O Champion Leader and Lord, Victor over hell: as one delivered from eternal death, I offer praise to thee, thy creature and thy servant. As thou hast loving-kindness beyond all telling, deliver me from every danger that I cry to thee: Jesus, Son of God, have mercy on me. O Maker of angels and Lord of hosts, open thou my unworthy lips and mind, that I may praise thy Holy Name, as thou didst once open the mouth of the dumb, who cried to thee: Hosanna. Jesus most wonderful, the angels' wonderment; Jesus most powerful, ancestors' restoration; Jesus most sweet, patriarchs' summit; Jesus most glorious, faithful kings' strength; Jesus most beloved, prophets' fulfillment; Jesus most marvelous, martyrs' power; Jesus most peaceful, monks' joy; Jesus most merciful, priests' sweetness; Jesus most compassionate, fasters' continence; Jesus most tender, saints' rejoicing; Jesus most chaste, virgins' purity; Jesus pre-eternal, sinners' salvation: Jesus, Son of God, have mercy on me. [The full Akathist continues for 13 Kontakia and 12 Ikoi]
Akathist to the Sweetest Lord Jesus
Also known as Akathist Hymn to Jesus ยท Akathist to the Most Sweet Lord Jesus
About this prayer
The Akathist to the Sweetest Lord Jesus is one of the most beloved devotional prayers of Eastern Orthodox Christianity, sung in honor of the name of Jesus. Like all Akathist hymns, it consists of 13 Kontakia (short opening verses) alternating with 12 Ikoi (longer verses with twelve-line invocations of the praised subject), all sung standing as a sustained act of praise. The word 'akathist' is Greek for 'not seated': these hymns are traditionally sung standing throughout, an act of bodily reverence that matches the sustained verbal praise.
The Akathist to the Sweetest Lord Jesus is later than the foundational Akathist Hymn to the Theotokos (which dates to the 6th-7th century and is the original of the genre). The Akathist to Jesus emerged in the 13th-14th century Byzantine devotional tradition and was likely composed by an anonymous Byzantine monk, possibly at the Stoudion monastery in Constantinople.
The prayer is one of the principal prayers used in connection with the Jesus Prayer tradition. The repeated invocation 'Jesus, Son of God, have mercy on me' that closes each Ikos echoes the Jesus Prayer itself ('Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner'). The Akathist therefore serves as a sustained expansion of the Jesus Prayer's devotional core, working out the implications of the name of Jesus across more than two hundred individual invocations.
The English translation here is from the standard public-domain editions of Orthodox prayer books used in English-speaking parishes. The full Akathist is significantly longer than the excerpt included; the complete work continues through all 13 Kontakia and 12 Ikoi for approximately 30-45 minutes of sung praise.
When it's said
Sung in personal Orthodox devotion in honor of the Holy Name of Jesus. Used in some Orthodox monastic communities as part of the regular prayer rule. Sometimes sung in parishes on Sundays of the Triodion (the period before Great Lent) or on the feast of the Circumcision (January 1, the day on which the Name of Jesus was given). Recited as a personal devotion at any time, particularly during periods of trial or particular devotion to the Holy Name.
Notes on the text
The Akathist genre is one of the most distinctive contributions of Byzantine Christianity to Christian devotional life. Akathists exist for the Theotokos (the original, 6th-7th century), the Holy Cross, the Lord Jesus, various saints, and many specific theological themes. The Akathist to the Sweetest Lord Jesus shows clear influence from the hesychast tradition of Orthodox spirituality, which made the Jesus Prayer the foundation of Orthodox contemplative practice. The Akathist's repeated 'Jesus, Son of God, have mercy on me' refrain functions as a hesychast aspiration drawn out across thirty minutes of sustained singing.
Common questions
What is an Akathist?
Who wrote the Akathist to the Sweetest Lord Jesus?
How long is the full Akathist?
Anonymous Byzantine, 13th-14th century. English translation from Isabel Florence Hapgood, Service Book of the Holy Orthodox-Catholic Apostolic (Greco-Russian) Church (1906), and standard Russian Orthodox akathist collections in PD English translation. Public domain.
Last reviewed: June 2026 against primary source.