Scripture References:
all st. = Ps. 89:1, Eph. 5:19-20, Titus 2:13-14
Near the end of 1876, Philip P. Bliss (PHH 482) and his wife were traveling to Chicago to sing for the evangelistic services led by Daniel W. Whittle at Dwight L. Moody's Tabernacle. But a train wreck and fire en route claimed their lives. Their trunk, which was spared, contained this hymn text by Bliss.
In four stanzas with refrain, the text was set to a gospel tune by James McGranaham (PHH 99), who subsequently succeeded Bliss as song leader for Whittle. The text and McGranaham's tune were published in Welcome Tidings, a New Collection far Sunday School, compiled by Robert S. Lowry (PHH 396), William H. Doane (PHH 473), and Ira D. Sankey (PHH 73) in 1877.
The text is a fine statement in hymn form of Christian teachings on the saving work of Christ, whose atoning death "sealed my pardon, paid the debt, and made me free." The Psalter Hymnal Revision Committee reordered original text into three stanzas to fit the tune HYFRYDOL; the original refrain appears in stanzas 1 and 3.
Liturgical Use:
A glorious testimony hymn about salvation in Christ useful for many worship services; Lent.
--Psalter Hymnal Handbook, 1988
Philip P. Bliss (b. Clearfield County, PA, 1838; d. Ashtabula, OH, 1876) left home as a young boy to make a living by working on farms and in lumber camps, all while trying to continue his schooling. He was converted at a revival meeting at age twelve. Bliss became an itinerant music teacher, making house calls on horseback during the winter, and during the summer attending the Normal Academy of Music in Genesco, New York. His first song was published in 1864, and in 1868 Dwight L. Moody advised him to become a singing evangelist. For the last two years of his life Bliss traveled with Major D. W. Whittle and led the music at revival meetings in the Midwest and Southern United States. Bliss and Ira D. Sankey published a popular series of hym… Go to person page >
My Starred Hymns
My Hymnals
My Purchased Files
