1
Fairest Lord Jesus!
Ruler of all nature!
O Thou of God and man the Son!
Thee will I cherish,
Thee will I honor,
Thou, my soul’s glory, joy, and crown!
Ruler of all nature!
O Thou of God and man the Son!
Thee will I cherish,
Thee will I honor,
Thou, my soul’s glory, joy, and crown!
2
Fair are the meadows
Fairer still the woodlands,
Robed in the blooming garb of spring;
Jesus is fairer,
Jesus is purer,
Who makes the woeful heart to sing!
Fairer still the woodlands,
Robed in the blooming garb of spring;
Jesus is fairer,
Jesus is purer,
Who makes the woeful heart to sing!
3
Fair is the sunshine,
Fairer still the moonlight,
And all the twinkling starry host;
Jesus shines brighter,
Jesus shines purer,
Than all the angels heav’n can boast!
Fairer still the moonlight,
And all the twinkling starry host;
Jesus shines brighter,
Jesus shines purer,
Than all the angels heav’n can boast!
4
All fairest beauty,
Heavenly and earthly,
Wondrously, Jesus, is found in Thee;
None can be nearer,
Fairer, or dearer,
Than Thou my Savior art to me.
Heavenly and earthly,
Wondrously, Jesus, is found in Thee;
None can be nearer,
Fairer, or dearer,
Than Thou my Savior art to me.
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Little is known of the origin of this hymn. One of the best known accounts is that it was called the “Crusader’s Hymn. ” Some think that it was sung by twelfth century German Crusaders, especially by their children on their way to the Holy Land. Another account is that it was one of the hymns used by the followers of John Hus, a small band of believers who settled in Silesia (now part of Poland) after they were driven out of Bohemia in the bloody Reformation purge of 1620. The hymn was said to have been derived from these Reformation peasants.
The text for the hymn first appeared in the Roman Catholic “Munster Gesangbuch” of 1677, a collection of hymns belonging to what is called The Third Period of German Hymnody coming between the Great Reformation and the beginning of Pietism with the advance of the Moravians. It was published as the “first of three beautiful selected hymns. ”
Later it is said that a man by the name of Hoffman Fallersleben heard a group of Salesians singing the hymn in a service, recorded the words and music from this oral recitation and published it in 1842 in his “Schlesische Volkslieder, ” a collection of sacred and secular songs. This is the form in which we now know the hymn.
No one knows for certain who first translated the text from German into English. The English adaptation by Richard Storrs Willis, born in Boston, Massachusetts, on February 10, 1819, first appeared in his “Church Chorals and Choir Studies” in 1850. It is interesting to note that in the collection a notation about the origin of the hymn is made stating that it was “sung by the German Knights on the way to Jerusalem. ” Richard Willis is also the composer of the hymn “It Came Upon a Midnight Clear. ”
The fourth verse is a translation by Joseph A. Seiss, born and raised in a Moravian home, which speaks of Christ’s divinity and humanity, “Son of God and Son of Man. ”
Feasterville, PA, United States
I love the song. It has so much depth in every stanza.
Charlotte, NC, United States
This song brought back wonderful memories of my childhood. It took me back to when we cherished God's word and love of God was a very important factor in our lives. Sunday school, VBS, taught me about Jesus, as I matured I appreciated Sunday morning service.
Tbilisi, Georgia
All fairest beauty,
Heavenly and earthly,
Wondrously, Jesus, is found in Thee;
None can be nearer,
Fairer, or dearer,
Than Thou my Savior art to me.
Lord how we thank You for giving us open eyes of our hearts to gaze Your beauty, oh how we enjoy Your beauty, we are attracted by Your beauty. You are so beautiful we can not but look at You and in Your eyes we find ourselves thank You for loving us so dearly. Lord we adore You.
How True, What Truth, Surely He Knows the road!
love it
Springfield, MO, United States
I dearly love the Lord Jesus Christ. This song has a beautiful melody and is a beautiful way to worship our Lord Jesus Christ. Glory, honor, and blessing be unto Him for now and evermore.
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
There was such a beautiful, full moon last night, and it caused me to reflect on this hymn, learnt as a youngster. Just now, I'm playing this and singing it to my 10 month old granddaughter. Thankful for this website.
Our late Dad's favourite hymn! Today's his 100th birthday and we his children propose to sing it to honour our Lord!
Englishtown, New Jersey, United States
I woke up this morning singing this powerful hymn and I kept on singing as the Presence of the Lord saturated the atmosphere. Love this hymn.