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Richard Baxter
1615 - 1691 Author of "Lord, it belongs not to my care" in Church Book Baxter, Richard. Only s. of Richard Baxter, yeoman, Eaton Constantine, Shropshire, b. at Rowton, Shropshire, Nov. 12,1615. He was educated at Wroxeter School, and for a time held the Mastership of the Dudley Grammar School. On taking Holy Orders, he became, in 1640, Ourate of Kidderminster. Subsequently he was for some time chaplain to one of Cromwell's regiments. Through weakness he had to take an enforced rest, during which he wrote his Saints’ Everlasting Rest. On regaining his health he returned to Kidderminster, where he remained until 1660, when he removed to London. At the Restoration he became chaplain to Charles II and was offered the bishopric of Hereford, which he refused. On the passing of the Act of Uniformity, he retired from active duty as a Minister of the Church of England. In or about 1673 he took out a licence as a Nonconformist Minister and commenced lecturing in London. He d. Dec. 8, 1691. His prose works are very numerous. His poetical are :—
(1) Poetical Fragments: Heart Imployment with God and Itself; The Concordant Discord of a Broken-healed Heart, tendon, Printed by T. Snowdon for B. Simmons, at the 3 Golden Cocks, &c, 1681 (2nd ed. 1689; 3rd ed. 1699). It consists of accounts of his religious experiences in verse, and is dated "London, at the Door of Eternity; Rich. Baxter, Aug. 1, 1681." (2) Additions to the Poetical Fragments of Rich. Baxter, written for himself, and Communicated to such as are more for serious Verse than smooth, London, Printed for B. Simmons at the Three Golden Cocks at the Westend of St. Pauls, 1683. (3) A Paraphrase on the Psalms, With other Hymns Left fitted for the Press, pub. the year following his death (1692). [Early English Hymnody, x., and English Psalters, 6 xii.] The Poetical Fragments were republished by Pickering, Lond., 1821. From this work his well-known hymn, " Now [Lord] it belongs not to my care," is taken (see "My whole, though broken, heart, O Lord.")
-John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology (1907)
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Hymn Writers of the Church
Richard Baxter
Isaac Watts
1674 - 1748 Author of "Our God, our help in ages past" in College Hymnal Isaac Watts was the son of a schoolmaster, and was born in Southampton, July 17, 1674. He is said to have shown remarkable precocity in childhood, beginning the study of Latin, in his fourth year, and writing respectable verses at the age of seven. At the age of sixteen, he went to London to study in the Academy of the Rev. Thomas Rowe, an Independent minister. In 1698, he became assistant minister of the Independent Church, Berry St., London. In 1702, he became pastor. In 1712, he accepted an invitation to visit Sir Thomas Abney, at his residence of Abney Park, and at Sir Thomas' pressing request, made it his home for the remainder of his life. It was a residence most favourable for his health, and for the prosecution of his literary labours. He did not retire from ministerial duties, but preached as often as his delicate health would permit.
The number of Watts' publications is very large. His collected works, first published in 1720, embrace sermons, treatises, poems and hymns. His "Horae Lyricae" was published in December, 1705. His "Hymns" appeared in July, 1707. The first hymn he is said to have composed for religious worship, is "Behold the glories of the Lamb," written at the age of twenty. It is as a writer of psalms and hymns that he is everywhere known. Some of his hymns were written to be sung after his sermons, giving expression to the meaning of the text upon which he had preached. Montgomery calls Watts "the greatest name among hymn-writers," and the honour can hardly be disputed. His published hymns number more than eight hundred.
Watts died November 25, 1748, and was buried at Bunhill Fields. A monumental statue was erected in Southampton, his native place, and there is also a monument to his memory in the South Choir of Westminster Abbey. "Happy," says the great contemporary champion of Anglican orthodoxy, "will be that reader whose mind is disposed, by his verses or his prose, to imitate him in all but his non-conformity, to copy his benevolence to men, and his reverence to God." ("Memorials of Westminster Abbey," p. 325.)
--Annotations of the Hymnal, Charles Hutchins, M.A., 1872.
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Watts, Isaac, D.D. The father of Dr. Watts was a respected Nonconformist, and at the birth of the child, and during its infancy, twice suffered imprisonment for his religious convictions. In his later years he kept a flourishing boarding school at Southampton. Isaac, the eldest of his nine children, was born in that town July 17, 1674. His taste for verse showed itself in early childhood. He was taught Greek, Latin, and Hebrew by Mr. Pinhorn, rector of All Saints, and headmaster of the Grammar School, in Southampton. The splendid promise of the boy induced a physician of the town and other friends to offer him an education at one of the Universities for eventual ordination in the Church of England: but this he refused; and entered a Nonconformist Academy at Stoke Newington in 1690, under the care of Mr. Thomas Rowe, the pastor of the Independent congregation at Girdlers' Hall. Of this congregation he became a member in 1693.
Leaving the Academy at the age of twenty, he spent two years at home; and it was then that the bulk of the Hymns and Spiritual Songs (published 1707-9) were written, and sung from manuscripts in the Southampton Chapel. The hymn "Behold the glories of the Lamb" is said to have been the first he composed, and written as an attempt to raise the standard of praise. In answer to requests, others succeeded. The hymn "There is a land of pure delight" is said to have been suggested by the view across Southampton Water. The next six years of Watts's life were again spent at Stoke Newington, in the post of tutor to the son of an eminent Puritan, Sir John Hartopp; and to the intense study of these years must be traced the accumulation of the theological and philosophical materials which he published subsequently, and also the life-long enfeeblement of his constitution.
Watts preached his first sermon when he was twenty-four years old. In the next three years he preached frequently; and in 1702 was ordained pastor of the eminent Independent congregation in Mark Lane, over which Caryl and Dr. John Owen had presided, and which numbered Mrs. Bendish, Cromwell's granddaughter, Charles Fleetwood, Charles Desborough, Sir John Hartopp, Lady Haversham, and other distinguished Independents among its members. In this year he removed to the house of Mr. Hollis in the Minories. His health began to fail in the following year, and Mr. Samuel Price was appointed as his assistant in the ministry. In 1712 a fever shattered his constitution, and Mr. Price was then appointed co-pastor of the congregation which had in the meantime removed to a new chapel in Bury Street. It was at this period that he became the guest of Sir Thomas Abney, under whose roof, and after his death (1722) that of his widow, he remained for the rest of his suffering life; residing for the longer portion of these thirty-six years principally at the beautiful country seat of Theobalds in Herts, and for the last thirteen years at Stoke Newington. His degree of D.D. was bestowed on him in 1728, unsolicited, by the University of Edinburgh. His infirmities increased on him up to the peaceful close of his sufferings, Nov. 25, 1748. He was buried in the Puritan restingplace at Bunhill Fields, but a monument was erected to him in Westminster Abbey.
His learning and piety, gentleness and largeness of heart have earned him the title of the Melanchthon of his day. Among his friends, churchmen like Bishop Gibson are ranked with Nonconformists such as Doddridge. His theological as well as philosophical fame was considerable. His Speculations on the Human Nature of the Logos, as a contribution to the great controversy on the Holy Trinity, brought on him a charge of Arian opinions. His work on The Improvement of the Mind, published in 1741, is eulogised by Johnson. His Logic was still a valued textbook at Oxford within living memory. The World to Come, published in 1745, was once a favourite devotional work, parts of it being translated into several languages. His Catechisms, Scripture History (1732), as well as The Divine and Moral Songs (1715), were the most popular text-books for religious education fifty years ago. The Hymns and Spiritual Songs were published in 1707-9, though written earlier. The Horae Lyricae, which contains hymns interspersed among the poems, appeared in 1706-9. Some hymns were also appended at the close of the several Sermons preached in London, published in 1721-24. The Psalms were published in 1719. The earliest life of Watts is that by his friend Dr. Gibbons. Johnson has included him in his Lives of the Poets; and Southey has echoed Johnson's warm eulogy. The most interesting modern life is Isaac Watts: his Life and Writings, by E. Paxton Hood. [Rev. H. Leigh Bennett, M.A.]
A large mass of Dr. Watts's hymns and paraphrases of the Psalms have no personal history beyond the date of their publication. These we have grouped together here and shall preface the list with the books from which they are taken.
(l) Horae Lyricae. Poems chiefly of the Lyric kind. In Three Books Sacred: i.To Devotion and Piety; ii. To Virtue, Honour, and Friendship; iii. To the Memory of the Dead. By I. Watts, 1706. Second edition, 1709. (2) Hymns and Spiritual Songs. In Three Books: i. Collected from the Scriptures; ii. Composed on Divine Subjects; iii. Prepared for the Lord's Supper. By I. Watts, 1707. This contained in Bk i. 78 hymns; Bk. ii. 110; Bk. iii. 22, and 12 doxologies. In the 2nd edition published in 1709, Bk. i. was increased to 150; Bk. ii. to 170; Bk. iii. to 25 and 15 doxologies. (3) Divine and Moral Songs for the Use of Children. By I. Watts, London, 1715. (4) The Psalms of David Imitated in the Language of the New Testament, And apply'd to the Christian State and Worship. By I. Watts. London: Printed by J. Clark, at the Bible and Crown in the Poultry, &c, 1719. (5) Sermons with hymns appended thereto, vol. i., 1721; ii., 1723; iii. 1727. In the 5th ed. of the Sermons the three volumes, in duodecimo, were reduced to two, in octavo. (6) Reliquiae Juveniles: Miscellaneous Thoughts in Prose and Verse, on Natural, Moral, and Divine Subjects; Written chiefly in Younger Years. By I. Watts, D.D., London, 1734. (7) Remnants of Time. London, 1736.
454 Hymns and Versions of the Psalms, in addition to the centos are all in common use at the present time.
--Excerpts from John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology (1907)
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Watts, I. , p. 1241, ii. Nearly 100 hymns, additional to those already annotated, are given in some minor hymn-books.
--John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology, Appendix, Part II (1907)
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Watts, I. , p. 1236, i. At the time of the publication of this Dictionary in 1892, every copy of the 1707 edition of Watts's Hymns and Spiritual Songs was supposed to have perished, and all notes thereon were based upon references which were found in magazines and old collections of hymns and versions of the Psalms. Recently three copies have been recovered, and by a careful examination of one of these we have been able to give some of the results in the revision of pp. 1-1597, and the rest we now subjoin.
i. Hymns in the 1709 ed. of Hymns and Spiritual Songs which previously appeared in the 1707 edition of the same book, but are not so noted in the 1st ed. of this Dictionary:—
On pp. 1237, L-1239, ii., Nos. 18, 33, 42, 43, 47, 48, 60, 56, 58, 59, 63, 75, 82, 83, 84, 85, 93, 96, 99, 102, 104, 105, 113, 115, 116, 123, 124, 134, 137, 139, 146, 147, 148, 149, 162, 166, 174, 180, 181, 182, 188, 190, 192, 193, 194, 195, 197, 200, 202.
ii. Versions of the Psalms in his Psalms of David, 1719, which previously appeared in his Hymns and Spiritual Songs, 1707:—
On pp. 1239, U.-1241, i., Nos. 241, 288, 304, 313, 314, 317, 410, 441.
iii. Additional not noted in the revision:—
1. My soul, how lovely is the place; p. 1240, ii. 332. This version of Ps. lxiv. first appeared in the 1707 edition of Hymns & Spiritual Songs, as "Ye saints, how lovely is the place."
2. Shine, mighty God, on Britain shine; p. 1055, ii. In the 1707 edition of Hymns & Spiritual Songs, Bk. i., No. 35, and again in his Psalms of David, 1719.
3. Sing to the Lord with [cheerful] joyful voice, p. 1059, ii. This version of Ps. c. is No. 43 in the Hymns & Spiritual Songs, 1707, Bk. i., from which it passed into the Ps. of David, 1719.
A careful collation of the earliest editions of Watts's Horae Lyricae shows that Nos. 1, 7, 9, 10, 11, 12, 14, 16, p. 1237, i., are in the 1706 ed., and that the rest were added in 1709. Of the remaining hymns, Nos. 91 appeared in his Sermons, vol. ii., 1723, and No. 196 in Sermons, vol. i., 1721. No. 199 was added after Watts's death. It must be noted also that the original title of what is usually known as Divine and Moral Songs was Divine Songs only.
--John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology, New Supplement (1907)
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Hymn Writers of the Church
Isaac Watts
Horatius Bonar
1808 - 1889 Person Name: Horatius Bonar, 1808-1889 Author of "I heard the voice of Jesus say" in Hymns and Chorales Horatius Bonar was born at Edinburgh, in 1808. His education was obtained at the High School, and the University of his native city. He was ordained to the ministry, in 1837, and since then has been pastor at Kelso. In 1843, he joined the Free Church of Scotland. His reputation as a religious writer was first gained on the publication of the "Kelso Tracts," of which he was the author. He has also written many other prose works, some of which have had a very large circulation. Nor is he less favorably known as a religious poet and hymn-writer. The three series of "Hymns of Faith and Hope," have passed through several editions.
--Annotations of the Hymnal, Charles Hutchins, M.A. 1872
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Bonar, Horatius, D.D. Dr. Bonar's family has had representatives among the clergy of the Church of Scotland during two centuries and more. His father, James Bonar, second Solicitor of Excise in Edinburgh, was a man of intellectual power, varied learning, and deop piety.
Horatius Bonar was born in Edinburgh, Dec. 19th, 1808; and educated at the High School and the University of Edinburgh. After completing his studies, he was "licensed" to preach, and became assistant to the Rev. John Lewis, minister of St. James's, Leith. He was ordained minister of the North Parish, Kelso, on the 30th November, 1837, but left the Established Church at the "Disruption," in May, 1848, remaining in Kelso as a minister of the Free Church of Scotland. The University of Aberdeen conferred on him the doctorate of divinity in 1853. In 1866 he was translated to the Chalmers Memorial Church, the Grange, Edinburgh; and in 1883 he was chosen Moderator of the General Assembly of of the Free Church of Scotland.
Dr. Bonar's hymns and poems were, he tells us, composed amid a great variety of circumstances; in many cases he cannot himself recall these circumstances; they also appeared in several publications, but nearly all have boen published or republished in the following:— (i) Songs for the Wilderness, 1843-4. (2) The Bible Hymn Book, 1845. (3) Hymns, Original and Selected, 1846. (4) Hymns of Faith and Hope, First Series, 1857; Second Series, 1861; Third Series, 1866. (5) The Song of the New Creation, 1872. (6) My Old Letters, a long poem, 1877. (7) Hymns of the Nativity, 1879. (8) Communion Hymns, 1881. In addition to numerous prose works, he has also edited The New Jerusalem; a Hymn of the Olden Time, 1852, &c.
Dr. Bonar's poems—-including many beautiful lyrics, several psalm versions, and translations from the Greek and Latin, a large number of hymns, and a long meditative poem—-are very numerous, too numerous, perhaps, for their permanent fame as a whole.
Dr. Bonar's scholarship is thorough and extensive; and his poems display the grace of style and wealth of allusion which are the fruit of ripe culture. Affected very slightly by current literary moods, still less by the influence of other religious poetry, they reveal extreme susceptibility to the emotional power which the phases of natural and of spiritual life exercise; the phases of natural life being recognised chiefly as conveying and fashioning spiritual life, used chiefly for depicting spiritual life, and handled for this purpose with greater delicacy of touch than in the Olney Hymns, and with less conscious purpose than in the Christian Year. As a result of this susceptibility, and from habitual contemplation of the Second Advent as the era of this world's true bliss, his hymns and poems are distinguished by a tone of pensive reflection, which some might call pessimism. But they are more than the record of emotion; another element is supplied by his intellectual and personal grasp of Divine truth, these truths particularly:—The gift of a Substitute, our Blessed Saviour; Divine grace, righteous, yet free and universal in offer; the duty of immediate reliance upon the privilege of immediate assurance through that grace; communion with God, especially in the Lord's Supper, respecting which he insists on the privilege of cherishing the highest conceptions which Scripture warrants; and finally, the Second Advent of our Lord: by his vigorous celebration of these and other truths as the source and strength of spiritual life, his hymns are protected from the blight of unhealthy, sentimental introspection.
To sum up: Dr. Bonar's hymns satisfy the fastidious by their instinctive good taste; they mirror the life of Christ in the soul, partially, perhaps, but with vivid accuracy; they win the heart by their tone of tender sympathy; they sing the truth of God in ringing notes; and although, when taken as a whole, they are not perfect ; although, in reading them, we meet with feeble stanzas, halting rhythm, defective rhyme, meaningless Iteration; yet a singularly large number have been stamped with approval, both in literary circles and by the Church.
In Great Britain and America nearly 100 of Dr. Bonar's hymns are in common use. They are found in almost all modern hymnals from four in Hymns Ancient & Modern to more than twenty in the American Songs for the Sanctuary, N. Y., 1865-72. The most widely known are, "A few more years shall roll;" "Come, Lord, and tarry not;" "Here, O my Lord, I see Thee face to face;" "I heard the Voice of Jesus say;" "The Church has waited long;" and "Thy way, not mine, O Lord."
In addition to these and others which are annotated under their respective first lines, the following are also in common use:—
From Songs for the Wilderness, No. 1, 1843.
1. For Thee we long and pray. Sunday Morning.
2. Holy Father, hear my cry. A Child's Prayer.
3. I thought upon my sins and I was sad. Christ our Peace.
4. Peace to the world, our Lord is come. A Millennial Song.
5. Spirit of everlasting grace. The Vision of Dry Bones.
ii. From Songs for the Wilderness, No. 2,1844.
6. Ho, ye thirsty, parched and fainting. Invitation.
7. 0 'tis not what we fancied it. The world renounced.
8. Sing them, my children, sing them still. Children exhorted to Praise.
9. Time's sun is fast setting. Advent.
10. Weep, pilgrim, weep, yet 'tis not for the sorrow. Faith.
11. Yes, for me, for me He careth. Christ the Elder Brother .
iii. From The Bible Hymn Book, 1845.
12. Jesus, my sorrow lies too deep. Jesus, the Great High Priest.
13. There is a Morning Star, my soul. The Morning Star.
14. This is not my place of resting. Pressing towards heaven.
iv. From Hymns, Original and Selected, 1845.
15. Let there be light, Jehovah said. Creation.
v. From Hymns of Faith and Hope, 1st series, 1857.
16. Be brave, my brother. The Fight of Faith.
17. Blessed be God, our God. Good Friday.
18. Everlasting praises. Doxology.
19. Go up, go up, my heart. Heavenly aspirations desired.
20. I close my heavy eye. Evening. Sometimes given as "We close our heavy eyes."
21. I see the crowd in Pilate's hall. Good Friday.
22. Jesus, while this rongh desert soil. Strength by the Way.
23. Jesus, Whom angel-hosts adore. The Word made Flesh. From "The Son of God, in mighty love."
24. Make haste, 0 man, to live. Exhortation to lay hold of Life.
25. No seas again shall sever. Heaven.
26. Oppressed with noonday's scorching heat. Shadow of the Cross.
27. Rest for the toiling hand. Burial. From "Lie down, frail body, here."
28. Shall this life of mine be wasted? Exhortation to Duty.
29. These are the crowns that we shall wear. Heaven.
30. Thy works, not mine, O Christ [Lord]. The Sin-bearer.
31. Where the faded flower shall freshen. Heaven.
vi. From Hymns of Faith and Hope. 2nd series, 1861.
32. Be still, my soul, Jehovah loveth Thee. Rest in the Love of God.
33. Christ has done the mighty work. Good Friday.
34. Come, mighty Spirit, penetrate. Whitsuntide.
35. Deep down beneath the unresting surge. Burial at Sea.
36. Fear not the foe, thou flock of God [thou little flock]. Battle-Song of the Church.
37. For lack of love I languish. Lent.
38. From this bleak hill of storms. Eternal Rest desired.
39. He liveth long who liveth well. The True Life.
40. Here shall death's triumph end: the rock-barred door. Easter. From "The tomb is empty: wouldst thou have it full."
41. Jesus, Sun and Shield art Thou. Jesus the First and Last.
42. Jesus, the Christ of God. Praise to Christ.
43. Light of the world, for ever, ever shining. Christ the Light of the World. From "Why walk in darkness? Has the dear light vanished?"
44. Make use of me, my God. Duty desired.
45. Not what I am, 0 Lord, but what Thou art. The Love of God.
46. 0 Light of Light, shine in. Cry of the Weary.
47. 0 love of God, how strong and true. Love of God.
48. 0 love that casts out fear. Love of God.
49. 0 strong to save and bless. Lent.
50. 0 this soul, how dark and blind. Lent.
51. Safe across the waters. Thanksgiving at end of a journey.
52. Silent, like men in solemn haste. Pressing onwards.
53. Speak, lips of mine. Exhortation to Praise.
54. The Bridegroom comes. Advent.
vii. From Hymns of Faith and Hope. 3rd series, 1866.
55. Bear Thou my burden, Thou Who bar'st my sin. Lent or Passiontide.
56. Done is the work that saves. Easter.
57. Father, our children keep. Prayer on behalf of Children.
58. Fill Thou my life, 0 Lord my God. Life's Praise.
59. Finish Thy work, the time is short. Earnest labour to the end.
60. From the Cross the blood is falling. Good Friday.
61. He called them, and they left. Obedience.
62. Help me, my [0] God to speak. Truth desired.
63. Holy Father, Mighty God. Holy Trinity.
64. How are my troubles multiplied. Ps. iii.
65. How sweetly doth He show His face Flower Service.
66. Light hath arisen, we walk in its brightness. Sustaining power of Faith.
67. Lo, God, our God has come. Christmas.
68. Lord, give me light to do Thy work. Divine guidance desired.
69. No, not despairingly. Lent.
70. Not to ourselves again. Life in Christ, or, Living unto God.
71. Now in parting, Father, bless us. Post Communion.
72. Sounds the trumpet from afar. Battle-Song of the Church.
73. Thee in the loving bloom of morn. God in all.
74. Through good report and evil, Lord. Faithfulness.
75. To Jehovah, God of might. Praise to the Father.
76. To the name of God on high. Doxology.
77. Upward, where the stars are burning. Heavenward Aspirations.
78. We take the peace which He hath won. The Gift of Peace.
79. When the weary, seeking rest. Intercession for all Conditions of Men.
viii. From The Song of the New Creation,1872.
80. For the Bread and for the Wine. Holy Communion.
81. Light of life so softly shining. Light of Life.
82. Yet there is room. The Lamb's bright hall of song. Home Missions.
ix. From Hymns of the Nativity, 1879.
83. Great Ruler of the land and sea. Sailors' Liturgy. From Communion Hymns, 1881.
84. Beloved, let us love. Brotherly Love.
In several instances these hymns are given in an abbreviated form, and sometimes alterations are also introduced. In this latter respect however Dr. Bonar has suffered less than most modern hymn-writers. [Rev. James Mearns, M.A.]
-- John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology (1907)
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Bonar, Horatius, p. 161, i. He died at Edinburgh, July 31, 1889. In 1890 his son published a posthumous volume of his poetical pieces as Until the Day Break and other Hymns and Poems left behind. The following additional hymns are in common use:—
1. Almighty Comforter and Friend. (1866.) Whitsuntide.
2. Father, make use of me. An altered form of No. 44, p. 162, ii.
3. I ask a perfect creed. (1861.) Creed not Opinions. From this is also taken "O True One, give me truth."
4. Long, long deferred, now come at last. Marriage of the Lamb. Part of "Ascend, Beloved, to the joy." (1861.)
5. Nay 'tis not what we fancied it. (1857.) Vanity of the World.
6. No blood, no altar now. (1861.) The Finished Sacrifice.
7. No shadows yonder. (1857.) Heaven Anticipated.
8. Not with the light and vain. (1857.) Godly Companionship.
9. O Love invisible, yet infinite. (1866.) Divine Love.
10. On the great love of God I lean. (1866.) Love of God our Resting-place.
11. On Thee, O Jesus, strongly leaning. (1866.) Fellowship with Christ.
12. Peace upon peace, like wave on wave. (1866.) Divine Peace.
13. Sower divine, sow the good seed in me. (1857.) Heavenly Sowing.
14. Speaketh the sinner's sin within my heart. (1866.) Ps. xxxvi.
15. Still one in life and one in death. (1857.) Communion of Saints. Part of "'Tis thus they press the hand and part."
16. Surely, yon heaven, where angels see God's face. (1857.) Heaven Anticipated.
17. That city with the jewelled crest. (1857.) Heaven. Part of "These are the crowns that we shall wear." Another cento from the same is "Yon city, with the jewelled crest."
18. That clime is not like this dull clime of ours. (1843.) Heaven.
19. The Free One makes you free: He breaks the rod. (1857.) Freedom in Christ. From "Of old they sang the song of liberty."
20. There is a Morning-star, my soul. (1357.) Christ the Morning Star.
21. This is the day of toil. (1866.) Pressing Onwards.
22. Thy thoughts are here, my God. (1866.) Holy Scripture.
23. Till the day dawn. (1857.) Life's Journey.
24. To Him Who spread the skies. (1866.) Creation's Song.
25. Trustingly, trustingly. (1866.) Trust.
26. Unto th' eternal hills. (1866.) Ps. cxxi.
The above dates are: 1843, Songs in the Wilderness; 1857, Hymns of Faith and Hope, 1st Series; 1861, same, 2nd Ser. (not 1864); 1866, same, 3rd Ser. (not 1867), The dates 1857, 1864,1867, were given by Dr. Bonar, but the British Museum copies are 1857, 1861, 1866 respectively.
--John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology, Appendix, Part II (1907)
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Bonar, H., pp. 161, i.; 1554, i. The Rev. H. N. Bonar, Dr. Bonar's son, published in 1904, Hymns by Horatius Bonar, Selected and Arranged by his Son H. N. Bonar, With a brief History of some of the Hymns, &c. (London: H. Frowde). From this work we must correct the date of his Song of the New Creation to 1872. We have also enriched our pages by additional and expanded notes on several of Dr. Bonar's most widely used hymns. In his biographical notes, Mr. Bonar refers to Dr. Bonar's work as editor of the Quarterly Journal of Prophecy, begun in 1848, to which he contributed a hymn for each number. We find that the number of hymns contributed thereto is 101.
With Dr. Bonar's poetical productions great difficulty has been encountered by the historian and annotator because of his absolute indifference to dates and details. It was enough for him that he had written, and that the Church of Christ approved and gladly used what, out of the fulness of his heart, he had given her.
--Excerpt from John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology, New Supplement (1907)
Horatius Bonar
Thomas Kelly
1769 - 1855 Author of "The head that once was crowned with thorns" in The Harvard University Hymn Book Kelly, Thomas, B.A., son of Thomas Kelly, a Judge of the Irish Court of Common Pleas, was born in Dublin, July 13, 1769, and educated at Trinity College, Dublin. He was designed for the Bar, and entered the Temple, London, with that intention; but having undergone a very marked spiritual change he took Holy Orders in 1792. His earnest evangelical preaching in Dublin led Archbishop Fowler to inhibit him and his companion preacher, Rowland Hill, from preaching in the city. For some time he preached in two unconsecrated buildings in Dublin, Plunket Street, and the Bethesda, and then, having seceded from the Established Church, he erected places of worship at Athy, Portarlington, Wexford, &c, in which he conducted divine worship and preached. He died May 14, 1854. Miller, in his Singers & Songs of the Church, 1869, p. 338 (from which some of the foregoing details are taken), says:—
"Mr. Kelly was a man of great and varied learning, skilled in the Oriental tongues, and an excellent Bible critic. He was possessed also of musical talent, and composed and published a work that was received witli favour, consisting of music adapted to every form of metre in his hymn-book. Naturally of an amiable disposition and thorough in his Christian piety, Mr. Kelly became the friend of good men, and the advocate of every worthy, benevolent, and religious cause. He was admired alike for his zeal and his humility; and his liberality found ample scope in Ireland, especially during the year of famine."
Kelly's hymns, 765 in all, were composed and published over a period of 51 years, as follows:—
(1) A Collection of Psalms and Hymns extracted from Various Authors, by Thomas Kelly, A.B., Dublin, 1802. This work contains 247 hymns by various authors, and an Appendix of 33 original hymns by Kelly.
(2) Hymns on Various Passages of Scripture, Dublin, 1804. Of this work several editions were published: 1st, 1804; 2nd, 1806; 3rd, 1809; 4th, 1812. This last edition was published in two divisions, one as Hymns on Various Passages of Scripture, and the second as Hymns adapted for Social Worship. In 1815 Kelly issued Hymns by Thomas Kelly, not before Published. The 5th edition, 1820, included the two divisions of 1812, and the new hymns of 1815, as one work. To the later editions of 1820, 1826, 1836, 1840, 1846, and 1853, new hymns were added, until the last published by M. Moses, of Dublin, 1853, contained the total of 765.
As a hymn-writer Kelly was most successful. As a rule his strength appears in hymns of Praise and in metres not generally adopted by the older hymn writers. His "Come, see the place where Jesus lay" (from "He's gone, see where His body lay"),"From Egypt lately come"; “Look, ye saints, the sight is glorious"; "On the mountain's top appearing"; "The Head that once was crowned with thorns"; "Through the day Thy love has spared us"; and “We sing the praise of Him Who died," rank with the first hymns in the English language. Several of his hymns of great merit still remain unknown through so many modern editors being apparently adverse to original investigation. In addition to the hymns named and others, which are annotated under their respective first lines, the following are also in common use:—
i. From the Psalms and Hymns, 1802:—
1. Grant us, Lord, Thy gracious presence. Commencement of Divine Worship.
2. Jesus, Immortal King, go on [display]. Missions.
3. Saviour, through the desert lead us. Divine Guidance Desired.
4. The day of rest once more [again] comes round. Sunday.
5. We've no abiding city here. Seeking Heaven.
ii. From the Hymns on Varous Passages of Scripture, first edition, 1804 :—
6. Boundless glory, Lord, be thine. Praise for the Gospel.
7. By whom shall Jacob now arise? Epiphany.
8. Glory, glory to our King. Praise to Christ as King.
9. How pleasant is the sound of praise. Praise for Redemption.
10. How sweet to leave the world awhile. In Retirement, or For a Retreat.
11. Inform I long had bowed the knee. Jesus, the Saviour, or Praise for Salvation.
12. It is finished! sinners, hear it. Good Friday.
13. Jesus, the Shepherd of the sheep. The Good Shepherd.
14. Let reason vainly boast her power. Death.
15. Poor and afflicted, Lord, are Thine. Affliction.
16. Praise we Him to Whose kind favour. Close of Service.
11. Spared a little longer. Safety in God.
18. Stricken, smitten, and afflicted. Passiontide.
ii. From the Hymns, &c, second edition, 1806:—
19. Far from us be grief and sadness. Joy of Believers.
20. Give us room that we may dwell. Missions.
21. Glory, glory everlasting. Praise of Jesus.
22. God has.turned my grief to gladness. Joy after Sorrow.
23. Happy they who trust in Jesus. Peace in Jesus.
24. Hark, the notes of angels singing. Angels praising Jesus.
25. Hark! 'tis a martial sound. Christian Life a Warfare.
26. I hear a sound [voice] that comes from far. The Gospel Message.
27. Jesus is gone up on high. Divine Worship.
28. Now [O] may the Gospel's conquering power. Home Missions. In the 1853 edition of the Hymns it begins “O may the Gospel's conqu'ring force."
29. O Zion, when I think on thee. Desiring Heaven.
30. Praise the Saviour, ye who know Him. Praise of Jesus.
31. See from Zion's sacred mountain. The Fountain of Life.
32. The atoning work is done. Jesus the High Priest.
33. Zion is Jehovah's dwelling. The Church of God.
34. Zion stands by hills surrounded. The Safety of the Church.
35. Zion's King shall reign victorious. Missions.
iv. From the Hymns, &c, 3rd edition, 1809:—
36. Behold the Temple of the Lord. The Church a Spiritual Temple.
37. Blessed Fountain, full of grace. Fountain for Sin.
38. Brethren, come, our Saviour bids us. Holy Communion.
39. Fly, ye seasons, fly still faster. Second Advent Desired.
40. God of Israel, we adore Thee. Evening.
41. Gracious Lord, my heart is fixed. Trust and Peace.
42. Hark, a voice! it comes from heaven. Death.
43. Hark, that shout of rapt'rous joy. Second Advent.
44. If our warfare be laborious. Labour and Rest .
45. Lo, He comes, let all adore Him. Missions.
46. Nothing know we of the season. Time of Second Advent uncertain.
47. O had I the wings of a dove. Holiness and Heaven desired.
48. O where is now that glowing love. Despondency.
49. Our Father sits on yonder throne. God the Father.
50. Ours is a rich and royal Feast. Holy Communion.
51. Shepherd of the chosen number. Safety in the
Good Shepherd.
52. We're bound for yonder land. Life, a Voyage.
53. Welcome sight! the Lord descending. The Advent.
54. What is life? 'tis but a vapour. Death anticipated.
55. Who is this that comes from Edom? Ascension.
56. Why those fears ? Behold 'tis Jesus. Stilling the Sea.
57. Without blood is no remission. Passiontide.
58. Yes, we trust the day is breaking. Missions.
v. FromHymns: Not before Published, 1815:—
59. Behold the Lamb with glory crowned. Exaltation of Christ.
60. God is love, His word has said it. God is Love.
61. God of our salvation, hear us. Opening or Close of Divine Worship.
62. In Thy Name, O Lord, assembling. Commencement of Divine Worship.
63. Keep us, Lord, O [and] keep us ever. Divine Worship.
64. Let sinners saved give thanks, and sing. Praise for Salvation.
65. Praise the Lord Who died to save us. Passiontide.
66. Salvation is of God alone. God the Author of Salvation.
67. Saviour, come, Thy [saints] friends await Thee [are waiting] . Second Advent desired.
68. Sweet were the sounds that reached our ears. Divine Mercy.
69. We'll sing of the Shepherd that died. The Lost Sheep.
70. When we cannot see our way. Trust and Peace.
71. Who is this that calms the ocean? Stilling the Sea.
vi. From the Hymns on F. Passages of Scripture, &c, eds. 1820 and 1826 :-—
72. Grace is the sweetest sound. Divine Grace.
73. Now let a great effectual door. Missions.
74. Now may the mighty arm awake. Missions.
75. Now may the Spirit from above. Home Missions.
76. Sing, sing His lofty praise. Praise of Jesus.
77. Sound, 6ound the truth abroad. Missions.
78. Speed Thy servants, Saviour, speed them. Departure of Missionaries.
vii. From the Hymns on Various Passages, &c, 1836:—
79. Come, O Lord, the heavens rending. Prayer for Blessings.
80. The night is far spent, the day is at hand. The Second Advent.
viii. From the Hymns on Various Passages, &c, circa 1845:—
81. Joyful be the hours today. Sunday.
82. Lord, behold us few and weak. Opening of Divine Service.
83. Meet Thy people, Saviour, meet us. Meetings for Prayer.
84. Saviour, send a blessing to us. Prayer for Blessings.
85. Sing of Jesus, sing for ever. Praise of Jesus.
ix. From the Hymns on Various Passages, &c, 1853:—
86. Precious volume, what thou doest. Holy Scripture.
87. Unfold to us, O Lord, unfold. Divine aid to reading Holy Scripture.
All these hymns, together with those annotated under their respective first lines are in the 1853 edition of Kelly's Hymns published in Dublin by M. Moses, and in London by Simpkin, Marshall & Co. Kelly's musical editions are issued by the same publishers.
-- John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology (1907)
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Kelly, Thomas, p. 615, i. Other hymns in common use are:
1. Behold the Man! How glorious He. (1809.) Good Friday.
2. Jesus the [Thou] Shepherd of the Sheep. (1804.) Good Shepherd.
3. Saved ourselves by Jesu's blood. (1802.) For a Revival.
4. Saviour, 'tis to [unto] Thee. (1853*.) Lent.
5. See the vineyard lately planted. (1806.) Missions. Sometimes given as "See, O Lord, the vineyard planted."
6. Sing aloud to God our strength. (1809.) Praise to the Father.
7. Sing, sing His lofty praise. (1820.) Praise to Jesus. Sometimes as "Hail our eternal King" (p. 615, No. 76).
8. Sing of Him Who bore our guilt. (1853*.) Praise to Jesus.
9. Sing we praise to God above, God our Saviour, &c. (1815.) Praise for Divine Mercy.
10. Sing we praise to God above, Sing we praise, &c. (1853*.) Praise.
11. Sons of Zion, raise your songs. (1820-26) The Exalted Saviour.
12. The Lord Himself will keep. (1809.) From “We're bound for yonder land" (sec p. 615, No. 52.)
13. The God [Lord] of glory dwells on high. (1809.) Humility and Love of Christ.
14. The people of the Lord Are on their way, &c. (1820.) Life a Pilgrimage.
15. Thus saith God of His Anointed. (1809.) Missions.
16. 'Tis to us no cause of sorrow. (1815.) Resignation.
17. To the Ark away, or perish. (1815.) Safety in Jesus only.
18. To our Lord a throne is given. (1838.) Christ the King.
19. Trust ye in the Lord for ever. (1853*.) Trust in God.
20. We'll sing in spite of scorn. (1806.) Christmas. From this "The long-expected morn" is taken.
21. What tongue can tell, what fancy paint. (1806.) Saints in Glory
22. What were Sinai's awful wonders. (1809.) Advent.
23. Whence those sounds symphonious? (1815.) Christmas.
24. While in the [this] world we still [yet] remain. (1806.) Communion of Saints.
25. Yes, 'tis a rough and thorny road. (1809.) Resignation. Sometimes given as "Though rough and thorny be the way."
The dates given above are those of the various editions of Kelly's Hymns. The date 1853* indicates that the hymn is in the 1853 ed. of the Hymns, but had also appeared in a previous edition which we have not seen.
--John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology, Appendix, Part II (1907)
Thomas Kelly
William Cowper
1731 - 1800 Person Name: Wm. Cowper Author of "O for a closer walk with God" in Hymns William Cowper (pronounced "Cooper"; b. Berkampstead, Hertfordshire, England, 1731; d. East Dereham, Norfolk, England, 1800) is regarded as one of the best early Romantic poets. To biographers he is also known as "mad Cowper." His literary talents produced some of the finest English hymn texts, but his chronic depression accounts for the somber tone of many of those texts. Educated to become an attorney, Cowper was called to the bar in 1754 but never practiced law. In 1763 he had the opportunity to become a clerk for the House of Lords, but the dread of the required public examination triggered his tendency to depression, and he attempted suicide. His subsequent hospitalization and friendship with Morley and Mary Unwin provided emotional stability, but the periods of severe depression returned. His depression was deepened by a religious bent, which often stressed the wrath of God, and at times Cowper felt that God had predestined him to damnation.
For the last two decades of his life Cowper lived in Olney, where John Newton became his pastor. There he assisted Newton in his pastoral duties, and the two collaborated on the important hymn collection Olney Hymns (1779), to which Cowper contributed sixty-eight hymn texts.
Bert Polman
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Cowper, William, the poet. The leading events in the life of Cowper are: born in his father's rectory, Berkhampstead, Nov. 26, 1731; educated at Westminster; called to the Bar, 1754; madness, 1763; residence at Huntingdon, 1765; removal to Olney, 1768; to Weston, 1786; to East Dereham, 1795; death there, April 25, 1800.
The simple life of Cowper, marked chiefly by its innocent recreations and tender friendships, was in reality a tragedy. His mother, whom he commemorated in the exquisite "Lines on her picture," a vivid delineation of his childhood, written in his 60th year, died when he was six years old. At his first school he was profoundly wretched, but happier at Westminster; excelling at cricket and football, and numbering Warren Hastings, Colman, and the future model of his versification. Churchill, among his contemporaries or friends. Destined for the Bar, he was articled to a solicitor, along with Thurlow. During this period he fell in love with his cousin, Theodora Cowper, sister to Lady Hesketh, and wrote love poems to her. The marriage was forbidden by her father, but she never forgot him, and in after years secretly aided his necessities. Fits of melancholy, from which he had suffered in school days, began to increase, as he entered on life, much straitened in means after his father's death. But on the whole, it is the playful, humorous side of him that is most prominent in the nine years after his call to the Bar; spent in the society of Colman, Bonnell Thornton, and Lloyd, and in writing satires for The Connoisseur and St. James's Chronicle and halfpenny ballads. Then came the awful calamity, which destroyed all hopes of distinction, and made him a sedentary invalid, dependent on his friends. He had been nominated to the Clerkship of the Journals of the House of Lords, but the dread of appearing before them to show his fitness for the appointment overthrew his reason. He attempted his life with "laudanum, knife and cord,"—-in the third attempt nearly succeeding. The dark delusion of his life now first showed itself—a belief in his reprobation by God. But for the present, under the wise and Christian treatment of Dr. Cotton (q. v.) at St. Albans, it passed away; and the eight years that followed, of which the two first were spent at Huntingdon (where he formed his lifelong friendship with Mrs. Unwin), and the remainder at Olney in active piety among the poor, and enthusiastic devotions under the guidance of John Newton (q. v.), were full of the realisation of God's favour, and the happiest, most lucid period of his life. But the tension of long religious exercises, the nervous excitement of leading at prayer meetings, and the extreme despondence (far more than the Calvinism) of Newton, could scarcely have been a healthy atmosphere for a shy, sensitive spirit, that needed most of all the joyous sunlight of Christianity. A year after his brother's death, madness returned. Under the conviction that it was the command of God, he attempted suicide; and he then settled down into a belief in stark contradiction to his Calvinistic creed, "that the Lord, after having renewed him in holiness, had doomed him to everlasting perdition" (Southey). In its darkest form his affliction lasted sixteen months, during which he chiefly resided in J. Newton's house, patiently tended by him and by his devoted nurse, Mrs. Unwin. Gradually he became interested in carpentering, gardening, glazing, and the tendance of some tame hares and other playmates. At the close of 1780, Mrs. Unwin suggested to him some serious poetical work; and the occupation proved so congenial, that his first volume was published in 1782. To a gay episode in 1783 (his fascination by the wit of Lady Austen) his greatest poem, The Task, and also John Gilpin were owing. His other principal work was his Homer, published in 1791. The dark cloud had greatly lifted from his life when Lady Hesketh's care accomplished his removal to Weston (1786): but the loss of his dear friend William Unwin lowered it again for some months. The five years' illness of Mrs. Unwin, during which his nurse of old became his tenderly-watched patient, deepened the darkness more and more. And her death (1796) brought “fixed despair," of which his last poem, The Castaway, is the terrible memorial. Perhaps no more beautiful sentence has been written of him, than the testimony of one, who saw him after death, that with the "composure and calmness" of the face there “mingled, as it were, a holy surprise."
Cowper's poetry marks the dawn of the return from the conventionality of Pope to natural expression, and the study of quiet nature. His ambition was higher than this, to be the Bard of Christianity. His great poems show no trace of his monomania, and are full of healthy piety. His fame as a poet is less than as a letter-writer: the charm of his letters is unsurpassed. Though the most considerable poet, who has written hymns, he has contributed little to the development of their structure, adopting the traditional modes of his time and Newton's severe canons. The spiritual ideas of the hymns are identical with Newton's: their highest note is peace and thankful contemplation, rather than joy: more than half of them are full of trustful or reassuring faith: ten of them are either submissive (44), self-reproachful (17, 42, 43), full of sad yearning (1, 34), questioning (9), or dark spiritual conflict (38-40). The specialty of Cowper's handling is a greater plaintiveness, tenderness, and refinement. A study of these hymns as they stood originally under the classified heads of the Olney Hymns, 1779, which in some cases probably indicate the aim of Cowper as well as the ultimate arrangement of the book by Newton, shows that one or two hymns were more the history of his conversion, than transcripts of present feelings; and the study of Newton's hymns in the same volume, full of heavy indictment against the sins of his own regenerate life, brings out the peculiar danger of his friendship to the poet: it tends also to modify considerably the conclusions of Southey as to the signs of incipient madness in Cowper's maddest hymns. Cowper's best hymns are given in The Book of Praise by Lord Selborne. Two may be selected from them; the exquisitely tender "Hark! my soul, it is the Lord" (q. v.), and "Oh, for a closer walk with God" (q. v.). Anyone who knows Mrs. Browning's noble lines on Cowper's grave will find even a deeper beauty in the latter, which is a purely English hymn of perfect structure and streamlike cadence, by connecting its sadness and its aspiration not only with the “discord on the music" and the "darkness on the glory," but the rapture of his heavenly waking beneath the "pathetic eyes” of Christ.
Authorities. Lives, by Hayley; Grimshaw; Southey; Professor Goldwin Smith; Mr. Benham (attached to Globe Edition); Life of Newton, by Rev. Josiah Bull; and the Olney Hymns. The numbers of the hymns quoted refer to the Olney Hymns. [Rev. H. Leigh Bennett, M.A.]
--John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology (1907)
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Cowper, W. , p. 265, i. Other hymns are:—
1. Holy Lord God, I love Thy truth. Hatred of Sin.
2. I was a grovelling creature once. Hope and Confidence.
3. No strength of nature can suffice. Obedience through love.
4. The Lord receives His highest praise. Faith.
5. The saints should never be dismayed. Providence. All these hymns appeared in the Olney Hymns, 1779.
--John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology, Appendix, Part II (1907)
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Cowper, W., p. 265, i. Prof. John E. B. Mayor, of Cambridge, contributed some letters by Cowper, hitherto unpublished, together with notes thereon, to Notes and Queries, July 2 to Sept. 24, 1904. These letters are dated from Huntingdon, where he spent two years after leaving St. Alban's (see p. 265, i.), and Olney. The first is dated "Huntingdon, June 24, 1765," and the last "From Olney, July 14, 1772." They together with extracts from other letters by J. Newton (dated respectively Aug. 8, 1772, Nov. 4, 1772), two quotations without date, followed by the last in the N. & Q. series, Aug. 1773, are of intense interest to all students of Cowper, and especially to those who have given attention to the religious side of the poet's life, with its faint lights and deep and awful shadows. From the hymnological standpoint the additional information which we gather is not important, except concerning the hymns "0 for a closer walk with God," "God moves in a mysterious way," "Tis my happiness below," and "Hear what God, the Lord, hath spoken." Concerning the last three, their position in the manuscripts, and the date of the last from J. Newton in the above order, "Aug. 1773," is conclusive proof against the common belief that "God moves in a mysterious way" was written as the outpouring of Cowper's soul in gratitude for the frustration of his attempted suicide in October 1773.
--John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology, New Supplement (1907)
William Cowper
James Montgomery
1771 - 1854 Author of "Lift up your heads, ye gates of brass" in The Book of Common Praise James Montgomery (b. Irvine, Ayrshire, Scotland, 1771; d. Sheffield, Yorkshire, England, 1854), the son of Moravian parents who died on a West Indies mission field while he was in boarding school, Montgomery inherited a strong religious bent, a passion for missions, and an independent mind. He was editor of the Sheffield Iris (1796-1827), a newspaper that sometimes espoused radical causes. Montgomery was imprisoned briefly when he printed a song that celebrated the fall of the Bastille and again when he described a riot in Sheffield that reflected unfavorably on a military commander. He also protested against slavery, the lot of boy chimney sweeps, and lotteries. Associated with Christians of various persuasions, Montgomery supported missions and the British Bible Society. He published eleven volumes of poetry, mainly his own, and at least four hundred hymns. Some critics judge his hymn texts to be equal in quality to those of Isaac Watts and Charles Wesley . Many were published in Thomas Cotterill's Selection of Psalms and Hymns (1819 edition) and in Montgomery's own Songs of Zion (1822), Christian Psalmist (1825), and Original Hymns (1853).
Bert Polman
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Montgomery, James, son of John Montgomery, a Moravian minister, was born at Irvine, Ayrshire, Nov. 4, 1771. In 1776 he removed with his parents to the Moravian Settlement at Gracehill, near Ballymena, county of Antrim. Two years after he was sent to the Fulneck Seminary, Yorkshire. He left Fulneck in 1787, and entered a retail shop at Mirfield, near Wakefield. Soon tiring of that he entered upon a similar situation at Wath, near Rotherham, only to find it quite as unsuitable to his taste as the former. A journey to London, with the hope of finding a publisher for his youthful poems ended in failure; and in 1792 he was glad to leave Wath for Shefield to join Mr. Gales, an auctioneer, bookseller, and printer of the Sheffield Register newspaper, as his assistant. In 1794 Mr. Gales left England to avoid a political prosecution. Montgomery took the Sheffield Register in hand, changed its name to The Sheffield Iris, and continued to edit it for thirty-one years. During the next two years he was imprisoned twice, first for reprinting therein a song in commemoration of "The Fall of the Bastille," and the second for giving an account of a riot in Sheffield. The editing of his paper, the composition and publication of his poems and hynms, the delivery of lectures on poetry in Sheffield and at the Royal Institution, London, and the earnest advocacy of Foreign Missions and the Bible Society in many parts of the country, gave great variety but very little of stirring incident to his life. In 1833 he received a Royal pension of £200 a year. He died in his sleep, at the Mount, Sheffield, April 30, 1854, and was honoured with a public funeral. A statue was erected to his memory in the Sheffield General Cemetery, and a stained glass window in the Parish Church. A Wesleyan chapel and a public hall are also named in his honour. Montgomery's principal poetical works, including those which he edited, were:—
(1) Prison Amusements, 1797; (2) The Wanderer of Switzerland, 1806; (3) The West Indies, 1807; (4) The World before the Flood, 1813; (5) Greenland and Other Poems, 1819; (6) Songs of Zion, 1822; (7) The Christian Psalmist, 1825; (8) The Christian Poet, 1825; (9) The Pelican Island, 1828; (10) The Poet’s Portfolio, 1835; (11) Original Hymns for Public, Private, and Social Devotion, 1853. He also published minor pieces at various times, and four editions of his Poetical Works, the first in 1828, the second in 1836, the third in 1841, and the fourth in 1854. Most of these works contained original hymns. He also contributed largely to Collyer's Collection, 1812, and other hymnbooks published during the next 40 years, amongst which the most noticeable was Cotterill's Selections of 1819, in which more than 50 of his compositions appeared. In his Christian Psalmist, 1825, there are 100 of his hymns, and in his Original Hymns, 1853, 355 and 5 doxologies. His Songs of Zion, 1822, number 56. Deducting those which are repeated in the Original Hymns, there remain about 400 original compositions.
Of Montgomery's 400 hymns (including his versions of the Psalms) more than 100 are still in common use. With the aid of Montgomery's MSS. we have given a detailed account of a large number. The rest are as follows:—
i. Appeared in Collyer's Collection, 1812.
1. Jesus, our best beloved Friend. Personal Dedication to Christ.
2. When on Sinai's top I see. Sinai, Tabor, and Calvary.
ii. Appeared in Cotterill's Selection, 1819.
3. Come to Calvary's holy mountain. The Open Fountain.
4. God in the high and holy place. God in Nature. The cento in Com. Praise, 1879, and others, "If God hath made this world so fair," is from this hymn.
5. Hear me, O Lord, in my distress. Ps. cxliii.
6. Heaven is a place of rest from sin. Preparation for Heaven.
7. I cried unto the Lord most just. Ps. cxlii.
8. Lord, let my prayer like incense rise. Ps. cxxxix.
9. O bless the Lord, my soul! His grace to thee proclaim. Ps. ciii.
10. Out of the depths of woe. Ps. cxxx. Sometimes "When from the depths of woe."
11. The world in condemnation lay. Redemption.
12. Where are the dead? In heaven or hell? The Living and the Dead.
iii. Appeared in his Songs of Zion, 1822.
13. Give glory to God in the highest. Ps. xxix.
14. Glad was my heart to hear. Ps. cxxii.
15. God be merciful to me. Ps. lxix.
16. God is my strong salvation. Ps. xxvii.
17. Hasten, Lord, to my release. Ps. lxx.
18. Have mercy on me, O my God. Ps. li.
19. Hearken, Lord, to my complaints. Ps. xlii.
20. Heralds of creation cry. Ps. cxlviii.
21. How beautiful the sight. Ps. cxxxiii.
22. How precious are Thy thoughts of peace. Ps. cxxxix.
23. I love the Lord, He lent an ear. Ps. cxvi.
24. In time of tribulation. Ps. lxxvii.
25. Jehovah is great, and great be His praise. Ps. xlviii. Sometimes, "0 great is Jehovah, and great is His Name."
26. Judge me, O Lord, in righteousness. Ps. xliii.
27. Lift up your heads, ye gates, and wide. Ps.xxiv.
28. Lord, let me know mine [my] end. Ps. xxxi.
29. Of old, 0 God, Thine own right hand. Ps. lxxx.
30. O God, Thou art [my] the God alone. Ps. lxiii.
31. 0 Lord, our King, how excellent. Ps. viii. Sometimes, "0 Lord, how excellent is Thy name."
32. O my soul, with all thy powers. Ps. ciii.
33. One thing with all my soul's desire. Ps. xxvii. From this, "Grant me within Thy courts a place."
34. Searcher of hearts, to Thee are known. Ps. cxxxix.
35. Thank and praise Jehovah's name. Ps. cvii.
36. Thee will I praise, O Lord in light. Ps. cxxxviii.
37. The Lord is King; upon His throne. Ps. xciii.
38. The Lord is my Shepherd, no want shall I know. Ps. xxiii.
39. The tempter to my soul hath said. Ps. iii.
40. Thrice happy he who shuns the way. Ps. i.
41. Thy glory, Lord, the heavens declare. Ps. xix.
42. Thy law is perfect, Lord of light. Ps. xix.
43. Who make the Lord of hosts their tower. Ps. cxxv.
44. Yea, I will extol Thee. Ps. xxx.
iv. Appeared in his Christian Psalmist. 1825.
45. Fall down, ye nations, and adore. Universal adoration of God desired.
46. Food, raiment, dwelling, health, and friends. The Family Altar.
47. Go where a foot hath never trod. Moses in the desert. Previously in the Leeds Congregational Collection, 1822.
48. Green pastures and clear streams. The Good Shepherd and His Flock.
49. Less than the least of all. Mercies acknowledged.
50. Not to the mount that burned with fire [flame]. Communion of Saints.
51. On the first Christian Sabbath eve. Easter Sunday Evening.
52. One prayer I have: all prayers in one. Resignation.
53. Our heavenly Father hear. The Lord's Prayer.
54. Return, my soul, unto thy rest. Rest in God.
55. Spirit of power and might, behold. The Spirit's renewing desired.
56. The Christian warrior, see him stand. The Christian Soldier. Sometimes, "Behold the Christian warrior stand."
57. The days and years of time are fled. Day of Judgment.
58. The glorious universe around. Unity.
59. The pure and peaceful mind. A Children's Prayer.
60. This is the day the Lord hath made (q. v.). Sunday.
61. Thy word, Almighty Lord. Close of Service.
62. What secret hand at morning light ? Morning.
63. While through this changing world we roam. Heaven.
64. Within these walls be peace. For Sunday Schools.
v. Appeared in his Original Hymns, 1853.
65. Behold yon bright array. Opening a Place of Worship.
66. Behold the book whose leaves display. Holy Scriptures.
67. Come ye that fear the Lord. Confirmation.
68. Home, kindred, friends, and country, these. Farewell to a Missionary.
69. Let me go, the day is breaking. Jacob wrestling.
70. Not in Jerusalem alone. Consecration of a Church.
71. Praise the high and holy One. God the Creator.
In common with most poets and hymnwriters, Montgomery strongly objected to any correction or rearrangement of his compositions. At the same time he did not hesitate to alter, rearrange, and amend the productions of others. The altered texts which appeared in Cotterill's Selections, 1819, and which in numerous instances are still retained in some of the best hymnbooks, as the "Rock of Ages," in its well-known form of three stanzas, and others of equal importance, were made principally by him for Cotterill's use. We have this confession under his own hand.
As a poet, Montgomery stands well to the front; and as a writer of hymns he ranks in popularity with Wesley, Watts, Doddridge, Newton, and Cowper. His best hymns were written in his earlier years. In his old age he wrote much that was unworthy of his reputation. His finest lyrics are "Angels from the realms of glory," "Go to dark Gethsemane," "Hail to the Lord's Anointed," and "Songs of praise the angels sang." His "Prayer is the soul's sincere desire," is an expanded definition of prayer of great beauty; and his "Forever with the Lord" is full of lyric fire and deep feeling. The secrets of his power as a writer of hymns were manifold. His poetic genius was of a high order, higher than most who stand with him in the front rank of Christian poets. His ear for rhythm was exceedingly accurate and refined. His knowledge of Holy Scripture was most extensive. His religious views were broad and charitable. His devotional spirit was of the holiest type. With the faith of a strong man he united the beauty and simplicity of a child. Richly poetic without exuberance, dogmatic without uncharitableness, tender without sentimentality, elaborate without diffusiveness, richly musical without apparent effort, he has bequeathed to the Church of Christ wealth which could onlv have come from a true genius and a sanctified! heart.
--John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology (1907)
James Montgomery
John Greenleaf Whittier
1807 - 1892 Author of "I bow my forehead to the dust" in The Harvard University Hymn Book Whittier, John Greenleaf, the American Quaker poet, was born at Haverhill, Massachusetts, Dec. 17, 1807. He began life as a farm-boy and shoemaker, and subsequently became a successful journalist, editor and poet. In 1828 he became editor of the American Manufacturer (Boston), in 1830 of the New England Review, and an 1836 (on becoming Secretary to the American Anti-Slavery Society) of the Pennsylvania Freeman. He was also for some time, beginning with 1847, the corresponding editor of the National Era. In 1840 he removed to Amesbury, Massachusetts, where most of his later works have been written. At the present time [1890] he lives alternately at Amesbury and Boston. His first poetical piece was printed in the Newburyport Free Press in 1824. Since then his publications have been numerous, including:—
Voices of Freedom, 1833; Songs of Labour, and other Poems, 1850; Ballads and other Poems, London, 1844; The Panorama, and other Poems, 1856; In War Time, 1863; Occasional Poems, 1865; Poetical Works, 1869; Complete Poetical Works, 1876; The Bay of the Seven Islands, and other Poems, 1883, &c.
From his numerous poems the following hymns have been compiled, and have come into common use, more especially amongst the American Unitarians:—
1. All as God wills, Who wisely heeds. Trust. This begins with stanza xi. of Whittier's poem, "My Psalm." in his workThe Panorama, and other Poems, 1856 (Complete Poetical Works, Boston, 1876, p. 179), and is given in Lyra Sacra Americana , 1868; Border's Congregational Hymns, 1884, &c.
2. All things are Thine: no gift have we. Opening of a Place of Worship. Written for the Opening of Plymouth Church, Minnesota, 1872 ( Complete Poetical Works , p. 281). In Horder's Congregational Hymns, 1884.
3. Another hand is beckoning us. Bereavement. From his poem " Gone," written in 1845 (Complete Poetical Works, p. 106). In Horder's Congregational Hymns, 1884.
4. Dear Lord and Father of mankind. Calmness in God desired. From his poem “The Brewing of Soma," beginning with stanza xii. (Complete Poetical Works p. 266). In Horder's Congregational Hymns, 1884.
5. God giveth quietness at last. Death and Burial. This begins with stanza xvii. of his poem, “The Singer," written in 1871 (Author's MS.), and included in the Complete Poetical Works, 1876, p. 265. In Martineau's Hymns, 1875.
6. Hast thou, 'midst life's empty noises. The Purpose of Life. Written in 1842. It is in Longfellow and Johnson's Unitarian Book of Hymns, Boston, 1846, and several other later American collections. Also in Lyra Sacra Americana, 1864.
7. I ask not now for gold to gild. Resignation. From his poem "The Wish of To-Day." Written in 1848 (Author's MS.). In Hedge and Huntingdon's Unitarian Hymns for the Church of Christ, Boston, 1853; the Laudes Domini, 1884, and other collections.
8. Immortal love, for ever full. The Love of Jesus. This poem, entitled “Our Master," appeared in Whittier's work, The Panorama, and other Poems, 1856, in 35 stanzas of 4 lines; in Schaff’s Christ in Song, 1869-70, p. 117; and in the Complete Poetical Works, 1876, p. 231, and others. From this poem the following centos have come into common use:—
(1) Immortal love for ever full. In the 1890 edition of the Hymnal Companion and others.
(2) 0 Lord and Master of us all. Begins with stanza xvi.
(3) 0 Love! O Life! our faith and sight. Begins with stanza xxiv. In several American hymnals, including the Unitarian Hymn [and Tune Book ], Boston, 1868, and others.
(4) Our Friend, our Brother, and our Lord. Begins with stanza xxxiv. In Horder's Congregational Hymns, 1884, &c.
(5) We faintly hear, we dimly see. Begins with stanza xxvi. In Barrett's Congregational Church Hymnal, 1887.
(6) We may not climb the heavenly steeps. Begins with stanza v. In Laudes Domini, 1884; the Primitive Methodist Hymnal, 1887, &c.
The use of these centos shows that the hymnic element in the original poem is of a high and enduring order.
9. It may not be our lot to wield. Duty and its Reward. This begins with stanza iv. of his poem "Seedtime and Harvest." Written circa 1850 (Author's MS.). Given in his Complete Poetical Works, p. 114. The hymn is in Laudes Domini, 1884, and other American collections.
10. May freedom speed onward, wherever the blood. Freedom. In the 1848 Supplement to the Boston Book of Hymns, Boston, No. 582, Hymns of the Spirit, 1864, and other collections. In Whittier's Poetical Works, Boston, 1869, p. 68, it is given as, “Right onward, O speed it! Wherever the blood”.
11. Now is the seed-time; God alone. Self-Sacrifice. In the Boston Hymns of the Spirit, 1864, No. 683.
12. 0 backward-looking son of time. New and Old. This begins with stanza xix. of his poem "The Reformer," and is given in this form in the Boston Hymns for the Church of Christ, Boston, 1853, No. 835, and again in later collections. In full in the Complete Poetical Works, p. 78.
13. 0 beauty, old yet ever new. The Law of Love. This in the Boston Hymns of the Spirit, 1864, begins with stanza xxi. of his poem on “The Shadow and the Light,” given in full in the Complete Poetical Works , p. 173.
14. 0 fairest-born of love and light. American National Hymn. This is from his poem "Democracy," which is dated "Election Day, 1843," and is in his Ballads and other Poems, London, 1844, p. 214, and his Complete Poetical Works, p. 82.
15. 0, he whom Jesus loves has truly spoken. True Worship. This in the 1848 Supplement to the Boston Book of Hymns, 1848, No. 578, begins with stanza xi. of his poem on “Worship," given in full in his Complete Poetical Works, p. 96. The poem is dated by the Author, 1848 (Author's MS.).
16. 0 holy Father, just and true. Freedom. "Lines written for the Celebration of the third Anniversary of British Emancipation at the Broadway Tabernacle, N. Y., First of August, 1837." (Complete Poetical Works, p. 47.) It was included in the Unitarian Christian Hymns, Boston, 1844, and has been repeated in later collections.
17. 0 Maker of the Fruits and Flowers. Flower Services. This begins with stanza iv. of his "Lines for the Agricultural and Horticultural Exhibition at Amesbury and Salisbury, Sep. 28, 1858," as given in his Complete Poetical Works , p. 183. It is in the Boston Hymns of the Spirit, 1864, and as "O Painter of the fruits and flowers," in Horder's Congregational Hymns, 1884.
18. O not alone with outward sign. Divine Invitation. This begins with stanza ii. of his poem, "The Call of the Christian," given in his Ballads and other Poems, London, 1844, p. 185, and his Complete Poetical Works, p. 73. The hymn appeared in the Boston Book of Hymns, 1846, and again in later collections.
19. O pure Reformers, not in vain. Freedom. This begins with stanza xii. of his poem "To the Reformers of England," as given in his Complete Poetical Works, p. 77. The hymn was included in the Boston Book of Hymns, 1846, and has been repeated in later collections.
20. O sometimes gleams upon our sight. Old and New. This is taken from his poem "The Chapel of the Hermits," 1852 (in 94 stanzas of 4 lines), and begins with stanza xi. (Comp. Poetical Works, p. 115.) The cento was given in the Boston Hymns of the Spirit, 1864, and repeated in later collections.
21. O Thou, at Whose rebuke the grave. Mercy. This was given in the Boston Book of Hymns, 1848, No. 44l.
22. O [God] Thou, Whose presence went before. National Hymn. This hymn is dated by the author 1834 (Author's MS.), and was written for the Anti-slavery Meeting at Chatham Street Chapel, New York, "on the 4th of the 7th month, 1831." It is No. 750 in the Unitarian Christian Hymns, 1844. It is sometimes given as “0 God, whose presence went before."
23. 0, what though our feet may not tread where Christ trod. Presence of Christ's Spirit. The author dates this 1837 (Author's MS.). It is No. 150 in the Boston Book of Hymns, 1846. In their Hymns of the Spirit, 1864, No. 652, it begins: "0, wherefore the dream of the earthly abode." Both centos are from his poem “Poledom."
24. Shall we grow weary in our watch? Patience, or Resignation. This begins with stanza x. of his poem "The Cypress-Tree of Ceylon." (Complete Poetical Works, p. 84.) This form of the text was given in the Boston Book of Hymns, 1846, No. 278, in 7 stanzas of 4 lines, and again in Horder's Congregational Hymns, 1884, in 3 stanzas.
25. Sport of the changeful multitude. Persecution. This begins with line 6 of stanza x. of his poem "Ezekiel," and was given in the Boston Hymns of the Spirit, 1864, No. 65lines In full in Complete Poetical Works, p. 67.
26. The green earth sends its incense up. Worship of Nature. The author dates this 1845 (Author's MS.). It is from his poem “The Worship of Nature," and was given in this form in the Boston Hymns for the Church of Christ, 1853, No. 193. The cento "The harp at Nature's advent strung," in the Unitarian Hymn [and Tune] Book, Boston, 1868, No. 195, is from the same poem. The cento No. 321 in the Boston Hymns of the Spirit, 1864, is also (altered) from this poem.
27. The path of life we walk today. The Shadowing Rock. This in the Boston Hys. of the Spirit, 1864, begins with stanza i. of his poem on "The Rock in El Gh'or," which the author dates 1859 (Author's MS.). In full in Complete Poetical Works, p. 180.
28. Thine are all the gifts, 0 God. Children's Missions, or Ragged Schools. Written for the Anniversary of the Children's Mission, Boston, 1878. It is given in Horder's Congregational Hymns, 1884.
29. Thou hast fallen in thine armour. Death. From his poem "To the memory of Charles B. Storrs, late President of Western Reserve College," published in his Ballads and other Poems, London, 1844, p. 84. Dated by the author 1835 (Author's MS.). Abridged form in the Hymns of the Spirit, 1864.
30. To-day, beneath Thy chastening eye. Seeking Rest. This begins with stanza iv. of his poem, "The Wish of To-Day," dated by the author 1847 (Author's MS.), and given in full in his Complete Poetical Works, p. 114. The cento is in Martineau's Hymns, 1873, and others.
31. We see not, know not; all our way. Resignation. "Written at the opening of the Civil War, 1861" (Author's MS.), and included in his In War Time, 1863, and his Complete Poetical Works, p. 190. In full in the Prim. Methodist Hymnal, 1887.
32. When on my day of life the night is falling. Old Age. Written in 1882 (Author's MS.), and included in his work The Bay of the Seven Islands, and other Poems, 1883. In Horder's Congregational Hymns, 1884.
33. With silence only as their benediction. Death. 1845. "Written on the death of Sophia Sturge, sister of Joseph Sturge, of Birmingham, England" (Author's MS.). It is in several collections, including Martineau's Hymns, &c, 1873; Horder's Congregational Hymns, 1884, and others.
Notwithstanding this extensive use of portions of Mr. Whittier's poems as hymns for congregational use, he modestly says concerning himself: "I am really not a hymn-writer, for the good reason that I know nothing of music. Only a very few of my pieces were written for singing. A good hymn is the best use to which poetry can be devoted, but I do not claim that I have succeeded in composing one." (Author's MS.) We must add, however, that these pieces are characterized by rich poetic beauty, sweet tenderness, and deep sympathy with human kind.
-- John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology (1907)
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Whittier, J. G, p. 1277, i. In addition to the large number of this author's hymns already annotated from his own manuscript, the following have also come into use, mainly in the form of centos from his poems, during the past ten years:—
i. From Poems, 1850:—
1. O brother man! Fold to thy heart thy brother. [Brotherly Love.] From his poem, “Worship." Written in 1848, and published in Poems, 1850.
ii. From Songs of Labour, and Other Poems, 1850;—
2. Bowed down in lowliness of min. [Resignation.] From the poem “The Wish of To-day."
iii. From The Chapel of the Hermits, and Other Poems, 1853:—
3. O, sometimes glimpses on our sight. [Light in Darkness.] First published in The National Era, 1851, and again as above, 1853. In The Pilgrim Hymnal, N.Y. 1904, it begins " 0 sometimes gleams upon our sight," and in Hymns of the Ages, 1904, "Yet sometimes glimpses on my sight"; see p. 1277, ii. 20.
iv. From The Panorama, and Other Poems, 1856:—
4. Thou, 0 most compassionate. [Divine Compassion.] This cento is from the poem "My Dream," and is dated 1855.
v. From Home Ballads and Poems, 1860:—
5. I mourn no more my vanished years. [Life's Review.] A cento from "My Psalm," dated 1859, opening with st. i.
6. No longer forward nor behind. This begins with st. iii. of "My Psalm."
7. O hearts of love, O souls that turn. [Life from, Christ.] A cento from the poem, "The Overheart."
8. O Love Divine, Whose constant beam. [Divine Love Universal.] From the poem, "The Shadow and the Light." The form in which it is given in The Pilgrim Hymnal, 1904, first appeared in The Independent, Nov. 1860.
9. Once more the liberal year laughs out. [Autumn.] From his "For an Autumn Festival," 1859.
vi. From In War Time, and Other Poems, 1864:—
10. I can only urge the plea. [Cry for Mercy.] A cento from “Andrew Rykman’s Prayer,” dated 1863.
11. What Thou wilt, O Father, give. Also from “Andrew Kykman's Prayer."
vii. From The Tent on the Beach, and Other Poems, 1867:—
12. I bow my forehead to [in] the dust. St. ix., &c.
13. I know not what the future hath. St. xvi., &c.
14. I long for household voices gone. St. xv., &c.
15. I see the wrong that round me lies. St. x., &c.
16. Who fathoms the Eternal Thought. St. iv., &c.
17. Yet, in the maddening maze of things. St. xi., &c.
These centos are taken from the poem, "The Eternal Goodness," which is dated 1865.
viii. From Among the Hills, and Other Poems, 1869:—
18. For ever round the mercy-seat. [God's Love and Man's Unfaithfulness.] From the poem, “The Answer."
ix. From The Pennsylvania Pilgrim, and Other Poems, 1873:—
19. Best for the weary hands is good. [Daily Renewal.] This is from "My Birthday," which appeared in the Atlantic Monthly, 1871, and again as above, 1873.
x. From Hazel Blossoms, 1875:—
20. All things [gifts] are Thine, p. 1277, i. 2. The church for which this was written, in 1873, was Plymouth Church, St. Paul, Minn. The hymn was included in Hazel Blossoms, 1875.
21. We need love's tender lessons taught. [Love.] From Child-Songs," in Hazel Blossoms, opening with st. ix.
xi. From The Bay of the Seven Islands, 1883:—
22. As from the lighted hearths behind me. [Anticipation of the Future.] This begins with st. iii. of the poem, "What the Traveller said at Sunset."
xii. Additional Notes:—
23. Lord, for the things we see. [Public Gatherings.] This hymn is from "Poledom," 1837.
24. Not always as the whirlwind's rush. [Call to the Ministry.] Published in The Poetical Writings, 1857, Vol. i., p. 254, and again in the Oxford edition of his Poetical Works, 1904, p. 455. It is dated 1833.
25. Sound over all waters, [The Coming Kingdom.)
This, in Horder's Worship Song, 1905, is from Whittier's Complete Poetical Works, Boston, 1876, p. 280, where it is dated 1873.
26. Take courage, Temperance workers. [Temperance.] Mr. Pickard, Whittier's literary executor, cannot trace this hymn in any of the author's writings, and we also are at fault.
27. The harp at Nature's advent strung. [Nature's acknowledgement of God.] Dr. Charles L. Noyes, one of the editors of The Pilgrim Hymnal, 1904, writes us concerning this hymn: "It was first published in its present form [as in the American hymn-books] in 1867 in The Tent on the Beach." But a hymn almost identical was written when Whittier was in his teens, and published in the Haverhill Gazette, October 5, 1827. The same poem appeared in The Palladium, 1829. It was revised for The Tent on the Beach, 1867 (p. 1278, i. 26).
28. We see not, know not; all our way, p. 1278, i. 31. This hymn, written in 1861, first appeared in the Atlantic Monthly, 1862, vol. 10, p. 235.
29. Wherever through the ages rise. [Love is universal.] Opens with line 1 of a section in the poem "Miriam," in Miriam, and Other Poems, 1871, p. 13.
30. Who calls Thy glorious service hard? [Duty.] This begins with st. iii. of his poem "Seedtime and Harvest," noted on p. 1277, ii. 9.
31. O Lord and Father of mankind. This is a slightly altered form of "Dear Lord and Father of mankind." p. 1277, i. 4.
The poem, “Our Master," stated on p. 1277, i., No. 8, as having appeared in The Panorama, 1856, in error, was given in The Tent on the Beach, and Other Poems, Boston, 1867, pp. 143-152.
In compiling the foregoing, we have been materially assisted by Mr. Pickard, the poet's literary executor, and the Rev. Dr. Charles L. Noyes, of Somerville, Mass. Whittier died at Hampton Falls, New Hampshire, Sep. 7, 1892.
--John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology, New Supplement (1907)
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See also in:
Hymn Writers of the Church
John Greenleaf Whittier
Arthur Sullivan
1842 - 1900 Person Name: Arthur S. Sullivan Arranger of "NORWICH (Old 137th)" in Hymns of the Church Arthur Seymour Sullivan (b Lambeth, London. England. 1842; d. Westminster, London, 1900) was born of an Italian mother and an Irish father who was an army bandmaster and a professor of music. Sullivan entered the Chapel Royal as a chorister in 1854. He was elected as the first Mendelssohn scholar in 1856, when he began his studies at the Royal Academy of Music in London. He also studied at the Leipzig Conservatory (1858-1861) and in 1866 was appointed professor of composition at the Royal Academy of Music. Early in his career Sullivan composed oratorios and music for some Shakespeare plays. However, he is best known for writing the music for lyrics by William S. Gilbert, which produced popular operettas such as H.M.S. Pinafore (1878), The Pirates of Penzance (1879), The Mikado (1884), and Yeomen of the Guard (1888). These operettas satirized the court and everyday life in Victorian times. Although he composed some anthems, in the area of church music Sullivan is best remembered for his hymn tunes, written between 1867 and 1874 and published in The Hymnary (1872) and Church Hymns (1874), both of which he edited. He contributed hymns to A Hymnal Chiefly from The Book of Praise (1867) and to the Presbyterian collection Psalms and Hymns for Divine Worship (1867). A complete collection of his hymns and arrangements was published posthumously as Hymn Tunes by Arthur Sullivan (1902). Sullivan steadfastly refused to grant permission to those who wished to make hymn tunes from the popular melodies in his operettas.
Bert Polman
Arthur Sullivan
John Mason
1645 - 1694 Person Name: John Mason , c. 1645-1694 Author of "How shall I sing that Majesty" in The Hymnary of the United Church of Canada Mason, John. The known facts of his life are scanty. He was the son of a Dissenting Minister, and the grandfather of John Mason, the author of A Treatise on Self-Knowledge. He was educated at Strixton School, Northants, and Clare Hall, Cambridge. After taking his M.A., he became Curate of Isham; and in 1668, Vicar of Stantonbury, Bucks. A little more than five years afterwards he was appointed Rector of Water-Stratford. Here he composed the volume containing The Songs of Praise, his paraphrase of The Song of Solomon, and the Poem on Dives and Lazarus, with which Shepherd's Penitential Cries was afterwards bound up. This volume passed through twenty editions. Besides the Songs of Praise, it contains six Penitential Cries by Mason, and it is this portion of his work which harmonizes with the compositions of Shepherd. Probably his hymns were used in public worship, and if so, they are among the earliest hymns so used in the Church of England. Some of his hymns are often found in the early Hymn Collections of the 18th century. The most notable work besides this volume is Select Remains of the Rev, John Mason, a collection of sententious and practical sayings and Christian letters, published by his grandson, and much eulogized by Dr. Watts. His friend, Shepherd, who was at Water-Stratford at the remarkable period to which reference is made below, published two of Mason's Sermons, with a preface of his own. Mason was a man of true piety and humility; known for eminent prayerfulness; faithful, experimental, effectual preaching; "a light in the pulpit, and a pattern out of it." His friendship with Baxter, and Shepherd, the Nonconformist Minister of Braintree, probably indicates his sympathies and theological position. Baxter calls him "the glory of the Church of England," and says :—
"The frame of his spirit was so heavenly, his deportment so humble and obliging, his discourse of spiritual things so weighty, with such apt words and delightful air, that it charmed all that had any spiritual relish.”
The close of his life was sensational enough. One night, about a month before his death, he had a vision of the Lord Jesus, wearing on His head a glorious crown, and with a look of unutterable majesty in His face. Of this vision he spoke; and preached a Sermon called The Midnight Cry, in which he proclaimed the near approach of Christ's Second Advent. A report spread that this Advent would take place at Water-Stratford itself, and crowds gathered there from the surrounding villages. Furniture and provisions were brought in, and every corner of the house and village occupied. Most extraordinary scenes occurred, singing and leaping and dancing. The excitement had scarcely died out when the old man passed away (1694), still testifying that he had seen the Lord, and that it was time for the nation to tremble, and for Christians to trim their lamps. His last words were, “I am full of the loving kindness of the Lord."
[Rev. H. Leigh Bennett, M.A.]
The full titles of his Songs of Praise, and the additions thereto, are:—
(1) Spiritual Songs; or, Songs of Praise to Almighty God upon several occasions, 1683. (2) The Song of Songs which is Solomon's first Turned, then Paraphrased in English Verse. Published with the former. (3) Dives and Lazarus, incorporated with the former 1685. (4) Penitential Cries, Begun by the Author of the Songs of Praise, And carried on by another Hand. Licensed and Entered, Sept. 13, 1693. This forms the concluding part of all editions of the Songs of Praise after 1693. The complete work was reprinted by D. Sedgwick in 1859. This reprint was accompanied by a short Memoir. In this reprint Mason's Penitential Cries and Ps. 86 are given under Songs of Praise, pp. 49-61, those under Penitential Cries being all by Shepherd (q.v.). Mason's Life, by John Dunton, was published in 1694, and included some miscellaneous poems; and another, by Henry Maurice, in 1695, in which are two hymns not found elsewhere. We may add that Mason published a Catechism, with some Verses for Children. Of this, however, no copy is known to exist.
Mason's Songs are commonly presented in modern hymnbooks in the form of centos, which are sometimes compiled from a single Song, and in other instances from several Songs. Many of these are annotated under their respective first lines. The rest include:—
1. Blest be my God that I was born. Praise for the Gospel.
2. Lord, for the mercies of the night. Morning.
3. Lord of my life, Length of my days. Praise for Deliverance from Immediate danger of Death.
4. My God, a God of pardon is. Praise for Pardon of Sin.
5. My God, my only Help and Hope. Praise for Providence.
6. My God, my reconciled God. Praise for Peace of Conscience.
7. My God was with me all this night. Morning.
8. Thou wast, 0 God; and Thou wast blest. Praise for Creation.
9. Thousands of thousands stand around. Praise. A cento from Songs i. and ii.
In Griffith, Farran & Co.'s Ancient and Modern Library, No. 12, Giles Fletcher's Christ's Victory and Triumph, &c, 1888, p. 208 (edited by W. T. Brooke), a short hymn by Mason is given from Multum in Parvo: or the Jubilee of Jubilees, 1732, beginning "High praises meet and dwell within." It is an indifferent example of Mason's powers as a writer of sacred verse.
-- John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology (1907)
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Mason, J., p. 716, ii. Mason's Midnight Cry, stated on p. 717, i. as having been preached in 1694, was delivered in 1691. The 1st ed. of this sermon is:—
“The Midnight Cry. A Sermon Preached On the Parable of the Ten Virgins . . . . By J. M., M.A., Rector of W. in the County of B., London: Nathanael Ranew . . 1691.
This edition has no hymns. To the 4th ed. in 1692, published by the same Nathanael Ranew, there was added:—
The Fourth Edition, with the Addition of two Hymns for the Coming of Christ. By the same Author.
The first of these hymns begins:—
"The evening of the Day
Portends a dismal night,"
and is in 12 stanzas of 8 lines. The second hymn is:—
"Come, come, my dearest, dearest Lord,
Make haste and come away."
This is in 14 stanzas of 4 lines. Of the first and fifth eds. there are copies in the Brit. Museum, and of the first in the Julian Collection of the Church House, London.
--John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology, New Supplement (1907)
John Mason
Helen Maria Williams
1762 - 1827 Author of "While Thee I seek, protecting Power!" in The Evangelical Hymnal with Tunes Miss Helen Maria Williams was born in the north of England, in 1762. At the age of eighteen, she went to London, and soon after took position in the literary world, publishing several poems. Subsequently she resided in Paris, where she published works in prose and poetry. She died in 1827. The eminent French preacher, Athanase Coquerel was her nephew, and received from her his early training.
--Annotations of the Hymnal, Charles Hutchins, M.A., 1872.
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Williams, Helen Maria, daughter of Charles Williams, an officer in the Army, was born in the North of England in 1762. Through the influence of Dr. A. Kippis whose help she sought in London, her first poem, Edwin and Eltruda, a legendary tale, was published in 1782. This was followed by An Ode on the Peace, 1783, and Pern, a Poem. These were all included in her Poems, 2 vols., 1786, 2nd edition 1791. Being connected by her sister's marriage with a French Protestant family, she resided in Paris during the period of the Revolution and the reign of Terror. There she became well known as a political writer of strong republican sympa-thies, but her too independent expressions of opinion led to her temporary imprisonment by Robespierre. Her Letters from France, 1790, were published in England and America, and in a French translation, in France. She also published Letters containing a Sketch of the Politics of France from the 31st May, 1793, till the 28th of July, 1794, 2 vols., 1795, and other works of a like kind; some additional Poems, and a translation of Humboldt's Personal Narratives of his Travels, 1815. The closing years of her life were spent at Amsterdam, in the house of her nephew, Athanase Coquerel, a pastor of the Reformed Church there. Miss Williams died in 1827. From her Poems, 1786, the following hymns have come into common use:—
1, My God, all nature owns Thy sway. Nature speaks of God. In Martineau's Hymns, 1840.
2. While Thee I seek, protecting Power. Safety in God. This hymn was in Dr. Priestley's Birmingham Collection, 1790; in Kippis's Collection, 1795; the Exeter Collection, 1801; and almost every other Unitarian collection to the present time. In the New Congregational Hymn Book , 1859, it begins "While Thee I seek, Almighty Power;" and in several collections a cento beginning "Father, in all our [my] comforts here," is given as in Stowell's Psalms & Hymns, 1831 and 1877, and several others. [Rev. Valentine D. Davis, B.A.]
-- John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology (1907)
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Williams, Helen Maria, was born in the North of England in 1762. She published a volume of poems when only twenty-one years old, and in 1786 her Poems appeared in two small volumes. She visited Paris in 1788, and lived there for some years with a sister who had married a French Protestant. This was during the period of the Revolution and the Reign of Terror. She was an outspoken republican in her sympathies, 448 and was imprisoned by Robespierre because of some of her utterances in advocacy of the Girondist cause, being released from prison only after his death, in 1794. Her Letters from France (1790 and 1795) were published in England, America, and France. They dealt with political, religious, and literary questions, and showed her to be a woman of more than ordinary intellectual strength. She published many volumes between 1786 and 1823, when her last volume appeared, titled Poems on Various Occasions, being a collection of all her previously published poems. She lived partly in England, but mostly in France, though the closing years of her life were spent in Holland in the home of a nephew who lived at Amsterdam and was pastor of the reformed Church there. Her death occurred at Paris December 14, 1827.
Hymn Writers of the Church Wilbur F. Tillett and Charles S. Nutter, 1915
Helen Maria Williams
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