We Sing the Praise of Him Who Died
We sing the praise of him who died
We Sing the Praise of Him Who Died is a hymn text by Thomas Kelly (1809) in C.M. meter. Found in elw 359, lbw 344, lsb 429, lw 118. Sung to MARTYN.
This hymn embodies Lutheran soteriology by focusing on Christ's vicarious death as the basis of justification and salvation, central to Reformed and Lutheran theology alike. The text reflects the Reformation conviction that Christ's atoning work is the ground of faith and the object of Christian praise.
History & Background
Written by Irish hymn writer Thomas Kelly in 1809, this hymn celebrates the centrality of Christ's crucifixion to Christian faith and salvation. It was first published in Kelly's collection and has remained a standard Easter and Passion hymn in Lutheran and other Protestant hymnals for over two centuries.
Hymnal Appearances
- Evangelical Lutheran Worship — 359
- Lutheran Book of Worship — 344
- Lutheran Service Book — 429
- Lutheran Worship — 118
- Trinity Hymnal — 247
- The Lutheran Hymnal — 178
Bulletin Note
Written by Irish Methodist hymnist Thomas Kelly in 1809, this hymn captures Reformation conviction about Christ's vicarious atonement, making it treasured across Lutheran and Reformed traditions as a confession of justifying grace.
Preaching Connection
This hymn crystallizes the movement from Law to Gospel: it acknowledges our need for Christ's atoning death while proclaiming the sufficiency and power of His sacrifice to justify us before God.
Stanza Arc
The narrative or theological arc traced by this tune's stanzas: Call to spiritual warfare → empowerment through Christ → equipment with God's promises → sustained struggle and victory
Background Research
Thomas Kelly, Hymns by Thomas Kelly, not before Published (Dublin, 1815), no. 52, headed 'God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross' (Gal 6:14). Kelly revised st 5 later, and Hymns Ancient & Modern (1861) added a stanza. Many books start at 'Inscribed upon the cross we see'. Lord Selborne (Roundell Palmer), speaking at the 1866 York Church Congress, praised its 'calm subdued power' and doubted Montgomery ever wrote anything quite equal to it. Julian notes wide use and translations, including a Latin version by L. C. Biggs. Kelly's evangelical preaching got him barred from Dublin pulpits by the archbishop, and he left the established church. The hymn makes the cross not a shame but the sinner's boast and refuge, a good fit for the theology of the cross. Tunes: WINDHAM (LW/LSB), BRESLAU, WALTON, BOW BRICKHILL.
Sources: hymnary.org 'We sing the praise of Him who died' (citing Julian).
In the Church Year
Suggested in the one-year series
- Lent 5 (2×)
Suggested in the three-year series
- Lent 3 (4×)
- Good Friday (2×)
- Lent 2 (2×)
- Lent 5 (2×)
- Proper 22 (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
A hymn by Thomas Kelly (1815) in praise of the cross, built on Galatians 6:14, 'Far be it from me to boast except in the cross.' It is unusual among Passion hymns: it does not dwell on Christ's sufferings in detail but on the cross's power and benefits. The singers praise him who died and count the world as loss (st. 1); read 'God is Love' written on the cross (st. 2); and list what the cross does — takes away guilt, holds up the fainting, cheers the gloomy, sweetens bitter cups (st. 3), makes cowards brave, removes the grave's terror (st. 4) — and is the balm of life, measure of love, refuge of sinners and theme of angels (st. 5).
Central theme: Boasting in the cross, which reveals God's love and brings forgiveness, strength and hope in death
Structure
Five long-meter quatrains. Praise and confession (1) — the cross as revelation of love (2) — its effects (3-4) — titles of the cross (5).
Law & Gospel Shape
Gospel throughout; guilt, fainting and the grave's terror are named only as overcome.
Confessional Connections
The cross as the center of theology (theologia crucis, Heidelberg Disputation 19-21). God's love known only in Christ crucified, not by speculation. The cross taking 'guilt away' — the forgiveness that grounds all other benefits (AC IV). Metonymy: 'the cross' means Christ's death and its fruits, as in Paul.
Liturgical Use (Study Notes)
Lent; Holy Week; Holy Cross Day; general Passion use.
Historical Notes
Kelly (1769-1855), Irish preacher and hymnwriter; published 1815.
About the Tune
TLH prints the tune 'O Jesu Christ, mein's Lebens Licht' (Nürnberg, 1676); the index lists WINDHAM (Daniel Read), the LW/LSB setting.
Scripture References
Gal 6:14 1 Cor 1:18-25 Phil 3:7-8 1 John 4:8-10 Rom 5:8 1 Pet 2:24 Isa 40:29-31 2 Cor 4:17 Eph 6:10 1 Cor 15:55-57 Heb 2:14-15 Jer 8:22 Rom 8:32 1 Pet 1:12 Rev 5:9-12
Stanza by Stanza
We sing the praise of the one who died on the cross; let people mock the sinners' hope — for this we count the world as loss.
Gal 6:14 and 1 Cor 1:18-23: the cross is 'folly' to the world, but it is the power of God. The Church's song deliberately praises what the world 'derides' — a crucified Savior. 'The sinners' Hope' is exactly what the world mocks, and exactly what sinners need. 'Count the world but loss' is Phil 3:7-8: compared to Christ, every worldly gain is loss. Boasting in the cross is the opposite of the 'theology of glory' that seeks God in power and success.
- Scripture
- Gal 6:14, 1 Cor 1:18-25, Phil 3:7-8, Heb 12:2
- Imagery & language
- Praise against derision.
- Law / Gospel
- Gospel — boasting in the cross.
- Connection to previous
- Opening.
We see written on that cross in shining letters: 'God is Love.' He bears our sins on the tree and brings us mercy from above.
An inspired image: Pilate's inscription named Christ King (John 19:19); faith reads another inscription, 'God is Love' (1 John 4:8). The cross is where God's love is defined: 'In this is love… that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins' (1 John 4:10; Rom 5:8). Love is not an abstract attribute but an act — 'He bears our sins upon the tree' (1 Pet 2:24). Lutheran theology insists that God is known savingly only at the cross, not in nature or speculation.
- Scripture
- John 19:19, 1 John 4:8-10, Rom 5:8, 1 Pet 2:24, John 3:16
- Imagery & language
- Inscription in shining letters.
- Law / Gospel
- Gospel — God's love revealed in substitution.
- Connection to previous
- Shows why the cross is praised.
The cross takes away our guilt; it holds up the fainting spirit, cheers the gloomy day with hope, and sweetens every bitter cup.
First and foundational: 'it takes our guilt away' — forgiveness (Col 2:14). All other benefits follow from this. The cross sustains the fainting (Isa 40:29-31), gives hope in dark days (Rom 5:3-5), and 'sweetens every bitter cup' — suffering is transformed because Christ drank the bitter cup (Matt 26:39), as Moses' tree sweetened the bitter waters of Marah (Exod 15:23-25, a classic type of the cross).
- Scripture
- Col 2:14, Isa 40:29-31, Rom 5:3-5, Matt 26:39, Exod 15:23-25, 2 Cor 4:16-18
- Imagery & language
- Exclamation; fainting spirit; bitter cup sweetened.
- Law / Gospel
- Gospel — forgiveness and comfort.
- Connection to previous
- Begins the list of the cross's benefits.
It makes the cowardly spirit brave and strengthens the feeble arm for battle; it takes all terror from the grave and brightens the deathbed with light.
The cross gives courage in spiritual battle (Eph 6:10-17) — not by making us strong in ourselves but by the strength of Christ's victory (2 Cor 12:9). Peter, a coward at the trial, became bold after the cross and resurrection (Acts 4:13). The cross 'takes all terror from the grave' — Heb 2:14-15, deliverance from the fear of death; 1 Cor 15:55-57. 'Gilds the bed of death with light' — the Christian deathbed is lit by the cross (cf. TLH 172:10).
- Scripture
- Eph 6:10-17, 2 Cor 12:9, Acts 4:13, Heb 2:14-15, 1 Cor 15:55-57, Ps 23:4
- Imagery & language
- Coward made brave; gilded deathbed.
- Law / Gospel
- Gospel — courage and victory over death.
- Connection to previous
- Continues the list.
The balm of life, the cure of sorrow, the measure and pledge of love, the refuge of sinners here below, the angels' theme in heaven above.
Five titles summarize the hymn. 'Balm' (Jer 8:22) and 'cure' — healing. 'The measure and the pledge of love' — God's love is measured by the cross (Rom 5:8; John 3:16) and guaranteed by it (Rom 8:32: 'he who did not spare his own Son… how will he not also… give us all things?'). 'The sinners' refuge' — a hiding place for the guilty. 'The angels' theme' — the angels long to look into these things (1 Pet 1:12) and sing the Lamb who was slain (Rev 5:11-12). Earth and heaven have the same theme.
- Scripture
- Jer 8:22, Rom 5:8, Rom 8:32, Heb 6:18, 1 Pet 1:12, Rev 5:11-12
- Imagery & language
- Litany of titles; earth and heaven.
- Law / Gospel
- Gospel — the cross as refuge and pledge.
- Connection to previous
- Summary.
Themes
Atonement and redemption Christ's sacrifice Cross and salvation Praise and adoration Faith and assurance