Holy, Holy, Holy! Lord God Almighty

Holy, Holy, Holy! Lord God Almighty
by Reginald Heber

Holy, holy, holy! Lord God Almighty!
Early in the morning our song shall rise to thee.
Holy, holy, holy! Merciful and mighty,
God in three persons, blessed Trinity!

In the English vernacular, exclamation points are used to emphasize the importance of something. In the Jewish vernacular, repetition is used. The best example of this is when Jesus used “truly truly” to drive His points home. So, if a repetition of two is equivalent to an exclamation point, a repetition of three is equivalent to someone waving their arms and screaming at you. Of all God’s attributes, there is only one in the Bible where repetition of three is used.

“Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come!” – Revelation 4:8

“Holy, Holy, Holy” by Reginald Heber (1783-1826) is unique in many regards. Indeed, it spans many Christian traditions and centuries, unifying them in four timeless stanzas. Not only that, but Heber was an Anglican bishop whose ministry spanned continents and races, placing him as one of the heroes of the Christian faith.

Born in Cheshire, England, 1783, Heber came from well-off parents, allowing him to receive exceptional education throughout his early years. He easily could have taken these blessings for granted, but he did not. For Reginald, failing his education would be to tell God that His gifts are undesirable. Therefore, Reginald learned the value of hard work through his appreciation of God’s gifts. In turn, he received top grades and was praised for his academic ability. Soon after completing his education, Reginald was ordained into the Anglican Church and became a minister.

Rather than using his great education and reputation to find the largest and most glamorous church to lead, Reginald chose a tiny church in the little village of Hodnet, England. Within his congregation, Reginald had a reputation for two things: being a devout man of God, and being a wonderful poet; the perfect recipe for a legendary hymn.

In 1823, Reginald was called to serve in India. He was still young – only 40 years old – and the responsibility was greater than his years. His title was Bishop of Calcutta, which made him leader over missions in India, the Island of Ceylon, and even all of Australia. During his time in India, Reginald worked tirelessly. Once again, he refused to squander this great gift from God. His chief ambition was to build a training school for local clergy so the area would have ministers long after Reginald was gone. Along with building the school, Reginald also traveled across India spreading the gospel.

Over the years, the intense climate and even more intense responsibility wore on Reginald’s health. Through the hardship, he never relented. Such an effort did he give that on one Sunday, directly after an outdoor sermon to a large group of Indians, Reginald dropped dead from heatstroke.

In death, Reginald’s work carried on, for it turned out that during his time at the tiny church in Hodnet, Reginald had written a number of hymns. He never sought publication; perhaps too humble, or perhaps thinking his work not good enough. But his wife saw the beauty in her husband’s work, and she put a collection of her husband’s hymns together and had them published. Fifty-seven hymns made up the collection, and all fifty-seven are still being used to this day. Of the collection, one stood out far above the others:

Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty!
Early in the morning my song shall rise to Thee!

Perhaps the most intriguing characteristic of the hymn is how the text does not initiate praise, but instead encourages the singer to join in an endless song. Both Isaiah 6:1-5 and Revelation 4:2-11 inspire this hymn, spanning the Testaments, reminding us that the Trisagion (thrice holy) has been uttered in worship for centuries. Isaiah received his vision in the eighth century B.C.; John the Apostle recorded his revelation in the first century C.E.; while Reginald Heber composed his hymn in 1826, in the nineteenth century.

Congregations continue to be inspired by Heber’s text in the twenty-first century. It is safe to say that songs of praise, begun by the seraphim and cherubim, have been echoing throughout the millennia through the voice of the people.

Blessings,
Dorene

Sources: https://www.umcdiscipleship.org/resources/history-of-hymns-holy-holy-holy-lord-god-almighty
https://www.hymncharts.com/2022/09/07/the-story-behind-holy-holy-holy/