Wondrous Love was first set in William Walker's second edition of Southern Harmony (1840). Publication of the hymn in B. F. White's ‘The Sacred Harp’ (1844) further promoted the combination of text and tune. The meter of "What Wondrous Love" derives from an old English ballad about the infamous pirate Captain Kidd. Wondrous Love combines a moving statement of faith with a haunting melody that concludes with a message of hope.

©Ryan Turner

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