"Redeemer of Israel"

Episode 08: The history behind “Redeemer of Israel": In October 1831, W. W. Phelps was instructed to purchase a printing press and begin printing a monthly paper in Independence, Missouri. In the first issue of The Evening and Morning Star, William published his adaptation of a poem entitled, “O Thou in Whose Presence My Soul Takes Delight,” and which he called, “Redeemer of Israel.” The author, Joseph Swain, was a dedicated pastor of a church in Walworth, England. Joseph’s delicate health often frustrated his desires to work without ceasing for the benefit of his congregation. His health eventually failed, and he passed away at age 35, leaving a wife and four small children, who were supported partially by the posthumous publication of many of his poems and hymns. The tune to which we sing “Redeemer of Israel” is known by several names—Dulcimer, Beloved, and Meditation. Freeman Lewis, who wrote the tune, lived in Uniontown, Pennsylvania, between 1780 and 1859. No other hymn tunes are known to have been composed by him. If this is, indeed, his only hymn tune, what a great legacy he has nonetheless left us.