The storm, the bells, and the hymn that conquered the world

Cultures · Published 1 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: It began with a sudden thunderstorm over a Swedish bay in 1885. Decades later, a British missionary’s English paraphrase would transform a local poem into a global phenomenon, traveling from the Carpathian Mountains to the American South through war, famine, and migration.

The origins of 'How Great Thou Art' lie in the Swedish poem 'O Store Gud,' composed by minister Carl Boberg in 1885. The inspiration was a sensory experience near Kronobäck: walking home from church, Boberg witnessed a violent thunderstorm break over Mönsterås Bay, followed by a sudden, peaceful calm, the song of a thrush, and the tolling of church bells. This evocative imagery was first published in the Mönsterås Tidningen on 13 March 1886.

The hymn's journey to its modern English form was shaped by the geopolitical upheavals of the 20th century. In 1931, missionary Stuart K. Hine heard a Russian version of the song while working in the Carpathian Mountains. He began creating an English paraphrase, incorporating phrases he overheard from Ukrainian villagers during their prayers. He later added a fourth verse in 1948, inspired by the testimony of a displaced Russian refugee in a Sussex camp who longed to reunite with his wife in heaven.

The song's global spread was facilitated by evangelistic movements and publishing shifts. While E. Gustav Johnson provided an early, more literal English translation in 1925, Hine's version became the standard due to its popularity and the economic realities of hymnbook publishing. By the 1950s, the song had reached the United States via conferences in California and the efforts of figures like J. Edwin Orr, eventually becoming a staple of Billy Graham's crusades.

Interestingly, the hymn's lyrics have undergone subtle editorial shifts. For instance, the editors at Manna Music changed 'works and mighty' to 'worlds and rolling' in the English version. Despite these variations, the song remains one of the most recognized hymns globally, even appearing in unexpected places, such as being sung by the Naga tribe of Assam, India.

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