1. I love Thy kingdom, Lord, The house of Thine abode, The church our blest Redeemer saved With His own precious blood. 2. I love Thy church, O God! Her walls before Thee stand, Dear as the apple of Thine eye, And graven on Thy hand. 3. For her my tears shall fall; For her my prayers ascend; To her my cares and toils be giv'n, Till toils and cares shall end. 4. Beyond my highest joy I prize her heav'nly ways, Her sweet communion, solemn vows, Her hymns of love and praise. 5. Sure as Thy truth shall last, To Zion shall be giv'n The brightest glories earth can yield, And brighter bliss of heav'n.
Lyrics: Timothy Dwight
Music: Aaron Williams
Tune: ST. THOMAS
Meter: S.M.
Timothy Dwight, 1752–1817
God honored the tears, prayers, and work of the distinguished president of Yale University, Timothy Dwight, to bring to that campus in 1795 a startling spiritual revival. It soon spread to other nearby universities as well. Prior to his administration, most of the students at Yale and other eastern schools had been infected with the “free thought” of Thomas Paine, Rousseau, and the French Revolution.
Timothy Dwight, grandson of the brilliant and powerful American preacher, Jonathan Edwards, was an unusually successful and distinguished person in many areas. A graduate of Yale University at 17, he was a chaplain in the American Revolution, a Congregational minister, a prosperous farmer, a member of the Connecticut state legislature, a faculty member at Yale and eventually president of the university. Timothy Dwight also wrote a number of scholarly books, authored thirty-three hymn texts, and revised the hymnbook used by New England Congregational and Presbyterian churches for 30 years.