Son of a judge, Kelly at­tend­ed Trin­i­ty Coll­ege (BA 1789) and planned to be a law­yer. Af­ter con­vert­ing to Christ, though, his ca­reer plans changed to the min­is­try. He be­came an Ang­li­can priest in 1792, but event­u­al­ly be­came one of the fa­mous “dis­sent­ing” min­is­ters. He wrote over 760 hymns. Mil­ler’s Sing­ers of the Church (1869) says of him:

Mr. Kelly was a man of great and var­ied learn­ing, skilled in the Or­i­ent­al tongues, and an ex­cel­lent Bi­ble cri­tic. He was pos­sessed al­so of mu­sic­al tal­ent, and com­posed and pub­lished a work that was re­ceived with fa­vour, con­sist­ing of mu­sic adapt­ed to ev­ery form of me­tre in his hymn-book. Na­tur­al­ly of an am­i­a­ble dis­po­si­tion and tho­rough in his Christ­ian pi­e­ty, Mr. Kel­ly be­came the friend of good men, and the ad­vo­cate of ev­ery worthy, be­ne­vo­lent, and re­li­gious cause. He was ad­mired alike for his zeal and his hu­mil­i­ty; and his lib­er­al­ity found am­ple scope in Ire­land, es­pe­cial­ly dur­ing the year of fam­ine.

Kelly’s works in­clude:

• A Collection of Psalms and Hymns Ex­tract­ed from Var­i­ous Au­thors, 1802
• Hymns on Various Pass­ages of Script­ures, 1804
• Hymns of Thomas Kelly, Not Be­fore Pub­lished, 1815

Sources

Hymns

1. Arise! Arise, with Joy Sur­vey
2. Atoning Work Is Done, The
3. Behold the Lamb with Glory Crowned
4. Behold the Man! How Glorious He
5. Behold the Temple of the Lord
6. Blessèd Fountain, full of Grace
7. Boundless Glory, Lord, Be Thine
8. Brethren, Come, Our Savior Bids Us
9. By Whom Shall Jacob Now Arise?
10. Come, O Lord, the Heavens Rendi­ng
11. Come, See the Place Where Je­sus Lay
12. Come, Ye Saints, Look Here and Won­der
13. Day of Rest Once More Comes Round, The
14. Far from Us Be Grief and Sadness
15. Fly, Ye Seasons, Fly Still Faster
16. From Egypt Lately Come
17. Give Us Room That We May Dwell
18. Glory, Glory, Everlasting
19. Glory, Glory, to Our King
20. God Has Turned My Grief to Gladness
21. God Is Love, His Word Has Said It
22. God of Glory Dwells on High, The
23. God of Israel, We Adore Thee
24. God of Our Salva­tion! Hear Us
25. Grace Is the Sweetest Sound
26. Gracious Lord, My Heart Is Fixed
27. Grant Us, Lord, Thy Gracious Pre­sence
28. Happy Those Who Trust in Jesus
29. Hark, a Voice! It Comes from Heaven
30. Hark, Ten Thou­sand Harps and Voic­es
31. Hark, Ten Thou­sand Voic­es
32. Hark, that Shout of Rapturous Joy
33. Hark, the Notes of Angels Singing
34. Hark! ’Tis a Martial Sound
35. Head That Once Was Crowned, The
36. How Pleasant Is the Sound of Praise
37. How Sweet to Leave the World Awhile
38. I Hear a Sound That Comes from Far
    • I Hear a Voice That Comes from Far
39. If Our Warfare Be Laborious
40. In Form I Long Had Bowed the Knee
41. In Thy Name, O Lord, Assembling
42. It Is Finished! Sinners, Hear It
43. Jesus, Immortal King, Go On
44. Jesus Is Gone Up on High
45. Jesus, the Shepherd of the Sheep
46. Joyful Be the Hours Today
47. Keep Us, Lord, O Keep Us Ever
48. Let Reason Vainly Boast Her Power
49. Let Sinners Saved Give Thanks, and Sing
50. Lo, He Comes, Let All Adore Him
    • Jesus Comes! Let All Adore Him!
51. Look, Ye Saints! The Sight Is Glorious
52. Lord, Behold Us, Few and Weak
53. Lord Himself Will Keep, The
54. Lord Is Risen Indeed!, The
55. Meet Thy People, Savior, Meet us
56. Night Is Far Spent, The
57. Nothing Know We of the Season
58. Now Let a Great Effectual Door
59. Now May the Gospel’s Conquering Power
60. Now May the Mighty Arm Awake
61. Now May the Spirit from Above
62. O Had I the Wings of a Dove
63. O Where Is Now That Glowing Love
64. O Zion, When I Think on Thee
65. On the Mountain’s Top Appearing
66. Our Father Sits on Yonder Throne
67. Ours Is a Rich and Royal Feast
68. People of the Lord Are on Their Way, The
69. Precious Volume, What Thou Doest
70. Poor and Afflicted, Lord, Are Thine
71. Praise the Lord Who Died to Save Us
72. Praise the Savior, Ye Who Know Him
73. Praise We Him to Whose Kind Favor
74. Salva­tion Is of God Alone
75. Saved Ourselves by Jesus’ Blood
76. Savior, Come, Thy Friends Await Thee
77. Savior, Send a Blessing to Us
78. Savior, Through the Desert Lead Us
79. Savior, ’Tis to Thee
80. See from Zion’s Sac­red Mountain
81. See the Vineyard Lately Planted
82. See Where the Lord His Glory Spreads
    • Around the Savior’s Lofty Throne
83. Shepherd of the Chosen Number
84. Sing Aloud to God Our Strength
85. Sing of Him Who Bore Our Guilt
86. Sing of Jesus, Sing Forever
87. Sing, Sing His Lofty Praise
88. Sing We Praise to God Above
89. Sons of Zion, Raise Your Songs
90. Sound, Sound the Truth Abroad
91. Spared a Little Longer
92. Speed Thy Servants, Savior
93. Stricken, Smitten, and Afflicted
94. Sweet Were the Sounds That Reached Our Ears
95. Thus Saith God of His Anointed
96. Through the Day Thy Love Has Spared Us
97. ’Tis to Us No Cause of Sorrow
98. To the Ark Away, or Perish
99. To Our Lord a Throne is Given
100. Trust Ye in the Lord Forever
101. Unfold to Us, O Lord, Unfold
102. We Sing the Praise of Him Who Died
103. Welcome Sight! The Lord Descending
104. We’ll Sing in Spite of Scorn
105. We’ll Sing of the Shepherd That Died
106. We’re Bound for Yonder Land
107. We’ve No Abiding City Here
108. What Is Life? ’Tis but a Vapor
109. What Tongue Can Tell, What Fancy Paint
110. What Were Sinai’s Awful Wonders
111. When We Cannot See Our Way
112. Whence Those Sounds Symphonious?
113. While in the World We Still Remain
114. Who Is This That Calms the Ocean?
115. Who Is This That Comes from Edom
116. Why Those Fears? Behold, ’Tis Jesus
117. Without Blood Is No Remission
118. Yes, ’Tis a Rough and Thorny Road
119. Yes, We Trust the Day Is Breaking
120. Zion Is Jehovah’s Dwelling
121. Zion Stands by Hills Surrounded
122. Zion’s King Shall Reign Victorious