1 The winds were howling o’er the deep,
Each wave a watery hill;
The Savior wakened from His sleep,
He spake, and all was still.
2 The madman in a tomb had made
His mansion of despair;
Woe to the traveler who strayed
With heedless footstep there!
3 The chains hung broken from his arm,
Such strength can hell supply;
And fiendish hate, and fierce alarm
Flashed from his hollow eye.
4 He met that glance so thrilling sweet,
He heard those accents mild,
And, melting at Messiah’s feet,
Wept like a weanèd child.
5 Oh madder than the raving man!
Oh deafer than the sea!
How long the time since Christ began
To call in vain on me?
6 He called me when my thoughtless prime
Was early ripe to ill;
I passed from folly on to crime,
And yet He called me still.
7 He called me in the time of dread,
When death was full in view;
I trembled on my feverish bed,
And rose to sin anew.
8 Yet could I hear Him once again,
As I have heard of old,
Methinks He should not call in vain
His wanderer to the fold.
9 Oh Thou, that every thought canst know,
And answer every prayer;
Oh give me sickness, want, or woe,
But snatch me from despair!
10 My struggling will by grace control,
Renew my broken vow!
What blessèd light breaks on my soul?
Oh God! I hear Thee now.
Source: The Cyber Hymnal #12063
Reginald Heber was born in 1783 into a wealthy, educated family. He was a bright youth, translating a Latin classic into English verse by the time he was seven, entering Oxford at 17, and winning two awards for his poetry during his time there. After his graduation he became rector of his father's church in the village of Hodnet near Shrewsbury in the west of England where he remained for 16 years. He was appointed Bishop of Calcutta in 1823 and worked tirelessly for three years until the weather and travel took its toll on his health and he died of a stroke. Most of his 57 hymns, which include "Holy, Holy, Holy," are still in use today.
-- Greg Scheer, 1995… Go to person page >
My Starred Hymns
My FlexScores
My Hymnals
My Purchased Files