Lyrics
The King of Love my Shepherd is
Whose goodness faileth never
I nothing lack if I am His
And He is mine forever
And He is mine forever
Where streams of living water flow
My ransomed soul He leadeth
And where the verdant pastures grow
With food celestial feedeth
Never failing, Ruler of my heart
Everlasting, Lover of my soul
On the mountain high or in the valley low
The King of Love my Shepherd is
The King of Love my Shepherd is
Lost and foolish off I strayed
But yet in love He sought me
And on His shoulder gently laid
And home rejoicing brought me
In death’s dark veil I fear no ill
With Thee, dear Lord, beside me
Thy rod and staff my comfort still
Thy cross before to guide me
Never failing, Ruler of my heart
Everlasting, Lover of my soul
On the mountain high or in the valley low
The King of Love my Shepherd is
The King of Love my Shepherd is
Oh, Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Oh, Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Never failing, Ruler of my heart
Everlasting, Lover of my soul
On the mountain high or in the valley low
The King of Love my Shepherd is
Never failing, Ruler of my heart
Everlasting, Lover of my soul
On the mountain high or in the valley low
The King of Love my Shepherd is
The King of Love my Shepherd is
And so through all the length of days
Thy goodness faileth never
Good Shepherd, may I sing Your praise
Within Your house forever
Within Your house forever
The King of Love My shepherd Is
By: Henry W. Baker
The words to this song were originally written in the 1850s to be a part of a Hymn collection called, “Hymns Ancient and Modern.” It was a much more interpretive rendition of a Psalm then was common in that day. The text it is based on is Psalm 23. Baker changed the Psalm from “The Lord is my shepherd” to “The king of love my shepherd is.” His efforts in these changes were to point further to Christ and other texts about Jesus as shepherd. These interpretive lyrics were forward thinking in their day. Read more about it’s history. This song has historically been played to several different tunes. Most recently the group I Am They found these great words and created the version we play at South Fellowship.
We have introduced this song at South for several reasons. The obvious reason to add this song is our Good Shepherd – Psalm 23 series. This song does a wonderful job exploring the 23rd Psalm musically. I have probably said this in past blogs but, one of the most important tasks a believer can put themselves to is remembering. The songs we sing are an important part of Gospel-Transformation at South.
At South we talk about Gospel Transformation, Life-giving Community, and Visible Faith. These three phrases are not simply pithy sayings that we came up with to feel like we have a unified direction. These phrases are what we see the scriptures teaching us about being a follower of Jesus. If you ever wonder what you can do to grow as a follower of Jesus you can just focus on those things. I’m expanding a bit beyond this song but it’s important for us to realize what we are doing when we sing. Here is a short expansion of our mission to help you categorize our singing and help you understand what to focus on in your own life to grow as an apprentice of Jesus.
Gospel Transformation: Get the gospel in front of you daily and in many ways. This includes but is not limited to scripture reading, praying thanks for what God has done for you, singing songs that remind you of the work of Jesus. This is what we do as we sing. We reorient our souls to the realities that Jesus offers us.
Life-giving Community: Spend time with other believers. Find other followers of Jesus and encourage them, be encouraged by them, be challenged by them, press through the conflicts and grow. We are designed to grow in community not in isolation. When we gather corporately to sing we do some of this as well. Often when we sing we are singing to each other. Some time think about that in a worship service. Sing the truth to the people around you.
Visible Faith: Find out how God has uniquely designed you to participate in His mission and get in the game. You were made for a mission and if you don’t do what you were made for you will never fully thrive.
So there you have it, there is how you can grow. If you are wondering what you should do to help your kids grow, it’s the same. If you are wondering what you can do to help a friend grow closer to Jesus, it’s the same.
I love singing this song with South because it reminds us of truth about our Good Shepherd. I trust it does the same for you.
