“Bread of heaven”: the Welsh journey of “Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah”

At Welsh rugby matches, tens of thousands of fans sing a hymn about crossing a desert. “Bread of heaven, feed me till I want no more.” The words were written in the eighteenth century by a Welsh preacher, and they have never stopped travelling.

Pantycelyn and the Welsh

William Williams is generally regarded as the greatest Welsh hymn writer. He is known as Pantycelyn, after the farm his wife inherited, following the Welsh custom of naming people after their homes. He was a leader in the Welsh Methodist revival. He wrote the hymn in Welsh as “Arglwydd, arwain trwy’r anialwch”, meaning “Lord, lead me through the wilderness”. It was originally titled “Prayer for strength for the journey through the world’s wilderness”.

The translation and the Exodus

Peter Williams translated the hymn into English. It was published in 1771 in Hymns on Various Subjects with the title “Prayer for Strength”. The English opening line appears in two forms: “Guide me, O thou great Jehovah” and “Guide me, O thou great Redeemer”. Churches use whichever their hymnals print. The hymn follows the Israelites’ journey out of Egypt: the wilderness, manna from heaven, the pillar of fire and cloud, the crossing of the Jordan into Canaan. The believer’s life is pictured as the same journey, ending in heaven.

Cwm Rhondda

The tune most people know is Cwm Rhondda, written by John Hughes in 1907. It was first published as a setting for a different Welsh hymn, and its current form was developed for the opening of an organ at Capel Rhondda in Hopkinstown. The tune was first called “Rhondda”, after the valley, and renamed “Cwm Rhondda” to avoid confusion with another tune. The hymn itself is often called “Bread of Heaven” because of its famous repeated line.

A traveller's prayer

The hymn is sung at Welsh rugby internationals and at major national events, including royal funerals. Its rising refrain suits large crowds. Mission churches brought the hymn to Ghana and Nigeria, where it is sung in English and local languages, especially at funerals and thanksgiving services. Williams wrote as a travelling preacher, riding thousands of miles across Wales. His hymn is a traveller’s prayer: guide me, feed me, bring me safely across. That is why it still fits so many journeys.