Scripture Verse

Thanks be unto God for His unspeakable gift. 2 Corinthians 9:15

Introduction

portrait
Sydney H. Nicholson (1875–1947)
National Portrait Gallery

Creative Commons License

Words: Charles Wes­ley, Hymns on the Lord’s Sup­per, 1745, num­ber 162.

Music: Ho­san­na in Ex­cel­sis Syd­ney H. Ni­chol­son, in the Sup­ple­ment to Hymns An­cient and Mo­dern, 1916 (🔊 pdf nwc).

portrait
Charles Wesley (1707–1788)

Lyrics

Hosanna in the high­est
To our ex­alt­ed Sav­ior,
Who left be­hind for all man­kind
These to­kens of His fa­vor:
His bleed­ing love and mer­cy,
His all re­deem­ing Pass­ion;
Who here dis­plays, and gives the grace
Which brings us our sal­va­tion.

Louder than ga­thered wa­ters,
Or burst­ing peals of thun­der,
We lift our voice and speak our joys
And shout our lov­ing won­der.
Shout, all our el­der breth­ren,
While we re­cord the sto­ry
Of Him that came and suf­fered shame,
To car­ry us to glo­ry.

Angels in fixed am­aze­ment
Around our al­tars hov­er,
With ea­ger gaze adore the grace
Of our eter­nal Lov­er:
Himself and all His full­ness
Who gives to the be­liev­er;
And by this bread whoe’er are fed
Shall live with God for ev­er.