Collection of Sacred Hymns (Kirtland, Ohio)


A Collection of Sacred Hymns, for the Church of the Latter Day Saints. was the first hymnal of the Latter Day Saint movement. It was published in 1835 by the Church of the Latter Day Saints.

Early LDS Hymns

In July 1830, Joseph Smith stated he received a revelation from God for his wife, Emma, to select hymns for the Church of Christ:

And it shall be given thee, also, to make a selection of sacred hymns, as it shall be given thee, which is pleasing unto me, to be had in my church. For my soul delighteth in the song of the heart; yea, the song of the righteous is a prayer unto me, and it shall be answered with a blessing upon their heads.

Initially, it seems that this revelation was interpreted to mean that Emma Smith was commanded to select which hymns were appropriate for use in the worship services of Latter Day Saints and not necessarily to compile a hymnbook. Due in part to this ambiguity in the revelation and in part to persecutions and the constant uprooting of the church in those early days, she was not able to compile a hymnbook for several years. However, in the meantime, other followers continued to write, arrange, and collect hymns.
The first Latter-day Saint hymns were published by W. W. Phelps in June, 1832 in Independence, Missouri. These appeared as text only in The Evening and the Morning Star, the church's semimonthly newspaper. Many of these lyrics were written by Phelps, while others were borrowed from various Protestant sources and edited by Phelps. The first of these hymns published by Phelps was "What Fair One Is This".
On July 20, 1833, a mob destroyed the church's printing office in Independence, and the publication of the Star was moved to Kirtland, Ohio – the headquarters of the church at that time. In December, 1834, The Evening and the Morning Star was replaced by a new publication: The Messenger and Advocate. Phelps continued to write and collect hymn texts, with assistance from Frederick G. Williams and others.

Collection of Sacred Hymns

On September 14, 1835, at a meeting of the high council and the First Presidency at Kirtland, Emma Smith was again counseled to begin compiling a hymnbook in a joint effort with W. W. Phelps:

It was further decided that Sister Emma Smith proceed to make a selection of Sacred Hymns, according to the revelation; and that President W.W. Phelps be appointed to revise and arrange them for printing.

Emma Smith selected 90 hymn texts for the hymnal, 35 of which were written by Latter-day Saints. Many of these texts were revised or corrected by W. W. Phelps to fit with the theology of the early Latter Day Saint church.
The title page states 1835 as the publication date, but because of the printing of the Doctrine and Covenants the same year, printing of the hymnal was not completed until February 1836.
The book is small – just 3" by 4" in size. An indication of the poverty of the church members in Kirtland at that time is that the hymnal was published in "sexadecimal" form, the least expensive publishing format for books in those days: sixteen pages were printed on both sides of a single sheet, which was then folded, cut, and sewn into the leather binding. Thus, the entire hymnbook could be printed on just four large sheets of paper. The completed hymnal contained ninety hymns, but only the words were included. As a result, today it is difficult to determine which tunes were used with many of the hymn texts.
Although the book was printed in 1836, it is still referred to as the "1835 hymnal" because of the publication date on the title page. The Kirtland printing of the hymnbook was probably very small – perhaps 500 copies at most. Today, original copies of this hymnbook are extremely rare; less than a dozen are known to exist. On December 5, 2006, an original 1835 hymnal was sold at Christie's Auction House in New York City for $273,600.
The English-language hymnal used by Latter-day Saints today contains 26 songs from this original LDS hymanal, including “The Spirit of God” and “I Know That My Redeemer Lives.”

Contents


    Sacred Hymns

  1. Know then that ev’ry soul is free †
  2. Let ev’ry mortal ear attend
  3. What fair one is this
  4. Glorious things of thee are spoken †
  5. The time is nigh, that happy time
  6. Redeemer of Israel †§
  7. See all creation join
  8. O happy souls who pray
  9. From the regions of glory
  10. He died! The great Redeemer died †
  11. Earth with her ten thousand flowers †
  12. Praise to God, immortal praise
  13. Guide us, O thou great Jehovah †
  14. We’re not ashamed to own our Lord †
  15. Joy to the World †§
  16. An angel came down from the mansions
  17. To him that made the world
  18. Now let us rejoice †
  19. Ere long the vail will rend in twain
  20. My soul is full of peace and love
  21. The happy day has rolled on †
  22. The great and glorious gospel light
  23. This earth was once a garden place †
  24. Gently raise the sacred strain †
  25. When Joseph his brethren beheld
  26. Now we’ll sing with one accord †
  27. Through all the world below
  28. The sun that declines in the far western sky
  29. The towers of Zion soon shall rise
  30. Let all the saints their hearts prepare
  31. Let us pray, gladly pray
  32. Awake, O ye people! the Savior is coming
  33. What wond’rous things we now behold
  34. There is a land the Lord will bless
  35. There’s a feast of fat things for the righteous
  36. There’s a power in the sun

    37. Morning Hymns

  37. Lord in the morning thou shalt hear
  38. Once more, my soul, the rising day
  39. See how the morning sun
  40. My God, how endless is thy love
  41. Awake! for the morning is come
  42. Awake, my soul, and with the sun

    43. Evening Hymns

  43. Come let us sing an evening hymn †
  44. Lord thou wilt hear me when I pray
  45. Glory to thee, my God, this night
  46. Great God! to thee my evening song †
  47. When restless on my bed I lie
  48. The day is past and gone

    49. Farewell Hymns

  49. The gallant ship is under way
  50. Farewell, our friends and brethren
  51. Yes, my native land, I love thee
  52. Adieu, my dear brethren adieu

    53. On Baptism

  53. Come ye children of the kingdom
  54. Jesus Mighty King in Zion
  55. In Jordan’s tide the prophet stands §
  56. Salem’s bright King, Jesus by name

    57. On Sacrament

  57. O God th’eternal Father †
  58. ’Twas on that dark, that solemn night
  59. Arise, my soul, arise
  60. Behold the Savior of mankind
  61. Alas! and did my Savior bleed

    62. On Marriage

  62. When earth was dress’d in beauty

    63. Miscellaneous

  63. O stop and tell me, Red Man
  64. And did my Savior die
  65. Come all ye sons of Zion †
  66. Let Zion in her beauty rise †
  67. Jesus the name that charms our fears
  68. Come all ye saints, who dwell on earth †
  69. God spake the word, and time began
  70. Great is the Lord: ’tis good to praise †
  71. The glorious day is rolling on
  72. Before this earth from chaos sprung
  73. Thy mercy, my God, is the theme of my song
  74. From Greenland’s icy mountains
  75. O Jesus! the giver of all we enjoy
  76. In ancient days men fear’d the Lord
  77. Mortals, awake! with angels join
  78. The Lord into his garden comes
  79. I know that my Redeemer lives †§
  80. How often in sweet meditation, my mind
  81. Let thy kingdom, blessed Savior
  82. How firm a foundation †
  83. How pleasant ’tis to see
  84. How pleased and blest was I
  85. Though in the outward church below
  86. O God! our help in ages past †§
  87. Hark! from the tombs a doleful sound
  88. Why do we mourn for dying friends
  89. Why should we start and fear to die!
  90. The Spirit of God like a fire is burning †§
† Included in the 1985 LDS Hymnal
§ Included in the 2013 Community of Christ Sings hymnal

Prior Publication of LDS Hymns

Many of the hymns which had previously been published in The Evening and the Morning Star were inserted into the 1835 hymnal as a block, almost exactly in the same order as their earlier publication. Twelve of the hymns were also published in The Messenger and Advocate between December 1834 and January 1836:
E&MSDate1835 NumberM&ADate1835 Number
1:1Jun 18323, 4, 5, 6, 101:3Dec 183463
1:3Aug 18327, 8, 91:9Jun 183523, 24
1:4Sept 183211, 121:10Jul 183541, 57
1:5Oct 183213, 141:11Aug 183543, 70
1:7Dec 1832152:1Oct 183526, 28
1:9Feb 183316,172:2Nov 183565
1:10Mar 1833182:4Jan 183671, 90
1:11Apr 183353----
1:12May 183319----
2:13Jun 183320, 21----
2:14Jul 183322----
2:15Dec 183329----
2:19Apr 183430, 31, 32----
2:20May 183433----