A hymn is a song of praise to God, usually with several verses set to a memorable tune, written to express and teach the truths of the faith. Christian hymns have been sung in worship for many centuries.

What are the most famous Christian hymns?

Among the best loved are Amazing Grace, How Great Thou Art, It Is Well With My Soul, Be Thou My Vision, Holy Holy Holy, and Great Is Thy Faithfulness. Many were born out of real seasons of rescue, sorrow, or wonder.

Why do so many great hymns come from suffering?

Many enduring hymns, like It Is Well With My Soul and Amazing Grace, were written out of grief or rescue. That is the source of their power: they are the songs of people who found God faithful in the dark, not sentimental verses written in ease.

Beauty and Christ

The Great Christian Hymns

A hymn is a song of praise to God, and the great Christian hymns are among the most sung and best loved songs in the world. Amazing Grace, How Great Thou Art, Be Thou My Vision, It Is Well With My Soul, and Holy, Holy, Holy have carried millions through joy and grief. Each one was written to sing a truth about God, and most were born from real seasons of rescue, sorrow, or wonder.

A few of the greatest, and where they came from

Amazing Grace was written by John Newton, a former slave-ship captain turned Anglican minister, and first used on New Year’s Day 1773. It is the sound of a man astonished that God forgave him. How Great Thou Art began as a Swedish poem by Carl Boberg in 1885 and reached the English-speaking world through the translation of the missionary Stuart K. Hine in 1949. It Is Well With My Soul was written by Horatio Spafford after his four daughters died in a shipwreck in 1873. Be Thou My Vision is an ancient Irish hymn, its words centuries old. Holy, Holy, Holy by Reginald Heber sings the song of heaven from Revelation 4.

What they point to

Notice how many of the greatest hymns came out of suffering, not ease. That is the secret of their power: they are not sentimental. They are the songs of people who found God real and faithful in the dark. Scripture has always joined truth to song, and commands God’s people to sing.

“O sing unto the LORD a new song: sing unto the LORD, all the earth.”

Psalm 96:1

“Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.”

Colossians 3:16

When you sing a hymn you are joining a chorus that stretches back centuries and around the world, all of it turned toward the same Christ.

A gentle door: if the beauty has stirred something in you, you can meet Jesus, read the Gospel of John, or see his people around the world →

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Come and see

Beauty is a door, never a trick. The cathedrals, the hymns, and the long roads of pilgrimage were all made by people who had first found something, or Someone, worth the labour of a lifetime. If the beauty draws you, follow it to its source. The living Christ it points toward is not an argument to win but a Person to meet, and he still draws near to everyone who comes to him with an open heart. The Gospel of John is a gentle place to begin.

Meet Jesus Read the Gospel of John The Church around the world

Jesus Christ is Lord.

Frequently asked questions

What is a hymn?: A hymn is a song of praise to God, usually with several verses set to a memorable tune, written to express and teach the truths of the faith. Christian hymns have been sung in worship for many centuries.
What are the most famous Christian hymns?: Among the best loved are Amazing Grace, How Great Thou Art, It Is Well With My Soul, Be Thou My Vision, Holy Holy Holy, and Great Is Thy Faithfulness. Many were born out of real seasons of rescue, sorrow, or wonder.
Why do so many great hymns come from suffering?: Many enduring hymns, like It Is Well With My Soul and Amazing Grace, were written out of grief or rescue. That is the source of their power: they are the songs of people who found God faithful in the dark, not sentimental verses written in ease.

Explore furtherAmazing Grace How Great Thou Art What are hymns?Why Christians sing All of Beauty and Christ