GOD BE WITH YOU
MUSIC
Hymn written by American author Jeremiah Eames Rankin to reaffirm the protection of the Lord. A song that talks about the love of the Creator.
H
ymn created by evangelical composer Jeremiah Eames Rankin and sung at the end of services, “God Be with You Till We Meet Again” focuses on the love the Lord offers to His believers. First published in 1882, the song was written when the author discovered in a dictionary that the word “goodbye” comes from the expression ‘God be with you.’ Therefore, Rankin wrote a poem in which he exalts the grace and comfort provided by Jesus Christ to the members of the flock who remain faithful to His Word. Jeremiah, born on January 2, 1828 in the US, was a special servant of God who, throughout his life, embraced, preached and defended the Gospel firmly and tenaciously. At a very young age, while living in New Hampshire, he discovered the Word of the Lord and surrendered his life. This man of
GOD BE WITH YOU TILL WE MEET AGAIN 1 God be with you till we meet again, By His counsels guide, uphold you, With His sheep securely fold you, God be with you till we meet again. REFRAIN Till we meet, till we meet, Till we meet at Jesus’ feet; Till we meet, till we meet, God be with you till we meet again. 2 God be with you till we meet again, ’Neath His wings protecting hide you, Daily manna still divide you, God be with you till we meet again. 3 God be with you till we meet again; With the oil of joy anoint you; Sacred ministries appoint you; God be with you till we meet again. 4 God be with you till we meet again, When life’s perils thick confound you, Put His arms unfailing round you, God be with you till we meet again.
faith studied at the Middlebury College, a private university in the state of Vermont, and received doctrinal instruction at the Andover Theological Seminary in Massachusetts. Rankin, a pastor committed to the end of slavery in the United States, was elected president of the Howard University, founded in 1890, after the Civil War, for the instruction of African Americans. His countless sermons, based on the Scriptures, became very popular at the time, and two of them (“the Bible, the Security of American Institutions” and “The Divinity of the Ballot) were spread throughout the United States. “God Be with You Till We Meet Again,” which tacitly refers to Romans 16:20, was shared for the first time on a Sunday night at the congregation Jeremiah led in D.C. It immediately caught the attention of the faithful who were drawn by the harmonious melody of the poem. The melody was composed by William Gould Tomer, a remarkable evangelical composer of the 18th century, who served the Lord as musical director of a temple in Washington. After its release, Rankin’s song became a very famous hymn worldwide thanks to the evangelistic campaigns conducted by preacher Dwight Lyman Moody and composer Ira David Sankey in England and the United States in the late 19th century. Over the years, it was translated into several languages and it became widely used in funerals for its great emotional content. Today, it is one of his most recognized hymns in his vast creative work. Jeremiah Eames Rankin, who inspired President Thomas Woodrow Wilson and several evangelical members of the US Congress with his preaching, died on November 28, 1904. He had served God as a pastor in different churches in the nation considered the most powerful, influential and wealthy in the world. Internationally known for his hymn, Rankin left thanks to his ingenuity and faith a hopeful praise for the global evangelical community l August 2016 / Impacto evangelistic
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