Amazing Grace is one of the most loved Christian hymns of all time. It was written by John Newton, a former slave trader turned Christian minister.
John Newton
John Newton was English sailor involved in the North Atlantic slave trade. A terrible storm on the North Atlantic caused him to give his life to Christ.
Newton devoted his remaining life as a Christian minister. He joined the abolitionist movement in England.
Newton was a mentor to William Wilberforce who championed the abolitionist movement in England.
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Writing the famous poem
Newton wrote one of the most loved hymns, Amazing Grace for his congregation on New Year’s 1773. The Museum of the Bible has a fantastic resource about Amazing Grace and John Newton.
Amazing Grace was first published in 1779 in Olney Hymns. The verse was first set to its now familiar music in 1835 in the Southern Harmony, and Musical Companion.
Amazing Grace Original Verse
John Newton wrote Amazing Grace with six verses. All original verses are shown in the image below from the Southern Harmony and Musical Companion.
Amazing grace! (how sweet the sound)
That saved a wretch like me!
I once was lost, but now am found,
Was blind, but now I see.
‘Twas grace that taught my heart to fear,
And grace my fears relieved;
How precious did that grace appear
The hour I first believed!
Through many dangers, toils, and snares,
I have already come;
‘Tis grace hath brought me safe thus far,
And grace will lead me home.
The Lord has promised good to me,
His word my hope secures;
He will my shield and portion be
As long as life endures.
Yes, when this flesh and heart shall fail,
And mortal life shall cease;
I shall possess, within the veil,
A life of joy and peace.
The earth shall soon dissolve like snow,
The sun forbear to shine;
But God, who called me here below,
Will be forever mine.
Amazing Grace Modern Arrangement
The most common arrangement of Amazing Grace is shown below. It includes the first three stanzas of the original John Newton verse.
The current final stanza was added years later. This verse was famously published by Harriet Beecher Stowe in 1852 in Uncle Tom’s Cabin.
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Amazing grace! how sweet the sound,
That saved a wretch like me!
I once was lost, but now am found,
Was blind, but now I see.
‘Twas grace that taught my heart to fear,
And grace my fears relieved;
How precious did that grace appear
The hour I first believed!
Through many dangers, toils, and snares,
I have already come;
‘Tis grace hath brought me safe thus far,
And grace will lead me home.
When we’ve been there ten thousand years,
Bright shining as the sun,
We’ve no less days to sing God’s praise,
Than when we first begun.
Amazing Grace Poem Video
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