Can You Guess These Hymns From a Lyric?

This might be the best-known hymn in the English language. Even its origin story, in which slave trader John Newton called out to God during a storm at sea, and found faith thereafter, is fairly well-known.

If you've ever read the notes in a hymnal, and seen the words "Traditional melody" to explain the origin of the music (as opposed to the lyrics), this is one such song. The lyrics were written to go with a traditional Swedish song. When Stuart Hine translated it into English, he added two extra verses.

"O Come All Ye Faithful" is a Christmas hymn. Some hymnals also print its Latin lyrics, with the title "Adeste Fideles."

"Shall We Gather By the River" was written in 1864. It refers to Revelation 22:2, which describes a clear crystal river flowing through heaven.

For some reason, Americans tend to see the Confederacy as more romantic and interesting than the Union. But the Union had the far cooler anthem, in the "Battle Hymn of the Republic," one of the most stirring martial hymns ever composed. It was like the "Eye of the Tiger" of the 19th century!

This Christmas hymn, set to a Finnish tune, does not mention the nativity. It tells of an act of charity performed by a king on a frigid winter night.

This song is an African-American spiritual, and also a Christmas song (though you'll rarely hear it on the overhead at the shopping mall). Mahalia Jackson and Bobby Darin have both recorded it.

The writer, Knowles Shaw, was referring to Psalm 126:6. It reads, "Those who go out weeping, bearing the seed for sowing, shall come home with shouts of joy, carrying their sheaves."

Charles Wesley, one of the founding figures of Methodism, wrote the lyrics for this hymn. The melody is one by classic composer Felix Mendelsohn.

This song is most often sung by children in Sunday schools. It is probably based on Matthew 5:16, "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your great works and give glory to your Father in heaven."

"What a Friend We Have in Jesus" is one of those hymns that borders on the category of "Sunday School song," but is also found in hymnals. Versions of it have been recorded by Rosemary Clooney and Ella Fitzgerald.

Like the "Battle Hymn of the Republic," this song has a distinctly martial feel. Winston Churchill chose it for a religious service on board the HMS Wales during WWII.

"The Old Rugged Cross" is a classic of the country gospel tradition. It's been recorded by a who's who of country artists.

This is one of the older hymns in our quiz, written in 1763. Jesus is the rock, as the capitalization of "Thee" indicates, and the "cleft" seems to refer to the wound in His side.

James Milton Black wrote this hymn in the late 19th century, when a child was not present for his Sunday School class. It was very popular throughout the 20th century.

This hymn was a collaboration between composer Phoebe Knapp and lyricist Fanny Crosby. It was published in 1873.

The word "great" isn't capitalized, above, because this is the second half of the lyric which opens the hymn: "To God be the Glory, great things he hath done." Blind lyricist Fanny Crosby, who also wrote "Blessed Assurance," wrote the words.

"When They Ring the Golden Bells" is another hymn about the joys awaiting the faithful in heaven. Hymns like these aren't as popular anymore, as modern Christianity has shifted to an emphasis on how much a relationship with God improves life on earth -- think of the ministry of Joel Osteen.

This was originally a Catholic hymn. Protestants alter one of the lyrics to remove a reference to "Mary's prayers."

"Softly and Tenderly" is sometimes listed as "Softly and Tenderly Jesus is Calling." Will Thompson wrote it in 1880, and it has been beloved ever since.

Johnny Cash, Dolly Parton and Willie Nelson have all performed this hymn. (We're not even going to talk about the Three Stooges film, "In the Sweet Pie and Pie."

"Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee" is famously set to the "Ode to Joy" in Beethoven's Ninth Symphony. The lyrics live up to Beethoven's music, too; the hymn contains some of the most vivid and appealing imagery in Christian song.

The hymn begins "Sweet hour! Sweet hour of prayer" and continues to the line above, "That calls me from a world of care." It's a song about the respite from the day's worries that prayer provides.

This hymn, like the song "Get Happy," focuses on the inevitability of death. "When other helpers fail, and comforts flee/Help of the helpless, abide with me," the singer asks.

This gets our vote for one of the most lovely hymns in the Christian tradition, in terms of its imagery. Another lyric goes, "Holy, holy, holy! All the saints adore thee/Casting down their golden crowns along the glassy sea."

This song was written for gospel singer Mahalia Jackson. Other performers who have recorded include Elvis Presley.

We should probably explain that "sheep" had a different meaning to Christians of earlier times than it does today. Present-day secular people think of "sheep" as an insult, meaning people who do not think for themselves. In the Christian sense, it means one of Jesus's faithful "flock," protected by him.

"I Love to Tell the Story" was first a poem. It was written by an English missionary, Katherine Harkey, who was ill during her service in Africa and wrote it during her convalescence.

This is probably the simplest hymn in this quiz. Sample verse: "Oh! This old-time religion/This old-time religion/This old-time religion/It is good enough for me." (Any questions?)

This hymn is about the importance of small acts, and affirms that every person is important. Its encouraging tone reminds us of the secular song, "Accentuate the Positive."

This hymn is said to be the final song the band on the Titanic played as the ship went down. There are three melodies that the lyrics can be sung to, with the most popular one being the tune "Bethany."

This is a folksy hymn whose lyrics consist of one line repeated three times, and then the conclusion, "Way beyond the blue." It was recorded by the Man in Black, Johnny Cash.

This hymn is believed to have been composed by African slaves in America, which puts it in the "spiritual" tradition. It relies heavily on repetition of key words and phrases.

This hymn in unusual in that the key line, "O for a thousand tongues ..." does not appear until the seventh stanza. To put this in perspective, a number of hymns don't even reach seven stanzas.

"Fairest Lord Jesus" is also known as "Beautiful Savior." These two phrases, respectively, open the first and second verse of the hymn.