As I was researching other significant anniversaries that the year 2026 marks, I discovered that this year is not only the anniversary of the Declaration of Independence and the beloved Christian hymn “Rock of Ages, Cleft for Me,” but also of a lesser known Christian hymn that I have come to know and love over the past few years, “Thy Mercy My God.” This is a song you may not be familiar with, as it is not in many modern hymnals or sung much in churches in the 20th century, but it is a beautiful and powerful song that has now been around for 250 years that I think you should know about and can encourage you.
The Story
I haven’t found much about the background of the song nor its writer. It’s another song that was published in England the same year that their American colonies declared their independence, appearing in a magazine in March 1776. It is ascribed to a man named John Stocker who was from Honitan, Devonshire and had a number of hymns published in 1776 and 1777. That is about all we know about him! I did find one internet source that said he might have been a friend of August Toplady, the writer of “Rock of Ages, Cleft for Me.” I’m not sure if there is verification of that or if it stems from them writing songs around the same time.
This song appeared in a number of collections of hymns in the first hundred years or so after its writing, including one collection of hymns by Charles Spurgeon but it seems to have been forgotten in the 20th century, appearing in few hymnals. It was essentially rediscovered early in the 21st century with updated recordings of it by Caedmon’s Call and Indelible Grace under the influence of a musician named Sandra McCracken, who has put out her own recording of the song as well. McCracken has written about finding this hymn in the Gadsby Hymnal, a prominent collection for hymns from the first part of the 19th century and put these words to a contemporary tune. The recently released Sing! Hymnal by Keith and Kristyn Getty includes it, showing that it is coming back into wider use once again.
The Song
The original version by Stocker seems to have 6 verses in total, but only 4 of these verses are typically featured in the recent versions of it. Here they are for you to see (and soak in) for yourself (Copyright credit – 2001 Same Old Dress Music [ASCAP]). I’ll share some of my own thoughts and reflections on it as well.
Thy mercy, my God, is the theme of my song
The joy of my heart and the boast of my tongue
Thy free grace alone, from the first to the last
Has won my affection, and bound my soul fast
Without Thy sweet mercy, I could not live here
Sin would reduce me to utter despair
But through Thy free goodness, my spirit’s revive
And He, that first made me, still keeps me alive
Thy mercy is more than a match for my heart
Which wonders to feel its own hardness depart
Dissolved by Thy goodness, I fall to the ground
And weep for the praise of the mercy I’ve found, yeah-yeah
Great Father of mercy, Thy goodness I own
And the covenant love of Thy crucified Son
All praise to the Spirit whose whisper divine
Seals mercy and pardon and righteousness mine
All praise to the Spirit whose whisper divine
Seals mercy and pardon and righteousness mine, yeah-yeah
The song is a great reminder of the reality and importance of God’s mercy towards us. His mercy is so wonderful that it should be the “theme of our song,” something which we don’t just think about or talk about at church but should be in our hearts and be on our lips each day. God’s mercy causes us to have great love (“affection”) for Him; it is what shows us that His will is for our good. Without God’s mercy, we have no hope; as the song says, “our sin would reduce me to utter despair.” The song then uses that powerful word from the Bible that we need to remember in those moments – “but” – as when we are in the midst of despair and death because of sin, God brings life to us, reviving our spirit and making us alive because of His goodness. His grace is amazing and His mercy is sweet!
It is right to praise God for His mercy, and it is proper to feel so overwhelmed by it that we fall to our knees. We praise all three members of the Trinity for this mercy; it is not just that Jesus or the Spirit is mercy while the Father is not. God is the “father of all mercy” who saves us through the work of the “crucified son” and the “Spirit.” God’s mercies mean that we have pardon from the guilt of our sin and now stand in God’s righteousness.
The other verses from Stocker’s original hymn further highlight that this mercy in Jesus “exempts me from hell” and that “the door of thy mercy stands open all day, to the poor and the needy, who knock by the way, no sinner shall ever be empty sent back, who comes seeking mercy for Jesus’s sake.”
It’s my hope that the mercy of God described in this song would also be your song, knowing and celebrating the goodness of our God. May the joy of God’s mercy speak to us when we are tempted to despair, reviving our hearts and reminding us that our ability to pursue and experience true life, liberty, and happiness is only because of God’s mercy.
Questions about the Bible or theology? Email them to Pastor Brian at Theology@WeAreFaith.org. You can also email to be added to the list that receives weekly emails with our blog posts.
