Hummingbird with flower. For "All Things Bright and Beautiful."

Hymn Guide: All Things Bright And Beautiful

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God is the creator, not only of great things but also of the small. This theological point is at the heart of “All Things Bright and Beautiful,” a classic Victorian hymn by Mrs. Cecil Frances Alexander. But because this hymn is a longtime favorite of children’s choirs, its theology is often overlooked.

The text was first published in Mrs. Alexander’s 1848 volume, Hymns for Little Children. It is sung to two well-known tunes, ROYAL OAK and ALL THINGS BRIGHT, and children love it. But while this hymn is childlike, it is not childish. It contains much more than first meets the eye.

Verse by Verse

Mrs. Alexander’s Hymns for Little Children resembles a catechism, with hymns commenting on the various doctrines in the Apostles’ Creed. This hymn is a commentary on God as Creator. Other famous hymns from the collection include “Once in Royal David’s City,” a commentary on the Incarnation, and “There is a Green Hill Far Away,” a commentary on the Passion.

Chorus

All things bright and beautiful
All creatures great and small
All things wise and wonderful
The Lord God made them all.

The chorus makes the song’s fundamental point: that God is the creator of “all things,” indeed, “all creatures great and small.”

Many hymns have celebrated the grandeur of God’s creation. Think of Saint Francis’ “All Creatures of our God and King,” with its evocation of Sun and Moon. “All Things Bright and Beautiful” mentions these large creatures as well, but its unique contribution is its celebration of the small and the God who “made them all.”

Verse 1

Each little flower that opens
Each little bird that sings
He made their glowing colours
He made their tiny wings

The first verse depicts the “little flower that opens” and “the little bird that sings.” Notice the repetition here of words related to size, including my favorite phrase and the closing rhyme, “their tiny wings.”

The fascination with small things was particularly characteristic of Victorian England. In her book Worlds Beyond, scholar Laura Forsberg explores the role of miniature objects in Victorian culture across various domains, such as art, science, childhood, and literature. For example, Forsberg explores how the dollhouse changed from a women’s display to a children’s toy and also notes the growing interest in microscopes, first available to the middle class in the 1840s (Worlds Beyond, 4, 136).

Verse 2

The purple headed mountain
The river running by
The sunset and the morning
That brightens up the sky

After a verse on small things, the second verse turns to “creatures great.” But the emphasis here is especially on light, color, and sound: the purple hue the mountain takes on at sunset, the brightening of the sky at dawn, and the sound of the running river.

In other words, the emphasis falls on large features of creation as children can experience them.

Verse 3

The cold wind in the winter
The pleasant summer sun
The ripe fruits in the garden
He made them every one

The third verse applies the inclusive character of God’s creation to contraries of temperature. Just as God created creatures great and small, so he has created winter and summer, cold and warmth.

Moreover, Alexander describes these contraries through the personal experiences recognizable to a child. The focus is not on cold and heat in the abstract but rather on “the cold wind” and “the pleasant summer sun.” Moreover, the use of “fruits in the garden” extends the seasonal theme to agriculture, but in a domestic garden setting, they are more accessible to children.

Verse 4

He gave us eyes to see them
And lips that we might tell
How great is God Almighty
Who has has made all things well

The final verse brilliantly combines the themes of small things, perception, and praise. It does this by highlighting eyes and lips, small creatures by which we perceive creation and praise the creator. As a final grace note, it is precisely these small things that reveal “how great is God almighty.”

The Omitted Verse

Mrs. Alexander’s original text featured a middle verse that is now often omitted from hymnals:

The rich man in his castle
The poor man at his gate,
God made them, high or lowly,
And ordered their estate.

Timothy Dudley-Smith protests the removal of this verse, arguing that its depiction of social class should be read inclusively and not negatively (A Functional Art, 15). But in my view, this verse is out of step, not only with contemporary democratic culture but also with the themes of the hymn as a whole. Every other verse highlights things that can be experienced, especially by children. We preserve the greater thematic integrity of the hymn when we exclude this verse.

On Video

I’ve included three videos below because this hymn has three excellent associated tunes.

In the first video, the hymn is set to ROYAL OAK, a 17th-century tune, and features the Libera Boys Choir with harp. In the second video, the hymn is set to ALL THINGS BRIGHT, a 19th-century tune, and features the Getty family accompanied by guitar. The third video presents a gorgeous setting composed and conducted by John Rutter, with children’s choir, piano, and orchestraโ€”don’t miss this performance!


Photo by Dulcey Lima on Unsplash

Published on

October 10, 2024

Author

Peter Johnston

The Ven. Dr. Peter Johnston is the Ministry President of Anglican Compass. He is a priest and archdeacon in the Anglican Diocese of All Nations and the rector of Trinity Lafayette. He lives with his wife, Carla, and their eight children near Lafayette, Louisiana.

View more from Peter Johnston

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