God Be with You Till We Meet Again

Representative Text

1 God be with you till we meet again;
loving counsels guide, uphold you,
may the Shepherd’s care enfold you;
God be with you till we meet again.

Refrain:
Till we meet, till we meet,
till we meet at Jesus’ feet.
Till we meet, till we meet,
God be with you till we meet again.

2 God be with you till we meet again;
unseen wings, protecting, hide you,
daily manna still provide you;
God be with you till we meet again. [Refrain]

3 God be with you till we meet again;
when life’s perils thick confound you,
put unfailing arms around you;
God be with you till we meet again. [Refrain]

4 God be with you till we meet again;
keep love’s banner floating o’er you,
smite death’s threat’ning wave before you;
God be with you till we meet again. [Refrain]

Source: Voices Together #840

Author: Jeremiah Eames Rankin

Pseudonym: R. E. Jeremy. Rankin, Jeremiah Eames, D.D., was born at Thornton, New Haven, Jan. 2, 1828, and educated at Middleburg College, Vermont, and at Andover. For two years he resided at Potsdam, U.S. Subsequently he held pastoral charges as a Congregational Minister at New York, St. Albans, Charlestown, Washington ( District of Columbia), &c. In 1878 he edited the Gospel Temperance Hymnal, and later the Gospel Bells. His hymns appeared in these collections, and in D. E. Jones's Songs of the New Life, 1869. His best known hymn is "Labouring and heavy laden" (Seeking Christ). This was "written [in 1855] for a sister who was an inquirer," was first printed in the Boston Recorder, and then included in Nason's Congregational Hymn Book,… Go to person page >

Text Information

First Line: God be with you till we meet again
Title: God Be with You Till We Meet Again
Author: Jeremiah Eames Rankin (1880)
Meter: 9.8.8.9 with refrain
Language: English
Refrain First Line: Till we meet, till we meet
Notes: German translation: See Gott sei mit euch bis zum wiedersehn, Seine Gnade euch geliete" by F. A. Willman, "Gott sei mit euch bis zum Wiedersehn! Mög Er freundlich euch regieren", "Gott sei mit euch bis zum wiedersehn, Sein Erbarmen seine Güte" by C. Hanser; Spanish translation: See "Dios os guarde en su santo amor" by Pierre Aguirre de la Barrera; Swahili translation: See "Mungu awe nanyi daima"
Copyright: Public Domain
Liturgical Use: Benediction

Notes

Scripture References:
st. 1 = Acts 20:32
st. 3 = Deut. 33:27
st. 4 = Songs of Songs 2:4

Jeremiah E. Rankin (b. Thornton, NH, 1828; d. Cleveland, OH, 1904) says of his hymn text,

It was written as a Christian good-bye; it was called forth by no person or occasion, but was deliberately composed as a Christian hymn on the basis of the etymology of "good-bye," which means "God be with you." The first stanza was sent to two different composers, one of musical note, the other [William G. Tomer] wholly unknown and not thoroughly educated in music. I selected the composition of the latter, and with some slight changes it was published.

The first stanza was published in 1880 with the tune GOD BE WITH YOU by William G. Tomer in Gospel Bells; the 1883 edition of that hymnal included eight stanzas. A popular hymn, "God Be with You" gained currency through the evangelistic crusades of Dwight L. Moody and Ira D. Sankey (PHH 73). Modern hymnals usually print only four stanzas.

The text is essentially a parting blessing, a prayer that God will guide you (st. 1), feed you (st. 2), and protect you in life and in death (st. 3-4). Each stanza is framed by the phrase "God be with you till we meet again."

A graduate of Middlebury College, Vermont, and of Andover Theological Seminary, Newton Center, Massachusetts, Rankin served Congregational churches in New York, Vermont, Massachusetts, Washington, D.C., and New Jersey (1855-1889). In 1889 he became president of Howard University, Washington, D.C., a school famous for its many prominent African American graduates. Rankin issued three volumes of poetry and hymn texts (of which "God Be with You" is his most well-known), collaborated in the compilation of hymnals such as The Gospel Temperance Hymnal (1878) and Gospel Bells (1880), and published German-English Lyrics, Sacred and Secular (1897).

Liturgical Use:
Though traditionally used when ministers, missionaries, or others take their leave from a congregation, this hymn is generally useful as a dismissal hymn, as a prayer for blessing, and as a sung benediction.

--Psalter Hymnal Handbook

Timeline

Media

You have access to this FlexScore.
Download:
Are parts of this score outside of your desired range? Try transposing this FlexScore.
General Settings
Stanza Selection
Voice Selection
Text size:
Music size:
Transpose (Half Steps):
Capo:
Contacting server...
Contacting server...
Questions? Check out the FAQ

A separate copy of this score must be purchased for each choir member. If this score will be projected or included in a bulletin, usage must be reported to a licensing agent (e.g. CCLI, OneLicense, etc).

This is a preview of your FlexScore.
The Book of Common Praise: being the hymn book of The Church of England in Canada (revised 1938) #304b
The Cyber Hymnal #1708
  • Adobe Acrobat image (PDF)
  • Noteworthy Composer score (NWC)
  • XML score (XML)
Timeless Truths #112
  • God_Be_with_You_till_We_Meet_Again.pdf (PDF)
The United Methodist Hymnal #672
  • Bulletin Score (melody only) (PDF)
  • Bulletin Score (PDF)
  • Full Score (PDF)
The United Methodist Hymnal #673
  • Bulletin Score (melody only) (PDF)
  • Bulletin Score (PDF)
  • Full Score (PDF)
Worship and Rejoice #716
  • Bulletin Score (melody only) (PDF)
  • Bulletin Score (PDF)
  • Full Score (PDF)

Instances

Instances (801 - 900 of 1202)

Standard Songs Of The Church #85

Page Scan

Standard Songs #170

Standard Songs. Special ed. #d34

Page Scan

Student Volunteer Hymnal #62

Page Scan

Student Volunteer Hymnal #62

Sunday School and Revival Songs No.2 #d41

Page Scan

Sunday School and Revival #228

Sunday School Hymnal #d112

Page Scan

Sunday School Hymnal #93

Page Scan

Sunday School Hymns No. 1 #86

Page Scan

Sunday School Hymns No. 2 #220

Page Scan

Sunday School Hymns No. 2 (Canadian ed.) #220

Page Scan

Sunday School Melodies #106

Page Scan

Sunday School Voices #131

Sweetest Praises #d45

Page Scan

Tabernacle Hymns #328

Page Scan

Tabernacle Hymns #403

Telegrams #d22

Temple Chimes #d74

Temple Echoes #59

Page Scan

Temple Songs #64

Page Scan

Temple Themes and Sacred Songs #s64

Page Scan

Temple Trio #293

Tested Songs #d48

The A. M. E. Zion Hymnal #36

TextPage Scan

The A.M.E. Zion Hymnal #598

Page Scan

The Abingdon Song Book #251

The Advent Christian Hymnal #d241

The Advent Christian Hymnal #d105

The Advent Christian Hymnal. Rev. #d87

Page Scan

The African Methodist Episcopal Hymn and Tune Book #695

The American Hymnal #d161

Page Scan

The American Hymnal #38

The Apostolic Christian Hymnal #d48

Page Scan

The Army and Navy Hymnal #16

The Baptist Hymn and Praise Book #d130

Page Scan

The Baptist Standard Hymnal #650

The Beginner's Choir No.2 #d5

Page Scan

The Best Gospel Songs and their composers #257

Page Scan

The Best Hymns of America #70

The Best Loved Hymns and Prayers of the American People #220a

Page Scan

The Best Standard Songs #224

Page Scan

The Bible School Hymnal #21

Page Scan

The Bible Songs Hymnal #276

The Book of Common Praise #d155

The Book of Common Praise #304a

ScoreAudio

The Book of Common Praise #304b

Page Scan

The Book of Common Praise #335

The Book of Hymns #d146

The Book of Praise #589

Text

The Book of Praise #621

The Book of Praise #701

Page Scan

The Bow of Promise #248

The Bread of Life Songs #d28

Page Scan

The Brethren Hymnal #600

The Brethren's Sunday School Song Book #d37

Page Scan

The Broadman Hymnal #480

The Campers Hymnal, Songs for the Out-of-Doors #d31

The Canadian Hymnal #359

Page Scan

The Canadian Hymnal #359

The Canadian Hymnal #359

Text

The Celebration Hymnal #232

The Centennial Hymnal #d106

Page Scan

The Century Hymnal #38

Page Scan

The Chapel Hymnal #370

Page Scan

The Chapel Hymnal #370

Page Scan

The Chapel Hymnal #81

Page Scan

The Chapel Hymnal #81

The Chapel Hymnal. 3rd ed. #d33

The Chapel Service Book #d46

The Children's Hallelujah #d41

The Children's Hymnal #d82

Page Scan

The Chorus of Praise #89

Page Scan

The Christian Church Hymnal #442

The Christian Hymnary. Bks. 1-4 #996

The Christian Hymnist #d156

The Christian Life Hymnal #586

The Christian Life Hymnal #587

TextPage Scan

The Christian Sunday School Hymnal #148

The Christian Union Revival Songster #d19

The Christian Witness Songs #d35

The Chuck Wagon Gang #113

Page Scan

The Church and Home Hymnal #314

The Church and School #d58

Page Scan

The Church and School Hymnal #249

The Church Hymnal #d115

The Church Hymnal #d117

Page Scan

The Church Hymnal #35

Page Scan

The Church Hymnary #504

Page Scan

The Church Missionary Hymn Book #117

Page Scan

The Church School Hymnal #26

Page Scan

The Church School Hymnal for Youth #33

The Churches of God Hymnal. #d141

Page Scan

The Cokesbury Hymnal #300

Page Scan

The Cokesbury Worship Hymnal #277

Page Scan

The Complete Church Hymnal #170

The Congregation #d44

Page Scan

The Convention Hymnal #62

Pages

Exclude 1114 pre-1979 instances
Suggestions or corrections? Contact us
It looks like you are using an ad-blocker. Ad revenue helps keep us running. Please consider white-listing Hymnary.org or getting Hymnary Pro to eliminate ads entirely and help support Hymnary.org.