Onward, Christian Soldiers is a hymn by Sabine Baring-Gould, an English vicar, written in 1865 for children to sing as they marched behind a cross in a church procession. It is usually sung to Arthur Sullivan's tune St. Gertrude. Its battle language is spiritual, not political: the foe is sin and the devil, the banner is the cross, and the weapons are the ones Paul describes, not carnal, but mighty through God (2 Corinthians 10:4). Its third verse rests on Christ's promise in Matthew 16:18 that the gates of hell shall not prevail against His church.
In 1865 Sabine Baring-Gould was a young curate in Horbury Bridge, a mill village in Yorkshire. On Whit Monday the children of his Sunday school were to walk in procession to a neighboring village, and he wanted something for them to sing on the road. He could not find a suitable hymn, so he wrote one the night before, later saying it was done in great haste. He never imagined it would be sung around the world. The hymn is about the whole church on the move, marching behind the cross of Jesus, united, unafraid and sure of its King. Below are the four verses printed in 1894, then 12 KJV passages on the Christian's warfare, the one body of Christ and the church that cannot fall.
Onward, Christian Soldiers: the words
Verse 1
Onward, Christian soldiers,
Marching as to war,
With the Cross of Jesus
Going on before.
Christ the Royal Master
Leads against the foe;
Forward into battle,
See, His banners go.
Refrain:
Onward, Christian soldiers,
Marching as to war,
With the Cross of Jesus
Going on before.
Verse 2
Like a mighty army
Moves the Church of God;
Brothers, we are treading
Where the saints have trod;
We are not divided,
All one body we,
One in hope and doctrine,
One in charity.
Refrain:
Onward, Christian soldiers,
Marching as to war,
With the Cross of Jesus
Going on before.
Verse 3
Crowns and thrones may perish,
Kingdoms rise and wane,
But the Church of Jesus
Constant will remain;
Gates of hell can never
'Gainst that Church prevail;
We have Christ's own promise,
And that cannot fail.
Refrain:
Onward, Christian soldiers,
Marching as to war,
With the Cross of Jesus
Going on before.
Verse 4
Onward, then, ye people,
Join the happy throng,
Blend with ours your voices
In the triumph song;
Glory, laud, and honor,
Unto Christ the King,
This through countless ages
Men and angels sing.
Refrain:
Onward, Christian soldiers,
Marching as to war,
With the Cross of Jesus
Going on before.
Words: Sabine Baring-Gould (1834-1924), written in 1865 for a children's Whitsun procession at Horbury Bridge, Yorkshire. The tune most churches use, St. Gertrude, is by Arthur Sullivan (1871). Text copied from Gospel Hymns Nos. 1 to 6 Complete (New York and Chicago, 1894), hymn 87, checked against Hymns of Consolation, No. 175, which prints the same four verses under Ephesians 6:13 (Internet Archive scans); the 1894 book prints can not, written here as cannot. Both books leave out Baring-Gould's verse beginning At the sign of triumph, which many hymnals print second. The refrain is sung after every verse. Public domain.
Marching as to war: the Christian's warfare
1. 2 Corinthians 10:4
"(For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;)"
This verse explains how to read the whole hymn. Paul says, For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds. Christians do not fight with swords, guns or votes for the kingdom of God. The strongholds Paul has in mind are arguments and proud thoughts that rise up against the knowledge of God. The weapons are truth, prayer, faith and the gospel itself. When the children of Horbury Bridge sang Marching as to war, the word as mattered. Their war was real, but it was fought on the inside and in the heart, not on a battlefield.
2. 1 Timothy 6:12
"Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses."
Paul tells young Timothy, Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life. The word for fight is the root of our word agonize, and it was used of wrestlers and soldiers alike. The Christian life is not passive. It means saying no to sin, holding on to the truth when it is costly, and keeping the faith to the end. Notice that Paul calls it the good fight. It is worth fighting because of what is at stake and because of who leads it. Baring-Gould's line Christ the Royal Master leads against the foe puts the battle in the right hands. See our Bible verses about spiritual warfare.
3. Ephesians 6:11
"Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil."
Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. Paul names the real enemy: not flesh and blood, he says in the next verse, but spiritual wickedness. Hymns of Consolation printed this hymn under Ephesians 6:13, from the same passage. The armor Paul lists is truth, righteousness, the gospel of peace, faith, salvation and the word of God, with prayer running through it all. Every piece is something God supplies. The Christian soldier does not march in his own strength but in the whole armor of God. See our Bible verses about the armor of God.
4. Hebrews 2:10
"For it became him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings."
Hebrews calls Jesus the captain of their salvation, the leader who goes ahead of His people and brings many sons unto glory. He was made perfect through sufferings, which means He became the complete leader by walking the whole road first, including the cross. That is the picture in the hymn's refrain: With the Cross of Jesus going on before. In Baring-Gould's procession a cross was carried at the head of the line. The banner of this army is not a flag of conquest but the sign of a Savior who won by dying. The church follows a captain who has already been through every battle it will face.
We are not divided, all one body we
5. Ephesians 4:4-6
"There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling; One Lord, one faith, one baptism, One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all."
There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling; One Lord, one faith, one baptism, One God and Father of all. Baring-Gould's second verse sings this: We are not divided, all one body we, one in hope and doctrine, one in charity. Some have objected that churches are visibly divided, and that is true. But Paul does not tell the Ephesians to create unity. He tells them to keep the unity of the Spirit that already exists, because every believer belongs to the same Lord. The hymn is a confession of that deeper unity and a call to live it out. See our Bible verses about unity.
6. 1 Corinthians 12:12
"For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ."
For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ. Paul is writing to a church that was proud of some gifts and ashamed of others. He reminds them that a body needs every part, the eye and the hand, the strong and the weak. The hymn's Like a mighty army moves the Church of God is the same idea in another picture. An army is many soldiers with many tasks moving together under one command. No Christian is the whole church, and none is left out of it.
7. John 17:21
"That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me."
On the night before the cross, Jesus prayed for everyone who would believe through the apostles' word: That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me. The unity of Christians is not only pleasant. It is part of the church's witness. When believers from every background love one another, the world sees evidence that Jesus is who He said. Baring-Gould's One in charity, one in love, is not a small thing. It is an answer to Jesus' own prayer.
8. Psalms 133:1
"Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!"
Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity! This is one of the Psalms of Ascents, sung by pilgrims walking up to Jerusalem for the feasts. Those pilgrims came from many towns and tribes, and as they walked together they sang about the joy of being one people before God. Baring-Gould wrote his hymn for a walking procession too, and the second verse's Brothers, we are treading where the saints have trod has the same spirit. The church on the move is a family on a journey, joined to all the saints who walked the road before.
Gates of hell can never prevail: the church that remains
9. Matthew 16:18
"And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it."
When Peter confessed that Jesus was the Christ, the Son of the living God, Jesus answered, upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. Baring-Gould's third verse is built on this promise: Gates of hell can never 'gainst that Church prevail; we have Christ's own promise, and that cannot fail. Gates do not attack. They defend. The picture is of the church advancing against the strongholds of death and darkness, and those gates giving way. The church's confidence is not in its own strength but in Christ's own promise. See our Bible verses about church.
10. Isaiah 40:8
"The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of our God shall stand for ever."
The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of our God shall stand for ever. Isaiah spoke to a people who had watched great empires rise and fall around them. Baring-Gould sings the same contrast: Crowns and thrones may perish, kingdoms rise and wane, but the Church of Jesus constant will remain. In 1865 the British Empire seemed permanent. It is gone now, along with many other thrones that seemed secure. The word of God has outlasted them all, and so has the church that lives by it. Whatever rises or falls in the news, the word of our God stands.
11. Daniel 2:44
"And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever."
Daniel told King Nebuchadnezzar the meaning of his dream of a great statue of gold, silver, bronze, iron and clay. Kingdom would follow kingdom, and then the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed. A stone cut out without hands would break the statue in pieces and become a mountain that filled the whole earth. Christians have long seen in that stone the kingdom of Christ. It began small, with a few fishermen, and it has outlived every empire that tried to stop it. That is why the hymn can sing so boldly about crowns and thrones that perish.
12. 1 Corinthians 15:57
"But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ."
But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Paul writes this at the end of his great chapter on the resurrection. The last enemy is death, and Christ has already beaten it by rising from the grave. That is why Christian soldiers can march with a triumph song before the war is over. The hymn's last verse calls everyone to join the happy throng and sing Glory, laud, and honor unto Christ the King. The victory is not something we win for God. It is something He gives us through Jesus, and our part is to receive it with thanks. See our Bible verses about victory.
A short prayer
Lord Jesus, Royal Master and captain of my salvation, I want to follow where Your cross leads. Give me courage to fight the good fight of faith, not with the weapons of the world, but with truth, prayer and Your word. Clothe me in Your whole armor. Make Your church one, as You and the Father are one, so that the world may believe. When kingdoms rise and fall around me, keep me sure that Your church will remain and Your promise cannot fail. Thank You for the victory You have already won. Amen.
Go deeper: a SOAP study prompt
Pick one verse above and write: - Scripture: copy the verse by hand. - Observation: what does it say? Who is speaking, to whom? - Application: what does it mean for you today? - Prayer: turn it into a two-line prayer.
New to this method? See our Bible study guide or pick a Bible reading plan.
Memorize Ephesians 6:11 with Scripture memory cards · Print the free armor of God printable · Study Ephesians 6 with the SOAP Bible Study Journal
Frequently asked questions
Who wrote Onward, Christian Soldiers?
Sabine Baring-Gould (1834-1924), an English clergyman, novelist and collector of folk songs, wrote the words in 1865. The tune most often sung is St. Gertrude, written by Arthur Sullivan (of Gilbert and Sullivan) in 1871. Some older American books, such as Hymns of Consolation, set it to a tune arranged from Haydn.
What does Onward, Christian Soldiers mean?
It pictures the church as an army following Jesus, with His cross as its banner. The war is spiritual: against sin, unbelief and the devil, fought with faith, truth and prayer (2 Corinthians 10:4; Ephesians 6:11-18). The hymn also celebrates the unity of all believers and Christ's promise that His church will never be overcome (Matthew 16:18).
How many verses does Onward, Christian Soldiers have?
Baring-Gould's original had six verses. American gospel hymnals of the 1890s, like the 1894 Gospel Hymns we copied above, print four, leaving out the verse beginning At the sign of triumph and a verse that later hymnals also dropped. Most hymnals today print four or five verses with the refrain.
Is Onward, Christian Soldiers in the public domain?
Yes. The words were written in 1865 and Sullivan's tune in 1871, and both are in the public domain in the United States. The hymn may be printed, copied and sung freely. Some modern arrangements are under copyright, but the original words are not.
Sources: All Scripture quotations are from the King James Version (KJV), public domain in the United States. References were checked against the KJV text from bible-api.com.
Related: Stand Up, Stand Up for Jesus · All Hail the Power of Jesus' Name · Crown Him with Many Crowns · The Old Rugged Cross · Armor of God · Spiritual Warfare · Unity · Church
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