"If children, then...heirs of God." Romans 8:17
Words: Harriet Eugenia Peck Buell, 1877.
Music: "Binghamton," John Bunnell Sumner, 1877
 Play MIDI | Link to obtain musical score info |
The lyrics first appeared in The Northern Christian Advocate, February 1, 1877. They were written as a poem, titled "The Child of a King." John Sumner had been praying for a Gospel song to replace the one that would have been written by his friend and teacher Philip Bliss, who had recently suffered an untimely death. When Sumner saw these words, he knew his prayer had been answered.
My Father is rich in houses and lands,
He holdeth the wealth of the world in His hands!
Of rubies and diamonds, of silver and gold,
His coffers are full, He has riches untold.
Refrain
I'm a child of the King,
A child of the King:
With Jesus my Savior,
I'm a child of the King.
My Father's own Son, the Savior of men,
Once wandered on earth as the poorest of them;
But now He is pleading our pardon on high,
That we may be His when He comes by and by.
Refrain
I once was an outcast stranger on earth,
A sinner by choice, an alien by birth,
But I've been adopted, my name's written down,
An heir to a mansion, a robe and a crown.
Refrain
A tent or a cottage, why should I care?
They're building a palace for me over there;
Though exiled from home, yet still may I sing:
All glory to God, I'm a child of the King.
Refrain
