O God, Our Help in Ages Past: From Lament to Hope
By: Rob Lynch, Director of Traditional Music
In the late 1600s, in Southampton, England, a young boy sat staring at the ceiling, struggling to suppress laughter during a family prayer led by his father. When questioned about his disruptive behavior, he responded with the rhyme:
A little mouse for want of stairs
Ran up a rope to say its prayers.
In a plea to avoid punishment for his actions, he went on:
O father, father, pity take,
And I will no more verses make.
This young poet grew up to become who many scholars consider the “Godfather of English Hymnody.” Isaac Watts (1674–1748) was an English minister, theologian, and prolific hymn writer who shaped the future of congregational singing.
At the time, in the Church of England’s tradition, congregational singing was strictly metrical psalms drawn directly from the Bible. While not the first to attempt change, Watts was instrumental in transforming English worship by encouraging the congregation to sing not only psalms but also hymns in the vernacular.
Believing psalms should be "imitated in the language of the New Testament,” Watts argued that the psalms be adapted into hymns from a Christian perspective:
“Where the Psalmist describes religion by the fear of God, I have often joined faith and love to it. Where he speaks of pardon of sin through the mercies of God, I have added the merits of a Saviour. Where he talks of sacrificing goats and bullocks, I rather mention the sacrifice of Christ, the Lamb of God. When he attends the ark with shouting into Zion, I sing of the ascension of my Saviour into heaven, or His presence in His church on earth. Where he promises abundance of wealth, honor, and long life, I have changed some of these typical blessings for grace, glory, and life eternal, which are brought to light in the Gospel, and promised in the New Testament.”
(David Fountain, Isaac Watts Remembered, 1974)
With this perspective, let’s take a look at one of Watts’ most beloved hymns: #117 O God, Our Help in Ages Past, based on the opening verses of Psalm 90.
Psalm 90:1 Lord, you have been our dwelling place throughout all generations.
Hymn Stanza 1 “O God, our help in ages past, Our hope for years to come, Our shelter from the stormy blast, And our eternal home.”
Here, the psalmist’s “dwelling place” becomes more than just a place to stay, it brings in the Gospel promises of hope, shelter, and eternal life.
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90:2 Before the mountains were born or you brought forth the whole world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God.
Stanza 2 “Under the shadow of thy throne Thy saints have dwelt secure; Sufficient is thine arm alone, And our defense is sure.”
Stanza 3 “Before the hills in order stood, Or earth received her frame, From everlasting thou art God, To endless years the same.”
In the second stanza, Watts reaffirms the protection themes from the first verse, whereas the third stanza more closely mirrors the second verse of the psalmist.
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90:4 A thousand years in your sight are like a day that has just gone by, or like a watch in the night.
Stanza 4 “A thousand ages in thy sight Are like an evening gone; Short as the watch that ends the night Before the rising sun.”
Again the psalm is closely followed, but the metaphor is made more poetic and singable. Compared to the rigidity of the original text, this expanded imagery helps us to more easily imagine God's timelessness.
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90:5–6 Yet you sweep people away in the sleep of death— they are like the new grass of the morning: In the morning it springs up new, but by evening it is dry and withered.
Stanza 5 "Time, like an ever-rolling stream, Bears all who breathe away; They fly forgotten, as a dream Dies at the opening day.”
Easily Watts’ most memorable stanza, the fifth replaces the metaphor of grass with a flowing river of time. While maintaining the themes of verses five and six of the psalm, Watts transformation again conjures beautiful imagery for us to imagine as we sing.
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90:12 Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.
Stanza 6 “O God, our help in ages past, Our hope for years to come; Be thou our guide while life shall last, And our eternal home.”
We close with a prayer for God’s guidance. (How appropriate for our year of wisdom!) Again, the psalm is closely followed but its prose shaped by Watts' poetic language.
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Where Psalm 90 speaks of God’s eternity and humanity’s frailty, Watts reshapes it with metrical rhythm, vivid imagery, and New Testament promises of hope and eternal life. The shift in tense between the original psalm and Watts’ hymn reflects his reading and transformation through the lens of the Gospel. Psalm 90 is classified as a psalm of lament, but Watts reframes it as a hymn of assurance and promise. When we sing this hymn, we proclaim His eternal guidance: a God who was, is, and always will be. If you want to explore more of Watts’ hymns, consider: #152 I Sing the Mighty Power of God, #157 Jesus Shall Reign (based on Psalm 72), #246 Joy to the World (based on Psalm 98:4-9), #298 When I Survey the Wondrous Cross, and #733 Marching to Zion.