My Jesus, I Love Thee Lyrics William R. Featherston, 1864
4 verses, public domain, free to print and project.
The words
Verse 1. My Jesus, I love thee, I know thou art mine,
For thee all the follies of sin I resign;
My gracious Redeemer, my Saviour art thou;
If ever I lov’d thee, my Jesus, ’tis now.
Verse 2. I love thee, because thou hast first loved me,
And purchased my pardon on Calvary’s tree;
I love thee for wearing the thorns on thy brow:
If ever I lov’d thee, my Jesus, ’tis now.
Verse 3. I’ll love thee in life, I will love thee in death,
And praise thee as long as thou lendest me breath;
And say when the death-dew lies cold on my brow,
If ever I lov’d thee, my Jesus, ’tis now.
Verse 4. In mansions of glory and endless delight,
I’ll ever adore thee in heaven so bright;
I’ll sing with the glittering crown on my brow,
If ever I lov’d thee, my Jesus, ’tis now.
Words copied from New Baptist Hymnal (1926). They were published in 1864, so they are in the public domain in the United States, and your church may print them, show them and sing them without a license.
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The story behind My Jesus, I Love Thee
The hymn appeared anonymously in England in 1862. The Hymnology Archive finds the earliest printing in The Christian Pioneer in February 1862, and Hymnary.org says William Antliff printed it in The Primitive Methodist Magazine that October. Who wrote it is disputed. Hymnals have credited William Ralph Featherston, a Canadian born in Montreal in 1846 who died in 1873. That credit rests on the word of his aunt, Elizabeth Featherston Wilson, passed on by Ira Sankey in 1906. She said he wrote it in 1858 at about sixteen. The manuscript is lost, and no Canadian printing before 1878 has been found. A second candidate is James Haynes Duffell of West Bromwich, an iron smelter and Primitive Methodist. His claim comes from a letter written in 1939, and the Archive calls it the more plausible of the two on the evidence of early English use. The hymn spread quickly. In 1865 a worker with the Christian Commission wrote that it was sung throughout the Union army. Adoniram Judson Gordon, a Baptist pastor in Boston, wrote the tune GORDON because he disliked the melody then used. The Archive says it was first printed in 1872, and Hymnary.org says 1876. The Baptist Hymnal 1991 prints it in F.
William R. Featherston
1846 to 1873
William Ralph Featherston, also spelled Featherstone, was born in Montreal in 1846 and died in 1873. Hymnals credit him with the words of My Jesus, I Love Thee, which appeared anonymously in England in 1862. The credit rests on the word of his aunt, Elizabeth Featherston Wilson, passed on by Ira Sankey in 1906. She said he wrote it in 1858 at about age sixteen. The manuscript is lost. The Hymnology Archive treats the claim as thin and names James Haynes Duffell, a West Bromwich Primitive Methodist, as a second candidate with a more plausible case.
Adoniram J. Gordon
1836-04-19 to 1895
Adoniram Judson Gordon was born at New Hampton, New Hampshire, and graduated from Brown University in 1860. He entered the Baptist ministry and became pastor of Clarendon Street Baptist Church in Boston in 1869. He published The Vestry Hymn and Tune Book in 1872 and co-edited Service of Song for Baptist Churches in 1871. Hymnary.org lists 24 texts under his name, including O Spirit's Anointing, For Service Appointing, written at Northfield in 1886. He composed the tune GORDON for My Jesus, I Love Thee because he disliked the melody then in use. He died in 1895.
- Hymnology Archive, My Jesus, I love thee, I know thou art mine , read 2026-10-16
- Hymnary.org, My Jesus, I Love Thee , read 2026-10-16
- Hymnary.org, Baptist Hymnal 1991 No. 210 , read 2026-10-16
- Hymnary.org, Adoniram Judson Gordon , read 2026-10-16
Scripture in My Jesus, I Love Thee
The Bible passages behind the words, with the verse of the hymn that draws on each.
- John 21:15 In verse 15 of the hymn
- 1 John 4:19 In verse 19 of the hymn
- 1 Peter 1:8 In verse 8 of the hymn
- 2 Timothy 4:8 In verse 8 of the hymn
My Jesus, I Love Thee videos
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My Jesus I Love Thee (Hymn 380) | Phil Webb & the Grace Community Church Congregation Hymns of Grace, Congregation
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"My Jesus I Love Thee" 250 Voice Mass Choir for Classic Hymns English album at Hyderabad Classic Hymns, Choir
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My Jesus, I Love Thee SE Samonte, A cappella
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My Jesus, I Love Thee - piano instrumental hymn with lyrics Kaleb Brasee, Piano
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HeartSong Cedarville University - My Jesus I Love Thee (Official Music Video) HeartSong at Cedarville University, Modern arrangement
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Print and project
Chords and keys
Hymnals print it in F.
Questions people ask
Who wrote My Jesus, I Love Thee?
It is disputed. Hymnals credit William Ralph Featherston, and the Hymnology Archive finds James Haynes Duffell the more plausible candidate.
When was My Jesus, I Love Thee written?
It appeared anonymously in England in 1862. Featherston's family said he wrote it in 1858 at about sixteen, and no manuscript survives.
Who wrote the tune for My Jesus, I Love Thee?
Adoniram Judson Gordon, a Baptist pastor in Boston, wrote the tune GORDON. The Hymnology Archive says it was first printed in 1872, and Hymnary.org says 1876.
Is My Jesus, I Love Thee in the public domain?
The words are public domain in the United States. The first known printing is from 1862, and the tune GORDON dates from the 1870s.
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