How precious is the book divine
How precious is the book divine. John Fawcett* (1740-1817)
First published in his Hymns adapted to the circumstances of Public Worship and Private Devotion (Leeds, 1782), on the Holy Scriptures. It had six 4-line stanzas. It was headed ‘Ps. cxix.105. Thy word is a Lamp to my feet, and a light to my paths.’
It was printed in three stanzas only (1, 5 and 6) in Rippon's Selection of Hymns* (1787):
How precious is the book divine, By inspiration given! Bright as a lamp its doctrines shine To guide our souls to heav’n.
It sweetly cheers our drooping hearts In this dark vale of tears; Life, light, and joy, it still imparts, And quells our rising Fears.
This lamp, thro’ all the tedious...
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MLA style (see MLA Style Manual and Guide to Scholarly Publishing, 3rd Ed.)
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http://www.hymnology.co.uk/h/how-precious-is-the-book-divine>.
Chicago style (see The Chicago Manual of Style, 16th Ed.)
. "How precious is the book divine."
The Canterbury Dictionary of Hymnology. Canterbury Press, accessed February 16, 2026,
http://www.hymnology.co.uk/h/how-precious-is-the-book-divine.