Tell Me the Old, Old Story: Kate Hankey's Hymn of the Gospel, All Four Verses and the KJV Verses Behind It

Kate Hankey was the daughter of a London banker and grew up among the evangelical families of Clapham. She taught Bible classes for young women working in London shops and factories. Early in 1866 she fell seriously ill, and lying in bed she wrote a long poem in two parts. The first, The Story Wanted, is the voice of someone asking to be told about Jesus. The second, The Story Told, became I Love to Tell the Story. William Doane, the American composer, heard the first part read aloud at a conference in Montreal in 1867 and set it to music the same afternoon, as he later told it. Below are the four verses as printed in 1894, then 12 KJV passages on the gospel story and why we need to hear it again and again.

Tell Me the Old, Old Story: the words

Verse 1
Tell me the Old, Old Story,
Of unseen things above,
Of Jesus and His glory,
Of Jesus and His love.
Tell me the Story simply,
As to a little child,
For I am weak and weary,
And helpless and defiled.

Refrain:
Tell me the Old, Old Story,
Tell me the Old, Old Story,
Tell me the Old, Old Story,
Of Jesus and His love.

Verse 2
Tell me the Story slowly,
That I may take it in—
That wonderful redemption,
God's remedy for sin.
Tell me the Story often,
For I forget so soon;
The 'early dew' of morning
Has passed away at noon.

Refrain:
Tell me the Old, Old Story,
Tell me the Old, Old Story,
Tell me the Old, Old Story,
Of Jesus and His love.

Verse 3
Tell me the Story softly,
With earnest tones, and grave;
Remember! I'm the sinner
Whom Jesus came to save;
Tell me that Story always,
If you would really be,
In any time of trouble,
A comforter to me.

Refrain:
Tell me the Old, Old Story,
Tell me the Old, Old Story,
Tell me the Old, Old Story,
Of Jesus and His love.

Verse 4
Tell me the same old Story,
When you have cause to fear
That this world's empty glory
Is costing me too dear.
Yes, and when that world's glory
Is dawning on my soul,
Tell me the Old, Old Story:
'Christ Jesus makes thee whole.'

Refrain:
Tell me the Old, Old Story,
Tell me the Old, Old Story,
Tell me the Old, Old Story,
Of Jesus and His love.

Words: Arabella Katherine Hankey (1834-1911), from the first part of her long poem The Story Wanted, written in 1866; music: William H. Doane (1867). Text copied from Gospel Hymns Nos. 1 to 6 Complete (New York and Chicago, 1894), hymn 28, checked against Hymns of Consolation, No. 37 (Internet Archive scans). The 1894 book puts early dew and the last line in quotation marks; we print them in single quotes. The refrain is sung after every verse. Public domain.

Of Jesus and His love: the story itself

1. 1 Corinthians 15:3-4

Paul calls this the message of first importance: how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures. That is the old, old story in one sentence. It was old even when Paul wrote it, because he had received it from those who were Christians before him and passed it on unchanged. The gospel does not need to be improved or updated. It needs to be told. Kate Hankey's hymn asks for exactly this: not a new idea, but the same story of Jesus and His love. See our Bible verses about salvation.

2. Luke 24:27

On the road to Emmaus, the risen Jesus walked with two sad disciples who did not recognize Him. And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself. Jesus Himself told the old story, and He told it from the whole Bible. Every part of Scripture points to Him. The hymn's Tell me the Story slowly, that I may take it in, is the prayer of someone who wants to understand it as those disciples finally did. Later they said their hearts had burned within them while He opened the Scriptures to them.

3. 2 Timothy 3:15

Paul reminded Timothy that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. Timothy learned the old story from his mother Eunice and grandmother Lois, and it shaped his whole life. Kate Hankey spent years teaching the Bible to young women, and her hymn has been taught to children ever since. Tell me the Story simply, as to a little child, is not a request to make the gospel childish. It is a recognition that the deepest truths can be told plainly, and that the Scriptures themselves make us wise.

4. Matthew 18:3

When the disciples argued about who was greatest, Jesus set a little child in the middle of them and said, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven. Children receive what they are given. They do not pretend to be strong. The hymn's first verse takes that posture: For I am weak and weary, and helpless and defiled. That is not a sad confession but a hopeful one. The kingdom belongs to people who know they need help. The old, old story is good news precisely for those who have nothing to bring.

Tell me the Story often, for I forget so soon

5. Romans 3:23-24

For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. These two verses hold the center of the gospel: the problem and the answer. Everyone falls short, and everyone who believes is declared righteous as a gift. The hymn's second verse calls it that wonderful redemption, God's remedy for sin. A remedy is a cure. Sin is not only guilt but sickness, and God has provided the medicine in the death of His Son. Hankey wrote the hymn in a sickroom, and she knew what it meant to need a cure.

6. Hosea 6:4

The hymn's line The early dew of morning has passed away at noon comes straight from Hosea, which is why the 1894 book puts early dew in quotation marks. God says to His people, your goodness is as a morning cloud, and as the early dew it goeth away. Their devotion was real for a moment and gone by midday. Hankey applies it honestly to herself: For I forget so soon. Most Christians know the feeling. A truth that moved us at breakfast is forgotten by lunch. The answer is not to try harder to remember but to hear the story again, often, until it sinks in.

7. Hebrews 2:1

Therefore we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest at any time we should let them slip. The picture is of a boat drifting past its harbor because no one is paying attention. Drift does not require rebellion, only neglect. Hebrews was written to believers who were tempted to drift away from Christ under pressure. That is why the hymn keeps asking, Tell me the Story often, tell me that Story always. Hearing the gospel again is not for beginners only. It is how mature Christians stay anchored. See our Bible verses about the word of God.

8. 2 Peter 1:12

Near the end of his life Peter wrote, I will not be negligent to put you always in remembrance of these things, though ye know them, and be established in the present truth. Peter's readers already knew the gospel. He reminded them anyway, because knowing something once is not the same as living by it. Every sermon, hymn and Bible reading that repeats the old story does the same work. Hankey's hymn is the other side of Peter's letter: Peter promises to remind, and the hymn asks to be reminded. Both are wise. None of us outgrows the need to hear it again.

A comforter to me: the story in every season

9. 2 Corinthians 1:3-4

Paul calls God the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort; Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble. The hymn's third verse asks the listener to tell the story always, if you would really be, in any time of trouble, a comforter to me. The best comfort a Christian can give a hurting friend is often not advice but the gospel, told gently, with earnest tones and grave. God comforts us so that we can pass that comfort on. See our Bible verses about comfort and strength.

10. Mark 8:36

For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? Jesus asked this question right after telling His disciples that He would suffer and die, and that anyone who followed Him must take up the cross. Hankey's last verse sees the danger clearly: that this world's empty glory is costing me too dear. Success, comfort and approval are not evil, but they can quietly take the place of Christ. The old, old story reminds us what is worth having. The whole world is a poor trade for a soul that Jesus died to save.

11. 1 John 2:17

And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever. John is warning believers not to love the world, meaning the whole system of desire and pride that leaves God out. The hymn calls it this world's empty glory. Empty is the right word, because it is passing away. The last verse also looks ahead to another moment, when that world's glory is dawning on my soul, the hour of death, when heaven comes into view. Then too, Hankey asks, tell me the old, old story. The gospel is for the last hour as much as the first.

12. Acts 9:34

In Lydda, Peter found a man named Aeneas who had been paralyzed and bedridden for eight years. Peter said to him, Jesus Christ maketh thee whole: arise, and make thy bed. And he arose immediately. Hankey's hymn ends with almost the same words, Christ Jesus makes thee whole, set in quotation marks in the 1894 book like a verse being read aloud. Written from a sickbed, the line carries a double meaning. Jesus heals bodies, and He makes whole souls that sin has broken. That is the final message the singer wants to hear when life is ending: Christ makes you whole.

A short prayer

Lord Jesus, tell me again the old, old story of Your glory and Your love. I am weak and weary and I forget so soon. Thank You for that wonderful redemption, God's remedy for my sin. Keep me from drifting, and keep me from trading my soul for this world's empty glory. Give me friends who will tell me the story in times of trouble, and make me that kind of friend to others. And when my last hour comes, let me hear it once more: Christ Jesus makes you whole. 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.

New to this method? See our Bible study guide or pick a Bible reading plan.

Print the free Romans Road printable · See our Bible verses for kids · Read the gospel story with the SOAP Bible Study Journal

Frequently asked questions

Who wrote Tell Me the Old, Old Story?

Arabella Katherine Hankey (1834-1911), known as Kate Hankey, wrote the words in 1866 as the first part of a long poem about the life of Jesus, written while she was recovering from a serious illness. William Howard Doane (1832-1915) wrote the music in 1867.

How is Tell Me the Old, Old Story related to I Love to Tell the Story?

Both come from the same poem by Kate Hankey. The first part, The Story Wanted, became Tell Me the Old, Old Story, the voice of someone asking to hear the gospel. The second part, The Story Told, became I Love to Tell the Story, the voice of someone telling it. One asks and the other answers.

What Bible verses are behind Tell Me the Old, Old Story?

The old story is the gospel of 1 Corinthians 15:3-4: Christ died for our sins and rose again. The early dew line comes from Hosea 6:4, the request to tell it simply as to a little child echoes Matthew 18:3, and the last line, Christ Jesus makes thee whole, echoes Acts 9:34.

Is Tell Me the Old, Old Story in the public domain?

Yes. Hankey's words date from 1866 and Doane's tune from 1867, so both are in the public domain in the United States. The hymn may be printed and sung freely. Modern arrangements with added material may be under copyright, but the original words are not.

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: I Love to Tell the Story · Jesus Loves Me · Savior, Like a Shepherd Lead Us · Blessed Assurance · Romans Road · Salvation · Gospel Sharing · Word of God · Wonderful Words of Life (lyrics)

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