Awake our souls, away our fears. I. Watts. [The Christian Race.] First published in his Hymns and Sacred Songs, 1707, Bk. i., No. 48, in 5 stanzas of 4 lines, and headed "The Christian Race." It has been repeated in later editions of the Hymns, and may be found in all editions of Watts's Works. Its use in the original, and as altered, is as follows:—
1. The original was included in various hymnbooks at an early date, and is now in extensive use in all English-speaking countries.
2. The original—with the single change of "Thy matchless" for "Whose matchless power," in stanza iii. line 1—is interesting, from the fact that it was introduced by J. Wesley in his Psalms & Hymns, published at Charlestown, South Carolina, in 1736-7, and from thence has passed into nearly all the Methodist hymnbooks throughout the world, in addition to many in the Church of England. In the latter case the descent has been through M. Madan's Psalms & Hymns , 1760.
3. The readings in Windle's Met. Psalter, and one or two others which have copied from him, are partly (stanza ii. lines 3-4) from Rowland Hill's Psalms & Hymns, 2nd ed., 1787, and partly (stanza iii., iv.) by Mr. Windle.
4. In Hall's Mitre , 1836, the hymn is given as "Awake, my soul, dismiss thy fears." At one time this text was widely used, but is now almost unknown.
Other readings exist in minor collections, and may be corrected by collating with the orig. text as above.
-- John Julian, Dictionary of Hymnology (1907)
Isaac Watts was the son of a schoolmaster, and was born in Southampton, July 17, 1674. He is said to have shown remarkable precocity in childhood, beginning the study of Latin, in his fourth year, and writing respectable verses at the age of seven. At the age of sixteen, he went to London to study in the Academy of the Rev. Thomas Rowe, an Independent minister. In 1698, he became assistant minister of the Independent Church, Berry St., London. In 1702, he became pastor. In 1712, he accepted an invitation to visit Sir Thomas Abney, at his residence of Abney Park, and at Sir Thomas' pressing request, made it his home for the remainder of his life. It was a residence most favourable for his health, and for the prosecution of his literary… Go to person page >
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