My Song Is Love Unknown
Peyton Garland
"My Song Is Love Unknown" Lyrics
My song is love unknown,
My Savior’s love to me;
Love to the loveless shown,
That they might lovely be.
O who am I,
That for my sake
My Lord should take
Frail flesh, and die?
He came from His blest throne
Salvation to bestow;
But men made strange, and none
The longed-for Christ would know:
But oh, my Friend,
My Friend indeed,
Who at my need
His life did spend.
Sometimes they strew His way,
And His sweet praises sing;
Resounding all the day
Hosannas to their King:
Then “Crucify!”
Is all their breath,
And for His death
They thirst and cry.
They rise and needs will have
My dear Lord made away;
A murderer they save,
The Prince of life they slay.
Yet cheerful He
To suffering goes,
That He His foes
From thence might free.
In life, no house, no home
My Lord on earth might have;
In death, no friendly tomb,
But what a stranger gave.
What may I say?
Heav’n was His home;
But mine the tomb
Wherein He lay.
Here might I stay and sing,
No story so divine;
Never was love, dear King,
Never was grief like Thine.
This is my Friend,
In whose sweet praise
I all my days
Could gladly spend.
The Story behind "My Song is Love Unknown"
These lyrics beautifully call to mind three characteristics of Christ’s sacrifice:
1. Loveliness
In my sinful flesh, I confess that I don’t want to understand the full extent of Christ’s love. On one hand, I’m afraid the guilt I would feel, understanding how deep His love is for my sinful heart, would be more than my heart would like to bear.
On the other hand, to recognize and feel His capacity to love sinners even unto death would require that I honor such knowledge through imitation. And I certainly don’t want to love other sinners even unto death.
We as finite humans can’t understand the limitless love of our Father. Crossman knows this full well when he begins the song by identifying that Christ’s love is beyond our comprehension. In its full weight, it remains a mystery.
Yet, we can know that His love has come to make us lovely, and if that’s not the foundation for perfect endearment, I’m not sure what else is. It’s a spiritual romance that protects our hearts and won’t shatter our souls. It’s more than any romance novel, real-life, chivalrous gentleman, or great poet could string together and uphold.
Perhaps that is the greatest draw to Christianity when compared to other religions. Our God is a God who is close and intimate with us despite our shortcomings, who chooses to dwell among us, even taking on our “frail flesh,” not to gain anything on His part but a relationship with us.
It’s a deep, personal invitation for us to open our hearts to a love that’s so wild and miraculous and, frankly, intimidating that we have no choice but to curiously, joyfully chase it all our days.
2. Friendship
Adult friendships in the modern world are tricky and require a level of trust that many people simply choose not to indulge. In some instances, when people have been slighted, lied to, and manipulated, it makes sense why they keep others at bay. It’s only natural to protect the heart, soul, and mind, and sometimes, protection looks like isolating ourselves from the world.
But there’s no true safety in remaining alone. We weren’t hardwired for it. Our minds and bodies don’t sustain isolation and come out healthy and whole, and I believe Crossman understood this, especially while in exile.
This might be why we see him call Jesus “Friend” over and over throughout the verses. He knows that Christ can be trusted, that the God who would allow people to wave palm branches and praise Him one day, only to yell for His death the next, never holding any resentment towards them, is a friend worth having.
He’s a friend worth imitating, too, if only we are bold enough to live life with such freedom to love and forgive. He’s a friend who gave His very body and soul for the cheater, the liar, the manipulator, the two-faced, the gaslighter, and the downright evil.
He’s a friend so faithful that only He can restore our hope in creating community here on earth. He’s a friend so faithful that only He can sustain our human relationships when sin wants to ruin how we communicate with others.
He’s a friend, and not only a friend, but the friend to hold love together, even when our hearts, minds, and bodies are in exile.
3. Sanctuary
In the last verse, Crossman addresses the grief Christ bore, the grief no one else could or would, but even still, He made a home for us, where we can rejoice in Him and find peace despite the temporary, earthly sorrows we experience.
Jesus had no home on earth, no place to find rest, but instead of securing His comfort, He granted our eternal security. He, our lover, friend, and spiritual solace, remains a marvelous mystery, a “love unknown,” that we only dare hope to paint a picture of through poems and songs.
Additional Versions and Resources
- The Jubilate version is a modern style of the text used in many contemporary worship services.
- A detailed background of this hymn can be found in The Faith We Sing and The New Century Hymnal.
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