When I survey the wondrous cross
On which the Prince of glory died,
My richest gain I count but loss,
And pour contempt on all my pride.
Forbid it, Lord, that I should boast,
Save in the death of Christ my God!
All the vain things that charm me most,
I sacrifice them to His blood.
See from His head, His hands, His feet,
Sorrow and love flow mingled down!
Did eer such love and sorrow meet,
Or thorns compose so rich a crown?
His dying crimson, like a robe,
Spreads oer His body on the tree;
Then I am dead to all the globe,
And all the globe is dead to me.
Were the whole realm of nature mine,
That were a present far too small;
Love so amazing, so divine,
Demands my soul, my life, my all.
When teenager Isaac Watts complained to his father about the
monotonous way Christians in England sang the Old Testament Psalms,
his father, a leading deacon, snapped back 'All right young man, you
give us something better.'
To Isaac Watts, the singing of God's praise was the form of worship
nearest to Heaven and he went on to argue: 'It's performance among us
is the worst on earth.' Young Isaac accepted his father's challenge
and eventually wrote a total of more than 600 hymns, earning him the
title 'The father of English hymnody.'
Even as a child Isaac had shown a passion for poetry, rhyming and such
mundane things as everyday conversation. His serious-minded father,
after several warnings, decided to spank the rhyming nonsense out of
his son. But the tearful Isaac helplessly replied,
'Oh father do some pity take,
and I will no more verses make.'
However, choirs, congregations and individual Christians rejoice to
this day that the young lad did not keep his impromptu promise. If he
had, none of us would have the thrill of singing such all-time
favourites as "Oh God Our Help In Ages Past," "Am I A Soldier Of The
Cross" or "Joy To The World."
As a child, Isaac Watts was sickly and unattractive, yet, even by
today's standards he was clever beyond his years. He began the study
of Latin at the age of four, and added Greek when he was nine, French
at eleven and Hebrew at thirteen.
At fifteen the young poet turned his talents to the service of the
church and the great career in hymn-writing began.
In his hymns Isaac Watts takes the Word of God, of which he must have
been a diligent student, and distils it so that all is wisdom, beauty
and comfort are set before us with plainness and power. No wonder,
then, that C.H. Spurgeon's grandfather, himself a great preacher, and
in the line of the Puritans, would have nothing else but the hymns of
Isaac Watts sung in his services.
Isaac Watt's greatest composition must surely be "When I Survey The
Wondrous Cross."
It has been called 'The very best hymn in the English language' and in
it Watts, using only 16 lines, paints a soul-stirring picture of the
Saviour's death on the cross coupled with the whole-hearted response
of the believer to such amazing love.
As Tedd Smith says 'It seems to me that Isaac Watts wrote this text as
if he were standing at the foot of Christ's cross.'
How blessed to reflect on the finished work of Christ Jesus, as summed
up in those lines:
See, from His head, His hands, His feet,
Sorrow and love flow mingled down;
Did e'er such love and sorrow meet,
Or thorns compose so rich a crown?
And how enriching to be able to voice our reconsecration to the Lord's
service in the words:
Were the whole realm of nature mine,
That were an offering far too small;
Love so amazing, so divine,
Demands my soul, my life, my all.
