He described himself as “the worst boy known in Tregynon (a town in Wales) in thirty years.” Thomas Olivers (1725-1799) was orphaned at four and went to live with a great uncle who died a few years later, leaving him a small fortune. Thomas received minimal education and became apprenticed to a shoemaker. He was kicked out of town and showed up in Bristol, England. Yesterday’s prayer featured the ministry of the great evangelist George Whitfield. Thomas was in the crowd when Whitfield preached from Zechariah, “Is not this a brand plucked from the fire?” (Zech. 3.2). Thomas described the impact of Whitfield’s sermon in his autobiography, “When the sermon began, I was one of the most abandoned and profligate young men living; before it ended, I was a new creature.” Following his conversion, Thomas became an itinerant Methodist preacher, endeavoring to pluck more brands from the fire. While in London in 1770, Thomas went to a Sabbath evening service at The Great Synagogue at Duke’s Place. The acclaimed cantor, Meyer Lyon, sang the Yigdal, a 15th-century hymn based on the 13 articles of the Jewish faith. Thomas was so taken with the song that he set about transforming this ancient Jewish prayer into a 12-stanza Christian hymn. You may know it as the hymn, “The God of Abraham Praise.” The hymn is based on the name God gave Moses, “I am who I am” (Ex. 3.14). Every line of the hymn references Scripture. He titled the tune “Leoni” in honor of Lyon’s professional name as an opera singer, Max Leoni. The song resounds with praise, “I shall behold His face, I shall His praise adore. And sing the wonders of his grace for evermore.” I’ve provided the first four stanzas of his original hymn, followed by a prayer with words from the hymn:
The God of Abraham praise, Who reigns enthroned above;
Ancient of everlasting days, and God of love,
Jehovah, great I AM, by earth and Heav’n confessed;
I bow and bless the sacred Name forever blessed.
The God of Abraham praise, at Whose supreme command
From earth I rise, and seek the joys at His right hand;
I all on earth forsake, its wisdom, fame, and power,
And Him my only Portion make, my shield and Tower.
The God of Abraham praise, Whose all-sufficient grace
Shall guide me all my happy days, in all my ways.
He calls a worm His friend, He calls Himself my God;
And He shall save me to the end, through Jesu’s blood.
He by Himself has sworn, I on His oath depend:
I shall, on eagles’ wings upborne, to Heav’n ascend;
I shall behold His face, I shall His power adore,
And sing the wonders of His grace for evermore.