Sunday, March 04, 2012

Hymn for Sunday - Holy, Holy, Holy! Lord God Almighty

One of the things I've noticed recently in going through the Psalms is the pervasiveness of praise.

Consider this excerpt from Psalm 103:

Bless the LORD, O my soul,
and all that is within me, bless his holy Name.

Bless the LORD, O my soul,
and forget not all his benefits.

Bless the LORD, you angels of his,
you mighty ones who do his bidding,
and hearken to the voice of his word.

Bless the LORD, all you his hosts,
you ministers of his who do his will.

Bless the LORD, all you works of his,
in all places of his dominion;
bless the LORD, O my soul.

(vs. 1,2,20,21,22)

This picture, of God's praise coming from everywhere—from within the psalmist, and from creation, high and low—reminded me of a stanza in the hymn "Holy, Holy, Holy! Lord God Almighty," where earth, sky, and sea all praise God.

The lyrics below were obtained from the Oremus Hymnal online, which lists more than 40 separate Anglican hymnals that contain this particular hymn.



Holy, Holy, Holy! Lord God Almighty

Words: Reginald Heber (1783-1826), 1827
Meter: 11 12 12 10


Holy, holy, holy! Lord God Almighty!
Early in the morning our song shall rise to thee.
Holy, holy, holy! Merciful and mighty,
God in three Persons, blessèd Trinity.

Holy, holy, holy! All saints adore thee,
casting down their golden crowns around the glassy sea;
cherubim and seraphim falling down before thee,
which wert, and art, and evermore shalt be.

Holy, holy, holy! Though the darkness hide thee,
though the sinful human eye thy glory may not see,
only thou art holy; there is none beside thee,
perfect in power, in love, and purity.

Holy, holy, holy! Lord God Almighty!
All thy works shall praise thy Name, in earth, and sky, and sea;
Holy, holy, holy! Merciful and mighty,
God in three Persons, blessèd Trinity.


(Psalm quote adapted from The Book of Common Prayer of the Episcopal Church, 1979 edition, obtained from The (Online) Book of Common Prayer. Lyrics for the hymn are from an entry located at the Oremus Hymnal. Both of these works are in the public domain.)

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