Guide Me O Thou Great Jehovah (Bread of Heaven) Lyrics
Wiliam Williams
1 Guide me, O my great Redeemer,
pilgrim through this barren land;
I am weak, but you are mighty;
hold me with your powerful hand.
Bread of heaven, bread of heaven,
feed me now and evermore,
feed me now and evermore.
2 Open now the crystal fountain,
where the healing waters flow.
Let the fire and cloudy pillar
lead me all my journey through.
Strong Deliverer, strong Deliverer,
ever be my strength and shield,
ever be my strength and shield.
3 When I tread the verge of Jordan,
bid my anxious fears subside.
Death of death, and hell’s Destruction,
land me safe on Canaan’s side.
Songs of praises, songs of praises
I will ever sing to you,
I will ever sing to you.
Guide Me O Thou Great Jehovah (Bread of Heaven) Hymn History
Guide Me O Thou Great Jehovah or ‘Bread of Heaven) is a hymn that was composed by the Welsh minister of the gospel, William Williams in 1745. It was translated into English from Welsh by Peter Williams in 1771.
William Williams was born in 1717 at Cefn-y-coed, near Llandovery, Carmarthenshire, Wales United Kingdom.
After training as a medical doctor, he attended Howell Harris, a Welsh evangelist, open air sermon that made him change his vocation.
He decided to pursue theology. After joining priesthood of the Anglican church, he refused the Priest’s orders and joined the Calvinistic Methodists.
He then travelled over the mountains, roads, and tracks of Wales on horseback and on foot.
He composed over eight hundred hymns, and they include, “Gloria in Excelsis” and “Hosannah to the Son of David”.
The tune used for this hymn is ‘Cwm Rhondda‘ written by John Hughes in 1907
