KA TO SUN OLUGBALA WA

I will never forget this hymn (the Yoruba translation) that was a popular go-to-bed hymn in those days when I was growing up. It's a song rich in meaning:

WORDS BY JAMES EDMESTON. 
MUSIC BY GEORGE C. STEBBINS.

Ka to sun Olugbala wa Fun wa nibukun ale A jewo ese wa fun O Iwo lo le gba wa la Bi ile tile su dudu Okun ko le se wa mo Iwo eni ti kii saare So awon eniyan Re Ni irele a fara wa Sabe abo Re Baba Jesu 'Wo to sun bi awa Se orun wa bi tire Emi mimo rado bo wa So wa lokunkun oru Tit'awa yo fi ri ojo Imole ayeraye B'iparun tile yi wa ka Ti ofa n fo wa koja Awon angeli yi wa ka Awa o wa lailewu Sugbon biku ba ji wa pa T'ibusun wa diboji Je kile mo wa sodo Re Layo atalafia.  Source: Yoruba Baptist Hymnal #61

Saviour, breathe an evening blessing Ere repose our spirits seal; Sin and want we come confessing: Thou canst save, and Thou canst heal. Though the night be dark and dreary, Darkness cannot hide from Thee; Thou art He who, never weary, Watchest where Thy people be. Though destruction walk around us, Though the arrow past us fly, Angel guards from Thee surround us; We are safe if Thou art nigh. Should swift death this night o’ertake us, And our couch become our tomb, May the morn in heaven awake us, Clad in light and deathless bloom. Father, to thy holy keeping Humbly we ourselves resign; Savior, who hast slept our sleeping, Make our slumbers pure as thine Blessed Spirit, brooding o’er us, Chase the darkness of our night, Till the perfect day before us Breaks in everlasting light.

James Edmeston (10 September 1791 – 7 January 1867) was an English architect and surveyor; he was also known as a prolific writer of church hymns.
He was born in Wapping, Middlesex, England. His maternal grandfather was the Reverend Samuel Brewer, congregationalist pastor at Stepney Meeting House for 50 years. However James was attracted to the Church of England and soon became an Anglican. [Read more.]