Lyrics
Verse 1
I have journeyed
Through the long dark night
Out on the open sea
By faith alone
Sight unknown
And yet his eyes were watching me
Chorus
The anchor holds
Though the ship is battered
The anchor holds
Though the sails are torn
I have fallen on my knees
As I faced the raging seas
The anchor holds
In spite of the storm
Verse 2
I've had visions
I've had dreams
I've even held them in my hand
But I never knew
They would slip right through
Like they were only grains of sand
Verse 3
I have been young
But I am older now
And there has been beauty these eyes have seen
But it was in the night
Through the storms of my life
Oh that's where God proved his love to me
Video
Meaning & Inspiration
“The Anchor Holds” by Ray Boltz uses a storm at sea as a picture of faith under pressure. The singer describes a long dark night on the open sea, sailing by faith alone with the destination unseen, while God’s eyes were watching. The refrain is steady: the anchor holds though the ship is battered and the sails are torn.
The second verse moves from the sea to the heart, speaking of visions and dreams held in the hand that slipped away “like grains of sand.” The third says that beauty has been seen in life, but that it was “in the night, through the storms of my life” that God proved His love. The song does not deny the storm; it places confidence in what holds fast within it.
The anchor image is close to Hebrews 6:19, which calls hope an anchor of the soul, and the stilled storm recalls Jesus calming the sea in Mark 4:39. Psalm 107:29-30 also describes God hushing the waves.
Related Scripture
- Hebrews 6:19 Hope as an anchor of the soul
- Mark 4:39 Jesus calms the storm
- Psalm 107:29-30 God stills the storm and brings people to their haven