Bethune grad­u­at­ed from Dick­in­son Coll­ege, Car­lisle, Penn­syl­van­ia, in 1822, and stu­died the­ol­o­gy at Prince­ton Uni­ver­si­ty. In 1827 he be­came pas­tor of the Re­formed Dutch Church in Rine­beck, New York. In 1830, he moved to Uti­ca, New York; to Phil­a­del­phia, Penn­syl­van­ia, in 1834; and to Brook­lyn Heights, New York, in 1850. He was of­fered the chan­cel­lor­ship of New York Uni­ver­si­ty, and the Pro­vost­ship of the Uni­ver­si­ty of Penn­syl­van­ia, both of which he de­clined. His works in­clude:

• The Fruits of the Spir­it, 1849
• Sermons, 1847
• Lays of Love & Faith, 1847
• The British Fe­male Po­ets, 1848

A. R. Van Nest ed­it­ed Beth­une’s Life and Let­ters in 1867.

Sources

Lyrics

1. Almighty Spirit, The
2. Come, Let Us Sing of Jesus
3. Full Ma­ny a Year Has Sped
4. It Is Not Death to Die
5. Farewell to Thee, Brother
6. Joy and Gladness, Joy and Gladness
7. Light of the Immortal Father’s Glory
8. O for the Happy Hour
9. O Jesus, When I Think of Thee
10. O Thou Who in Jordan
11. There Is No Name So Sweet on Earth
12. Tossed upon Life’s Raging Billow
13. We Come, We Come with Loud Acclaim
14. When Time Seems Short and Death Is Near

Translations

1. It Is Not Death to Die