The phrase comes from 2 Kings 4:26, where a grieving mother answered, "It is well." The hymn echoes Scripture: peace "as a river" (Isaiah 48:18), sorrows like "waves and thy billows" (Psalm 42:7), and "the peace of God, which passeth all understanding" (Philippians 4:7). "God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble" (Psalm 46:1).
It Is Well with My Soul is one of the best-loved hymns ever written, and its words are soaked in Scripture. Horatio Spafford, a Chicago lawyer, wrote it after his four daughters died when the ship Ville du Havre sank in 1873; his wife, Anna, survived. Philip P. Bliss composed the tune. These twelve King James passages lie behind the hymn's lines and its hope. This page is about peace in the middle of suffering; for peace in general see peace, and for mourning a loss see grief.
The Scriptures behind the hymn
1. 2 Kings 4:26
"Run now, I pray thee, to meet her, and say unto her, Is it well with thee? is it well with thy husband? is it well with the child? And she answered, It is well."
Her son had just died, yet the Shunammite woman answered, It is well, and went straight to the man of God. Her words are not denial but faith: she brought her grief to the place where God could meet it.
2. Isaiah 48:18
"O that thou hadst hearkened to my commandments! then had thy peace been as a river, and thy righteousness as the waves of the sea:"
The hymn's opening line about peace like a river echoes this verse, where God longs for His people's peace to flow like a river.
3. Psalms 42:7
"Deep calleth unto deep at the noise of thy waterspouts: all thy waves and thy billows are gone over me."
Sorrows like sea billows roll, the hymn says, and the psalmist felt the same: all thy waves and thy billows are gone over me.
4. Colossians 2:14
"Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross;"
The hymn's joyful third verse rejoices that sin is nailed to the cross. Paul says Christ blotted out the record against us, nailing it to his cross. Whatever is lost, a forgiven soul is well with God.
Well with my soul in the storm
5. Psalms 46:1-3
"God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea; Though the waters thereof roar and be troubled, though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof. Selah."
Though the earth be removed and the mountains carried into the sea, God is a very present help.
6. Philippians 4:7
"And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus."
The peace of God passes all understanding. That peace is not explained by circumstances; it is a gift that guards hearts and minds.
7. Job 1:21
"And said, Naked came I out of my mother's womb, and naked shall I return thither: the LORD gave, and the LORD hath taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD."
After losing his children and wealth in one day, Job worshipped: the LORD gave, and the LORD hath taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD.
8. Habakkuk 3:17-18
"Although the fig tree shall not blossom, neither shall fruit be in the vines; the labour of the olive shall fail, and the fields shall yield no meat; the flock shall be cut off from the fold, and there shall be no herd in the stalls: Yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will joy in the God of my salvation."
Though the fig tree fail and the fields yield nothing, yet I will rejoice in the LORD. This is it-is-well faith: joy rooted in God when every visible support is gone.
The hope that makes it well
9. 2 Corinthians 4:17-18
"For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory; While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal."
Paul calls affliction light and momentary compared with an eternal weight of glory.
10. Romans 8:18
"For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us."
The sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory to come.
11. 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17
"For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord."
The hymn's last verse longs for the day the trump shall resound and the Lord descend. Paul promises the dead in Christ will rise and we shall ever be with the Lord.
12. Psalms 42:11
"Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why art thou disquieted within me? hope thou in God: for I shall yet praise him, who is the health of my countenance, and my God."
Why art thou cast down, O my soul? Hope thou in God. Saying it is well can begin as a choice to preach hope to yourself.
A short prayer
Lord, when sorrows roll like sea billows, teach my soul to say it is well. I bring my loss to You. Be my refuge and very present help, guard my heart with Your peace, and fix my hope on the day I will ever be with You. In Jesus' name, amen.
Go deeper: a SOAP study prompt
Pick one verse above and write: - Scripture: copy the verse by hand. - Observation: what does it say? Who is speaking, to whom? - Application: what does it mean for you today? - Prayer: turn it into a two-line prayer.
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Frequently asked questions
Where does it is well with my soul come from in the Bible?
The phrase it is well comes from 2 Kings 4:26, where the Shunammite woman answered, "It is well," even after her son had died. The hymn also echoes Isaiah 48:18, Psalm 42:7 and Colossians 2:14.
What is the story behind It Is Well with My Soul?
Horatio Spafford wrote the words after his four daughters died in the sinking of the Ville du Havre in 1873, while his wife Anna survived. Philip P. Bliss wrote the music. The hymn has comforted grieving believers ever since.
Does it is well mean I should not grieve?
No. Job, the psalmist and Spafford all grieved deeply. Saying it is well is not pretending; it is trusting that God holds your soul even while your heart breaks. Our grief page may help too.
Sources: All Scripture quotations are from the King James Version (KJV), public domain in the United States. References were checked against the KJV text from bible-api.com.
Related: Bible verses about peace · Bible verses about grief · Bible verses about hope · Bible verses about trials and tribulations · Bible verses about strength in hard times · Bible verses for funerals
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