The Joy of Jesus

A benediction sung aloud, the song blesses the listener in three stages, each built on the same four-line pattern. First comes "the joy of Jesus," then "the grace of my God," then "the love of my Lord," and every stage moves from "be with you" to "may you know," so that a wish for presence turns into a wish for recognition.

One passage breaks the pattern and turns from abstract gifts to the body: "may you dance and laugh and sing," "the warmth of His embrace," "the brush of angel wings / Like the wind upon your face." After that image, the song returns to its opening phrase and repeats "the joy of Jesus" to the end, so joy is both the first thing offered and the last.

The structure follows the priestly blessing of Numbers 6:24-26, and the grace-and-love pairing is close to the closing greeting of 2 Corinthians 13:14. John 15:11, where Jesus speaks of His own joy being in His followers, matches the song's central request almost word for word.