Jerusalem, My Happy Home

Jerusalem, My Happy Home is a hymn text by Unknown (1580) in C.M. (8.6.8.6) meter. Found in CW93 215, ELH 539, ch95 521, elw 628. Sung to LAND OF REST.

The hymn embodies the Lutheran understanding of the resurrection of the body and life everlasting as central articles of faith. It expresses joyful confidence in God's promises while acknowledging earthly pilgrimage as temporary.

History & Background

This anonymous hymn appeared in English hymnals of the late 16th century, gaining popularity through its inclusion in Richard Baxter's Poetical Fragments (1681). The text expresses medieval and Reformation longing for the heavenly city through vivid imagery of Jerusalem.

Hymnal Appearances

• Christian Worship — 215
• Evangelical Lutheran Hymnary — 539
• Chalice Hymnal — 521
• Evangelical Lutheran Worship — 628
• Gather 4th Edition — 949
• Lutheran Book of Worship — 331
• Lutheran Service Book — 673
• Lutheran Worship — 307
• New Century Hymnal — 620
• The Lutheran Hymnal — 618
• United Methodist Hymnal — 733

Bulletin Note

From a 1580 English source, this hymn expresses Protestant longing for heaven while grounding hope in Christ's bodily resurrection. Its meter suits both joyful affirmation and meditative prayer.

Preaching Connection

This hymn amplifies the Gospel's comfort by transforming the Law's conviction of earthly exile into joyful anticipation of adoptive belonging—the resurrection promise that sustains Lutheran faith across generations.

Catechism & Confessional Connections

• The Third Article (Concerning Sanctification) Small Catechism — The Apostles' Creed

Stanza Arc

The narrative or theological arc traced by this tune's stanzas: From individual reconciliation (Law → Gospel) through corporate ecclesiology to missional witness

Background Research

The oldest copy is in British Library MS Add. 15225 (song dated by some to c. 1593; codex c. 1616): 26 stanzas, signed 'F.B.P.', with the tune named DIANA. It is adapted from 'Mater Hierusalem', a chapter of the pseudo-Augustinian Meditationes, probably by Jean of Fécamp (11th c.). The manuscript includes Catholic devotional pieces, so the author may have been a persecuted English Catholic in the 1590s. Daniel Sedgwick's reading of F.B.P. as 'Francis Baker, Priest' is unsubstantiated guesswork. Some printings wrongly credit David Dickson, a Scottish Presbyterian. The first print was 19 stanzas, unsigned, in The Song of Mary (1601). The standard short form comes via Joseph Bromehead's seven-stanza version (1795, signed 'B.'), reprinted by Montgomery. Related: W. Prid's 'O mother dear, Jerusalem' (1585) shares stanzas. Trivia: a stanza added in 1790 (Broaddus) later got attached to 'Amazing grace' ('When we've been there ten thousand years'), from memory via the Archive's mention. Tunes: MATERNA (Ward, written for 'O mother dear, Jerusalem', now 'America the Beautiful'), LAND OF REST. TLH: 'much altered'.

Sources: hymnologyarchive.com 'Jerusalem, my happy home'.

In the Church Year

Suggested in the one-year series

• Trinity 9 (2×)

Suggested in the three-year series

• Proper 21 (2×)
• All Saints (1×)

From LCMS Worship's published hymn suggestions, 2014–2026. The count is how many of those yearly lists suggested this hymn for that day.

Overview

An English hymn of longing for heaven, descended from a long Elizabethan poem signed only 'F.B.P.' (identity unknown), which drew on a medieval Latin meditation on the heavenly city; it was reworked by later editors into the form hymnals use. It asks when labor will end and heaven's joys be seen (st. 1), longs for the pearly gates and golden streets (st. 2) and the courts where 'Sabbaths have no end' (st. 3), sees apostles, martyrs and prophets around the Savior, soon to be joined by friends in Christ (st. 4), repeats the opening question (st. 5), and ends asking Christ to prepare the soul (st. 6).

Central theme: The pilgrim's longing for the heavenly Jerusalem, where the saints surround Christ, and prayer to be prepared for it

Structure

Six common-meter quatrains. Questions of longing (1-3) — the saints (4) — opening repeated (5) — prayer to Christ (6).

Law & Gospel Shape

Gospel/longing: labors here, joys there. The closing prayer asks Christ to prepare the soul — his work.

Confessional Connections

The communion of saints across death: 'my friends in Christ below will join the glorious band' (Third Article; AC XXI honors saints without invoking them). The eternal Sabbath (Heb 4:9) — rest in Christ's finished work. Christ prepares the soul (st. 6; Phil 1:6) — preparation is his gift, not our achievement.

Liturgical Use (Study Notes)

All Saints' Day; funerals; Last Sundays; general.

Historical Notes

The original poem survives in a manuscript of c. 1600 signed 'F.B.P.'; guesses about the author's identity remain unproven. Many hymnal versions descend from 18th-century reworkings, hence TLH's form differs widely from the original.

About the Tune

TLH: ST. PETER (Alexander R. Reinagle, 1836). Row 752 lists LAND OF REST, the American folk tune used in LW/LSB.

Scripture References

Ps 42:2 Ps 84:1-2 Rev 21:2 Rev 21:12-21 Isa 26:1 Ps 84:10 Heb 4:9-10 Heb 12:22-23 Rev 6:9-11 1 Thess 4:17 Rev 7:9 Rev 22:4 Phil 1:6

Stanza by Stanza

Themes

Heaven and eternal life The Church triumphant Longing for God's kingdom Holy Jerusalem Beatific vision

Look Further

• Search Hymnary.org for "Jerusalem, My Happy Home" ↗
• Search IMSLP for public-domain scores of "LAND OF REST" ↗