History
Harry Dixon Loes, who studied at
the Moody
Bible Institute and the American Conservatory of Music, was a musical composer and
teacher, who wrote or co-wrote several other gospel songs. The song has since entered the folk tradition, first
being collected by John Lomax in 1939. Often thought of as a Negro
spiritual, it does not, however, appear in any collection of jubilee or
plantation songs from the nineteenth century.
Depending
on the source, the song may take its theme from Matthew 5:16,
"Let your light shine before men, that they may see your fine works and
give glory to your Father who is in the heaven." Alternatively, it may
refer to the words of Jesus in Luke 11:33,
where he said, "No man, when he hath lighted a candle, putteth it in a
secret place, neither under a bushel, but on a candlestick, that they which
come in may see the light." Or, it may be based on Matthew 5:14–15,
where Jesus said, "Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an
hill cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle and put it under a bushel,
but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house."
Versions
