Horatio Spafford was a faithful believer who lived in Chicago. He served as an elder in the Presbyterian Church there. In 1861 he married his wife Anna, and subsequently they had four daughters: Annie, Maggie, Bessie and Tanetta. The Spaffords were supporters and friends of evangelist Dwight L. Moody.

Spafford was a prosperous lawyer and a senior partner in a large law firm. In 1871, he invested in real estate north of Chicago. But, less than six months later, the Great Fire of Chicago reduced the city to ashes; Spafford lost almost everything he owned.

Two years later, in 1873, his wife was deteriorating in her health, and to benefit her and the girls, he decided to take his family on vacation to England, where his friend D. L. Moody would be preaching. But, struggling as he was to rebuild the family assets, he stayed behind and sent the family on ahead, intending to follow within the next few days.

Tragedy Strikes

On November 22 tragedy struck: while crossing the Atlantic on the steamship Ville du Havre, the ship was struck by an iron sailing vessel, sinking within in minutes and killing 226 people. All four of Spafford’s daughters: Annie (12), Maggie (7), Bessie (4) and Tanetta (just 18 months old) perished. Out of all his family, only his wife, Anna, survived the tragedy, picked up unconscious, lying on some drift wood.

Anna was grief-stricken.  She said, “God gave me four daughters. Now they have all been taken from me. Someday I will understand why.”
Upon arriving in Cardiff in Wales, she sent a short telegram to Spafford that read “Saved alone.”

As soon as he could, Spafford took a ship to England.

Peace like a river

One particular day, during the voyage, the captain summoned him to the bridge of the vessel. Pointing to his charts, he explained that they were then passing over the very spot where the Ville du Havre had sunk, and where his daughters had died. Spafford looked down into his daughters’ watery grave, then returned to his cabin and wrote the words of the hymn:

When peace like a river, attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll;
Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say
It is well, it is well, with my soul.

It is well, (it is well),
With my soul, (with my soul)
It is well, it is well, with my soul.

It is truly remarkable that such a devastated soul could write such a hymn.

But more fascinating I find is that, in the midst of such overwhelming grief, he testifies that his favourite verse was Verse 3:

My sin, oh the bliss of this glorious thought!
My sin, not in part but the whole,
Is nailed to His cross, and I bear it no more,
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!

What has that to do with grief in circumstances like this?

In the face of overwhelming tragedy, why talk about sin? After all, this was not grief caused by a person’s sin – at least, not directly. Why not focus on the peace to be found in adverse circumstances that occur because, in this fallen world, things break and go wrong?

What has “my sin, oh the bliss of this glorious thought!” got to do with finding peace and comfort in circumstances like this?

Well, in the end, it has everything to do with it. Because, whatever else is going on in our lives, ultimate peace only comes from knowing our sins are forgiven, and we are accepted with God.

Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. (Rom 5:1-2)

It is only once we know the peace of God that comes from being justified by faith, that we can “glory in tribulations” that occur in our broken world.
Only then do we “know that”:

• • tribulation produces perseverance
  • and perseverance, character
  • and character, hope
  • and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us. (Rom 5:3-5)

This is why this was Spafford’s favourite verse in the midst of such overwhelming grief.[1]

What about trials that come from another’s sin? 

As I was meditating on this I was reading Psalm 4 in my morning devotions.

In that Psalm David is in deep trouble.
Likely as not (as in the previous Psalm) he is fleeing from his beloved son’s murderous insurrection against him. By lies and slander against his father “Absalom stole the hearts of the men of Israel” (2 Sam 15:7) making all sorts of grandiose political promises if only he were king.

David cries out:

How long, O you sons of men, will you turn my glory to shame?
How long will you love worthlessness and seek falsehood? (v.2)

What to do?
Become fearful? Sit on the pity pot? Spend your life trying to justify yourself to those who listen to slander against you?

No. Instead David prays:

But know that the Lord has set apart for Himself the covenant one[2];
The Lord will hear when I call to Him. (v.3)

Though the “covenant one” was David, the covenant king, we can apply the same reasoning to each of us, bound by covenant love to God. As Ralph Davis explains:

“He shows us here that the weapon against slander is to remember how God regards you, to hold on to what he has said about you. We may not be covenant kings, but if we are uncondemned, chosen, prayed for, and loved (Rom. 8:33-35), it doesn’t sound too second-class. If Yahweh has said to us, ‘Don’t be afraid, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine’ (Isa. 43:1), why should we listen to the blabberings of our enemies, or even the accusations of an overly sensitive conscience?”

This is how David handled the immense grief that came from his son’s lies and slander. As in the previous Psalm (3:5), so too here, knowing he is “uncondemned, chosen, prayed for, and loved” he can say:

I will both lie down in peace, and sleep;
For You alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety. (v.8)

So can you, if you are justified by faith.
So, can I.

What is your only comfort in life and in death?
A. That I am not my own, but belong – body and soul, in life and in death – to my faithful Saviour Jesus Christ. He has fully paid for all my sins with His precious blood, and has set me free from the tyranny of the devil. He also watches over me in such a way that not a hair can fall from my head without the will of my Father in heaven; in fact, all things must work together for my salvation. Because I belong to Him, Christ, by His Holy Spirit, assures me of eternal life and makes me whole-heartedly willing and ready from now on to live for Him.
.– Heidelberg Catechism

[1] Spafford and his wife were to endure yet another great trial of faith. Over the next eight years they had three more children: Horatio, Bertha, Grace: Horatio Jnr. died of scarlet fever at age four. I am aware of aberrations, some serious, in Spafford’s theological views, particularly after the further tragedy of the death of his son. But I am persuaded that, while he was not as saintly as some make out, yet despite his faults, "It is well with my soul" reflects a genuine faith. See futher here.

[2] “Covenant one” (sometimes translated as “godly one”, “faithful one”) is the Hebrew: ḥāsîḏ from ḥěsěḏ = “covenant love”, “loyal love”. “Does ḥāsîḏ refer to the one who has received Yahweh’s ḥěsěḏ or to someone who shows it? Alec Motyer cuts through the problem: the ḥāsîḏ is the one loved by God and who loves him back.” (Ralph Davis)