It is a thing most wonderful

It is a thing most wonderful. William Walsham How* (1823-1897). This is one of the many hymns written by How for children, first published in Children’s Hymns (1872). It is based on 1 John 4:10, with echoes from Romans 5:8 and 1 Corinthians 13, and is written from the viewpoint of a child, resulting in an effective directness of argument throughout. Originally published in five four-line stanzas, two verses were later added by How at some point before 1881 (when the full hymn appeared in Frances Carey Brock*’s Children's Hymn Book), and some hymnals (for example RS) print it in eight-line verses. The hymn has remained steadily popular: it exists in a number of different versions, with...