"Jesus Loves Me" is a Christian hymn written by

Anna Bartlett Warner Anna Bartlett Warner (August 31, 1827 – January 22, 1915) was an American writer, the author of several books, and of poems set to music as hymns and religious songs for children. Biography Anna Bartlett Warner was born on Long Island on August ...

(1827–1915). The lyrics first appeared as a poem in the context of an 1860 novel called ''Say and Seal'', written by her older sister

Susan Warner Susan is a feminine given name, from Persian "Susan" (lily flower), from Egyptian '' sšn'' and Coptic ''shoshen'' meaning "lotus flower", from Hebrew ''Shoshana'' meaning "lily" (in modern Hebrew this also means "rose" and a flower in general), ...

(1819–1885), in which the words were spoken as a comforting poem to a dying child. The tune was added in 1862 by

William Batchelder Bradbury William Batchelder Bradbury (October 6, 1816 – January 7, 1868) was a musician who composed the tune to "Jesus Loves Me" and many other popular hymns. Biography He was born on October 6, 1816, in York, Maine, where his father was the leader of ...

(1816–1868). Along with his tune, Bradbury added his own chorus "Yes, Jesus loves me, Yes, Jesus Loves me..." After publication as a song it became one of the most popular Christian hymns in churches around the world, especially among children.

Poem by Anna Bartlett Warner

As originally published in 1860, it appeared in four stanzas, as follows: Jesus loves me—this I know, For the Bible tells me so: Little ones to him belong,— They are weak, but he is strong. Jesus loves me—he who died Heaven’s gate to open wide; He will wash away my sin, Let his little child come in. Jesus loves me—loves me still, Though I'm very weak and ill; From his shining throne on high, Comes to watch me where I lie. Jesus loves me—he will stay Close beside me all the way. Then his little child will take Up to heaven for his dear sake.

Hymn by William Batchelder Bradbury

''Bradbury's Golden Shower of S.S. Melodies: a new collection of hymns and tunes for the Sabbath school'', edited by Wm. B. Bradbury, New York, 1862: Jesus loves me—this I know, For the Bible tells me so; Little ones to Him belong— They are weak, but He is strong. ''Refrain:'' Yes, Jesus loves me, Yes, Jesus loves me, Yes, Jesus loves me— The Bible tells me so! Jesus loves me—He who died Heaven’s gate to open wide; He will wash away my sin, Let His little child come in. ''Refrain'' Jesus loves me—loves me still, Though I’m very weak and ill; From His shining throne on high, Comes to watch me where I lie. ''Refrain'' Jesus loves me—He will stay Close beside me all the way; If I love Him, when I die He will take me home on high. ''Refrain''

History

In 1943 in the

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, John F. Kennedy's PT-109 was rammed and sunk. Islanders Biuku Gasa and Eroni Kumana who found Kennedy and the survivors remember that when they rode on PT boats to retrieve the survivors, the Marines sang this song with the natives, who had learned it from

Seventh-day Adventist The Seventh-day Adventist Church is an Adventist Protestant Christian denomination which is distinguished by its observance of Saturday, the seventh day of the week in the Christian (Gregorian) and the Hebrew calendar, as the Sabbath, and ...

missionaries. This hymn was titled "China" in some hymnals of the 19th century. Some early hymnals, such as ''The Modern Hymnal'' (1926) explain this title with a subtitled note that says, "The favorite Hymn of China". By the time of later hymnals such as the Baptist Hymnal (1956), the subtitle had been dropped and the tune was simply called "CHINA".

Revised versions

The poem and the hymn, or portions of them, have sometimes been revised. Some examples of this are *The book ''Jack Bauer's Having a Bad Day'' presented a version which alternated ''Yes, Jesus Loves Me'' with ''... Loves Us'' and ''Loves You''. *A message presented in the book ''Good Morning Message'' builds on the line refrain as follows: "Yes, Jesus loves me ... Yes, Jesus loves you ... allow Him to help you through your day, every day. ..." *The inspirational book ''From Chains to Change'' presented a version in which the line "Little ones to Him belong" was rendered as "Little ones to Him below".

Notable performances

The song has been recorded by a large number of different artists, either obscure or famous. Some versions include the following: *1972:

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on ''Turn Your Radio On'' *1980: John Fahey on '' Yes! Jesus Loves Me'' *1975:

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on ''I Don't Know What the World Is Coming To'' *1991:

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and Bobby Atkins on ''Heart of the South'' *1992:

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on '' The Bodyguard'' soundtrack *1994: Shanice on ''21...Ways to Grow'' *1997:

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on ''Precious Memories'' *1998:

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on ''Butterfly Kisses & Bedtime Prayers'' *2000:

Rosemary Clooney Rosemary Clooney (May 23, 1928 – June 29, 2002) was an American singer and actress. She came to prominence in the early 1950s with the song " Come On-a My House", which was followed by other pop numbers such as " Botch-a-Me", " Mambo Italiano" ...

on ''Many a Wonderful Moment'' *2000:

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on ''Devotion'' *2001:

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on '' Survivor'' *2004: CocoRosie on ''La Maison de Mon Rêve'' (a parody denouncing American Christianity) *2006:

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on ''Songs of Inspiration'' *2008:

Dionne Warwick Marie Dionne Warwick (; born December 12, 1940) is an American singer, actress, and television host. Warwick ranks among the 40 biggest U.S. hit makers between 1955 and 1999, based on her chart history on ''Billboards Hot 100 pop singles ch ...

on ''Why We Sing'' *2012: Whitney Houston and Kelly Price; Houston's last performance in an impromptu duet at a nightclubWhitney Houston’s Tumultuous Final Days
(February 12, 2012)
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Notes