Hope in the History of the Hymn

Today I sang one of the hymns that is often a favourite at funeral services “O Lord My God (How Great Thou Art)”, and was struck again by the range of emotions it evokes. That set me wondering about the writer and the inspiration, so I have done a little digging around. Here’s what I discovered:

The original hymn was written by a Swedish preacher (who was also a member of the Swedish parliament!) called Carl Boberg. He and some friends were walking home one Sunday afternoon after a church service they had been leading. Suddenly a powerful thunderstorm erupted over them at Monsteras Bay in southern Sweden. The group had to rapidly find shelter as the storm crashed around them, and then, almost as suddenly as it had risen up, the storm dissipated, and they noticed a rainbow, and  in the stillness of this calm,  birds began to sing, and church bells could be heard in the distance.

Boberg got home and penned his hymn, which was based loosely on Psalm 8. The underground and persecuted Baptist church that he was part of adopted it and it became part of their regular worship.

In 1891 Boberg sold the rights to it and it was included in a more widely used sonbook, which was then translated in 1914 for one used but the Swedish church in the USA.

In the 1940’s a British missionary named Stuart K Hine, heard a Russian translation whilst in Ukraine (this hymn has travelled) and he wrote the English translation popular today.

So, inspired by the power of God, the beauty of creation, and knowing God’s protection all led to us having this wonderful hymn that gives words to the overflow of our hearts.

“Then Sings my soul,
my Saviour God to Thee,
how great Thou art
how great Thou art!”