All My Hope On God Is Founded
All My Hope on God Is Founded
All my hope on God is founded;
He doth still my trust renew,
Me through change and chance He guideth,
Only good and only true,
God unknown, He alone
Calls my heart to be His own.
Mortal pride and earthly glory,
Sword and crown betray our trust;
Though with care and toil we build them,
Tower and temple fall to dust.
But God’s power, hour by hour,
Is my temple and my tower.
God’s great goodness e’er endureth,
Deep His wisdom passing thought:
Splendor, light, and life attend Him,
Beauty springeth out of naught.
Evermore from His store
Newborn worlds rise and adore.
Daily doth the almighty Giver
Bounteous gifts on us bestow;
His desire our soul delighteth,
Pleasure leads us where we go.
Love doth stand at His hand;
Joy doth wait on His command.
Still from earth to God eternal
Sacrifice of praise be done,
High above all praises praising
For the gift of Christ, His Son.
Christ doth call one and all:
Ye who follow shall not fall.
Translated by Robert Seymour Bridges (1844–1930)
JOACHIM NEANDER, the writer of this hymn, became a Christian when he was twenty and died at the age of thirty. But during his short decade of faith, this German high school teacher displayed great evangelistic zeal. All Neander’s hymns are notably rich in content and deep in meaning. Perhaps his best-known hymn is “Praise to the Lord, the Almighty” (August 3).
Robert Bridges, who adapted this hymn from the German, was Britain’s poet laureate for a time. Wanting to raise the standard of British hymns, he translated many from German and adapted numerous German melodies for British worshipers.
This Neander hymn, as translated by Bridges, is a noble blending of the talents and dedication of these two godly men.
The Lord watches over those who fear him, those who rely on his unfailing love. He rescues them from death and keeps them alive in times of famine. We put our hope in the Lord. He is our help and our shield.
Psalm 33:18-20
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