Joseph Addison, 1672-1719
A hymn of the Christian traveller, particularly descriptive of the experience of many Christian missionaries. It is known as the “Traveller’s Hymn” and has been found useful as a part of the daily devotions by Christians journeying in foreign lands.
It appeared in ten stanzas in the Spectator for September 20, 1712, at the end of an article on “Greatness,” with special reference to the greatness and awesomeness of the sea. The hymn was “made by a gentleman upon the conclusion of his travels.” Returning in 1700 from the terrors of a voyage on the Mediterranean Sea, Addison gives here, years afterwards, a picture of his own trying experiences. The second stanza describes some of the hardships through which he passed. The omitted stanzas (3, 4, 5, 7, 8) of the hymn picture the storm at sea, its subsidence, and the traveller’s trust in God. They are as follows:
3.
Thy mercy sweetened every soil,
Made every region please:
The hoary Alpine hills it warmed,
And smoothed the Tyrrhene seas.
4.
Think, O my soul, devoutly think