All for Jesus

Lyrics

All for Jesus, all for Jesus,
this our song shall ever be;
for we have no hope, nor Saviour,
if we have not hope in thee.

All for Jesus, thou wilt give us
strength to serve thee, hour by hour;
none can move us from thy presence
while we trust thy love and power.

All for Jesus, at thine altar
thou wilt give us sweet content;
there, dear Lord, we shall receive thee
in the solemn sacrament.

All for Jesus, thou hast loved us;
all for Jesus, thou hast died;
all for Jesus, thou art with us;
all for Jesus crucified.

All for Jesus, all for Jesus,
this the church’s song must be,
till, at last, we all are gathered
one in love and one in thee.

History

"All for Jesus, all for Jesus" was written in 1887 by the Revd William John Sparrow-Simpson (1859-1952), a Church of England clergyman who compiled the book of words for Sir John Stainer's Passiontide cantata The Crucifixion: A Meditation on the Sacred Passion of the Holy Redeemer. Sparrow-Simpson had already supplied the libretto for Stainer's earlier cantata Mary Magdalene, and the two men collaborated again on this new work, in which the hymn forms the closing movement.

The Crucifixion was first performed on 24 February 1887 at St Marylebone Parish Church in London. Stainer dedicated the work "to my pupil and friend W. Hodge and the choir of Marylebone Church", who gave that first performance. Stainer was at the time organist of St Paul's Cathedral, a post he held from 1872 until 1888, the year he was knighted by Queen Victoria; The Crucifixion remains the work for which he is most remembered, still performed in Anglican churches during Holy Week.

Beyond the cantata, the hymn entered congregational use in its own right — Hymnary.org records it from C. W. A. Brooke's Additional Hymns (1901) — and it now appears in dozens of hymnals across many denominations.

Performance

Stainer's tune, named ALL FOR JESUS after the text, comes directly from The Crucifixion (1887) and is most commonly set in D major in 8.7.8.7 metre. Within the cantata it is one of five hymns Stainer set aside for congregational participation — the congregation joins the choir rather than merely listening — and as the final movement it brings the whole meditation on the Passion to a warm, affirmative close. That congregational purpose shapes its character: a broad, singable melody suited to unison singing with organ support.

The text is often chosen for eucharistic use, and the tune has travelled well beyond its original words, appearing in over 110 hymnals and paired with other texts, including "There's a wideness in God's mercy" and "Holy Spirit, come, confirm us". It works equally well as a closing hymn of dedication or during the distribution of communion.

Sources: hymnary.org · en.wikipedia.org