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Dudley Tyng

Stand Up for Jesus

Words: George Duffield Jr. (b. Sept. 12, 1818; d. July 6, 1888)
Music: Webb, by George James Webb (b. June 24, 1803; d. Oct. 7, 1887)
            Also, Geibel, by Adam Geibel (b. Sept. 15, 1855; d. Aug. 3, 1933)

*Note: The tune Webb is the usual one used for congregational singing. I have more often heard the setting by Adam Geibel as a choral number.

(Stanza numbers in brackets below refer to the stanza number in The Cyber Hymnal. Find the link at the bottom of the article.)

The words and the meaning of this hymn are closely tied to its historical significance (see the Wordwise Hymns link). Philadelphia Pastor George Duffield wrote the hymn poem in memory of his friend, another local clergyman named Dudley Tyng. There are a number of scriptural quotations and allusions in the hymn. The most interesting of these (“Ye that are men now serve Him,” in (3)) quotes the text of a sermon Tyng preached to thousands of men at the YMCA, about three weeks before his death, on April 19, 1858.

Rev. Tyng’s sermon text was Exodus 10:11, “Go now ye that are men, and serve the Lord” (KJV). But a look at the context of these words shows they are not quite what they seem. They are spoken in unbelief by a heathen king. At the Lord’s command, Moses and Aaron had called for the release of the Israelites from bondage in Egypt. However, Pharaoh hoped that a compromise would satisfy them. He wanted to allow only the men to go briefly into the wilderness to celebrate a feast to their God. The women and children were to be left behind, serving as hostages to assure the return of the men (vs. 8-11).

Even though the text of Pastor Tyng’s message is taken out of its original context, it does issue a stirring challenge, as he used it. He preached the gospel, declaring that all are sinners under God’s condemnation, and that the men present needed to repent and put their faith in Christ for salvation. In response, over a thousand of the men committed their lives to Christ that day. Later, as he lay dying, Tyng was asked if he had any further word for the men. “Tell them,” he said, “to stand up for Jesus.”

Two other Bible texts in the hymn deserve mention. “The arm of flesh will fail you” (4) seems like a reference to the accident that eventually took Dudley Tyng’s life. He had caught his arm in a corn thresher, and died shortly after, when infection set in. Actually, the statement is an allusion to II Chronicles 32:8. Sennacherib and the Assyrian army had surrounded the city of Jerusalem, but King Hezekiah encouraged the people, saying: “With him is an arm of flesh; but with us is the Lord our God, to help us.”

For a sermon preached on the Sunday after Dudley Tyng’s death, Pastor George Duffield chose as his text Ephesians 6:14, “Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness.” The entire passage, vs. 10-18, concerns the armour God has provided to protect the Christian from the assaults of our enemy, Satan. As the hymn says (4), “Put on the gospel armour, each piece put on with prayer” (cf. vs. 18). For an article describing the Christian’s spiritual armour in detail, and its function, see Christian Armour: God’s Protection for the Saints.

Paul challenges young Timothy, “You…must endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ” (II Tim. 2:3). And the Lord’s promise to the persecuted Christians at Smyrna is: “Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life…He who overcomes shall not be hurt by the second death” (Rev. 2:10-11). Pastor Duffield alludes to this in his final stanza (6): “To him that overcometh a crown of life shall be; / He with the King of glory shall reign eternally.”

Questions:

  1. What are some current issues in society concerning which you believe Christians need to take a definite stand?
  2. Dudley Tyng’s ministry at the time of his death was especially aimed at men. What can we do to encourage and help Christian men to stand for God?

Links:

The Strange Case of Dudley Tyng (Stand Up Stand Up for Jesus)

What exactly is a “hymn”? The word is used several times in the Bible (e.g. Col. 3:16), where it identifies a song that praises God. Our Christian hymns are fundamentally poetry, a lyrical blending of devotion and doctrine. At times they capture profound truths with colourful imagery or a neat turn of phrase. When the words are set to an appropriate and singable tune, they have the ability to stick in the memory, refreshing the soul again and again.

Most hymns that have stood the test of time have such qualities. They are part of our Christian heritage. Reflecting on them can broaden our spiritual vocabulary, giving us fresh ways to commune with God, and share with one another. A case in point is a gospel song given to the world over a century ago.

The winter of 1857-58 witnessed the igniting of revival fires, especially in the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. At the centre of this great work was a 33-year-old servant of God named Dudley Tyng. Yet the spiritual harvest was clearly the Lord’s doing, not the result of one person’s ability. Working men used to gather, day after day, during the noon hour, to hear the Word of God. One day, 5,000 men packed into a local hall. They listened as Mr. Tyng preached a powerful message of commitment.

In the course of his sermon, he made this declaration: “I must tell [fulfil] my Master’s errand. And I would rather that this right arm were amputated at the trunk than that I should come short in my duty to you in delivering God’s message.” When the service reached its close, over a thousand men committed their lives to Christ.

Shortly after, Mr. Tyng went to visit a local farm, where he watched the operation of a corn-shelling apparatus worked by mule power. But suddenly, as he was standing near, the sleeve of his coat caught in the gears, and his arm was pulled into the machine. He was severely injured, and soon infection set in.

In those days before antibiotics, that was a life-threatening condition. Several days later Tyng died. His friend, Pastor George Duffield was at his bedside. He asked the dying man if he had any message for the men back in the city. “Tell them to stand up for Jesus,” he replied.

It was for a memorial service in honour of Dudley Tyng that George Duffield wrote the hymn poem that echoes that phrase. It begins, “Stand up, stand up for Jesus, ye soldiers of the cross, / Lift high His royal banner, it must not suffer loss; / From vict’ry unto vict’ry, His army shall He lead, / Till every foe is vanquished and Christ is Lord indeed.”

The third verse includes an allusion to the strangely ironic accident: “Stand up, stand up for Jesus; stand in His strength alone: / The arm of flesh will fail you; ye dare not trust your own: / Put on the gospel armour, and watching unto prayer, / Where duty calls, or danger, be never wanting there.”

Duffield’s hymn provides a soul-stirring reminder that the Christian life involves a battle against the forces of wickedness. If we are to have victory, we will need “the whole armour of God” (Eph. 6:10). Further, we cannot expect to succeed by relying on our own wits and our own efforts. We must “be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might” (Eph. 6:10). “For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal [the arm of flesh] but mighty in God” (II Cor. 10:4).

A century and a half later, there is still a need for Christians who will stand up and be counted. But it can only be done as we live by faith. In the words of Paul, “Not that we are sufficient of ourselves…but our sufficiency is of God” (II Cor. 3:5).