Father, before Thy throne of light. F. W. Farrar. [St. Michael and All Angels.] Written for the Anniversary of the Dedication of Marlborough College Chapel, 1855, the author being at that time Assistant Master of the College under Dr. Cotton. In 1856 it was included in the Marlborough College Hymn Book; and again in the revised edition of the same collection in 1869, No. 106. From the latter it passed into the Savoy Chapel Appendix to the Hymnary (Chapel Royal), the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge Church Hymns, 1871, No. 184, the Hymnal Companion, 1876, and many other collections. It is admirably suited for daily use in public schools.
--John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology (1907)