"Jesus Loves Me" is a
Christian hymn
A hymn is a type of song, and partially synonymous with devotional song, specifically written for the purpose of adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a deity or deities, or to a prominent figure or personification. The word ''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. She is best known for writing the hymn " Jesus Loves Me".
Biogr ...
(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 Bogert Warner (pen name, Elizabeth Wetherell; July 11, 1819 – March 17, 1885) was an American Presbyterianism, Presbyterian writer of religious fiction, children's fiction, and theological works. She is best remembered for her massive bes ...
(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 o ...
(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 a popular hymn in English-language churches.
Poem by Anna Bartlett Warner
As originally published in 1860, it appeared in four stanzas, as follows:
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:
History
In 1943 in the
Solomon Islands
Solomon Islands, also known simply as the Solomons,John Prados, ''Islands of Destiny'', Dutton Caliber, 2012, p,20 and passim is an island country consisting of six major islands and over 1000 smaller islands in Melanesia, part of Oceania, t ...
,
John F. Kennedy
John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), also known as JFK, was the 35th president of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963. He was the first Roman Catholic and youngest person elected p ...
's
PT-109
''PT-109'' was an Elco PT boat (patrol torpedo boat) last commanded by Lieutenant (junior grade) John F. Kennedy, future United States president, in the Solomon Islands campaign of the Pacific theater during World War II. Kennedy's act ...
was rammed and sunk. Islanders
Biuku Gasa and Eroni Kumana
Biuku Gasa (27 July 1923 – 23 November 2005) and Eroni Kumana (c. 1918 – 2 August 2014) were Solomon Islands, Solomon Islanders of Melanesians, Melanesian descent who found John F. Kennedy and his surviving Motor Torpedo Boat PT-109, ''PT-109 ...
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 (SDA) 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 Sabbat ...
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:
Ray Stevens
Harold Ray Ragsdale (born January 24, 1939), known professionally as Ray Stevens, is an American country music, country and pop singer-songwriter and comedian. He is best known for his Grammy-winning recordings "Everything Is Beautiful" and "M ...
on ''Turn Your Radio On''
*1980:
John Fahey on ''
Yes! Jesus Loves Me''
*1975:
Bobby Womack
Robert Dwayne Womack ( ; March 4, 1944 – June 27, 2014) was an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. Starting in the early 1950s as the lead singer of his family musical group the Valentinos and as Sam Cooke's backing guitarist, Womack's ...
on ''I Don't Know What the World Is Coming To''
*1991:
Jim Eanes and Bobby Atkins on ''Heart of the South''
*1992:
Whitney Houston
Whitney Elizabeth Houston (August 9, 1963 – February 11, 2012) was an American singer, actress, film producer, model, and philanthropist. Commonly referred to as "Honorific nicknames in popular music, the Voice", she is List of awards and no ...
on ''
The Bodyguard'' soundtrack
*1994:
Shanice
Shanice Lorraine Wilson-Knox (née Wilson; born May 14, 1973) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, actress and dancer. She had the ''Billboard'' hit singles "I Love Your Smile" and "Silent Prayer" in 1991 and "Saving Forever for ...
on ''21...Ways to Grow''
*1997:
Brenda Lee
Brenda Mae Tarpley (born December 11, 1944), known professionally as Brenda Lee, is an American singer. Primarily performing rockabilly, pop, country and Christmas music, she achieved her first ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' hit aged 12 i ...
on ''Precious Memories''
*1998:
Bob Carlisle
Robert Mason Carlisle (born September 29, 1956) is an American Contemporary Christian singer and songwriter. He performed with several bands, most notably Allies and Billy Thermal, before launching a solo career where he received a Grammy Award a ...
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 (Ba-Ba-Baciami Piccin ...
on ''Many a Wonderful Moment''
*2000:
Aaron Neville
Aaron Joseph Neville (born January 24, 1941) is an American singer renowned for his distinctively smooth, vibrato-heavy tenor and a genre-crossing career that spans R&B, soul, gospel, jazz, country, and pop. He gained national prominence with hi ...
on ''Devotion''
*2001:
Destiny's Child
Destiny's Child was an American girl group whose final lineup comprised Beyoncé, Beyoncé Knowles, Kelly Rowland, and Michelle Williams (singer), Michelle Williams. The group began their musical career as Girl's Tyme, formed in 1990 in Hou ...
on ''
Survivor
Survivor(s) may refer to:
* one who survives
Arts, entertainment and media Fictional entities
* Survivors, characters in the 1997 KKnD series#Armies, ''KKnD'' video-game series
* ''The Survivors'', or the ''New Survivors Foundation'', a fictional ...
''
*2004:
CocoRosie on ''La Maison de Mon Rêve'' (a parody denouncing
American Christianity)
*2006:
Alabama
Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...
on ''Songs of Inspiration''
*2008:
Dionne Warwick
Marie Dionne Warwick ( ; born Marie Dionne Warrick; December 12, 1940) is an American singer, actress, and television host. During her career, Warwick has won many awards, including six Grammy Awards. She has been inducted into the Hollywood Wa ...
on ''Why We Sing''
*2012: Whitney Houston and
Kelly Price
Kelly Cherelle Price (born April 4, 1973) is an American R&B and gospel singer. Beginning her career in 1992, Price originally performed backing vocals for Mariah Carey on multiple songs, including Carey's ''Billboard'' Hot 100-number one sin ...
; Houston's last performance in an impromptu duet at a nightclub
*2022:
Tennessee State University
Tennessee State University (Tennessee State, Tenn State, or TSU) is a public historically black land-grant university in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. Founded in 1912, it is the only state-funded historically black university in Tennes ...
Aristocrat of Bands
Tennessee State University's marching band is known as the Aristocrat of Bands (AOB).
History
The band, much like the stage band of the time known as the Jazz Collegians of Tennessee State University, were primarily student led organizations whe ...
on ''
The Urban Hymnal
''The Urban Hymnal'' is the debut album by the Tennessee State University marching band Aristocrat of Bands. The album won the 2023 Grammy Award for Best Roots Gospel Album.
Recording and release
The album came about when Sir the Baptist visited ...
'', the first album by a college marching band to win a Grammy
See also
*
Christian child's prayer
A Christian child's prayer is Christian prayer recited primarily by children that is typically short, rhyming, or has a memorable tune. It is usually said before bedtime, to give thanks for a meal, or as a nursery rhyme. Many of these prayers ar ...
Notes
{{Authority control
American Christian hymns
Protestant hymns
1860 songs
Whitney Houston songs
Songs about Jesus
Songs based on poems
English children's songs
Public domain music
Songs written by William Batchelder Bradbury
Christianity and children