Man of Sorrows! What a name

Man of Sorrows! What a name. Philip P. Bliss* (1838-1876). Based on Isaiah 53, this hymn was first published in The International Lessons Monthly (1875), and then in Gospel Hymns No 2 (1876), edited by Bliss himself with Ira D. Sankey*. It was entitled ‘Redemption’. It involves a powerful contrast between the stanzas, the first three of which describe the Passion, and the refrain, ‘Hallelujah! What a Savior!’ Indeed, the Companion to UMH (1993), in which the hymn is known by the refrain, suggests that ‘each statement about Christ’s passion may be sung slowly with deep devotion, followed ad lib with a rousing “Hallelujah! What a Savior!”’ (p. 386). The tune, by Bliss, is found in successive...