During Covid I began journaling through some of the old hymns. Such an exercise allows me to slow my thinking and discover more meaning in the lyrics than when I quickly sing or read through them.
Today I invite you to contemplate with me the hymn, “O Worship the King” by Robert Grant (1779-1838), that sublimely ascribes to God the glory, honor, and veneration he deserves. To include all five verses would make too long a post, so I chose just the first:
I praise You, O God, King of the universe, who has all authority and power over everything—every detail of creation down to the last sparrow, every detail of history including deposing kings and raising up others, every detail of the lives of those who delight in You [1].
I praise You, O God, “all glorious above,” ruling from Your lofty and exalted throne, a throne ablaze with flames. Surrounding Your throne glimmers a rainbow, and Your train fills the temple, indicating Your majesty and splendor, riches and power [2].
Above You seraphs cry “Holy, holy, holy,” and around You angels and saints worship You. Lamps blaze, lightning flashes, and thunder rumbles [3]!
Just these few details fill my heart with wonder at Your magnificence.
How is it that You, an infinite God who is glorious beyond words, should love humanity? You even love me! With the hymnwriter I “gratefully sing [of Your] wonderful love”—a love expressed in countless ways.
You’ve:
- Provided the way to enter Your kingdom
- Forgiven my sins
- Filled me with Your Holy Spirit
- Sustained me through difficult times
- Attended to all my needs
- Blessed me far beyond what I deserve
- Planned out my days with purpose
- Calmed me with Your presence, guided me with Your Word, and given me hope through Your promises [4]
For all these reasons and more, I praise You for Your unfailing love.
I praise You, O God, for being “our Shield and Defender,” for Your willingness—no, Your eagerness—to protect us from the enemies of our souls, the mischief they want to cause and the lies they want us to believe.
I praise You that “In all dangers You protect us, and either You will be with us or we will be with You, so all will be well [5].” Thank You, Father, for the freedom and peace that comes from resting in such truth.
I worship You, O “Ancient of Days!” You existed before the first day was even created. You are God of the past, present, and future; You have always been omnipresent, omniscient, and eternal.
And because this is true, I don’t need to be troubled by distressing events happening in our world. As our Ancient of Days we can trust You to wisely wield Your power and bring all things to their rightful conclusion, at the right time.
You, O God are “pavilioned in splendor!” I think of the grand cathedrals of Europe with their soaring ceilings, finely-detailed plasterwork and stonework, ornately carved woodwork, magnificent frescoes, and stunning, stained-glass windows.
The Rose Window of Notre Dame Cathedral, Paris, almost 42 feet in diameter
Yet these awe-inspiring structures pale in comparison to the splendors of Your heaven. John the Revelator gave us a glimpse of the New Jerusalem to come, with its precious jewels, pure, transparent gold, and its twelve gates, each one made from a gigantic pearl [6]. Again, I am filled with awe, contemplating such glories to come.
You, O God, are “girded [encircled] with praise,” as the twenty-four elders seated around Your throne exclaim:
NASA photograph of Cosmic Cliffs,
at the edge of a new star forming
My heart also overflows with awe in Your glory–Your magnificence–on display in the expressions of Your attributes, Your creation, Your dominion over all things.
May I too offer continual worship for the great things you have done, the great things you are accomplishing now, and the great things yet to come.
May I faithfully express the glory, honor, and praise You deserve!
[1] Matthew 10:29-31; Daniel 2:21; Psalm 37:23
[2] Isaiah 6:1; Daniel 7:9; Revelation 4:3
[3] Isaiah 6:3; Revelation 5:11-12; 7:9-12; 4:5
[4] John 3:16; 1 John 1:9; Ephesians 1:13-14; Isaiah 46:4; Psalm 31:19; Philippians 4:19; Ephesians 2:10; Psalm 23:4; 119:24, 14
[5] Timothy Keller with Kathy Keller, The Songs of Jesus p. 177
[6] Revelation 21:18-21
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The contemporary song “Everything That Has Breath, Praise the Lord” came right to mind as I read your profound reflection here, Nancy. May we praise our Father in Heaven, now and in the eternity to come.
Blessings!
Are you referring to Matt Redman’s song? We used to sing that at a former church. / The more we praise, the greater our joy, and surely God smiles!
Love this hymn!
I do too, Vickie. The majestic melody arranged by Johann Haydn and arranged by William Gardiner brilliantly captures the essence of the lyrics.
Beautiful! Thank you for sharing! 🤍
You’re welcome, Bridget. Thank you for reading!
You’ve expressed your gratitude for God’s endless mercy, glory, blessings, etc. in wonderful detail. Your blog could easily be recited as a splendid prayer of thanksgiving to God the Father. Thank you, Nancy!
Thank you, Nancy. Praise God for his inspiration behind this prayer!
Nancy, thank you for this beautifully written post of praise to our God! I remember this richly penned song! He is worthy of our praise! Amen!
Thank you, Pam. I’m honored you found beauty here. Of course, David Grant (the lyricist) gave me wonderful material to work with! And, as always, I praise God for his inspiration.
What a powerful Hymn to our Lord. It really draws you into the awe and splendor of our King!!
I experienced the same in the writing, Lori! Thank you so much for stopping by and taking the time to comment.
Such a beautifully written post!!! You do weave everything together in such a marvelous way…thank you!
Aw, thank you Linda for your gracious words and encouragement. Praise God for his inspiration!
A beautiful reflection of our magnificent Lord and Savior. Thanks for this, Nancy–the idea of journaling through old hymns is grand.
It HAS been a grand experience, stretching my mind and spirit while meditating on the exquisite lyrics. Thank you, Dayle!
You and I are certainly on the same spiritual path – between loving and praying old hymns and relishing in God’s amazing grace and majesty!! I am thankful for you, my friend.
As I am for you, Jean! Your blog posts never fail to provide spiritual food for thought, wisdom, and encouragement. And what a special blessing, to meet you in person! (NEVER did I expect our paths would cross this side of heaven when I first started following you years ago!) But look what God did! 😊
You wrote: But look what God did! That really struck me this morning. God is sooooo good and look at all he has done. Just praising this morning and had to share.
Amen, my friend! And with King David I praise God: “Many are the wonders you have done, the things you planned for us. None can compare with you; were I to speak and tell of your deeds, they would be too many to declare” (Psalm 40:5).
Nancy, I love how you take the old hymns and exegete them for us. We get so used to the words that we often gloss over them as we sing. You bring them into focus so we can really pause and consider the great things they teach us about God. Bless you!
Thank you, Patty. I’m so glad you find value in these meditations. As always, I must praise God for his inspiration!
I have a friend whose sister recently passed away with brain cancer. My friend, for several days before her sister’s death, posted the lyrics of well-known old hymns. No comments – just the lyrics – and they perfectly expressed her trust in God during that very hard time.
Between their comforting familiarity, soothing melodies and meaningful lyrics, I can understand how some of the old hymns would provide solace. “What a Friend We Have in Jesus,” “It Is Well with My Soul,” and “He Giveth More Grace” come to mind. Such a worthy practice!
Yes, the song by Matt Redmon, Nancy!
👍
Hi Nancy,
Awesome. It’s amazing to wonder at what we know and see. Imagine the rest we don’t know. Wild!
Gary
You’ve brought to mind the lyrics of Mercy Me’s song, “I Can Only Imagine,” especially the chorus: “Will I sing hallelujah? Will I be able to speak at all?” I think you’re right, Gary, we can’t begin to imagine the wonders of heaven that will (soon?) be our reality!
The human mind has no idea.
Such a rich hymn, Nancy. I has been a long time since I’ve heard this one. Thank you for bringing it to the forefront of my mind and for the beautiful prayer you have written to accompany it.
So glad you found beauty here, Beth. Praise God for his leading as I contemplated this hymn!
What I especially appreciate from the old hymns are the back stories; the trials that the writers endured but still trusted and had faith that they would persevere with the Lord’s help. ‘Leaning on the Everlasting Arms’ springs to mind. These people are so inspiring in spite of their challenges. There is much to learn from their lives.
I too love reading the back stories. To know the circumstances behind the lyrics adds to their meaning. I just looked up the story behind the hymn you mentioned; that was one I hadn’t heard/read before!
God deserves all the praise, and I know I need to try harder to worship Him. Thanks for this beautiful reminder, Nancy.
You’re welcome, Lux. I’m so glad you found beauty here. Our God smiles on each and every effort to worship him. Even a quick but genuine “thank you, Father!” honors him!
Awe, wonder, love, grace. When all is said and done, there are no words that quite capture who He is and what He has done …
AMEN to that, my friend! I wonder if we’ll have adequate words when we get to heaven?!
Love how this idea causes us to slow down and really ponder the words, soaking them in. Wonderful words of gratefulness for Him! Thank you for sharing!!❤️
You’re most welcome, Alicia!
Nancy, blessings for breaking down the first verse of this hymn. Your thoroughness with details reflects positively upon the glory of God.
Thank you, Richard. To positively reflect upon the glory of God is a high honor!
Those hymns have a way of reaching in deep hidden places with life altering truths.
Don’t they though? Some lyricists were incredibly gifted and inspired, including rich meaning in a few verses of song!