Elvina M. Hall (1820–1889) was an American hymn writer best known for her hymn “Jesus Paid It All.” She was born Elvina Maria Hall in Alexandria, Virginia, on June 4, 1820. Not much is widely known about her life, as she was a private individual and not a public figure. However, her hymnwriting has left a lasting impact on Christian worship.
The story behind “Jesus Paid It All” is an interesting one. The hymn was written in 1865 after Elvina Hall attended a church service in Washington, D.C., where a visiting evangelist named Major Daniel Webster Whittle preached. Major Whittle shared his testimony of the complete sufficiency of Christ’s atonement, emphasizing the line “Jesus paid it all,” and this deeply moved Elvina Hall.
After the service, she went home and composed the hymn based on the themes she had heard. She handed the poem to Major Whittle, who was also a musician, and he added the music. The hymn was first published in 1868 in a collection titled “Gospel Hymns No. 2” by Ira Sankey, a hymnbook associated with evangelists Dwight L. Moody and Ira D. Sankey.
The hymn “Jesus Paid It All” has since become a cherished and widely sung hymn in Christian worship, expressing the profound truth of the complete work of Christ’s redemption on the cross.
Here are the lyrics to the first verse and chorus of “Jesus Paid It All”:
I hear the Savior say, “Thy strength indeed is small; Child of weakness, watch and pray, Find in Me thine all in all.”
Jesus paid it all, All to Him I owe; Sin had left a crimson stain, He washed it white as snow.
Elvina M. Hall passed away on July 16, 1889, in Washington, D.C. While her life may not be extensively documented, her legacy lives on through the enduring impact of her hymnwriting.
