Funeral hymns are a regular part of any funeral service and can be of a great support in such a sad occasion, when most of us struggle to find the right words.
Through music, we can help to express the grief and sadness that unites us with our friends and family.
In you’re looking for funeral hymns to include in a service, we have included some of the most popular ones below. In case you’re not sure what is appropriate or how many you want to include, always discuss with your funeral director who will be able to offer more advice.
20+ Funeral Hymns
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A Few More Years Shall Roll Hymn
A few more years shall roll,
A few more seasons come,
And we shall be with those that rest
Asleep within the tomb;
Then, O my Lord, prepare
My soul for that great day.
Refrain
O wash me in Thy precious blood,
And take my sins away.
A few more suns shall set
O’er these dark hills of time,
And we shall be where suns are not
A far serener clime:
Then, O my Lord, prepare
My soul for that blest day.
Refrain
A few more storms shall beat
On this wild rocky shore,
And we shall be where tempests cease,
And surges swell no more;
Then, O my Lord, prepare
My soul for that calm day.
Refrain
A few more struggles here,
A few more partings o’er,
A few more toils, a few more tears,
And we shall weep no more:
Then, O my Lord, prepare
My soul for that bright day.
Refrain
A few more Sabbaths here
Shall cheer us on our way,
And we shall reach the endless rest,
Th’eternal Sabbath day;
Then, O my Lord, prepare
My soul for that sweet day.
Refrain
’Tis but a little while,
And He shall come again
Who died that we might live, Who lives
That we with Him may reign;
Then, O my Lord, prepare
My soul for that glad day.
Refrain
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Will you anchor hold
Will you anchor hold in the storms of life,
When the clouds unfold their wings of strife?
When the strong tides lift, and the cables strain
Will your anchor hold, or firm remain?
Chorus
We have an anchor that keeps the soul
Steadfast and sure while the billows roll;
Fastened to the rock which cannot move,
Grounded firm and deep in the Saviour’s love!
Will your anchor hold in the straits of fear,
When the breakers roar and the reef is near?
While surges rave, and the wild winds blow,
Shall the angry waves then your bark o’er flow?
Chorus
Will your anchor hold in the floods of death,
When the waters cold chill your latest breath?
On the rising tide you can never fail
Will your anchor hold within the veil?
Chorus
Will your eyes behold through the morning light
The city of gold and the harbour bright?
Will your anchor safe by the heavenly shore,
When life’s storms are past for evermore?
Chorus
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Saving Grace Hymn
O golden day, when light shall break,
And dawn’s bright glories shall unfold,
When He Who knows the path I take
Shall ope for me the gates of gold!
Earth’s little while will soon be past,
My pilgrim song will soon be over,
The grace that saves shall time outlast,
And be my theme on yonder shore.
Refrain
Then I shall know as I am known,
And stand complete before the throne;
Then I shall see my Savior’s face,
And all my song shall be saving grace.
Life’s upward way, a narrow path,
Leads on to that fair dwelling place,
Where, safe from sin, and storm, and wrath,
They live who trust redeeming grace.
Sing, sing, my heart, along the way,
The grace that saves will keep and guide
Till breaks the glorious crowning day,
And I shall cross to yonder side.
Refrain
I dimly see my journey’s end,
But well I know Who guideth me.
I follow Him, that wondrous Friend,
Whose matchless love is full and free.
And when with Him I enter in,
And all the way look back to trace,
The conqueror’s palm I then shall win,
Through Christ and His redeeming grace.
Refrain
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Resurrection Hymn
In the resurrection morning
We will see the Savior coming,
And the sons of God a-shouting in the kingdom of the Lord.
Refrain
When the trump of God shall sound,
When the trump of God shall sound,
It shall wake the sleeping nations,
When the trump of God shall sound!
The dead in Christ shall rise,
The dead in Christ shall rise.
We feel the advent glory
While the vision seems to tarry,
We will comfort one another with the words of Holy Writ.
Refrain
By faith we can discover
That our warfare’ll soon be over,
And we’ll shortly hail each other on fair Heaven’s happy shore.
Refrain
We will tell the pleasing story
When we meet our friends in glory,
And we’ll keep ourselves all ready for to hail the heav’nly King.
Refrain
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Ave Maria Hymn
Ave Maria! Ave Maria! maiden mild!
Listen to a maiden’s prayer!
Thou canst hear though from the wild,
Thou canst save amid despair.
Safe may we sleep beneath thy care,
Though banish’d, outcast and reviled –
Maiden! hear a maiden’s prayer;
Mother, hear a suppliant child!
Ave Maria!
Ave Maria! undefiled!
The flinty couch we now must share
Shall seem this down of eider piled,
If thy protection hover there.
The murky cavern’s heavy air
Shall breathe of balm if thou hast smiled;
Then, Maiden! hear a maiden’s prayer;
Mother, list a suppliant child!
Ave Maria!
Ave Maria! stainless styled!
Foul demons of the earth and air,
From this their wonted haunt exiled,
Shall flee before thy presence fair.
We bow us to our lot of care,
Beneath thy guidance reconciled;
Hear for a maid a maiden’s prayer,
And for a father hear a child!
Ave Maria!
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Tarry With Me Hymn
Tarry with me, O my Savior,
For the day is passing by;
See! the shades of evening gather,
And the night is drawing nigh.
Deeper, deeper grow the shadows,
Paler now the glowing west,
Swift the night of death advances;
Shall it be the night of rest?
Lonely seems the vale of shadow;
Sinks my heart with troubled fear;
Give me faith for clearer vision,
Speak Thou, Lord, in words of cheer.
Let me hear Thy voice behind me,
Calming all these wild alarms;
Let me, underneath my weakness,
Feel the everlasting arms.
Feeble, trembling, fainting, dying,
Lord, I cast myself on Thee;
Tarry with me through the darkness;
While I sleep, still watch by me.
Tarry with me, O my Savior,
Lay my head upon Thy breast
Till the morning; then awake me—
Morning of eternal rest.
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Day Is Past And Gone Hymn
The day is past and gone,
The evening shades appear;
O may we all remember well
The night of death draws near.
We lay our garments by,
Upon our beds to rest;
So death shall soon disrobe us all
Of what is here possessed.
Lord, keep us safe this night,
Secure from all our fears;
May angels guard us while we sleep,
Till morning light appears.
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All the way my Saviour leads me
All the way my Saviour leads me
What have I to ask beside?
Can I doubt His tender mercy,
Who through life has been my Guide?
Heavenly peace, divinest comfort,
Here by faith in Him to dwell!
For I know, whate’er befall me,
Jesus doeth all things well;
For I know, whate’er befall me,
Jesus doeth all things well.
All the way my Saviour leads me
Cheers each winding path I tread,
Gives me grace for every trial,
Feeds me with the Living Bread.
Though my weary steps may falter
And my soul athirst may be,
Gushing from the Rock before me,
Lo! A spring of joy I see;
Gushing from the Rock before me,
Lo! A spring of joy I see.
All the way my Saviour leads me
O the fullness of His love!
Perfect rest to me is promised
In my Father’s house above.
When my spirit, clothed immortal,
Wings its flight to realms of day
This my song through endless ages:
Jesus led me all the way;
This my song through endless ages:
Jesus led me all the way.
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Amazing grace
Amazing grace! How sweet the sound
That saved a wretch like me!
I once was lost, but now am found;
Was blind, but now I see.
‘Twas grace that taught my heart to fear,
And grace my fears relieved;
How precious did that grace appear
The hour I first believed.
Through many dangers, toils and snares,
I have already come;
‘Tis grace hath brought me safe thus far,
And grace will lead me home.
When we’ve been there ten thousand years,
Bright shining as the sun,
We’ve no less days to sing God’s praise
Than when we’d first begun.
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The Lord’s My Shepherd I’ll Not Want Hymn
The Lord’s my shepherd, I’ll not want;
He makes me down to lie
In pastures green; he leadeth me
The quiet waters by.
My soul he doth restore again,
And me to walk doth make
Within the paths of righteousness,
E’en for his own name’s sake.
Yea, though I walk in death’s dark vale,
Yet will I fear no ill:
For thou art with me, and thy rod
And staff me comfort still.
My table thou hast furnished
In presence of my foes;
My head thou dost with oil anoint
And my cup overflows.
Goodness and mercy all my life
Shall surely follow me;
And in God’s house for evermore
My dwelling-place shall be.
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Forever With The Lord Hymn
“Forever with the Lord!”
Amen, so let it be!
Life from His death is in that word
’Tis immortality.
Here in the body pent,
Absent from Him I roam,
Yet nightly pitch my moving tent
A day’s march nearer home
My Father’s house on high,
Home of my soul, how near
At times to faith’s foreseeing eye
Thy golden gates appear!
Ah! then my spirit faints
To reach the land I love,
The bright inheritance of saints,
Jerusalem above.
“Forever with the Lord!”
Forever in His will,
The promise of that faithful word,
Lord, here in me fulfill.
With You at my right hand,
Then I shall never fail;
Uphold me, Lord, and I shall stand,
Through grace I will prevail.
So when my latest breath
Breaks through the veil of pain,
By death I shall escape from death,
And life eternal gain.
That resurrection word,
That shout of victory:
Once more, “Forever with the Lord!”
Amen, so let it be!
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The Old Rugged Cross
On a hill far away stood an old rugged cross,
The emblem of suffering and shame;
And I love that old cross where the dearest and best
For a world of lost sinners was slain.
Chorus
So I’ll cherish the old rugged cross,
Till my trophies at last I lay down;
I will cling to the old rugged cross,
And exchange it some day for a crown.
O that old rugged cross, so despised by the world,
Has a wondrous attraction for me;
For the dear Lamb of God left His glory above
To bear it to dark Calvary.
Chorus
In that old rugged cross, stained with blood so divine,
A wondrous beauty I see,
For ’twas on that old cross Jesus suffered and died,
To pardon and sanctify me.
Chorus
To the old rugged cross I will ever be true;
Its shame and reproach gladly bear;
Then He’ll call me some day to my home far away,
Where His glory forever I’ll share.
Chorus
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Because He Lives
God sent His Son, they called Him Jesus;
He came to love, heal, and forgive;
He lived and died to buy my pardon,
An empty grave is there to prove my Saviour lives.
Chorus
Because He lives I can face tomorrow;
Because He lives all fear is gone;
Because I know He holds the future,
And life is worth the living just because He lives.
How sweet to hold a newborn baby,
And feel the pride and joy He gives;
But greater still the calm assurance,
This child can face uncertain days because He lives.
Chorus
And then one day I’ll cross the river,
I’ll fight life’s final war with pain;
And then as death gives way to victory,
I’ll see the lights of glory and I’ll know He lives.
Chorus
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There’s A Light In The Valley Hymn
Through the valley of the shadow I must go,
Where the cold waves of Jordan roll;
But the promise of my Shepherd I will know,
Be the rod and the staff to my soul.
Even now down the valley as I glide,
I can hear my Savior say, “Follow me!”
And with Him I’m not afraid to cross the tide;
There’s a light in the valley for me.
Refrain
There’s a light in the valley,
There’s a light in the valley,
There’s a light in the valley for me,
And no evil will I fear while my Shepherd is so near,
There’s a light in the valley for me.
Now the rolling of the billows I can hear,
As they beat on the turf bound shore;
But the beacon light of love so bright and clear,
Guides my bark, frail and lone, safely over.
I shall find down the valley no alarms,
For my Savior’s blessed smile I can see;
He will bear me in His loving, mighty arms,
There’s a light in the valley for me.
Refrain
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Love Divine
Love Divine, all loves excelling,
Joy of heaven, to earth come down,
Fix in us thy humble dwelling,
All thy faithful mercies crown.
Jesus, Thou art all compassion,
Pure unbounded love Thou art;
Visit us with Thy salvation,
Enter every trembling heart.
Come, Almighty to deliver,
Let us all thy grace receive;
Suddenly return, and never,
Never more Thy temples leave.
Thee we would be always blessing,
Serve Thee as Thy hosts above,
Pray, and praise Thee without ceasing,
Glory in Thy perfect love.
Finish then Thy new creation;
Pure and spotless let us be;
Let us see Thy great salvation,
Perfectly restored in Thee,
Changed from glory into glory,
Till in heaven we take our place,
Till we cast our crowns before Thee,
Lost in wonder, love, and praise.
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All things bright and beautiful
Chorus
All things bright and beautiful
All creatures great and small
All things wise and wonderful:
The Lord God made them all.
Each little flower that opens,
Each little bird that sings,
He made their glowing colours,
He made their tiny wings.
Chorus
The purple-headed mountain,
The river running by,
The sunset and the morning
That brightens up the sky.
Chorus
The cold wind in the winter,
The pleasant summer sun
The ripe fruits in the garden:
He made them every one.
Chorus
The tall trees in the greenwood,
The meadows for our play,
The rushes by the water,
To gather every day.
Chorus
He gave us eyes to see them,
And lips that we may tell
How great is God Almighty,
Who has made all things well.
Chorus
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Home Of The Soul Hymn
I will sing you a song of that beautiful land,
The far away home of the soul,
Where no storms ever beat on the glittering strand,
While the years of eternity roll,
While the years of eternity roll;
Where no storms ever beat on the glittering strand,
While the years of eternity roll.
Oh, that home of the soul! In my visions and dreams
Its bright, jasper walls I can see;
Till I fancy but thinly the veil intervenes
Between the fair city and me,
Between the fair city and me;
Till I fancy but thinly the veil intervenes
Between the fair city and me.
That unchangeable home is for you and for me,
Where Jesus of Nazareth stands;
The King of all kingdoms forever is He,
And He holdeth our crowns in His hands,
And He holdeth our crowns in His hands;
The King of all kingdoms forever is He,
And He holdeth our crowns in His hands.
Oh, how sweet it will be in that beautiful land,
So free from all sorrow and pain,
With songs on our lips and our harps in our hands,
To meet one another again,
To meet one another again;
With songs on our lips and our harps in our hands,
To meet one another again.
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Abide with Me
Abide with me; fast falls the eventide;
The darkness deepens; Lord with me abide.
When other helpers fail and comforts flee,
Help of the helpless, O abide with me.
Swift to its close ebbs out life’s little day;
Earth’s joys grow dim; its glories pass away;
Change and decay in all around I see;
O Thou who changest not, abide with me.
I need Thy presence every passing hour.
What but Thy grace can foil the tempter’s power?
Who, like Thyself, my guide and stay can be?
Through cloud and sunshine, Lord, abide with me.
I fear no foe, with Thee at hand to bless;
Ills have no weight, and tears no bitterness.
Where is death’s sting? Where, grave, thy victory?
I triumph still, if Thou abide with me.
Hold Thou Thy cross before my closing eyes;
Shine through the gloom and point me to the skies.
Heaven’s morning breaks, and earth’s vain shadows flee;
In life, in death, O Lord, abide with me.
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I am waiting for the dawning
I am waiting for the dawning
of the bright and blessèd day,
when the darksome night of sorrow
shall have vanished far away:
when for ever with the Saviour
far beyond this vale of tears,
I shall swell the song of worship
through the everlasting years.
I am looking at the brightness –
see, it shineth from afar –
of the clear and joyous beaming
of the Bright and Morning Star.
Through the dark grey mist of morning
do I see its glorious light;
then away with every shadow
of this sad and weary night.
I am waiting for the coming
of the Lord who died for me;
oh, His wounds have thrilled my spirit,
‘I will come again for thee.’
I can almost hear His footfall,
on the threshold of the door,
and my heart, my heart is longing
to be with Him evermore.
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Crossing The Bar Hymn
Sunset and evening star,
And one clear call for me!
And may there be no moaning of the bar
When I put out to sea.
But such a tide as moving seems asleep,
Too full for sound and foam.
When that which drew from the boundless deep
Turns again home.
Twilight and evening bell,
And after that the dark!
And may there be no sadness of farewell
When I embark.
For, though from out our bourne of time and place
The flood may bear me far,
I hope to see my Pilot face to face
When I have crossed the bar.
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sources: funeralhymnsheets.co.uk, songandpraise.org
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