A hymn and its story
Abide With Me
Abide With Me was written in 1847 by Henry Francis Lyte, an English pastor in Brixham, Devon, as he was dying of tuberculosis. Taking up the disciples' plea at Emmaus that Jesus stay with them as evening fell, it is a prayer for Christ's presence when every other help fails, through to the hour of death. It is usually sung to EVENTIDE by William H. Monk.
Words by Henry F. Lyte, 1847 · written as he was dying
A dying pastor wrote 'Abide with me, fast falls the eventide' as his own evening came on, asking Christ to stay with him through the dark.
Abide With Me at a glance
- Words
- Henry Francis Lyte, 1847
- Tune
- EVENTIDE, by William H. Monk
- Based on
- Luke 24:29
Who wrote Abide With Me, and why?
Henry Francis Lyte served a poor fishing parish in Devon, England, for many years while his own health slowly failed with tuberculosis. In 1847, weakened and near the end, he preached what he knew might be his last sermon to his congregation. It is widely held that around that time he wrote, or completed, Abide With Me. He died soon after, abroad, seeking a warmer climate.
The hymn is built on the moment in Luke 24 when two disciples, walking to Emmaus with the risen Jesus still unrecognised, beg him as night falls, 'Abide with us: for it is toward evening.' Lyte turns their request into a prayer for the whole of life's evening, and for its very last hour: 'Hold Thou Thy cross before my closing eyes... In life, in death, O Lord, abide with me.' It has comforted the dying and the grieving ever since.
The words of Abide With Me
The darkness deepens; Lord, with me abide;
When other helpers fail and comforts flee,
Help of the helpless, O abide with me.I fear no foe, with Thee at hand to bless;
Ills have no weight, and tears no bitterness;
Where is death's sting? where, grave, thy victory?
I triumph still, if Thou abide with me.
The Scripture behind Abide With Me
What does Abide With Me mean?
This is a hymn for the evenings of life, the literal one at the end of the day, and the deeper one when strength fails and comforts flee. Lyte did not write it in robust health but from the edge of his own life, which is why it does not flinch from death but faces it holding a cross. Its prayer is the simplest and hardest: not for the darkness to lift, but for Christ to stay in it. 'In life, in death, O Lord, abide with me.'
Sing it, and mean it
A hymn is a prayer you can carry in your chest. The people who wrote these did not write from a stage; they wrote from shipwreck and sickbeds, from ordinary faithful mornings, and handed us words for the days we cannot find our own. You do not have to sing well. You only have to lift it, and mean it, to the One it is about.
Meet the One these hymns are aboutWorship in The Living BreadWhen comforts failRead Luke 24Jesus Christ is Lord.
Frequently asked questions
- Who wrote Abide With Me?
- Henry Francis Lyte, an English pastor in Devon, wrote it in 1847 as he was dying of tuberculosis, around the time of his final sermon. William H. Monk later composed the tune 'Eventide.'
- What is the story behind Abide With Me?
- Lyte wrote it near the end of his life, weakened by illness, as his own 'eventide' came on. Drawing on the Emmaus disciples' plea, 'Abide with us: for it is toward evening,' he prayed for Christ to stay with him through the dark and into death.
- What does Abide With Me mean?
- It is an evening prayer for Christ's abiding presence when strength, helpers, and comforts fail, and finally at the hour of death. Its confidence is that with Christ at hand, even death loses its sting.
Sources
Dates and attributions are checked against these sources. The reflections are our own words.
