away our pride.
In this first verse, the “walls of gold” are said to refer to England seizing Boer (Dutch farmers) land in Witwatersrand* South Africa after the gold rush of 1886; but ‘gold’ speaks to the many other cases in English colonies where mineral wealth played a key role in colonial rule. Most colonizing countries wanted colonies that provided instant wealth (such as gold and oil) or potential wealth—produce such as coffee, chocolate, etc.).
The second verse raises even more parallels with the world and nation we now inhabit:
From all that terror teaches, from lies of tongue and pen.
From all the easy speeches that comfort cruel men.
From sale and profanation of honor and the sword.
From sleep and from damnation, deliver us, good Lord.
The last verse suggests a solution to issues raised in the first two:
Tie in a living tether the priest and prince and thrall.
Bind all our lives together, smite us and save us all.
In ire and exultation aflame with faith, and free,
Lift up a living nation, a single sword to Thee.
Many words and phrases ‘ring bells’ for today: ‘walls of gold’, ‘terror,’ ‘lies of tongue and pen’ and more. The word that appears in all three verses is ‘sword.’ In verse one, the “swords of scorn divide.” In verse two, “the profanation of honor and the sword.” In the last verse, the call is for a “living nation” to be a “single sword.” In all three the word ‘sword’ appears to be a metaphor meaning ‘power’ or ‘influence.’
*The Anglo-Boer wars began around 1899 and ended in 1902. The British Empire “won” with some concessions to the Dutch.