When We All Get To Heaven

One characteristic of many of the hymns of the post-Civil War era is their expectation of going to heaven together. Much like the songs of ascension in Psalms, these hymns brought corporate and individual hope. People expressed their hope in the near return of Jesus Christ in their hymns. One such hymn that captures the ideas of that era is When We All Get to Heaven. I grew up singing this song as it was one of the favorite hymns of my most favorite church song leader Henry Myers. It was under the tutelage of Henry Myers at Grace Baptist Church in Bowling Green, Kentucky that I learned my love for congregational singing and leading.

Below you will find the lyrics, theological highlights of the hymn, and other media which will help you celebrate this great hymn of the church.

When We All Get to Heaven Lyrics

1 Sing the wondrous love of Jesus,
Sing His mercy and His grace;
In the mansions bright and blessed
He’ll prepare for us a place.

Refrain:
When we all get to heaven,
what a day of rejoicing that will be!
When we all see Jesus,
we’ll sing and shout the victory!

2 While we walk the pilgrim pathway
Clouds will overspread the sky;
But when trav’ling days are over
Not a shadow, not a sigh. [Refrain]

3 Let us then be true and faithful,
Trusting, serving ev’ry day;
Just one glimpse of Him in glory
Will the toils of life repay. [Refrain]

4 Onward to the prize before us!
Soon His beauty we’ll behold;
Soon the pearly gates will open–
We shall tread the streets of gold. [Refrain]

The Theology

From the beginning to the end, this hymn has one focus – hope of heaven. With multiple tastes of John 14 and Revelation 21 and 22, this song anticipates what joy there is in entering heaven as a corporate people. One writer describes this hymn, “Many eighteenth-century hymns by Charles Wesley and others referenced heaven as our ultimate destination. The nineteenth-century gospel song, however, added a spiritual fervor undergirded by a musical vitality that gave these songs a sense of imminence and urgency that had not been experienced heretofore.”[1]

The Author

Pseudonym: Li­die H. Ed­munds. Eliza Edmunds Hewitt was born in Philadelphia June 28, 1851. She was educated in the public schools and after graduation from high school became a teacher. However, she developed a spinal malady which cut short her career and made her a shut-in for many years. During her convalescence, she studied English literature. She felt a need to be useful to her church and began writing poems for the primary department. she went on to teach Sunday school, take an active part in the Philadelphia Elementary Union and become Superintendent of the primary department of Calvin Presbyterian Church.[2]

The most published of her hymns, in addition to “When We All Get to Heaven,” include “There Is Sunshine in My Soul Today” (1887) and “More about Jesus Would I Know” (1887), the latter hymn appearing in The Cokesbury Hymnal (1923, No. 94). She wrote texts for some of the prominent gospel song composers of the day, including B. D. Ackley (1872-1958), Charles H. Gabriel, E. S. Lorenz (1854-1942), Homer Rodeheaver (1880-1955), and John R. Sweney (1837-1899).[1]

There is some debate as to when this song was first published. Most suggest it was first published in 1898 in Pentecostal Praises (Philadelphia: Hall-Mack Co., 1898), a collection edited by William Kirkpatrick. However, as seen at the top, some suggest it was Songs of triumph : nos. 1 and 2 combined ; 201 choice new hymns for choirs, solo singers, the home circle, etc. (Glasgow : Scottish Bible and Book Society, approx 1890).

Hewitt was a close friend of another prolific hymn writer Fanny Crosby and arranger John R. Sweney.[4]

Enjoy This Media

Some groups singing the song from YouTube:

 

The original printed version of the song from 1898 Pentecostal Praises [5]:

 

The version I grew up singing from Favorite Hymns of Praise, Hymn 501 [6]:

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