"Chief of Sinners Though I Be"
                        by William McComb, 1793-c. 1870
                                  Text From:
                      THE HANDBOOK TO THE LUTHERAN HYMNAL
               (St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1942)p.244
                                       


	Chief of sinners though I be,
	Jesus shed His blood for me;
	Died that I might live on high,
	Lived that I might never die,
	As the branch is to the vine,
	I am His, and He is mine.
	
	2. Oh, the height of Jesus' love!
	Higher than the heavens above,
	Deeper than the depths of sea,
	Lasting as eternity.
	Love that found me--wondrous thought!--
	Found me when I sought Him not.
	
	3. Jesus only can impart
	Balm to heal the smitten heart;
	Peace that flows from sin forgiven,
	Joy that lifts the soul to heaven;
	Faith and hope to walk with God
	In the way that Enoch trod.
	
	4. Chief of sinner though I be,
	Christ is All in all to me;
	All my wants to Him are known,
	All my sorrows are His own.
	Safe with Him from earthly strife,
	He sustains the hidden life. 
	
	5. O my Savior, help afford
	By Thy Spirit and Thy Word!
	When my wayward heart would stray,
	Keep me in the narrow way;
	Grace in time of need supply
	While I live and when I die.

        

        Notes:
        Hymn #342 from _The Handbook to the Lutheran Hymnal_
        Text: Rom. 5:8
        Author: William McComb, 1864
        Composer: Richard Redhead, 1853
        Tune: "Gethsemane"