Stand Up, Stand Up for Jesus

"Stand Up, Stand Up for Jesus" is an American Christian hymn. It was written by George Duffield, Jr. in 1858 and is based on the dying words of Dudley Atkins Tyng. The music was composed by George James Webb.

History

In 1858, Presbyterian minister George Duffield, Jr. was an associate of Dudley Atkins Tyng who had recently been removed from his local Episcopalian community for speaking against slavery. Duffield assisted Tyng in supporting a revival of evangelicalism in Pennsylvania.[1][2][3] In March 1858, Tyng gave a sermon at a YMCA meeting of over 5,000 men on Exodus 10:11, "Go now ye that are men, and serve the Lord", converting over 1,000 men listening in the crowd.[3][4] The following month, Tyng was maimed in a farming accident. Before he died a few days after the accident he told his father "Tell my brethren of the ministry, wherever you meet them, to stand up for Jesus."[2][4] Duffield then wrote the hymn based on those words, and also incorporated the phrase "Ye that are men now serve Him" from Tyng's memorable sermon the month before he died.[3] At a memorial service for Tyng, Duffield gave a sermon based on Ephesians 6:14, "Stand firm, wearing the whole armour of God", and ended it by reciting the new hymn he had written as a tribute.[4] The hymn was first brought into public knowledge through leaflets printed by the superintendent of the local Christian school containing the words of the hymn. One of these leaflets ended up being published in a Baptist newspaper,[2][5] and "Stand Up, Stand Up for Jesus" was published in The Church Psalmist in 1859.[6][7]

After first publication, the hymn was popular and was sung by both the Union and Confederate soldiers in the American Civil War.[1][2] The hymn also became popular among British revivalists,[8] and within public schools in England.[1] As a result of the images of Christian militarism in the hymn, some people object to the hymn, and some people do not stand to sing it.[9][10][11] The hymn was excluded from a more politically correct volume of The Presbyterian Hymnal published in June 1990, in order not to offend handicapped people.[12]

Tune

Several melodies have been written for "Stand Up, Stand Up for Jesus". The one used most often now was written by George James Webb, who had originally composed it in 1837 for "Tis Dawn, the Lark is Singing", a song in a secular musical show performed on a ship travelling across the Atlantic Ocean.[1][7][13]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Christiansen, Rupert (2007-09-25). "The story behind the hymn". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 2015-01-10. Retrieved 2015-01-08.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Francis, Russell E. (January 1946). "The Religious Revival of 1858 in Philadelphia". The Pennsylvania Magazine of History and Biography (The Historical Society of Pennsylvania) 70 (1): 52–77. Retrieved 10 January 2015.
  3. 1 2 3 Morris, John D. (1999). How Firm a Foundation. New Leaf Publishing Group. ISBN 9781614583004.
  4. 1 2 3 Bence, Evelyn (1997). Spiritual Moments with the Great Hymns: Devotional Readings That Strengthen the Heart. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan. p. 135. ISBN 9780310208402.
  5. ↑ Gaffney, R. Mark (2010). "Crane". Where the Birds Make Their Nests: A Study of the Birds of the Bible. Xlibris Corporation. ISBN 1453531874.
  6. ↑ Studwell, William Emmett (1996). The National and Religious Song Reader: Patriotic, Traditional, and Sacred Songs from Around the World. Psychology Press. p. 128. ISBN 9780789000996.
  7. 1 2 "Stand Up, Stand Up for Jesus". Hymnary.org. Retrieved 2015-01-08.
  8. ↑ Scott, Jamie S. (1996). And the Birds Began to Sing: Religion and Literature in Post-colonial Cultures. Amsterdam: Rodopi. p. xix. ISBN 9789051839845.
  9. ↑ "Methodist Church Faces Decisions on Changes : Committee Finishes Revision of Songbook After 3 Years of Debate, Research, Prayer". Los Angeles Times. AP. October 17, 1987. Archived from the original on January 11, 2015. Retrieved January 11, 2015.
  10. ↑ Andrew, Elizabeth (2009). On the Threshold: Home, Hardwood, and Holiness. Basic Books. p. 148. ISBN 0786739126.
  11. ↑ Wenham, Gordon J. (2012). Psalms as Torah: Reading Biblical Song Ethically. Grand Rapids: Baker Books. p. 4. ISBN 9781441236388.
  12. ↑ McClain, Kathleen (August 1, 1989). "New Presbyterian hymnal curbs sexism and shuns militarism". The Pittsburgh Press. Retrieved 11 January 2015.
  13. ↑ Osbeck, Kenneth W. (1982). 101 Hymn Stories. Kregel Publications. p. 86. ISBN 9780825493270.

External links

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