Hymn: Holy, Holy, Holy

 The four living creatures, each of them with six wings, are full of eyes all around and within, and day and night they never cease to say, “Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come!” And whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to him who is seated on the throne, who lives forever and ever, the twenty-four elders fall down before him who is seated on the throne and worship him who lives forever and ever. They cast their crowns before the throne…(Revelation 4:8-10 ESV)  

The poet of the text, Reginald Heber, was an Anglican Minister who was appointed Bishop of Calcutta just a few years before an untimely death at the age of 43.  His hymn texts were composed early in his career while yet a parish priest in the west of England.  Among them are the Christmas text “Brightest and Best of the Sons of the Morning” and the striking and martial “The Son of God Goes Forth to War.”  Paraphrasing portions of Revelation 4, the text for “Holy, Holy, Holy” thoughtfully builds upon God’s triune nature by regularly joining together sets of three complimentary ideas.  These highlight God’s personal attributes (holy, merciful, mighty; power, love, purity), His eternal nature (wert, art, evermore), created beings that praise Him (saints, cherubim, seraphim), and the places wherein God is praised (earth, sky, sea).  

The tune NICAEA, was composed specifically for this text and is aptly named after the Council of Nicea (325 AD), a church council that defended the doctrine of the Trinity.  The Nicene Creed, the most widely utilized confession of the Church, originated with this council.  The tune’s composer, John Dykes, built the melody upon an ascending melodic triad, a three-note chord that musically symbolizes the triune Godhead.  The hymn has become classic due in part to the majestic quality that the tune lends to the text.  Dykes, also an English clergyman, composed texts and music for numerous hymns.  His best-known tunes are found in the hymns “I Heard the Voice of Jesus Say,” “Eternal Father, Strong to Save,” and “Jesus, the Very Thought of Thee.”