On a hill far away
Stood an old rugged cross,
The emblem of suffering and shame
How I love that old cross
Where the dearest and best
For a world of lost sinners was slain

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.

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.

Then He'll call me some day
To my home far away,
Where His glory forever I'll share.

So I'll cherish the old ruggedcross,
Till my trophies at last I lay down;
I will cling to the old rugged cross,
And exchange it some day for a crown.

I will cling to the old rugged cross,
And exchange it some day for a crown.

"The Old Rugged Cross," one of the world's best loved
hymns, was composed in Albion, Michigan in 1912 by the
Reverend George Bennard (1873-1958). The son of an Ohio
coal miner, Bennard was a lifelong servant of God,
chiefly in the Methodist ministry. He wrote the words
and music of over three hundred other hymns. None
achieved the fame of "The Old Rugged Cross," the
moving summation of his faith.