STORY BEHIND THE HYMN: “Nothing but the Blood”

Robert Lowry (1826-1899) has provided us with many of the most venerable nineteenth-century texts and tunes from the United States. The Philadelphia-born author and composer of this hymn was a popular Baptist preacher and educator who served churches in Pennsylvania, New York City, Brooklyn, and Plainfield, New Jersey. Lowry, a graduate of Bucknell University, was a professor of belles lettres in the University, receiving a D.D. in 1875. He became known for his gospel songs while ministering in Brooklyn, collaborating often with William H. Doane in producing some of the most popular Sunday school song collections of his day.

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The Rev. Carlton R. Young, editor of The United Methodist Hymnal, noted that “Nothing but the Blood” “was near the top of the list . . . on the most popular religious songs found in the five widely used hymnals and songbooks other than the 1957 Evangelical United Brethren and 1966 Methodist hymnals.” For many, however, this hymn is anathema, especially for those who loathe “blood” hymns.

“Nothing but the Blood” has all the earmarks of a classic gospel song. It focuses on a single theme and hammers it home. The singer will repeat the text, “nothing but the blood of Jesus” twelve times if he or she sings all four stanzas. The refrain is succinct and reinforces the theme. The language is direct and obvious, with all one- or two-syllable words. The theme of cleansing from sin is prominent in gospel song literature.

Hebrews 9:22 appeared originally above the hymn in the original publication by Lowry and William H. Doane entitled Gospel Music (1876). The passage reads: “Without the shedding of blood there is no remission of sin.”

Lowry adapts a call-response pattern in the stanzas that immediately engages the singer. Stanza one begins with a question: “What can wash away my sin?” The answer is resounding and definitive: “Nothing but the blood of Jesus.”