Robert Robinson

Robert Robinson was born at Swaffham, Norfolk, England, on September 27, 1735. Family hardship curtailed his formal schooling, and at fourteen he was apprenticed to a London hairdresser. Hearing George Whitefield preach in 1752 began a long period of spiritual concern; Robinson later dated his assurance of forgiveness to December 1755. He soon preached among Methodist societies in East Anglia.

By 1758 Robinson had organized an independent congregation in Norwich. After adopting Baptist convictions, he was baptized and in 1759 accepted the pastorate of the Stone-Yard congregation in Cambridge, where he remained until his death. He was ordained in 1761 and became known as a forceful preacher, advocate of open communion, and defender of civil and religious liberty. His scholarship produced sermons, works on toleration and nonconformity, and major historical studies of baptism and the church.

Robinson wrote this hymn early in his ministry; his own manuscript publication list and correspondence from hymnal editor John Rippon support the attribution. He also wrote Mighty God, While Angels Bless Thee. Robinson balanced pastoral work with farming and trade while supporting a large family. He died in Birmingham on June 9, 1790, still pastor of the Cambridge congregation. Later claims that he abandoned his faith or personally lamented the hymn are not established by contemporary evidence.