I love the new praise songs. I love the rhythm and the flow of the music. Many times, the words are ancillary to the song—they are there to create a feeling, not so much poetry as simple praise.
Some of the modern hymns also have wonderful lyrics—words that touch our hearts.
So, I am not diminishing the current praise songs and hymns when I say that I think the church body loses a great deal when we set our old hymnals completely aside. It is a loss to the Christian body when we throw away such a key component of our past.
An example of one of the old hymns that we should not lose is “Ninety and Nine.” Here are the lyrics:
There were ninety and nine that safely lay
In the shelter of the fold;
But one was out on the hills away,
Far off from the gates of gold.
Away on the mountains wild and bare;
Away from the tender Shepherd’s care.“Lord, Thou hast here Thy ninety and nine;
Are they not enough for Thee?”
But the Shepherd made answer: “This of Mine
Has wandered away from Me.
And although the road be rough and steep,
I go to the desert to find My sheep.”But none of the ransomed ever knew
How deep were the waters crossed;
Nor how dark was the night that the Lord passed through
Ere He found His sheep that was lost.
Far out in the desert He heard its cry;
’Twas sick and helpless and ready to die.“Lord, whence are those blood-drops all the way,
That mark out the mountain’s track?”
“They were shed for one who had gone astray
Ere the Shepherd could bring him back.”
“Lord, whence are Thy hands so rent and torn?”
“They’re pierced tonight by many a thorn.”And all through the mountains, thunder-riv’n,
And up from the rocky steep,
There arose a glad cry to the gate of heav’n,
“Rejoice! I have found My sheep!”
And the angels echoed around the throne,
“Rejoice, for the Lord brings back His own!”
I love the imagery these lyrics create, of Jesus giving it all to save this one person who has strayed.
We put ourselves in His place regarding our own children. Would we be willing to suffer and search on and on to bring our lost child back? You better believe it! But to think that God has this feeling for each of us, uniquely, is almost beyond belief. That He would lay down His life for us—for us individually—is humbling and creates a new reality for each of us—that God loves each of us beyond measure. And, when we are lost from Him, and then He brings us back, the angels in heaven rejoice.
God loves us as we love our own family members—uniquely and individually. And, this hymn gives us the imagery to drive that message home—into our minds and deep into our hearts. We are uniquely and specially loved by God.
If you want to listen to a really wonderful version of the song, go to YouTube and search for Ninety and Nine Acapeldridge. You also can search for a very old recording—over a hundred years old—of the song being sung by Ira Sankey, who wrote the music for it.
Ira D. Sankey was born in 1840 in Edinburg, Lawrence County, Pennsylvania. He was an American gospel singer and composer, known for his long association with Dwight L. Moody in Moody’s revival campaigns in America and Britain in the late 19th Century. (Wikipedia)
Elizabeth Clephane wrote the beautiful lyrics to the hymn. She was born in Edinburgh, Scotland in 1830. She gave abundantly to the poor, even selling her horses to fund philanthropic causes. She died in 1869 at the age of 38. Eight of the hymns she composes were published after her death, between the years 1872 and 1874, in The Family Treasury, a Presbyterian magazine. Ira Sankey promoted Clephane’s hymns
Clephane wrote “The Ninety Nine,” in reference to the Parable of the Lost Sheep. It was sometimes performed on special occasions by a choir of 99 singers. The hymns were said to be written after the death of her brother, George Clephane, who had a troubled life in Canada. As the story was told, he fell from a horse while intoxicated, struck his head upon a rock and died. His grave site at Fergus, Ontario, Canada has become a site of interest for admirers of Clephane’s hymn.
The message of the hymn, that God cares for each of us and will do anything to bring us home, is timeless. Don’t lose sight of the older hymns. They were written to speak to the heart and to bring God’s message home.
In honor of the Holidays, for the next eight weeks, I will focus on some of the significant Christmas hymns, and the story behind the hymns, their lyrics, and what they mean for us today.
Join me in pausing to reflect on these hymns as we enter this Holy season!