Background & Theological Analysis of "O For A Thousand Tongues to Sing"
Background
“O For A Thousand Tongues to Sing” was written in May 1739 by Charles Wesley in remembrance of his moment of assurance and full conversion. The year before, Charles had become very sick and was cared for by a group of Christians. Their service, prayers, and testimonies during his sickness greatly affected Charles and caused him great reflection. While on the mend after the sickness, he was reading from his Bible and had an experience that would later be mirrored by his brother John at Aldersgate. Charles would point to this even as a great renewal of his faith. Hymn 57 in the United Methodist Hymnal was written in remembrance of this great renewal originally as an 18 stanza poem, but later shorted into a hymn for the Methodist hymnal of 1780.
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