Hymns for Second Advent Believers Who Observe the Sabbath of the Lord

In the November 25, 1851, issue of the Review and Herald there appeared the following notice titled “A Hymnbook”: “There are many calls for our little hymnbook, but the small edition is exhausted, or nearly so. We wish, therefore, to publish a larger collection of hymns, applicable to our faith and hope. And we now invite all who feel interested in such a work to forward to our address, appropriate hymns, either original or select. We want a number of good hymns on the Sabbath. If the friends will help, we can have a choice hymnbook.”

By the following July 1852 James White had finished the compilation of 139 hymns, including many of the standards from the hymnbooks of other churches. Still in the same small, words-only format, it was printed at the Review and Herald office in Rochester, New York. It carried the title Hymns for Second Advent Believers Who Observe the Sabbath of the Lord, but was later known simply as Advent and Sabbath Hymns. Containing all but 10 of the hymns from the 1849 book, it marks the first appearance of a hymn by the gifted Annie Smith, sister of Uriah Smith.

After a little more than a year, James White felt it necessary to publish 28 more hymns in A Supplement to Advent and Sabbath Hymns.

View digital copy of the original hymnal here

Index of titles and first lines

A life in the future world
A Soldier, Lord, thou hast made
Again the day returns of holy rest
Almighty love inspire
Although I’m down in Egypt’s land
And must I be to judgment brought
And when the last loud trumpet
Another six days’ work is done
Are we almost there?
Asleep in Jesus! Blessed sleep