Lyrics: Isaac Watts, The Psalms of David Imitated in the Language of the New Testament, 1719.
Music: ST ANNE by WIlliam Croft, 1708.
Theme: Lord, thou hast been our dwelling place in all generations.
Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever thou hadst formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, thou art God. Psalm 90:1-2

Hannah: . . . a beautiful commentary of the frailty of human life, and the omnipotent strength of an immortal God. This is a beautiful cry to God for help in our brief lives, and a remembrance that He is our home in the next one.

O God, our help in ages past,
Our hope for years to come,
Our shelter from the stormy blast,
And our eternal home.

Under the shadow of Thy throne
Thy saints have dwelt secure;
Sufficient is Thine arm alone,
And our defence is sure.

Before the hills in order stood,
Or earth received her frame,
From everlasting Thou art God,
To endless years the same.

Thy Word commands our flesh to dust,
Return, ye sons of men:
All nations rose from earth at first,
And turn to earth again.

A thousand ages in Thy sight
Are like an evening gone;
Short as the watch that ends the night
Before the rising sun.

The busy tribes of flesh and blood,
With all their lives and cares,
Are carried downwards by the flood,
And lost in following years.

Time, like an ever rolling stream,
Bears all its sons away;
They fly, forgotten, as a dream
Dies at the opening day.

Like flowery fields the nations stand
Pleased with the morning light;
The flowers beneath the mower’s hand
Lie withering ere ‘tis night.

Our God, our help in ages past,
Our hope for years to come,
Be Thou our guard while troubles last,
And our eternal home.

From The Second World War by Winston Churchill, Vol. 3, p. 345:

On Sunday morning, August 10, (l94l) Mr Roosevelt came aboard H.M.S. PRINCE OF WALES and, with his Staff officers and several hundred representatives of all ranks of the United States Navy and Marines, attended Divine Service on the quarterdeck. This service was felt by all of us to be a deeply moving expression of the unity of faith of our two peoples, and none who took part in it will forget the spectacle presented that sunlit morning on the crowded quarterdeck…… the American and British chaplains sharing in the reading of the prayers.. I chose the hymns myself.

We ended with “O God, Our Help in Ages Past” which Macaulay reminds us the Ironsides had chanted as they bore John Hampden’s body to the grave. Every word seemed to stir the heart. It was a great hour to live. Nearly half those who sang were soon to die.”

This hymn is inextricably linked, in my mind at least, with Churchill and with the heroism of the British people during World War II. In the final scenes of the WWII film Mrs. Miniver, as the people gather in a bomb-damaged church, the preacher exhorts them on remaining steadfast and faithful as the ST ANNE tune to O God Our Help in Ages Past plays in the background. According to Cyber Hymnal, the same hymn was played at Sir WInston Churchill’s funeral at St. Paul’s Cathedral, London in 1965.

I know of two alternate tunes to this venerable hymn:

Sovereign Grace has a mp3 version that you can download for free if you like it.
My friend Hannah also has composed a tune setting for the lyrics to O God Our Help in Ages Past, and we sing her tune at my church. I wish you could hear it; she’s quite a talented composer.

I also found at iTunes a ST ANNE rendition by Bing Crosby, and I just had to buy it. I’m rather fond of Mr. Crosby’s crooning.

Sources:
Hymn History: O God Our Help in Ages Past.
Cyber Hymnal: O God Our Help in Ages Past.
W. G. Parker: An Historical Link With 1941 World War II.