Abide With Me Henry F. Lyte, 1847
4 verses, sung to Eventide (10.10.10.10), public domain, free to print and project.
The words
Verse 1. Abide with me! Fast falls the eventide;
The darkness deepens, Lord, with me abide!
When other helpers fail, and comforts flee,
Help of the helpless, O abide with me.
Verse 2. Swift to its close ebbs out life’s little day;
Earth’s joys grow dim, its glories pass away;
Change and decay in all around I see;
O thou, who changest not, abide with me!
Verse 3. I need thy presence ev’ry passing hour,
What but thy grace can foil the tempter’s power?
Who, like thyself, my guide and stay can be?
Thro’ cloud and sunshine, O abide with me!
Verse 4. Hold thou thy cross before my closing eyes;
Shine through the gloom, and point me to the skies;
Heav’n’s morning breaks, and earth’s vain shadows flee!
In life, in death, O Lord, abide with me!
Words copied from New Baptist Hymnal (1926). They were published in 1847, so they are in the public domain in the United States, and your church may print them, show them and sing them without a license.
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The story behind Abide with Me
Henry Francis Lyte, the vicar of Lower Brixham in Devon, wrote the hymn in the last months of his life. He died at Nice on 20 November 1847. The Hymnology Archive says sources disagree on the day of writing. A letter dated 25 August 1847 calls the hymn his latest effusion. His daughter's later account says he handed the hymn to a relative on 4 September 1847, the day of his last sermon. The words rest on Luke 24:29, where the two travelers on the road to Emmaus ask Jesus to stay because the day is nearly over. Hymnary.org notes that evening stands for the close of life. A leaflet carried the hymn in September 1847, and it first appeared in book form in Lyte's Remains in 1850 with eight stanzas. Most hymnals leave out three of them. Lyte wrote an air of his own, but it was not widely used. The tune most churches sing is EVENTIDE by William Henry Monk, written for the first Hymns Ancient and Modern in 1861. Two stories describe how Monk wrote it. An 1889 account says he and Sir Henry Baker wrote it in about ten minutes during a noisy piano lesson. His widow told another story, in which he wrote it in a time of sorrow while they watched the sunset.
Henry F. Lyte
1793-06-01 to 1847-11-20
Henry Francis Lyte was born at Ednam, near Kelso, and studied at Trinity College, Dublin, where he won the English prize poem three times. He took holy orders in 1815. The illness and death of a fellow clergyman in 1818 changed his life and his preaching. He served at Marazion in Cornwall and at Lymington before becoming perpetual curate of Lower Brixham, Devon, in 1823, a post he held until he died. His books include Poems chiefly Religious in 1833 and The Spirit of the Psalms in 1834. Hymnary.org lists 261 texts under his name. He died at Nice, France, weeks after writing Abide with Me.
William H. Monk
1823 to 1889
William Henry Monk was born at Brompton, London. He held church music posts from his teens and became choirmaster at King's College, London, in 1847. From 1852 until his death he was organist and choirmaster at St. Matthias, Stoke Newington, where the Oxford Movement shaped his daily choral services. He served as music editor of Hymns Ancient and Modern from the first edition of 1861. He composed more than fifty hymn tunes, edited The Scottish Hymnal in 1872, and edited the periodical Parish Choir. His tune EVENTIDE, written for the 1861 hymnal, is the one most churches sing with Abide with Me. He died in London.
- Hymnology Archive, Abide with me , read 2026-10-16
- Hymnary.org, Abide With Me , read 2026-10-16
- Hymnary.org, Baptist Hymnal 1991 No. 63 , read 2026-10-16
- Hymnary.org, Henry Francis Lyte , read 2026-10-16
Scripture in Abide with Me
The Bible passages behind the words, with the verse of the hymn that draws on each.
- Luke 24:29 In verse 29 of the hymn
- Psalm 27:1 In verse 1 of the hymn
- 1 Corinthians 15:55 In verse 55 of the hymn
- Psalm 102:26-27
Abide with Me videos
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Abide With Me (Hymn 59) | Grace Community Church Congregation & Orchestra Hymns of Grace, Congregation
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St. Olaf Cantorei and Congregation - "Abide With Me" (EVENTIDE) St. Olaf College, Choir
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Abide With Me - A Cappella Hymn A Cappella Hymns, A cappella
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Abide with Me - piano instrumental hymn with lyrics Kaleb Brasee, Piano
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Abide With Me - Audrey Assad Audrey Assad, Modern arrangement
Videos play from YouTube, and nothing loads from YouTube until you press play. A video may sing different verses from the ones printed on this page.
Downloads, printing and slides
Sheet music files
- Sheet music PDF 91 KB. Words and all four parts, ready to print.
- Lead sheet PDF 82 KB. Melody, words and chord symbols for piano or guitar.
- MusicXML score XML 58 KB. Opens in MuseScore, Finale, Sibelius and Dorico to change the key or print parts.
- MIDI, all parts MIDI 2 KB. Plays the four-part harmony in any MIDI player or notation app.
- MIDI, melody only MIDI 1 KB. The tune alone, for learning it.
Practice tracks for each voice part, as MIDI: Alto , Tenor , Bass .
Chords and keys
Hymnals print it in E♭.
Questions people ask
Who wrote Abide with Me?
Henry Francis Lyte wrote it in 1847, the year he died. He was the vicar of Lower Brixham in Devon.
When was Abide with Me written?
Sources disagree on the day. A letter of 25 August 1847 already calls it his latest effusion, and his daughter's account points to 4 September 1847.
Who wrote the tune EVENTIDE?
William Henry Monk wrote it for the first Hymns Ancient and Modern in 1861. Two stories about how he wrote it disagree.
Is Abide with Me in the public domain?
The words are public domain in the United States. Lyte's text dates from 1847, and the EVENTIDE tune dates from 1861.
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