Treasury of Great Hymns

Charles Koelsch, host

Learn the fascinating stories behind your favorite hymns as told by Charles Koelsch and majestically performed by the Bob Jones University Choir and Orchestra.

For example, did you know:

"A Mighty Fortress" is believed to have been written in 1529 by Martin Luther for the Diet of Spires, the occasion when the term "protestant" was first used.
"Amazing Grace" was written in 1779 by a former slave trader and sea captain, John Newton, who was driven to Christ through his fear of being shipwrecked.
"Great is Thy Faithfulness" was written by Thomas Chisholm, a man who composed more than 1,200 sacred poems and hymn texts during his lifetime. But his career began humbly in a country schoolhouse as a 16-year-old teacher who had only an elementary education.
"To God Be the Glory" by Fanny Crosby was first published in 1875 but was not widely known until the song was popularized in evangelistic crusades during the early 1950s.
"Jesus Loves Me" by Anna Warner first appeared in 1860 as dialog in a bestselling fiction novel, as one of the characters recited the poem to a dying child. A year later, William Bradbury set the poem to music.
"How Great Thou Art" was written by a Swedish pastor in 1886 and later translated into Russian. Some 50 years later, the Russian version was heard by an English missionary to Ukraine, Stuart Hine. When World War II began in 1939, he returned home and translated the hymn into English.
In "Lead On, O King Eternal" by Ernest Shurtleff, the words "the day of march has come" refer to a graduation march. He wrote the hymn in 1887 at the request of fellow seminarians who asked Shurtleff to compose their class poem.

Hear more inspiring stories and music each week on A Treasury of Great Hymns! Many of the hymns you hear on the broadcast have been recorded by the Bob Jones University Symphony Orchestra and are available on CD from SoundForth Music.