When All Thy Mercies O My God
When all Thy mercies, O my God
When All Thy Mercies O My God is a hymn text by Thomas Addison (1712) in L.M. meter. Found in elw 891, lbw 264, lw 196, th 56. Sung to ST. PETERSBURG.
The hymn embodies Lutheran appreciation for God's mercies as the proper response to divine grace, emphasizing gratitude as the natural fruit of recognizing salvation. It reflects the Protestant principle that all good things come from God's hand and deserve joyful acknowledgment in worship.
History & Background
Written by English essayist and theologian Thomas Addison and published in The Spectator in 1712 as a sacred poem. The text became one of the most beloved English hymns and was widely adopted in Protestant hymnals throughout the 18th and 19th centuries.
Hymnal Appearances
- Evangelical Lutheran Worship — 891
- Lutheran Book of Worship — 264
- Lutheran Worship — 196
- Trinity Hymnal — 56
- The Lutheran Hymnal — 31
Bulletin Note
Thomas Addison (1672–1719), English theologian and essayist, crafted this hymn to awaken grateful awareness of God's constant mercies. Its measured rhythm and comprehensive imagery have made it a standard of Protestant thanksgiving for over three centuries.
Preaching Connection
This hymn amplifies Gospel proclamation by training the worshiper's eye to recognize divine mercy as the lens through which all of life—past, present, and future—is properly understood and celebrated.
Catechism & Confessional Connections
- The Fourth Petition Small Catechism — The Lord's Prayer
Overview
Joseph Addison, the essayist and co-founder of The Spectator, closed an essay on gratitude (1712) with this hymn. TLH uses five of its many stanzas. Surveying God's mercies, the soul is 'lost in wonder, love, and praise' (st. 1); among ten thousand gifts, a cheerful heart that enjoys them is not the least (st. 2); it will pursue God's goodness through life and after death (st. 3), adore his mercies when nature ends (st. 4), and confess that 'eternity's too short to utter all Thy praise' (st. 5). Its phrase 'lost in wonder, love, and praise' was later borrowed by Charles Wesley.
Central theme: Grateful wonder at God's countless mercies, a praise that life and even eternity cannot exhaust
Structure
Five common-meter quatrains. Wonder (1) — gifts and a cheerful heart (2) — lifelong and after death (3) — end of nature (4) — eternity too short (5).
Law & Gospel Shape
Gospel/praise: God's mercies. No Law section.
Confessional Connections
'Ten thousand thousand precious gifts' — SC First Article: God gives 'all that I need… richly and daily.' 'A cheerful heart that tastes those gifts with joy' — the gift of enjoying gifts (Eccl 5:19; 1 Tim 6:17) — a Lutheran note against both ingratitude and ascetic contempt for creation. Praise continuing after death (AC XVII; Rev 7:15).
Liturgical Use (Study Notes)
Thanksgiving; general praise; New Year; anniversaries.
Historical Notes
Published in The Spectator, No. 453 (August 9, 1712), at the end of an essay on gratitude.
About the Tune
WINCHESTER OLD (Thomas Este's Psalter, 1592).
Scripture References
Ps 33:1 Ps 103:2 Ps 40:5 Ps 139:17-18 Jas 1:17 Eccl 5:18-19 1 Tim 6:17 Ps 23:6 Ps 71:17-18 2 Pet 3:10-13 Rev 21:1 Rev 22:5 Ps 145:1-3
Stanza by Stanza
When my rising soul surveys all your mercies, my God, I am carried away by the sight and lost in wonder, love and praise.
Ps 33:1 (TLH's text): 'Praise befits the upright.' 'Forget not all his benefits' (Ps 103:2). 'Your wondrous deeds… are more than can be told' (Ps 40:5).
- Scripture
- Ps 33:1, Ps 103:2, Ps 40:5
- Imagery & language
- Survey; wonder, love, praise.
- Law / Gospel
- Gospel — mercies.
- Connection to previous
- Wonder.
Ten thousand thousand precious gifts keep my daily thanks busy; and not the least of them is a cheerful heart that enjoys those gifts.
Countless gifts (Ps 139:17-18; Jas 1:17). Even the capacity to enjoy them is a gift (Eccl 5:19: 'to accept his lot and rejoice in his toil — this is the gift of God'; 1 Tim 6:17).
- Scripture
- Ps 139:17-18, Jas 1:17, Eccl 5:18-19, 1 Tim 6:17
- Imagery & language
- Countless gifts; cheerful heart.
- Law / Gospel
- Gospel — gifts and joy.
- Connection to previous
- A cheerful heart.
Through every stage of my life I will follow your goodness, and after death, in distant worlds, take up the glorious theme again.
'Goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life' (Ps 23:6). Praise from youth to old age (Ps 71:17-18) and beyond.
- Scripture
- Ps 23:6, Ps 71:17-18
- Imagery & language
- Every period; after death.
- Law / Gospel
- Gospel — lifelong goodness.
- Connection to previous
- Every period.
When nature fails and day and night no longer divide your works, my ever-grateful heart, Lord, will adore your mercies.
The end of the present creation (2 Pet 3:10-13); 'there will be no night there' (Rev 22:5; 21:25). Gratitude outlasts the world.
- Scripture
- 2 Pet 3:10-13, Rev 21:1, 25, Rev 22:5
- Imagery & language
- Nature failing; day and night ended.
- Law / Gospel
- Gospel — mercy beyond the end.
- Connection to previous
- End of nature.
Through all eternity I will raise a joyful song to you; but oh, eternity is too short to express all your praise.
'His greatness is unsearchable' (Ps 145:3). The hyperbole confesses that God's goodness is infinite.
- Scripture
- Ps 145:1-3, Rev 7:12
- Imagery & language
- Eternity too short.
- Law / Gospel
- Gospel — endless praise.
- Connection to previous
- Eternity.
Themes
God's mercy and providence Gratitude and praise Divine providence Thankfulness for grace