What Is a Doxology?
A doxology is often sung at a worship service to express the people’s gratitude and adoration to the triune God. “Words of praise or glory,” as the word doxology literally means, can be found in many Old Testament psalms. Some examples include:
- “Praise be to the LORD, the God of Israel, from everlasting to everlasting. Amen and Amen” (Psalm 41:13).
- “Praise be to the LORD God, the God of Israel, who alone does marvelous deeds. Praise be to his glorious name forever; may the whole earth be filled with his glory. Amen and amen” (Psalm 72:18–19).
- “Praise be to the LORD forever! Amen and amen” (Psalm 89:52).
- “Praise be to the LORD, the God of Israel, from everlasting to everlasting. Let all the people say, ‘Amen!’ Praise the LORD” (Psalm 106:48).
All of these examples come from the last phrases of each book (or collection) of psalms (Book I, Psalms 1–41; Book II, Psalms 42–72; Book III, Psalms 73–89; Book IV, Psalms 90–106; and Book V, Psalms 107–150). Psalm 150, as the concluding psalm of Book V and of the entire collection, is entirely devoted to praising God, ending with these succinct but carefully chosen words: “Let everything that has breath praise the LORD. Praise the LORD” (Psalm 150:6).
In the New Testament, doxologies are found in the gospels and in the apostles’ letters. One well-known instance is the angels’ song in Bethlehem’s skies at the birth of Jesus: “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests” (Luke 2:14). Other New Testament doxologies include:
- Romans 11:33–36
- The hymn about Jesus recorded in Philippians 2:5–11
- Ephesians 3:20–21
- 1 Timothy 1:17 and 2 Timothy 4:18
- Jude 24–25
- The words of praise that punctuate the book of Revelation (Revelation 1:5–6; 4:8–11; 5:9–13; 7:10–12; 15:3–4; 19:1–8).
From the above examples, we see not only what doxologies are, but when to use them. In the psalms above, the words of praise appear at the end of each book and serve as a concluding prayer summarizing what has been said in the previous songs of praise, thanksgiving, petition, or lamentation. Whatever the themes or emotions are that people express through these verses, the psalms are ultimately for the glory of God (Westminster Larger Catechism, Q&A 1). Other doxologies—such as 1 Timothy 1:17—show up in the middle of passages as a moment of worship and reflection. I sometimes compare these moments of pauses, mini-reflections, or exclamations to the use of chorales in many of J. S. Bach’s larger choral works.
These traditions of using doxologies to give praise to God are the antecedents of singing a doxology in worship services today. In many traditions, a doxology is sung following an assurance of pardon, after the offering, at the conclusion of the eucharistic prayer, or at the end of a service. As Reformed Worship transitions from a print journal to a digital platform, it seems particularly fitting to explore some ways to sing doxologies as an expression of our own praise for what God has done through Reformed Worship thus far. Here are several arrangements and ideas for singing the doxology with different participants.
“Praise Our Father, God on High”
Based on a Chinese Tune
Music by Li Bao-chen (public domain); English lyrics by Kai Ton Chau
Chau has graciously made this arrangement available as a free download along with the melody with a a doxological text in the resources section at the end of this article.
The tune WENDI (or WENTI) is a fairly well-known Chinese tune attributed to Taiwanese composer Li Bao-Chen. The original lyrics,
entitled 聞笛 / “Listening to the Bamboo Flute,” is a poem by Zhao Gu, who lived during the ninth-century Tang dynasty. The melody appears in the hymnal Lift Up Your Hearts (#940), where it is paired with the priestly blessing from Numbers 6:24–26.
I adapted the choral version of WENDI and wrote new lyrics for a four-stanza trinitarian doxology. Each of the first three stanzas is dedicated to a member of the Trinity, with the fourth stanza addressed to the trinitarian God as a whole. This is a common approach with doxologies. Interestingly, though the music was originally written for the poem by Zhao Gu, it fits the four-stanza structure of a doxology perfectly.
The new text not only directs our praise to God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit, but also intentionally uses other biblical names for God, including “Holy One” for the Father, “Lamb of God” and “the Way, the Truth, and the Life” for the Son, and “Giver, Helper, Counselor” for the Holy Spirit. It also describes attributes of God, such as faithful, loving, true light, giver, and helper.
This doxology can be sung by the choir alone or with the congregation. The first stanza is sung in unison, emphasizing the strength of God the Father. When the melody is paired with a countermelody in the second stanza, it symbolizes the dual nature of Christ Jesus. The singers’ breath forming the “oh”s and “ah”s in the third stanza are a perfect portrayal of the Holy Spirit as “God’s own breath.” The grandeur of the harmony and accompaniment provides a perfect backdrop for praising the Trinity in the final stanza. The flying notes in the pentatonic scale in the final measures mimic the sound of the bamboo flute and signify everlasting praise.
“Praise Our Triune, Mighty God!” (“萬變生機/ The Ever-Changing Nature”)
A Doxology for Children’s Choir
Music and Chinese lyrics by Flora Pui Fan Tam; English lyrics by Kai Ton Chau
Tam and Chau have graciously made the children’s arrangement “The Ever-Changing Nature” available as a free download in the resources section found following this article along with the doxology portion of that piece, entitled “Praise Our Triune, Mighty God!”.
The Chinese version of the anthem “萬變生機/ The Ever-Changing Nature” is an award-winning composition for a treble voice choir by Hong Kong-based composer Flora Tam. It has been one of the top song choices in the Hong Kong Schools Music Festival and has been sung by school and community choirs around the world. The English lyrics are a loose translation of the composer’s original Chinese text.
The children’s anthem opens with a portrayal of how nature glorifies God. The morning mist, the twilight, the weaving winds, the murmuring waves—all creation joins in praise to the Creator God. In a burst of joy, the final section brings everyone together as they join with creation in singing a doxology.
The full version is written for a two-part children’s choir. The vocal range (D to F’) is suitable for elementary school kids. What makes the song interesting is that in the second section, the higher voice is a descant, blending words of praise with the lyrics about nature. After a key change, the parts combine to offer the final doxology. Optionally, the congregation can join in to give praise to the triune God. That standalone doxological section, entitled “Praise Our Triune, Mighty God!”, is found on p. 45.
“Praise God, from Whom All Blessings Flow”
DUKE STREET Hatton LUYH 219, GtG 265, 486 and LASST UNS ERFREUEN LUYH 551, GtG 10, 15, 327, 609
Many congregations are so familiar with the words of Thomas Ken’s “Praise God, from Whom All Blessings Flow” that it is referred to as simply “the doxology.” But sometimes it is helpful to shake up the familiar. Consider singing the doxology lyrics to a different familiar tune.
Ken’s text is in the poetic meter of 8.8.8.8, with each line of text comprising eight syllables. In hymn writing, composers, lyricists, and editors match tunes and texts with compatible meters. Most modern hymnals include a metrical index that groups songs by their meters (see pp. 1056–61 of the hymnal Lift Up Your Hearts as an example). In theory, one may choose any tune that fits the meter of the text, especially for non-tonal languages such as English.
However, one must be careful to consider whether the emotion or mood of the tune fits well with particular texts. For example, the 8.6.8.6 meter of “Amazing Grace” fits the tune ST. ANNE (commonly paired with the text “O God, Our Help in Ages Past”), but the majestic feel of that tune does not work well with the introspective lyrics of “Amazing Grace.”
Pairing different but carefully chosen tunes with familiar texts can be a refreshing experience for singers. Because a new melody will have different contours, vocalists may sing with a heightened awareness of the text instead of just singing by rote.
For choral and congregational singing of the doxology, several familiar hymn tunes work equally well as OLD HUNDREDTH Bourgeois, LUYH 965 or NEW DOXOLOGY. LUYH 964
Consider DUKE STREET (“Jesus Shall Reign” Watts, LUYH 219, GtG 265, SSS 209). The rising melody on the first and third phrases is a tremendous fit for the words “Praise God, from whom all blessings flow” and “Praise him above, ye heav’nly host.” The downward movement of the second phrase is a word painting of “all creatures here below.” To add grandeur, consider using Hal Hopson’s arrangement. This concertato (a style of music where different groups such as instruments and singers share the same melody) for organ, choir, and congregation is a doxology to Jesus. To turn the song into a trinitarian doxology, the choir may sing it the first time with the doxology text in unison (up to measure 36), then skip to measure 77 and invite the congregation to join with the doxology text while the choir sings the descant.
More adventurous congregations could try using the tune LASST UNS ERFREUEN LUYH 551, GtG 10 (the tune for “All Creatures of Our God and King”) with the doxology text. Keep the alleluias between the second and third phrases, and “O praise him, … alleluia” at the end.