Fairest Lord Jesus

lyrics translated by joseph august seiss, music adapted by richard storrs willis

Fairest Lord Jesus Lyrics

Fairest Lord Jesus, ruler of all nature,

O Thou of God and man the Son,

Thee will I cherish, Thee will I honor,

Thou, my soul's glory, joy, and crown.

 

Fair are the meadows, fairer still the woodlands,

Robed in the blooming garb of spring:

Jesus is fairer, Jesus is purer

Who makes the woeful heart to sing.

 

Fair is the sunshine, fairer still the moonlight,

And all the twinkling starry host:

Jesus shines brighter, Jesus shines purer

Than all the angels heaven can boast.

 

All fairest beauty, heavenly and earthly,
Wondrously, Jesus, is found in Thee;
None can be nearer, fairer or dearer,
Than Thou, my Savior, art to me.

 

Beautiful Savior! Lord of all the nations!

Son of God and Son of Man!

Glory and honor, praise, adoration,

Now and forevermore be thine.

 

The original translation by Joseph A. Seiss, titled "Beautiful Savior" has slightly different lyrics:

 

Beautiful Savior, King of Creation
Son of God and Son of Man!
Truly I’d love Thee, truly I’d serve Thee,
Light of my soul, my joy, my crown.

 

Fair are the meadows, Fair are the woodlands,
Robed in the flowers of blooming spring;
Jesus is fairer, Jesus is purer,
He makes our sorrowing spirit sing.

 

Fair is the sunshine, Fair is the moonlight,
Bright the sparkling stars on high;
Jesus shines brighter, Jesus shines purer
Than all the angels in the sky.

 

Beautiful Savior, Lord of the nations,
Son of God and Son of Man!
Glory and honor, Praise, adoration
Now and forevermore be Thine!

 

 

 

Fairest Lord Jesus Guitar Chords

 

C            G C    C            G  C   

Fairest Lord Jesus, ruler of all nature,

C F       C       Dm  C   G     

O Thou of God and man the Son,

Em          Dm       G           C 

Thee will I cherish, Thee will I honor,

                C/E    G        C   

Thou, my soul's glory, joy, and crown.

 

Scripture References

  • Psalm 45:2 - You are the most excellent of men and your lips have been anointed with grace, since God has blessed you forever.

The Story

 

Fairest Lord Jesus is one of those hymns that has stood the test of time, having been composed over 335 years ago and yet is still being sung by Christians everywhere today. The text of the hymn dates back to at least 1662 in Germany, and the hymn seems to have achieved popularity in 1677 when it was included in a Jesuit hymn book called Munster Gesangbuch. The tune is called the "Crusader's Hymn", as legend says that the music was sung during the time of the Crusades, although no evidence exists to prove or disprove that.

 

There are various differing accounts of who translated the words to English. Some attribute most of the lyrics to Richard Storrs Willis, who also adapted the music (Willis is also known as the composer of the tune "Carol" to which we sing It Came Upon the Midnight Clear). Others attribute large portions of the lyrics to Joseph Augustus Seiss, who adapted the words and music to a hymn titled Beautiful Savior.

 

Regardless of the source, the words today are even more meaningful than they were 300 years ago. We live in an age today where political correctness is more important than the search for Truth. There are those who say that Jesus Christ was just a philospher, just a leader of a movement, just a historical figure whose time has come and gone. Even mentioning Jesus' words "no one comes to the Father except by Me" are met with cries of being "intolerant", "bigoted", "hateful", just as much as in Jesus' day when he proclaimed "I and the Father are one" and was nearly stoned on the spot for saying it.

 

Which they would be...if they weren't true. But those who really understand, who live by faith in Jesus and whose works follow them, understand the transformation that comes through faith in the Son of God.

 

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