Jesus Paid It All

Elvina M. Hall; music John T. Grape · 1865 · tune ALL TO CHRIST
Key of G · public domain

Words

Verse 1I hear the Saviour say
Thy strength indeed is small
Child of weakness, watch and pray
Find in Me thine all in all

RefrainJesus paid it all, all to Him I owe
Sin had left a crimson stain, He washed it white as snow

Verse 2Lord, now indeed I find
Thy power, and Thine alone
Can change the leper's spots
And melt the heart of stone

Verse 3For nothing good have I
Whereby Thy grace to claim
I'll wash my garments white
In the blood of Calvary's Lamb

Verse 4And when before the throne
I stand in Him complete
Jesus died my soul to save
My lips shall still repeat

The story

Elvina Hall was sitting in the choir loft of the Monument Street Methodist Church in Baltimore in 1865 while her pastor prayed at length, and by her own account her mind wandered. She wrote these words on the flyleaf of the hymnal in front of her. In the same church, the organist John Grape had recently written a tune he called All to Christ I Owe, which his choir and friends had dismissed as poor, though his wife insisted it would live. When he saw Hall's words he put the two together. The hymn works because of the pivot in the refrain. Sin had left a crimson stain, and then, without argument, He washed it white as snow, straight out of Isaiah 1.

Chords in G

Verse 1 G C G I hear the Saviour say G D G Thy strength indeed is small G C G Child of weakness, watch and pray G D G Find in Me thine all in all Refrain G C G Jesus paid it all, all to Him I owe G D G Sin had left a crimson stain, He washed it white as snow Verse 2 G C G Lord, now indeed I find G D G Thy power, and Thine alone G C G Can change the leper's spots G D G And melt the heart of stone Verse 3 G C G For nothing good have I G D G Whereby Thy grace to claim G C G I'll wash my garments white G D G In the blood of Calvary's Lamb Verse 4 G C G And when before the throne G D G I stand in Him complete G C G Jesus died my soul to save G D G My lips shall still repeat

In the app you can move this to any key and it works out the capo for you.

Common questions

Who wrote Jesus Paid It All? Elvina M. Hall; music John T. Grape wrote the words in 1865.

What tune is it sung to? ALL TO CHRIST, set here in the key of G.

What scripture is it built on? Isaiah 1:18.

Is Jesus Paid It All free to use in church? Yes. The words are public domain, which means any church may sing them, print them in a bulletin, put them on a screen or record them, without asking permission and without paying anyone.

Themes

Grace · The Cross · Cleansing

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