JESUS CHRIST >> GLORY & PRAISE
SDAH 238
How sweet the name of Jesus sounds
In a believer’s ear!
It soothes his sorrows, heals his wounds,
And drives away his fear.
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For Worship Leaders
Make each hymn more meaningful with these helpful tools: Short, ready-to-use hymn introductions for church bulletins, multiple ways to introduce a hymn based on your worship theme and in-depth history and insights to enrich your song service.
Hymn Spotlight: How Sweet the Name!
John Newton’s hymn praises the sweet name of Jesus for soothing the soul and healing the heart. Based on Song of Solomon 1:3, it’s both poetic and deeply personal. ST. PETER, composed by A. R. Reinagle, matches the intimacy and peace of the text. Let the name of Jesus be music to your heart today.
📖 Reference: Feel free to share but please cite hymnsforworship.org when reproducing.
Introductions for Sabbath School Song Service (based on specific lesson quarterlies):
This hymn is one of the 280 hymns written by John Newton (1725-1807; see Biographies) for the Olney Hymns, 1779. It is entitled “Solomon’s Song, The Name of Jesus.” It is based on chapter 1, verse 3, of this poetic biblical book and contains seven stanzas.
ST. PETER was composed 1836 by Alexander Robert Reinagle and commemorates the church of St. Peter-in-the-East, Oxford, where he was organist from 1822 to 1856. Reinagle was of Austrian descent but born in Brighton, England, on August 21 1799. Both Reinagle’s father and grandfather were very musical, and he himself was a noted cellist and teacher of organ. He wrote instruction books for the violin and the cello. He died at Kidlington, a few miles north of Oxford, on April 6, 1877. The church where he was organist for so many years is now the library of St. Edmunds College, Oxford.
ST. PETER was composed particularly for a setting of Psalm 118 and appears in Reinagle’s Psalm Tunes for the Voice and the Pianoforte, c 1836. It was named ST. PETER in his collection of Psalm and Hymn Tunes, 1840. The soprano part is noteworthy for a descent of one complete octave, with some repeated notes, in the first two lines of the melody.
📖 Reference: Companion to the Seventh-day Adventist Hymnal by Wayne Hooper and Edward E. White. Review and Herald Publishing Association, 1988.
Stanza:
1 – Song of Solomon 1:3
2 – Proverbs 18:14
3 – Psalms 3:3
Psalm 32:7
4 – Psalm 23:1
James 2:23
John 6:14
Hebrews 7:26
Matthew 21:5
John 20:28
Text
1
How sweet the name of Jesus sounds
In a believer’s ear!
It soothes his sorrows, heals his wounds,
And drives away his fear.
2
It makes the wounded spirit whole,
And calms the troubled breast;
“Tis manna to the hungry soul,
And to the weary, rest.
3
Dear name, the rock on which I build,
My shield and hiding place,
My never failing treasury, filled
With boundless stores of grace.
4
Jesus! my Shepherd, Guardian, Friend,
My Prophet, Priest, and King!
My Lord, my life, my way, my end!
Accept the praise I bring.
5
Weak is the effort of my heart,
And cold my warmest thought;
But when I see Thee as Thou art,
I’ll praise Thee as I ought.
Hymn Info
Biblical Reference
(a) S.S. 1:3 (b) Prov 18:14 (c) Ps 3:3; Ps 32:7 (d) Ps 23:1; Jas 2:23; John 6:14; Heb 7:26; Matt 21:5; John 20:28
Author
John Newton (1725-1807)
Year Published
1779
Hymn Tune
ST. PETER
Metrical Number
C.M.
Composer
Alexander R. Reinagle (1799-1877)
Tune Source
1836
