Down On My Knees

A wanderer "in blackness of night," far from God, sets the scene before anything else happens. Then comes the recognition: "I saw I was lost," and with it the posture the song is named for, falling "upon my knees in prayer." The chorus keeps the action simple and repeated, "down on my knees, praying to my Lord ev'ry day," asking Jesus to "take my heavy burden away."

Opposition arrives midway in the chorus. "Old Satan" tells the singer the Bible is a lie, that Jesus does not love them, and that they are "doomed to die." The reply is not an argument. It is staying put: "But I stayed at my knees." The second verse is blunter about the starting point, "fallen so low in sin and in shame" that trusting His name seemed almost hopeless, until a voice lifted in despair was met by a Savior who "heard my humble prayer."

Psalm 34:6 describes a poor man who cried and was heard, Matthew 11:28 invites the weary and burdened to come, and 1 Peter 5:8 names the adversary the lyric personifies. Repentance here is persistence, and the burden lifts because Jesus answers.