#86 How Great Thou Art

Words and music by Stuart K. Hine (1899-    )

 

 

O Lord my God

When I in awesome wonder

Consider all the worlds Thy Hands have made

I see the stars

I hear the rolling thunder

Thy power throughout the universe displayed

 

Refrain

Then sings my soul

My Saviour God to Thee

How great Thou art

How great Thou art

Then sings my soul

My Saviour God to Thee

How great Thou art

How great Thou art

 

When through the woods

And forest glades I wander

And hear the birds sing sweetly in the trees

When I look down

From lofty mountain grandeur

And see the brook and feel the gentle breeze

 

Refrain

Then sings my soul

My Saviour God to Thee

How great Thou art

How great Thou art

Then sings my soul

My Saviour God to Thee

How great Thou art

How great Thou art

 

And when I think

That God His Son not sparing

Sent Him to die I scarce can take it in

That on the Cross

My burden gladly bearing

He bled and died to take away my sin

 

Refrain

Then sings my soul

My Saviour God to Thee

How great Thou art

How great Thou art

Then sings my soul

My Saviour God to Thee

How great Thou art

How great Thou art

 

When Christ shall come

With shouts of acclamation

And take me home

What joy shall fill my heart

Then I shall bow

In humble adoration

And then proclaim

"My God, how great Thou art!"

 

Refrain

Then sings my soul

My Saviour God to Thee

How great Thou art

How great Thou art

Then sings my soul

My Saviour God to Thee

How great Thou art

How great Thou art

 

 

In 1885, a Swedish preacher, by the name of Carl Boberg, at age 26, wrote the words only of a poem entitled, “O Store Gud”. Boberg’s poem was published in 1886. The title, “O Store Gud”, translated into English is “O Great God”. The translation from Swedish to English is obviously different from the words we are familiar with today. Carl Boberg wrote this poem with no thought of it becoming a hymn. He did not write any music to the text. After publication, the poem was apparently forgotten, but several years later, Boberg attended a meeting and was surprised to hear his poem being sung to the tune of an old Swedish melody.

 

In the early 1920’s, English missionaries, Mr. Stuart K. Hine and his wife, ministered in Poland. It was there they learned the Russian version of Boberg’s poem, “O Store Gud”, coupled with the original Swedish melody. Later, under inspiration, Stuart K. Hine wrote original English words, and made his own arrangement of the Swedish melody. The first three verses were inspired, line upon line, amidst unforgettable experiences in the Carpathian Mountains. In a village to which he had climbed, Mr. Hine stood in the street singing a Gospel hymn and reading aloud “John, Chapter Three”. Among the sympathetic listeners was a local village schoolmaster. A storm was gathering, and when it was evident that no further travel could be made that night, the friendly schoolmaster offered his hospitality. Awe-inspiring was the mighty thunder echoing through the mountains, and it was this impression that was to bring about the birth of the first verse. Pushing on, Mr. Hine crossed the mountain frontier into Romania and into Bukovina. Together with some young people, through the woods and forest glades he wandered, and heard the birds sing sweetly in the trees. Thus, the second verse came into being. Verse three was inspired through the conversion of many of the Carpathian mountain-dwellers. The fourth Verse did not come about until Mr. Hine’s return to Britain after World War II.

 

     Stuart K. Hine was born in 1899 in England. His parents were at that time worshipping with the Salvation Army, and dedicated him to God during a time when opposition was strong against those who proclaimed Christ.  After serving in the Armed Forces, Mr. Hine was called to the mission field. For many years he served in Poland and Czechoslovakia. It was during missionary work in these countries that Mr. Hine composed many of the songs for which he’s well-known today. Stuart K. Hine died in 1989.

 

     Born on August 16, 1859, at Mönsterås, Sweden, Carl Gustaf Boberg was a carpenters son. Boberg started out as a sailor. He came to Christ at age 19 and attended a Bible school in Kristinehamm. He served as a lay preacher for two years, edited the weekly Sanningsvittnet (Witness of the Truth) (1890-1916), and served in the Swedish parliament (1912-1931). His works include several volumes of poetry and many hymns; he also helped compile the first two hymnals of the Swedish Covenant church. He died on January 7, 1940, at Kalmar, Sweden and is buried at Mönsterås, Sweden.