Nathan Mortier
February 13, 2006
18th Century Theology
Professor Westblade
A Pleasing Offering: The Life and Significance of Isaac Watts
Isaac Watts has often been labeled the ÒFather of the English Hymn.Ó
While Watts did not write the first English hymns, his verses were responsible
for popularizing the format in worship. Before Watts, public worship with
singing consisted mostly of scripture translated literally into meter sung to
common tunes. WattsÕs reform in hymnody began among the Non-conformist population
in England, but soon spread across many denominations of Christianity on both
sides of the Atlantic. In modern hymnals Watts is one of the most cited
authors, and many his over 600 hymns have become favorites and standards. Watts
penned the beloved words of hymns ÒWhen I Survey the Wondrous Cross,Ó ÒJoy to
the World,Ó and ÒAlas, and Did My Savior BleedÓ and these favorites find their
place in almost every hymnal of today. His reform in music was especially
significant in Eighteenth Century New England, where his hymns provided the
music for the Great Awakening and became one of the important characteristics
of the shift in New England Christianity from earlier Puritanism to the
evangelicalism of preachers such as Edwards and Whitefield.
Isaac Watts was born on 17 July 1674 in Southampton, the eldest child
to a family of nine children. During his early childhood, IsaacÕs father was
frequently imprisoned for his position as deacon at the Independent Meeting
House of the non-conforming or dissenting population. This did not, however,
prevent Isaac from receiving the full benefit of his fatherÕs traditional
puritan and intellectual instruction. IsaacÕs memoirs tell of his rigorous
classical education. At the young age of four his father undertook to teach him
Latin. His home instruction was followed at the age of six by enrolment at the
independent Latin school of headmaster Reverend John Pinhorne. The school was
as rigorously academic as it was moral. Watts recounted reading the classics
such as Homer, Pindar, Sophocles, Plato, Virgil, Horace, Juvenal, Persius, and
Seneca. Because the were considered immoral, the poets Ovid and Catullus,
however, were explicitly out of bounds.[1]
Evidently, his reading enthralled Isaac, for the margins of his Sum Book were covered with aphorisms and
lengthy citations from the Latin authors. His Latin instruction was
complemented by later studies of Greek at the age of nine, French at ten, and
Hebrew at thirteen.[2]
The
young Watts had a poetic mind from the start, and was known by his family for
the annoying habit of versifying in everyday conversation.[3]
Laughing before family prayers one morning, Isaac pointed out a mouse in the
rafters and created a short rhymn: ÒA mouse for want of better stairs / Ran up
a rope to say his prayers.Ó[4]
His rhyming skills, however, were soon put to better use. When he turned
fifteen, Watts was sent to the Academy of Reverend Thomas Rowe in London. After
graduating from the Academy in 1694, Watts embarked upon two years of
independent studies through reading, writing, and meditation. During this time
living with his father, Watts complained about the dull and tuneless verses
that were sung at his familyÕs church. His deacon father immediately encouraged
him to try to do better, and such was born WattsÕs first hymn, Behold the Glories of the Lamb:
Behold
the glories of the Lamb
Amidst
his FatherÕs throne;
Prepare
new honors for his name,
And
songs before unknown.
Now
to the Lamb, that once was slain,
Be
endless blessings paid;
Salvation,
glory, joy, remain
Forever
on thy head
Thou
hast redeemed our souls with blood,
Hast
set the prisoner free,
Hast
made us kings and priests to God,
And
we shall reign with thee.[5]
For so young a
person, the hymn is remarkable, and as one critic remarks, Òthe hymn shows
WattsÕs directness of statement, ease of expression, and vividness in depicting
a scene.Ó[6]
During this period at his fatherÕs house he wrote many of the hymns that would
not be published until later in life.
In
1696 Watts left his fatherÕs house for Newington to become a tutor to the son
of Sir John Hartopp, who had gained wealth and prominence from the crownÕs new
tolerance of dissenters. No longer facing the same persecution of that WattsÕs
father had experienced, many dissenters were now wealthy and influential in
politics and business. Watts was a dedicated teacher, writing entire textbooks
to instruct the younger Hartropp. These were later published as the Logic (1724) and Improvement of the Mind (1741). While still serving as a tutor to
the Hartropps, Isaac was called upon to become an assistant to the ailing Dr.
Chauncy at the prominent dissenting church at Mark Lane, a prestigious post for
such a young man. Mark Lane was well known for its former pastor, John Owen.
Upon Dr. ChauncyÕs death in 1701 the church considered calling Watts to the
pastorate, but was hesitant because of WattsÕs feeble heath. He had remained
sickly ever since a bout of smallpox when young, and during the years at the
HartoppÕs even spent five months on trips to Southampton, Bath, and Tunbridge
Wells in search of better health.[7]
After the prayers and fasting of the congregation, however, doubts about his
health were dismissed and Watts returned to Mark Lane as full pastor in 1702.
The
years at Mark Lane were the most important for WattsÕs reputation throughout
the independent community in London and his prolific writing. When Watts came
to the post at Mark Lane, he received only 60 church members from Dr. Chauncy.
Under his leadership it grew to 428, and he became known throughout the area
for his preaching. During the same time he published his famous Hymns and Spiritual Songs (1707), added
his metered paraphrases of the psalms twelve years later.
Though
strong in the faith, Watts struggled with ill health his entire life. After a
particularly bad fever in 1712 his good friend Sir Thomas Abney invited him to
stay at his residence for a week. The visit lengthened into 36 years under the
AbneyÕs hospitality. Sir Thomas was a wealthy and influential dissenter who had
once even been Lord Mayor of London. The Abney family became WattsÕs closest
friends and even when Sir Abney died his widow welcomed him to stay. He took a
special interest in instructing their three daughters, writing his famous Divine and Moral Songs: Attempted in Easy
Language for the use of Children, published in 1720, for their instruction
in religion and morality.[8]
The book contained such well-known hymns of today such as ÒI Sing the Mighty
Power of GodÓ and short pieces of instruction that became standards for school
children decades after Watts. This piece discouraging the children from
quarrelling is especially famous:
Let
dogs delight to bark and bite,
For
God hath made them so.
But,
children, you should never let,
Such
angry passions rise;
Your
little hands were never made
To
tear each otherÕs eyes
How
doth the busy little bee
Improve
each shining hour.
In
works of labor or of skill
I
would be busy too;
For
Satan finds some mischief still
For
idle hands to do.[9]
Watts spent
the rest of his days at the Abneys as a chronic invalid, yet still remained a
powerful voice in the non-conforming community of London. He was a bachelor,
had no domestic cares, and after being given an assistant at Mark Lane, only
had to drive to town occasionally to preach. While these light duties could be
disparaged, Palmer argues that:
To Dr. Watts they gave the
opportunity of establishing a close bond between himself and his congregation,
of gaining a prominent position as a preacher and leader among he
Nonconformists, of publishing an amount of prose vast for even a literary
person in that voluminous age, of attaining a place – not the of the
first rank but indisputable – among the poets of the language, and of
moulding the thoughts and kindling the emotions of English Protestant
Christians for more than a century.Ó (Palmer 378)
Indeed, Watts
used his time to full advantage, not only writing hymns, sermons, and poetry,
but popularizing and summarizing the knowledge of the day through writings in
logic, astronomy, geography, grammar, pedagogics, and ethics.[10]
He published over 600 hymns, three volumes of sermons, twenty-nine treatises on
theology, and fifty-two other publications. His textbook on logic was standard
at Oxford, Cambridge, Harvard, and Yale. At Oxford it was used over one-hundred
years.[11]
Watts remained at the Abneys until his death on 25 November 1748.
WattsÕs
influence carried over to his Puritan brethren in New England. Watts clearly
intended his hymns for use in the colonies as well, viewing them as an
extension of Great Britain. He even titled his paraphrase of Psalm 107 ÒA Psalm
for New England.Ó Frederic Palmer held that ÒThe formative influence of Watts,
especially upon the religious life of New England, has been profound.Ó[12]
This influence, however, was not immediately felt. Watts based his hymns on themes of scripture instead of literal
translations. Conforming to the regulative principle of only using things
specifically commanded in the scripture in worship services, New England
puritan churches thought paraphrases improper for use in services. Clunky
literal translations of the psalms were still considered the only appropriate
songs. Coupled with a poor memory of the tunes to go with them and limited
instruction in churches led to congregational singing that was Òchaotic and
dissonant.Ó[13] This began to
change in the early part of the century. To bring back a sense of order and
harmony in congregational singing, some pastors introduced singing in parts,
even hiring Òsinging mastersÓ to instruct their congregations. [14] At the same time the hymns of Watts were
being introduced in New England. The growing acceptance of the new singing led
to broad controversy, but the continued support of influential leaders such as
Cotton Mather and Solomon Stoddard led to a growing acceptance of the new
hymns. By the time Jonathan Edwards moved to Northampton in 1726, Mather and
Stoddard had made the new singing a regular part of worship services, and their
congregations were learning WattsÕ hymns in private meetings. Charles Wesley
reprinted some of the hymns again in 1737 and 1739, and during the revivals of
Edwards and Whitefield Watts became immensely popular in the colonies.[15]
During the Great Awakening believers found in the hymns of Watts the
aesthetic and emotional component that had been missing in earlier metered
psalms. Rigidly literal translations of the psalms for singing—such as
found in the Bay State Songbook—were
crude poetically and limited musically. The more graceful poetry of Watts set
to tuneful music had a power that was missing earlier. WattsÕs hymns provided a
more eloquent and powerful musical form to express repentance for sin and joy
at salvation. Whitefield recognized this power of song that stirred the
affections and gave expression to inward revival. He would begin his preaching
with a Watts hymn in order to Òmobilize his audience, to transform them from
passive viewers to participants. ÉWhitefield would turn the focus on them,
describing them as actors in a divine drama and challenging them to play their
roles.Ó[16]
Jonathan Edwards also used the hymns of Watts in his congregation, popularizing
them further.[17]
Throughout their lives Watts and Jonathan Edwards maintained
correspondence and supported each other. Edwards introduced WattsÕs hymns to
his congregation and Watts read Edwards A
Faithful Narrative to his congregation in England. Watts was interested in
the events of the Great Awakening and frequently exchanged correspondence with
Whitefield and others in New England. He was initially apprehensive and
severely critical of the open-are meetings and irregular proceedings of
Whitefield, but after recognizing the preacherÕs Òzeal and good senseÓ admitted
that Whitefield was Òraised up by God and ÒHe does more good by his wild notes
than we with all our set music.Ó[18]
Whitefied, in turn, spoke of Watts as Òthat sweet singer of Israel, and my
worthy and honoured friend.Ó[19]
The songs and hymns of Watts continued to grow in popularity and have
a profound influence on American Christianity. Edwards eventually used the
hymns of Watts almost to the exclusion of the old psalm,s and ultimately the
hymnbooks could be found in the pews of all major denominations throughout the
colonies. The longevity of WattsÕs hymns attests to their timelessness and
depth of expression that has stirred the hearts of countless believers. This
was only possible because Watts wrote his hymns and songs with a mature
understanding of praise. He explained his own views best in a short essay:
What is praise? It is a part of
that divine worship which we owe to the Power that made us; it is an
acknowledgment of the perfection's of God, ascribing all excellencies to him,
and confessing all the works of nature and grace to proceed from him . . ..
but, alas! the highest and best [forms of praise] set in a true light, are but
the feeble voice of a creature, spreading before the Almighty Being that made
him, some of his own low and little ideas, and telling him what he thinks of
the Great God, and what God has doneÉ.How inconsiderable an offering is this
for a God! And yet so condescending is his love, that he looks down, and is
well pleased to receive it.[20]
WattsÕs hymns
came out of a deep desire to bring a pleasing offering to God. They served to
turn peopleÕs hearts toward God in orderly worship that incorporated beautiful
Eighteenth-Century harmony with flowing poetry. Over two-and-a-half centuries
later, the hymns of Watts are still in many ways influencing and guiding the
worship of Christians all over the world.
Bibliography
Bailey, Albert Edward. The Gospel in Hymns. New York: Charles ScribnerÕs Sons. 1950.
Cousland, Kenneth H. ÒThe Significance of Isaac Watts in
the Development of Hymnody.Ó
Church
History, Vol. 17, No. 4 (Dec., 1948), 287-298.
Dallimore, Arnold George Whitefield.
Edinburgh: Banner of Truth 1970
Davis, Arthur Paul. Isaac
Watts: His Life and Works. London: Independent Press Ltd. 1948.
Escott, Harry. Isaac
Watts: Hymnographer. London: Independent Press Ltc. 1962.
Fountain, David. Isaac
Watts Remembered. Gospel Standard Baptist Trust Ltd. 1974.
Jack, Robert. A
Letter on Psalmody: Shewing that human composures ought not to be used in
Christian
worship, in singing the praises of God. Philadelphia: Bailey, 1790.
Maclear, J. F. ÒIsaac Watts and the Idea of Public
Religion.Ó Journal of the History of
Ideas, Vol. 53,
No.1 (Jan.-Mar., 1992), 25-45.
Marsden, George M. Jonathan
Edwards: A Life. New Haven: Yale University Press. 2003.
Ninde, Edward S. The
Story of the American Hymn. New York: The Abingdon Press. 1921.
Ninde, Edwards. Nineteen
Centuries of Christian Song. New York: Fleming H. Revell Co, 1938.
Palmer, Frederic. ÒIsaac Watts.Ó The Harvard Theological Review, Vol. 12, No. 4 (Oct.,1919). 371-
403.
Reynolds, William Jensen. A Joyful Sound: Christian Hymnody. New York: Holt, Rinehart and
Winston. 1978.
Smith, Jane S. and Betty Carlson. Great Christian Hymn Writers. Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books.
1997.
Stephenson, William E. ÒIsaac WattsÕss Education for the
Dissenting Ministry: A New
Document.Ó The Harvard Theological Review, Vol. 61, No. 2 (Apr., 1968),
263-281.
Stevenson, Robert. ÒDr. WattsÕs ÒFlights of Fancy.ÓÓ The Harvard Theological Review, Vol. 42,
No. 4 (Oct., 1949), 235-253.
Stevenson, Robert. ÒWatts in America. Bicentenary
Reflections on the Growth of WattsÕs
Reputation in America.Ó The Harvard Theological Review, Vol. 41,
No. 3 (Jul., 1948), 205-
211.
Stout, Harry S The
divine Dramatist. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans Publishing Co. 1991.
Watson, J. R. ed. An
Annotated Anthology of Hymns. Oxford: Oxford University Press. 2002.
Watson, J. R. The
English Hymn: A Critical History and Study. Oxford University Press:
Oxford, 1999.
Watts, Isaac. The beauties of the late Rev. Dr. Isaac
Watts; [microform] : containing the most striking and
admired passages in the works of
that justly celebrated divine, philosopher, moralist, and poet: equally
calculated for the communication of polite and useful knowledge, and the
increase of wisdom and happiness. : To which is added, the life of the author. Elizabeth-Town, NJ: Printed by
Shepard Kollock. 1796.
Watts, Isaac. Divine
and Moral Songs: Attempted in Easy Language for the use of Children.
Boston: Hall,
1796.
Whitefield, George. George
WhitefieldÕs Journals. Edinburgh: Banner of Truth 1989
[1] Escott 14.
[2] Davis 8.
[3] Bailey 46.
[4] Fountain 13.
[5] Ninde. Nineteen
Centuries of English Song 97.)
[6] Ibid.
[7] Davis 22.
[8] Davis 32.
[9] Divine
Songs 16.
[10] Marsden 145.
[11] Ibid.
[12] Palmer 371.
[13] Marsden 143
[14] Stevenson America
207 and Marsden 145.
[15] Ninde. American
Hymn 30.
[16] Stout 79.
[17] Ibid.
[18] Dallimore ii.253.
[19] Whitefield 93.
[20] Biography by Matthew Carey in Isaac Watts. The Beauties of the Late Revered Dr. Isaac
Watts. 26.