1
Holy Father, we adore Thee,
Rev’rent song to Thee we raise;
Thou art holy, Thou art lofty,
“Holy is Thy Name,” we praise.
Rev’rent song to Thee we raise;
Thou art holy, Thou art lofty,
“Holy is Thy Name,” we praise.
2
Loving is Thy heart, dear Father,
Righteous ever are Thy ways;
But how holy is Thy nature,
Yet, to us Christ it conveys.
Righteous ever are Thy ways;
But how holy is Thy nature,
Yet, to us Christ it conveys.
3
Thou hast ever sanctified us
With the blood of Christ our Lord;
Thou hast separated sinners
Thru the truth which is Thy Word.
With the blood of Christ our Lord;
Thou hast separated sinners
Thru the truth which is Thy Word.
4
Thou hast, by Thy Holy Spirit,
Made us holy unto Thee;
And our spirit, soul, and body
Wholly sanctified will be.
Made us holy unto Thee;
And our spirit, soul, and body
Wholly sanctified will be.
5
Oh! the holy life of Jesus
Thru Thy grace we now possess;
Thou wilt make us e’en partakers
Of Thy very holiness.
Thru Thy grace we now possess;
Thou wilt make us e’en partakers
Of Thy very holiness.
6
When within that holy city,
Thy full holiness we’ll share,
To the uttermost forever,
“Thou art holy,” we’ll declare.
Thy full holiness we’ll share,
To the uttermost forever,
“Thou art holy,” we’ll declare.
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Tampa, FL, United States
Oh how WE adore thee!
Sauyo, Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines
The hymn "Holy Father, We Adore Thee" by John Bacchus Dyke expresses deep reverence and adoration for God. The lyrics highlight God's holiness, righteousness, and the transformative power of Christ's sacrifice. The hymn beautifully reflects on the sanctification of believers through Christ and anticipates a future in the holy city where they will declare God's holiness forever.
Storrs, Connecticut, United States
John Bacchus Dykes wrote the music for this hymn. He was born March 10, 1823, Kingston upon Hill, England in the “Old Ivy House, ” and was baptized on the same day in Old Sutton Church, Kingston upon Hull, by his grandfather Thomas Dykes. His middle name,
Bacchus, was originally a surname, from his maternal ancestors. John died January 22, 1876, Ticehurst, Sussex, England and buried at the Saint Oswald’s Church, Durham England.
John was the son of William Hey Dykes, a ship builder, later banker, and Elizabeth Huntington; husband of Susanna Kingston; and brother of Eliza Alderson who was a hymn writer.
Around age 12, he became assistant organist at St. John’s Church in Hull, where his grandfather was a vicar. He studied at Wakefield Yorkshire and Saint Catherine’s hall, Cambridge, where he was a Dykes Scholar, president of the Cambridge University Musical Society, and earned a BA in classics.
In 1848, he became a curate at Malton, Yorkshire. For a short time, he was a canon of Durham Cathedral, then precentor (1849-62). In 1862 he became vicar of Saint Oswald’s Durham (he named a son St. John Oswald Dykes and one of his tunes Saint Oswald).
Dykes published sermons and articles on spiritual matters but is best known for composing over 300 hymns. In his music, as in his ecclesiastical work, he was less dogmatic than many of his contemporaries about the theological controversies of the day-– he often fulfilled requests for tunes for non-Anglican hymns. In addition to his gift for writing music he played the organ, piano, violin, and horn.